Google-owned Motorola Mobility on job hunt for wearables director

Motorola Mobility, which Google acquired in 2012 for $12.5 billion, is doing a serious talent search for a newly minted "Senior Director Industrial Design-Wearables," according to a recent job posting that lists Chicago as the job locale. It is not only job news but tech news, as a sideshow peek at what Motorola Mobility has in mind as it faces its highly competitive future. In short, Motorola Mobility is attempting to beef up a we-are-number-one, world class design group for computer wearables. The job posting said Motorola Mobility is looking for the right candidate who can "provide strategic leadership, champion innovation and institute best practices to create a new world-class wearable's design group within Motorola." The new hire will have someone to watch over him or her, as the new hire will report to the Senior Vice President of CXD, which is Motorola lingo for Consumer Experience Design.

According to the ad, the Senior Director of Industrial Design will define and execute design strategies for wearable devices. The organization is asking for at least seven years or more in a senior position of industrial design and a show of fifteen years' experience "in design of tech, consumer product and/or apparel." A Bachelors in design is required, and the ad also lists "postgraduate in related field."

The company said its ambition is to make Motorola a recognized leader in the design of all things mobile. "We will do this by creating product experiences that are lead [sic] by consumer insight and intuition, keen design sensibility and cutting edge technologies. We want our products and brand to be experienced and loved by millions of people worldwide. We want to create the new Motorola."

The "new Motorola" was the mantra last month, too, at the startup conference Techweek. The Motorola Mobility tech lead, Rachid Alameh, talked about wearables at the center of innovation and Jim Wicks, senior vice president of consumer experience design, spoke about Motorola Mobility reshaping itself to make mobile products with a difference. Wicks predicted that users will no longer be "hunched" over mobile devices, a clear indication that they will explore products that users can wear. Whoever gets the job will no doubt be encouraged to go forth and champion innovation, encouragement not only by Wicks but by ex-DARPA director Regina Dugan, who is now Motorola Mobility head of the Advanced Technology and Research Group.

Dugan spoke about wearables and bolder directions in wearables when she was on stage at the All Things Digital Conference in May. She revealed an electronic "tattoo" on her arm that she said was being explored as a patch which people could use as wearable body authentication. She said it was high time for a new path to authentication. "After 40 years of advances in computation, we're still authenticating basically the same way we did years ago."

She also displayed a concept of a daily vitamin pill used as wearable body authentication. In this instance, the person, she said, would ingest a pill with a small chip inside it with a switch.

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