Design Lead, Design Systems

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Design Lead, Design Systems

Company: Softline Solutions

Location: Glendale, CA

Job Type: Salaried Full-Time

Category: Design Operations / Product Design

Date Posted: September 11, 2026

Experience Level: Senior / Lead (8+ years with 3+ years in Design Systems Ownership)

Remote Status: On-site

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead the strategic development and ongoing evolution of a comprehensive design system supporting multiple brands (Closet by Design, Closet World, Brio Water).

• Drive high-quality visual design execution and establish benchmarks for all UX product teams.

• Foster deep collaboration with engineering to ensure design intent is accurately translated into shipped products.

• Define and implement robust governance, contribution workflows, and documentation for scalable design system adoption.

• Act as a key influencer in elevating brand identity and digital experience across consumer-facing platforms.

📝 Enhancement Note: While this role is in Design, its focus on system infrastructure, cross-functional collaboration with engineering, process definition (governance, contribution workflows), and ensuring consistent quality across multiple products aligns closely with the operational rigor expected in Revenue Operations, Sales Operations, and GTM roles. The emphasis on "owning" and "evolving" a system, and ensuring "quality follows the design all the way out the door," is a strong parallel to operational excellence.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Architect, build, maintain, and evolve a unified design system, including components, design tokens, guidelines, and comprehensive documentation, serving three distinct UX product teams.

• Conduct thorough audits of existing design states across all brands to identify system gaps, inconsistencies, and areas for improvement, developing a strategic roadmap to address them.

• Define and implement clear component architecture, versioning strategies, contribution workflows, and robust governance processes to ensure the design system scales effectively with team and product growth.

• Establish system architecture that prioritizes speed and efficiency without compromising design consistency and adherence to standards.

• Produce polished, high-fidelity visual design work for all three brands, including production-ready assets and forward-looking concept work that demonstrates the highest quality standards.

• Lead visual design execution for Closet World, elevating its digital experience and establishing a foundational quality benchmark for other teams.

• Develop future-state design concepts and explorations that envision the potential evolution of each brand's experience, pushing beyond current limitations.

• Challenge existing assumptions within the current user experience, bringing innovative ideas and strong design conviction supported by execution capabilities.

• Maintain alignment with leadership on the future direction of design initiatives, ensuring clear communication and shared vision.

• Collaborate closely with engineering teams to ensure accurate implementation of designs, owning the design-to-development handoff with precision and a clear quality standard.

• Ensure spec fidelity throughout the implementation process, acting as the design voice during development and actively reviewing shipped work to close quality gaps.

• Build and refine token pipelines and handoff documentation to facilitate efficient and accurate component implementation by engineers.

• Cultivate strong design-engineering relationships, fostering mutual understanding of constraints and ensuring shipped products accurately reflect design intent.

• Partner with embedded UX designers across each brand to ensure effective system adoption and maintain high output quality.

• Provide design direction, constructive feedback, and executional support to elevate the overall output of the broader design team.

• Facilitate ease of use for designers by providing clear documentation, reusable templates, and consistent hands-on collaboration.

• Utilize Figma and other relevant tooling to iterate designs at the speed required by the business.

• Balance urgent requests from brand teams with the long-term integrity of the design system, making informed trade-offs to maintain standards.

• Operate with a high degree of ownership and autonomy, proactively identifying and addressing areas for improvement without direct instruction.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities clearly indicate a need for strategic planning, process definition, cross-functional leadership, and a focus on execution quality, all of which are core tenets of operations roles. The emphasis on "owning," "evolving," "defining processes," and "driving quality" suggests a highly operational approach to design leadership.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While not explicitly stated, a Bachelor's degree in Graphic Design, Interaction Design, Human-Computer Interaction, or a related field is typically expected for roles at this level. Relevant certifications or a strong portfolio can often substitute for formal education.

Experience:

• 8+ years of professional design experience.

• Minimum of 3 years in a lead or senior individual contributor role with direct ownership of a design system.

• Proven experience working across multiple brands or products concurrently, maintaining system coherence in diverse contexts.

• E-commerce, consumer products, or Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) background is strongly preferred.

• Demonstrated track record of close collaboration with engineering teams throughout the design and development lifecycle. Required Skills:

• Exceptional visual design craft, with a strong point of view on aesthetics and execution at the highest level.

• Advanced proficiency in Figma, including mastery of variables, tokens, auto-layout, component architecture, and prototyping capabilities.

• Proven ability to think in systems, architecting design systems from principles to production and effectively communicating complex ideas to diverse stakeholders.

• Comprehensive understanding of design-to-development handoff processes, including reviewing live implementations and providing precise feedback.

• Strong experience in creating and maintaining design system components, design tokens, guidelines, and documentation.

• Ability to develop and execute high-fidelity UX flows, brand-level concept work, and future-state design visions.

• Deep understanding of engineering constraints and the ability to foster strong design-engineering partnerships.

• Demonstrated experience in auditing design states, identifying gaps, and developing strategic roadmaps for system improvement.

• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to give and receive direct design feedback confidently and constructively.

• High degree of self-direction, organization, and ability to manage multiple work streams across different brands simultaneously. Preferred Skills:

• Experience building a design system from a greenfield state.

• Familiarity with design token pipelines and associated tooling (e.g., Style Dictionary, Theo).

• Background in brand identity or brand systems work across multiple consumer brands.

• Experience working across both retail and DTC channels simultaneously.

• Foundational knowledge of front-end implementation concepts to effectively communicate with engineers.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "ownership," "process," "collaboration," and "driving quality" aligns with operational skill sets. The mention of "governance," "contribution workflows," and "system architecture" further reinforces the operational aspects of this design leadership role.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• A robust portfolio demonstrating both strong design system development and execution, showcasing your ability to create and maintain scalable systems alongside high-quality visual design.

• Case studies detailing your experience in owning and evolving design systems, including your approach to architecture, component definition, governance, and documentation.

• Examples of high-fidelity visual design work, demonstrating exceptional craft and attention to detail.

• Evidence of close collaboration with engineering, illustrating your process for design handoff, implementation review, and quality assurance.

• Projects that showcase your ability to work across multiple brands or products, maintaining consistency and coherence.

• Examples of future-state design explorations or concepts that demonstrate forward-thinking and brand elevation. Process Documentation:

• Showcase examples of design system documentation, including component guidelines, usage patterns, and contribution workflows.

• Present your approach to defining and implementing design tokens and their integration into development pipelines.

• Illustrate your methods for auditing existing design states, identifying gaps, and creating actionable improvement roadmaps.

• Provide evidence of your process for collaborating with engineers, including handoff protocols and feedback loops.

📝 Enhancement Note: The requirement for a portfolio that demonstrates both system ownership and execution, along with detailed process documentation, is crucial for operations roles. This highlights the need for candidates to present tangible evidence of their ability to build, manage, and optimize processes and systems.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: $155,000 - $180,000 USD per year.

Benefits:

• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance.

• Retirement savings plan with company match (e.g., 401(k)).

• Paid time off, including vacation, sick leave, and holidays.

• Opportunities for professional development, including training and conferences.

• Potential for performance-based bonuses.

• Employee discounts on company products/services.

Working Hours: Full-time, approximately 40 hours per week. While core hours are expected, there may be flexibility depending on project needs and team collaboration requirements.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range provided is within the typical band for senior/lead design roles in a high cost-of-living area like Glendale, CA, especially for specialized positions like Design Systems Lead. Benefits are standard for a full-time salaried position in the US tech/design industry.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Softline Solutions operates within the retail and e-commerce sectors, with a focus on home goods and consumer products (closets, water filtration). This context implies a need for user-centric design that drives conversion and customer satisfaction.

Company Size: With a presence on LinkedIn indicating a company size of 201-500 employees, Softline Solutions is a mid-sized company. This suggests a dynamic environment with opportunities for impact and influence, but also the potential for evolving processes and structures.

Founded: The company was founded in 1997, indicating a long-standing presence and established market position, which can translate to a blend of mature processes and a need for ongoing innovation.

Team Structure:

• The Design Systems team is likely embedded within a larger Product or Design department.

• This role will report to a Creative Director or Head of Product Design, with direct interaction with brand leadership.

• Close collaboration is expected with UX designers embedded across the Closet by Design, Closet World, and Brio Water product teams, as well as with front-end engineers. Methodology:

• Emphasis on a systems-thinking approach to design, ensuring consistency and scalability across multiple brands.

• Data-driven decision-making is implied, with a focus on user experience improvements and business impact (conversion, customer satisfaction).

• Agile or iterative development processes are likely, requiring flexibility and rapid iteration.

• Strong emphasis on craft and quality in visual design execution.

Company Website: softlinesolutions.com

📝 Enhancement Note: The company's multi-brand structure and established history suggest a need for strong operational frameworks to manage consistency and growth. The mid-size nature implies opportunities for individual impact on process and strategy.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This role is at a senior/lead individual contributor level, focusing on specialized expertise in design systems. It requires strategic thinking, hands-on execution, and leadership through influence. It’s a critical role for establishing and maintaining design quality and efficiency across multiple product lines.

Reporting Structure: The Design Lead, Design Systems will likely report to a Creative Director or Head of Product Design. They will work closely with product teams and engineering leads, influencing their work through the design system and direct collaboration.

Operations Impact: The design system directly impacts operational efficiency by standardizing components and workflows, reducing redundant design and development efforts. High-quality design execution, driven by this role, leads to improved user experience, increased customer engagement, and ultimately, enhanced revenue and brand perception across all Softline Solutions brands.

Growth Opportunities:

• Design System Maturity: Opportunity to mature and scale the design system, potentially expanding its scope and influence within the organization.

• Leadership Development: Potential to grow into a Design Systems Manager or Architect role, leading a dedicated team.

• Brand Impact: Direct influence on the digital presence and user experience of multiple established consumer brands, leading to significant professional recognition.

• Skill Expansion: Deepen expertise in areas like design token pipelines, front-end implementation concepts, and cross-brand brand strategy.

• Mentorship: Opportunity to mentor and elevate the skills of other UX designers within the organization.

📝 Enhancement Note: The growth path described emphasizes increasing scope, strategic influence, and leadership, mirroring career progression in operations roles where individuals move from execution to strategy and management.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: This is an on-site role, indicating a traditional office-based work environment.

Office Location(s): Glendale, CA. This location offers a vibrant business environment within the greater Los Angeles area.

Workspace Context:

• The workspace is expected to be collaborative, fostering close interaction with fellow designers and engineers.

• Access to industry-standard design tools and technology is a given, with Figma being a primary tool.

• Opportunities for regular hands-on collaboration with UX designers and engineers across different brands will be integral to the role.

Work Schedule: Standard full-time hours (approximately 40 hours per week) are expected, with the understanding that occasional flexibility may be required to meet project deadlines or critical implementation reviews.

📝 Enhancement Note: The on-site requirement emphasizes the importance of in-person collaboration and direct oversight, which can be beneficial for operational roles that require close team alignment and process enforcement.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A review of your resume and portfolio to assess qualifications and experience.

• Portfolio Presentation & Discussion: A deep dive into your portfolio, focusing on design system projects, visual design execution, and your approach to collaboration and problem-solving. Be prepared to articulate your process, decision-making, and impact.

• Design Challenge: Potentially a practical exercise or case study related to design systems, component building, or visual design critique.

• Team/Hiring Manager Interviews: Conversations to assess cultural fit, collaboration style, and strategic thinking. Expect questions about how you'd approach evolving the current system and partnering with engineering.

• Final Round: May involve discussions with senior leadership to evaluate strategic alignment and overall fit.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Showcase Both Sides: Clearly present examples of your design system work (architecture, governance, documentation) and your high-quality visual design execution. The job description explicitly states "you need to show us you can do both, not just one."

• Systematic Approach: For design system projects, detail your process: problem identification, system architecture, component creation, documentation, contribution workflows, and governance. Highlight the impact of your system.

• Craftsmanship: For visual design examples, ensure they are polished, demonstrate strong aesthetic principles, and align with brand identity.

• Collaboration Narrative: For projects involving engineering collaboration, explain your role, the challenges faced, how you communicated, and the outcome. Use specific examples of design-to-dev handoff and implementation review.

• Brand Flexibility: If possible, include examples showing how you've adapted designs or systems for different brands or contexts.

• Conciseness: While detailed, ensure your portfolio is easy to navigate and your key contributions are clear.

Challenge Preparation:

• Design System Thinking: Be ready to discuss how you'd audit an existing system, identify gaps, and propose improvements. Consider how you'd handle brand-specific needs within a unified system.

• Figma Proficiency: Be prepared to demonstrate your Figma skills, potentially through a live exercise or by discussing advanced techniques like variables, auto-layout, and component variants.

• Engineering Partnership: Think about how you'd approach a design-engineering collaboration challenge, such as ensuring accurate implementation of a complex component or resolving a discrepancy between design and build.

• Quality Standards: Articulate your definition of "quality" in design and how you ensure it's met in shipped products.

📝 Enhancement Note: The detailed interview and portfolio guidance is crucial for operations candidates, emphasizing the need to demonstrate not just skills but also process, methodology, and measurable impact, mirroring the expectations in operations roles.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Figma: The core tool for design system creation, UI design, prototyping, and collaboration. Proficiency in advanced features like variables, auto-layout, and component architecture is essential.

• Prototyping Tools: Integrated within Figma or standalone tools for creating interactive user flows.

Analytics & Reporting:

• While not explicitly mentioned for this design role, understanding how design impacts user behavior and business metrics is key. Familiarity with analytics platforms (e.g., Google Analytics, Mixpanel) and how to interpret user data to inform design decisions would be beneficial. CRM & Automation:

• Not directly applicable to this design role, but an understanding of how design impacts customer journeys within CRM or marketing automation platforms is a plus. Design System Tooling (Preferred):

• Design Token Management: Tools like Style Dictionary or Theo for managing design tokens and facilitating handoff.

• Handoff Tools: Features within Figma or dedicated tools that streamline the design-to-development handoff process.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on Figma and related design system tooling highlights the technical proficiency required. While not traditional "operations" tools, the systematic approach to managing these tools and their output aligns with operational principles of efficiency and standardization.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Craftsmanship: A deep commitment to the quality and detail of the output, ensuring that "what's shipped" meets the highest standards.

• Ownership: A proactive mindset where individuals take initiative to identify and solve problems, driving improvements without waiting for direction.

• Collaboration: A strong emphasis on working effectively with cross-functional teams, particularly engineering, to achieve shared goals and ensure successful product delivery.

• Efficiency & Speed: The ability to move quickly and iterate at the pace of business, while maintaining rigorous quality standards and making smart trade-offs.

• Continuous Improvement: A drive to elevate the team's output, raise the design bar, and build systems and products that have lasting impact.

Collaboration Style:

• Design-Engineering Partnership: Fostering a relationship where both disciplines understand each other's constraints and work symbiotically to deliver excellent products. This involves direct feedback, joint problem-solving, and shared ownership of the final output.

• Cross-Brand Alignment: Collaborating across three distinct brands to ensure system coherence while respecting individual brand identities.

• Influential Leadership: Providing clear direction, constructive feedback, and executional support to elevate the work of the broader UX team, leading through expertise and example.

• Open Feedback: Encouraging a culture where direct design feedback is given and received confidently and clearly, promoting continuous learning and improvement.

📝 Enhancement Note: The values emphasize ownership, quality, collaboration, and efficiency – all core to operational excellence. The collaborative style highlights the importance of cross-functional alignment and communication, critical for successful operations.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Balancing Brand Needs: Effectively managing and evolving a single design system to serve the distinct needs and visual identities of three different brands (Closet by Design, Closet World, Brio Water) without creating excessive complexity or fragmentation.

• Driving Adoption & Consistency: Ensuring widespread adoption and consistent application of the design system across all UX teams and product development cycles, moving beyond documentation to actual implementation.

• Bridging Design & Engineering: Maintaining spec fidelity and ensuring seamless translation of design intent into shipped code, particularly across different engineering teams or priorities.

• Defining "Future State": Developing and advocating for forward-looking design concepts that push brand experiences forward, balancing innovation with current business realities and technical feasibility.

• Pace vs. Quality: Navigating the inherent tension between the business's need for speed and the design team's commitment to maintaining high quality and system integrity.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Advanced Design System Architecture: Deepen expertise in scalable design system patterns, contribution models, and advanced governance strategies.

• Tooling & Automation: Explore and potentially implement advanced design token pipelines, automated testing for design systems, and enhanced design-to-dev handoff tools.

• Brand Strategy Integration: Develop a stronger understanding of brand identity and how design systems can strategically support and elevate brand positioning.

• Cross-Functional Leadership: Enhance skills in influencing product strategy and development processes through design advocacy and data-driven insights.

• Mentorship & Team Development: Gain experience in mentoring junior designers and contributing to the growth of the broader UX team.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges presented require strong problem-solving, strategic thinking, and process management skills, which are hallmarks of successful operations professionals. The growth opportunities focus on expanding operational scope and strategic influence.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "How would you approach auditing our current design state across three brands and what would be your first steps in developing a unified design system roadmap?" (Focus on process, audit methodology, prioritization)

• "Describe your experience collaborating with engineering. How do you ensure design intent is accurately implemented, and what’s your approach to reviewing shipped code?" (Highlight collaboration, feedback loops, quality assurance)

• "Imagine a scenario where a brand team needs a unique component that doesn't fit the existing system. How would you handle this request while maintaining system integrity?" (Demonstrate systems thinking, trade-off analysis, contribution workflow)

• "How do you define and measure the 'quality' of a design system and the design work it enables? What metrics would you track?" (Focus on impact, KPIs, operational reporting) Company & Culture Questions:

• "Based on your understanding of Softline Solutions and our brands, what opportunities do you see for design to drive business impact?" (Research company, brands, and connect design strategy to business goals)

• "How do you foster a collaborative environment between design and engineering teams, especially when working across multiple product lines?" (Discuss communication styles, conflict resolution, shared ownership)

• "What does 'ownership' mean to you in a design leadership role, and how have you demonstrated it in previous positions?" (Provide specific examples of initiative and problem-solving) Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Narrative Arc: For each case study, clearly articulate the problem, your role and process, the solutions you implemented (both system and visual design), and the measurable impact or outcomes.

• Systemic Thinking: For design system examples, walk through the architecture, component structure, governance model, and documentation strategy. Explain why you made certain decisions.

• Craftsmanship Showcase: Ensure your visual design examples are impeccably presented, highlighting aesthetic choices and attention to detail.

• Collaboration Evidence: Integrate descriptions of your collaboration with engineers and other stakeholders, showing how you navigated challenges and achieved successful outcomes.

• ROI Focus: Where possible, quantify the impact of your work – e.g., increased design velocity, reduced bug rates related to design implementation, improved user engagement metrics.

📝 Enhancement Note: The suggested interview questions are designed to probe for operational thinking, process management, cross-functional collaboration, and strategic impact, which are essential for success in operations roles. The portfolio presentation strategy emphasizes demonstrating tangible results and a structured approach.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Design Lead, Design Systems position:

• Submit your application through the provided link on the Softline Solutions careers portal.

• Portfolio Customization: Tailor your portfolio to highlight your most relevant design system projects, showcasing both your system architecture/governance expertise and your high-fidelity visual design execution. Ensure case studies clearly articulate your process, collaboration, and impact.

• Resume Optimization: Update your resume to emphasize keywords related to design systems, Figma, component architecture, design tokens, engineering collaboration, and leadership. Quantify achievements where possible, focusing on process improvements and quality enhancements.

• Interview Preparation: Practice articulating your design process, systems thinking, and collaboration strategies. Prepare to discuss your portfolio in detail, focusing on how you've driven quality and efficiency through design systems.

• Company Research: Familiarize yourself with Softline Solutions, Closet by Design, Closet World, and Brio Water. Understand their market positioning, target audiences, and current digital presence to better align your responses with their business objectives and operational needs.

⚠️ Important Notice: This enhanced job description includes AI-generated insights and operations industry-standard assumptions. All details should be verified directly with the hiring organization before making application decisions.

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