Founding Product Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Founding Product Designer

Company: Clera

Location: Copenhagen, Capital Region of Denmark, Denmark (Remote Optional, European time zones preferred)

Job Type: FULL_TIME

Category: Product Design / GTM Operations (Product Strategy)

Date Posted: 2026-09-05

Experience Level: Mid-Level to Senior (2-5 years)

Remote Status: Fully Remote (European time zones preferred)

🚀 Role Summary

• Spearhead end-to-end product design for an AI-native B2B SaaS operating system, focusing on transforming complex field service workflows into intuitive user experiences.

• Drive the 0-to-1 product development lifecycle, from initial concept and rapid prototyping to final shipped interfaces, directly influencing how businesses operate.

• Collaborate intimately with the founding team and engineers to define and execute a cohesive product vision, with opportunities to influence brand and marketing touchpoints.

• Leverage AI-assisted design tools and potentially contribute to frontend code (React/TypeScript) to accelerate development and enhance the product.

• Act as a key contributor in a seed-stage startup environment, requiring high ownership, adaptability, and a proactive approach to problem-solving.

📝 Enhancement Note: While the title is "Product Designer," the emphasis on "AI-native operating system for field service businesses," "complex workflows," and "0-to-1 product development" strongly aligns this role with strategic GTM (Go-To-Market) and operational thinking. The designer will be instrumental in defining the core operational processes users interact with and will need to understand how design impacts adoption and efficiency. This isn't just about aesthetics; it's about designing the operational backbone of a new business solution.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• End-to-End Product Design Ownership: Conceptualize, design, and deliver user interfaces for a feature-rich B2B SaaS platform, ensuring a seamless and intuitive user journey from ideation to deployment.

• User-Centric Research & Translation: Conduct customer interviews and user research to gather critical insights, translating complex operational needs and user feedback into actionable design decisions and product enhancements.

• Interface Simplification & Optimization: Design elegant solutions for intricate, multi-feature B2B interfaces, focusing on clarity, usability, and efficiency to make daily business operations feel effortless.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with frontend engineers on a React and TypeScript stack, contributing to design implementation and potentially prototyping or contributing code where beneficial.

• 0-to-1 Product Development: Drive the initial stages of product creation, shaping the user experience and core functionalities of a new operating system from its inception.

• Broader Design Contributions: Support evolving business needs by contributing to marketing collateral, brand identity elements, and other design-related initiatives as the company scales.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "complex workflows" and "AI-native operating system" suggests a need to deeply understand the operational challenges faced by field service businesses. The designer will be responsible for mapping these workflows and designing interfaces that streamline them, directly impacting the operational efficiency of Clera's customers. This goes beyond typical UI/UX to encompass the design of operational processes within the software.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While no specific degree is mandated, a strong portfolio demonstrating exceptional design capabilities and a proven track record in product development is paramount. Exceptional recent graduates with a demonstrable history of building and shipping projects are encouraged to apply.

Experience:

• Minimum of 3 years of professional product design experience.

• Proven experience designing complex, feature-rich B2B products, ideally within an early-stage startup environment.

• Demonstrated success in 0-to-1 product development, with a portfolio showcasing shipped work from well-regarded early-stage companies.

• Experience conducting customer interviews and effectively integrating user feedback into design processes. Required Skills:

• Product Design: Expertise in the full product design lifecycle, from user research and wireframing to high-fidelity prototyping and final UI design.

• Figma Proficiency: Advanced skills in Figma for creating intricate user interfaces, interactive prototypes, and design systems.

• User Research & Interviewing: Ability to plan, conduct, and analyze user interviews to extract actionable insights for product improvement.

• B2B SaaS Design: Proven experience designing for business-to-business software, understanding the unique challenges and user needs of enterprise clients.

• 0-to-1 Product Development: Experience bringing new products or features from concept to market in a lean, agile environment.

• Interface Design: Skill in simplifying complex functionality into intuitive and aesthetically pleasing user interfaces.

• Collaboration & Communication: Strong ability to work effectively with cross-functional teams, particularly engineers, and articulate design decisions clearly.

Preferred Skills:

• AI-Assisted Design Tools: Familiarity or experience with AI tools like Lovable or Cursor for rapid prototyping and design assistance.

• Frontend Development (React/TypeScript): Comfort or willingness to prototype and potentially contribute code in React and TypeScript.

• Brand & Marketing Design: Experience contributing to brand identity, marketing materials, or other visual communication elements.

• Startup Environment Acumen: Demonstrated ability to thrive in a fast-paced, seed-stage startup, operating with high ownership and minimal oversight.

📝 Enhancement Note: The requirement for "longer tenures at previous roles (around 18 months or more)" indicates a desire for candidates who demonstrate commitment and the ability to see projects through to completion in a startup setting, which often involves navigating ambiguity and delivering tangible results over a sustained period. This implies an expectation of deep involvement in the product lifecycle.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Shipped Work Showcase: A portfolio that prominently features completed B2B SaaS products or significant features, demonstrating the impact of your design contributions.

• 0-to-1 Product Development Case Studies: Detailed case studies illustrating your process in taking a product or feature from conception to launch in an early-stage environment.

• User Research Integration: Evidence within case studies of how user interviews and research directly informed design decisions and led to measurable improvements.

• Complex Workflow Simplification: Examples showcasing your ability to design intuitive interfaces for complex, multi-feature B2B applications.

• Prototyping & Iteration: Demonstrations of rapid prototyping skills, utilizing tools like Figma and potentially AI-assisted tools, with examples of iterative design processes.

Process Documentation:

• Workflow Design & Optimization: Showcase examples of how you mapped, analyzed, and simplified complex operational workflows for end-users within software.

• User-Centered Design Process: Document your approach to user research, from planning and execution to synthesizing findings and translating them into design requirements.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Illustrate how you collaborated with engineering and other stakeholders to ensure successful product implementation, possibly including examples of code contributions or close collaboration on technical aspects.

• Impact Measurement: Demonstrate how you measured the success of your designs, using metrics or qualitative feedback to show the impact on user experience and business objectives.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a "Founding Product Designer" role, the portfolio is critical. It needs to go beyond just UI visuals to demonstrate a deep understanding of user workflows, problem-solving for complex B2B scenarios, and the ability to deliver tangible results in a startup context. The emphasis on "0-to-1" means showcasing the entire journey, including initial problem definition and validation.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: $100,000 to $180,000 USD annually.

Benefits:

• Visa sponsorship is available for eligible candidates.

• Opportunity to shape the product and company from its foundational stages.

• Equity/stock options (implied for a founding role at a seed-stage company, though not explicitly stated).

• Potential for significant professional growth and impact within a rapidly scaling startup.

• Collaborative and innovative work environment.

Working Hours: Approximately 40 hours per week, typical for a full-time role. The fully remote nature offers flexibility, with a preference for candidates within European time zones to facilitate collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range is provided in USD, which is common for early-stage tech startups even with international teams. However, candidates in Denmark or other European locations should consider local cost of living and tax implications when evaluating this range. The "Founding" nature of the role strongly suggests that equity or stock options would be a significant part of the compensation package, though not explicitly listed. Visa sponsorship indicates a commitment to hiring globally.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Technology, specifically B2B SaaS, focused on field service management and AI-driven operating systems.

Company Size: Seed-stage startup. This implies a small, agile team where each member has a significant impact and broad responsibilities.

Founded: Clera is a relatively new company, likely founded within the last few years, aiming to disrupt the field service industry with AI.

Team Structure:

• Founding Team: Close-knit group of founders with a shared vision.

• Early Hires: This role will be one of the first product/design hires, working directly alongside founders and initial engineering talent.

• Cross-functional Collaboration: High degree of direct collaboration between design, engineering, and founding leadership.

Methodology:

• AI-Native Approach: Leveraging artificial intelligence as a core component of the product's functionality and user experience.

• Lean & Agile Development: Rapid iteration and development cycles, characteristic of seed-stage startups.

• User-Centric Design: Emphasis on understanding and addressing real customer needs through direct interaction and feedback loops.

• Data-Driven Decisions: Utilizing insights from user research and product performance to inform design and strategic direction.

Company Website: https://www.getclera.com/

📝 Enhancement Note: As a seed-stage company, Clera is likely building its operational processes and culture from the ground up. The "Founding Product Designer" will play a crucial role in establishing design best practices and influencing the company's product-led culture. The focus on "AI-native" and "complex workflows" suggests a company aiming for deep technical innovation and operational efficiency for its clients.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: Founding Product Designer. This is a pivotal early-stage role with significant autonomy and direct impact on the company's trajectory. It's beyond a typical mid-level designer role due to the "founding" aspect and the need to establish product strategy from scratch.

Reporting Structure: Likely reports directly to a Co-founder or CEO, given the early stage and the "founding" nature of the role.

Operations Impact: The product designer will directly shape the core operational software used by field service businesses. Their designs will dictate how users manage their day-to-day operations, impacting efficiency, customer satisfaction, and revenue for Clera's clients. This role is intrinsically linked to the operational success of the business.

Growth Opportunities:

• Product Strategy Leadership: Evolve into a Product Lead or Head of Design role as the company grows, potentially managing a design team.

• Deep Domain Expertise: Become an expert in the field service industry and AI-driven operational software.

• Influence & Ownership: Gain significant influence over product direction, company culture, and strategic decisions.

• Skill Expansion: Develop skills in coding (React/TypeScript), AI tool integration, and potentially broader GTM strategy.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Founding" title implies a high level of responsibility and potential for rapid career advancement. This role is an opportunity to build a design function and strategy from the ground up, offering a unique growth trajectory not typically found in later-stage companies.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Fully Remote. This offers flexibility in location, with a preference for candidates in European time zones (e.g., Denmark, France, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland) or the US East Coast to facilitate collaboration with the core team.

Office Location(s): While fully remote, the primary company location is Copenhagen, Denmark. This suggests that the team may have a strong European cultural influence.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Remote Setting: Expect frequent video calls, Slack communication, and collaborative design sessions using tools like Figma.

• Technology Stack: Access to modern design and development tools, including Figma, AI-assisted design software (Lovable, Cursor), and a React/TypeScript frontend.

• Team Interaction: Opportunities for close interaction with founders and engineers, fostering a strong sense of team cohesion despite the remote setup.

Work Schedule: Flexible, aligned with a full-time commitment (approx. 40 hours/week). The preference for European time zones indicates a desire for overlap with core team working hours for synchronous collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The preference for European time zones is a key operational consideration for remote collaboration. Candidates should be prepared for active participation during these overlapping hours, which may require adjustments for US-based candidates.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: Review of resume and portfolio to assess experience, skills, and cultural fit.

• Portfolio Presentation & Discussion: A session where you present your portfolio, highlighting relevant B2B SaaS and 0-to-1 product design case studies, and discuss your design process and impact.

• Design Challenge/Exercise: Potentially a practical exercise to assess your problem-solving skills, design thinking, and ability to simplify complex requirements. This might involve a take-home assignment or a live design session.

• Founder/Team Interviews: In-depth discussions with the founding team to evaluate your strategic thinking, ownership mentality, and alignment with the company's vision and values.

• Technical/Coding Discussion (Optional): If you have frontend experience, there might be a discussion about your comfort level with React/TypeScript.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Focus on Impact: Clearly articulate the problem you solved, your process, and the quantifiable or qualitative impact of your design. Use metrics where possible.

• Showcase 0-to-1: Dedicate significant space to projects that demonstrate your ability to build products from scratch, including user research, validation, and iteration.

• B2B Complexity: Highlight examples of designing for complex business workflows and enterprise users.

• Figma & Prototyping: Demonstrate proficiency with Figma and showcase interactive prototypes.

• Conciseness: Present your strongest, most relevant work clearly and concisely.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the Domain: Research the field service industry and common operational challenges.

• Think Operationally: Consider how design impacts efficiency, workflow, and data management for businesses.

• AI Integration: Be prepared to discuss how AI can enhance operational processes through design.

• Startup Mindset: Emphasize your ability to work autonomously, take ownership, and adapt quickly.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Founding" nature of this role means interviewers will be looking for more than just design skills. They'll be assessing your strategic thinking, your ability to operate with ambiguity, and your potential to be a foundational member of the team. Be ready to discuss your vision for product design at Clera and how you'd approach building it.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Figma: Core tool for UI/UX design, wireframing, prototyping, and design system development.

• AI-Assisted Design Tools: Lovable, Cursor, or similar tools for rapid prototyping, AI-powered design assistance, and potentially code generation.

Analytics & Reporting:

• While not explicitly listed for the designer, expect to work with data from user analytics platforms (e.g., Amplitude, Mixpanel) to inform design decisions. CRM & Automation:

• Not directly a designer's tool, but understanding how CRM and automation systems impact user workflows in B2B SaaS is beneficial. Development Stack (for collaboration):

• React: Frontend JavaScript library used for building user interfaces.

• TypeScript: A superset of JavaScript that adds static typing, enhancing code quality and maintainability.

📝 Enhancement Note: The explicit mention of AI-assisted tools like Lovable and Cursor is significant. Candidates should be prepared to discuss their experience or willingness to learn and integrate these emerging technologies into their design workflow. Familiarity with React/TypeScript, even if not for direct coding, will facilitate better collaboration with the engineering team.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• High Ownership: Taking responsibility for outcomes and proactively driving initiatives forward.

• Low Ego: Prioritizing the best solution and team success over individual recognition.

• User-Centricity: Deeply understanding and prioritizing the needs of the end-user.

• Efficiency & Simplicity: Striving to make complex processes intuitive and easy to manage.

• Innovation: Embracing new technologies, particularly AI, to solve problems.

• Collaboration: Working effectively and transparently with all team members.

Collaboration Style:

• Direct & Transparent: Open communication channels, especially in a remote, early-stage environment.

• Cross-Functional Integration: Seamless collaboration between design, engineering, and product leadership.

• Feedback-Oriented: Culture of constructive feedback to drive continuous improvement.

• Agile & Iterative: Working in short cycles, adapting based on feedback and new insights.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "low ego, high ownership" combination is a classic startup mantra. It signifies a need for someone who is not afraid to roll up their sleeves, take initiative, and be accountable for results, while also being a team player who values collective success.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Defining a New Product: Building an AI-native operating system from the ground up involves significant ambiguity and the need to establish foundational product strategy and design patterns.

• Simplifying Complexity: Translating intricate field service operational workflows into an intuitive and user-friendly interface requires deep problem-solving and design thinking.

• Remote Collaboration: Maintaining strong team cohesion and effective communication in a fully remote, seed-stage environment.

• Balancing Speed and Quality: The startup pace demands rapid iteration, which can be challenging when aiming for high-quality, user-centric design.

• AI Integration: Effectively integrating AI capabilities into the user experience in a way that adds genuine value and isn't just a novelty.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Product Strategy: Gain in-depth experience in shaping product strategy from its earliest stages.

• AI in Design: Become proficient in leveraging AI tools and understanding AI's impact on product design.

• Technical Skills: Develop or refine skills in React and TypeScript through close collaboration with engineers.

• Leadership Potential: Grow into a leadership role within a scaling tech company.

• Industry Expertise: Become a specialist in the field service technology sector.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges presented are inherent to a "founding" role in a seed-stage startup. The growth opportunities directly address how overcoming these challenges can lead to significant professional development and career advancement.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "How would you approach designing an AI-native operating system for field service businesses from scratch?" (Focus on your process, user research, and initial feature prioritization.)

• "Describe a time you simplified a complex B2B workflow through design. What was the outcome?" (Highlight your problem-solving, design choices, and impact.)

• "Given our focus on AI, how might you leverage AI-assisted tools like Lovable or Cursor to accelerate our design process?" (Showcase your understanding of emerging technologies and their practical application.)

• "How do you prioritize features and design decisions when working with limited resources and tight deadlines in a startup?" (Emphasize your strategic thinking, trade-offs, and ability to focus on impact.) Company & Culture Questions:

• "Why are you interested in Clera and our mission to revolutionize field service operations?" (Show your research and alignment with the company's vision.)

• "Describe your ideal work environment and how you thrive in a remote, early-stage startup." (Highlight your ownership, low-ego mentality, and collaborative spirit.)

• "How do you handle ambiguity and operate without detailed specifications or product managers?" (Demonstrate your proactive approach and self-sufficiency.)

• "What are your expectations for collaborating with engineers on a React/TypeScript stack?" (Show your willingness to work closely with development and potentially contribute.) Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure: Organize your presentation logically, starting with the problem, your role, the solution, and the impact.

• Storytelling: Craft a narrative around each case study that engages the listener.

• Visuals: Use clear, high-quality visuals of your designs and prototypes.

• Metrics: Quantify your impact whenever possible (e.g., increased user engagement, reduced task completion time, improved satisfaction scores).

• Process Detail: Explain your design process, including user research, ideation, iteration, and collaboration.

• Conciseness: Be mindful of time and focus on your most relevant and impactful projects.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a founding role, interviewers are looking for a candidate who can think strategically, act autonomously, and contribute to the foundational elements of the company. Be prepared to discuss not just what you designed, but why, and how it impacted the business and its users.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this founding product design position:

• Submit your application through the provided link on Ashby.

• Portfolio Customization: Tailor your portfolio to highlight your strongest B2B SaaS, 0-to-1 product development, and complex workflow simplification case studies. Emphasize your design process and measurable impact.

• Resume Optimization: Ensure your resume clearly articulates your experience with startups, B2B products, and your proficiency with design tools like Figma. Quantify achievements where possible.

• Interview Preparation: Practice presenting your portfolio and articulating your design philosophy. Be ready to discuss your approach to user research, collaboration, and working in an early-stage, remote environment.

• Company Research: Thoroughly research Clera, its mission, the field service industry, and the potential of AI in this sector. Understand their current product (if publicly available) and think critically about its design and user experience.

⚠️ 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.