You think in systems and business outcomes
You understand the P&L and the competitive landscape, and you can explain how a design decision affects retention, LTV, conversion, or differentiation. You look for root causes: when the same mistakes keep happening, you fix the process that’s causing them.
You thrive in strategic ambiguity
You’re comfortable when both the problem and the solution are undefined. You run discovery that defines new product directions, and you create frameworks that help others work through uncertainty. You can make high-stakes calls with incomplete information.
Your craft is a reference point
Your work is detailed, handles edge cases thoroughly, and is used as an example for the team. You use high-quality prototypes and clear storytelling to get executives and partners behind an idea.
You lead without a title
You act as a design leader with or without formal authority. You build alignment among stakeholders with competing priorities and take ownership of outcomes beyond your own team.
You’ve designed for complexity at scale
Your portfolio shows dashboards, enterprise tools, or analytics platforms where you owned the direction, not just the screens. You can talk about sampling, statistical significance, and data pipelines with data scientists and engineers.
You keep learning and help others learn
You follow emerging technologies like AI and what they mean for design, you’re open to contrarian views, and you encourage experimentation and learning from failure.
7+ years of experience
Including significant time leading design for complex products. Experience with data-heavy or enterprise products is a strong plus. Bachelor’s degree in Design, HCI, or equivalent professional experience (formal education not required).
Strong portfolio
Show us how you shaped direction on ambiguous problems, the trade-offs you negotiated, and the measurable business impact of your work.
Proficiency in design tools
Expert in Figma and prototyping tools. You build advanced prototypes that feel like the real product.