Senior Product Designer

Aquent is proud to partner with a leading organization dedicated to fostering achievement and opportunity through innovative programs and services. This institution plays a critical role in empowering individuals on their educational journey, impacting countless lives through thoughtful design and strategic initiatives. Join a team committed to creating accessible and equitable pathways for success.

Are you a visionary Senior Product Designer ready to make a profound impact on the future of user experiences? We are seeking a highly skilled, thoughtful, and user-centered practitioner to join a dynamic team, where your passion for designing products and experiences that meet real user needs will directly shape the strategic direction and success of critical platforms. This is an exciting opportunity to drive product discovery, define design strategy, and guide solutions from initial concept through to delivery, truly influencing the landscape of user engagement.

As a Senior Product Designer, you will be instrumental in connecting the dots between research, design, engineering, and the organization's overarching mission. You will bring clarity to complex challenges, balancing a holistic vision with hands-on execution, ensuring every design decision is focused on maximum impact. Your expertise will not only enhance product functionality but also champion inclusive design principles, advocating for users at every stage.

*What You'll Do*

Your responsibilities will encompass the full spectrum of product design, from early-stage discovery to high-quality implementation, contributing significantly to both product development and design culture.

**Product Discovery and Design Strategy**

* Apply advanced design thinking methodologies to deeply understand user needs, reframe complex problems, and drive the creation of intuitive, scalable, and human-centered product solutions within intricate ecosystems.

* Conduct and synthesize generative, formative, and evaluative research using diverse methods such as user interviews, usability testing, and surveys.

* Facilitate collaborative workshops and co-creation sessions to align cross-functional teams and uncover strategic opportunities.

* Transform user, behavioral, and operational data into actionable insights that inform product decisions.

* Influence prioritization and road-mapping efforts by strategically connecting user needs with business goals and the organizational mission.

* Champion human-centered and inclusive design principles across all initiatives.

* Utilize strategic storytelling to effectively communicate design vision, value, and direction to stakeholders.

**Design Execution and Delivery**

* Collaborate closely with product and engineering teams to translate concepts into detailed, production-ready designs, producing essential artifacts such as user flows, sitemaps, wireframes, prototypes, and high-fidelity UI designs.

* Apply and contribute to robust design systems, ensuring visual and functional consistency across all products.

* Craft and test content using plain language principles to ensure clarity and accessibility for all users.

* Conduct comprehensive usability tests, user research, and A/B tests to rigorously validate design decisions.

* Perform accessibility audits to ensure designs meet and exceed inclusive standards.

* Design for responsive, mobile-first experiences, including mobile applications.

* Leverage Artificial Intelligence tools proficiently to accelerate wireframing, rapid prototyping, and design exploration, integrating AI as an active thought partner throughout the design process.

* Utilize industry-standard tools like Figma, Miro, Zeplin, Lyssna, and Dscout to design and document your work.

**Collaboration and Communication**

* Engage in seamless collaboration with product managers, engineers, researchers, leadership, and other stakeholders throughout the entire design and development lifecycle.

* Actively participate in agile ceremonies including standups, sprint planning, design reviews, design critiques, and QA cycles.

* Translate complex design decisions into clear, concise specifications for implementation by engineering teams.

* Present ideas, research findings, and designs with confidence and clarity to diverse audiences.

* Contribute to broader design operations, including the development of shared tools, systems, and templates that benefit the entire organization.

**Growth and Culture**

* Mentor junior designers or peers through pairing sessions and constructive feedback.

* Continuously invest in personal development, staying abreast of emerging tools, trends, and thought leadership, and sharing these insights with the team.

* Support design education efforts, including leading lunch & learns, participating in design critiques, and contributing to internal documentation.

* Participate in hiring and onboarding activities, helping to grow and strengthen the design team.

**What You'll Bring**

**Required Skills & Experience**

* A portfolio of your work demonstrating strong UX and UI capabilities.

* A Bachelor's degree in a related field (e.g., interaction design, HCI, industrial design, information science, social sciences, computer science, graphic design) and/or equivalent years of relevant work experience.

* 5-7 years of experience in product or service design.

* Proven experience designing complex, data-heavy dashboards, particularly within industries such as fintech, edtech, health tech, or enterprise SaaS, with a focus on usability and clarity.

* Skilled in leading focus groups, interviews, and usability testing, with a demonstrated ability to translate insights into actionable product decisions.

* A product design mindset and extensive experience designing for complex, content-rich websites and applications, including strong proficiency in creating and communicating design artifacts such such as user flows, wireframes, prototypes, and high-fidelity UI designs.

* Proficiency in design thinking and human-centered methodologies, with the ability to reframe challenges and translate insights into actionable design direction.

* Strong skills in information design, user flows, wireframes, prototypes, and high-fidelity UI design, with fluency in tools like Figma, Zeplin, Dscout, and Lyssna.

* A strong understanding of design systems, responsive design, and accessibility standards, including designing for web and native mobile platforms.

* A commitment to inclusive, ethical, and user-centered design, with the ability to write and test content using plain language principles.

* Curiosity and adaptability; you are self-motivated, continuously learning, excited by emerging tools and trends, and proficient with AI tools, actively using them to accelerate wireframing, prototyping, and design thinking.

* Ability to travel at a minimum of 3-5 times a year to offices or client/user sites to engage with stakeholders.

* Authorization to work in the United States.

**Must-Have Qualifications**

* Consultative approach to design challenges.

* Expertise in designing complex, data-heavy dashboards.

* Mastery of information design, user flows, wireframes, prototypes, and high-fidelity UI design, with fluency in Figma, Zeplin, Dscout, and Lyssna.

* Demonstrated experience leading focus groups, interviews, and usability testing.

* Strong product design mindset.

* Proficiency in design thinking and human-centered methodologies.

* A strong design portfolio showcasing exceptional UX and UI capabilities.

* Strong initiative and communication skills, with a track record of effective cross-functional collaboration.

* Comprehensive understanding of design systems, responsive design, and accessibility standards.

**Nice-to-Have Qualifications**

* Experience with iOS and Android Native systems for mobile app design.

* Comfort discussing technical constraints and collaborating with engineers to ensure design feasibility, with experience in front-end technologies being a plus.

**About Aquent Talent**

Aquent Talent connects the best talent in marketing, creative, and design with the world's biggest brands.

Our eligible talent get access to amazing benefits like subsidized health, vision, and dental plans, paid sick leave, and retirement plans with a match.

Aquent is an equal-opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, and other legally protected characteristics. We're about creating an inclusive environment-one where different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives are valued, and everyone can contribute, grow their careers, and thrive.

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