Founding Product Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Founding Product Designer

Company: Granted

Location: New York City, New York, United States

Job Type: Full-time

Category: Product Design (with strong GTM implications)

Date Posted: 2026-06-02

Experience Level: Mid-Senior Level (4-7+ years)

Remote Status: Hybrid

🚀 Role Summary

• Spearhead the end-to-end product design strategy, encompassing UX/UI for mobile applications, web platforms, marketing sites, and internal tools, with a focus on transforming complex healthcare processes into intuitive and trustworthy user experiences.

• Establish and evolve a comprehensive design system, including components, patterns, and frameworks, to accelerate product development cycles and ensure design consistency across the organization.

• Drive product strategy and narrative by closely collaborating with engineering, product management, and executive leadership, ensuring coherence in user experience and brand representation.

• Champion a user-centric approach by integrating user research findings and product analytics to inform design decisions and advocate for user needs.

• Elevate the company's design culture through a commitment to craft, clear communication, iterative development, and effective cross-functional collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: While this role is for a Product Designer, its "Founding" nature and direct partnership with CEO and product management, along with the emphasis on driving product strategy and building from scratch, positions it closely to a GTM-adjacent role. The success of the product's user experience directly impacts market adoption and revenue generation, making a strong understanding of GTM principles beneficial.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Lead the design of user flows and interfaces for Granted's consumer-facing mobile apps, web platform, and marketing website, simplifying complex healthcare navigation and billing processes.

• Develop and maintain a robust design system from its foundational elements to its ongoing evolution, enabling rapid and consistent feature development across all product surfaces.

• Apply a high standard of visual design, including clean hierarchy, polished UI elements, and strong aesthetic judgment, to ensure all product touchpoints convey trust and modernity.

• Translate ambiguous problem spaces into clear concepts, functional prototypes, and well-reasoned design trade-offs for leadership review and decision-making.

• Conduct and leverage user research, usability testing, and product analytics to gain deep insights into user behavior and validate design solutions.

• Foster strong partnerships with engineering, product management, and the CEO, contributing to product strategy, defining user experience narratives, and ensuring end-to-end design coherence.

• Actively contribute to and elevate the company's design culture by setting a high bar for design quality, communication, iterative feedback loops, and collaborative problem-solving.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibility to "Apply excellent visual taste—clean hierarchy, polished UI, and strong aesthetic judgment" and "Bring clarity to ambiguity—turning fuzzy problem spaces into crisp concepts, prototypes, and smart tradeoffs for leadership to react to" highlights the need for strong strategic thinking beyond just execution, which is critical for a founding role impacting early market perception.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While no specific degree is mandated, a strong portfolio and demonstrated experience are paramount. A Bachelor's or Master's degree in Design, Human-Computer Interaction, or a related field is often a plus but not a strict requirement for exceptional candidates.

Experience: 4–7+ years of dedicated product design experience, with a proven track record of end-to-end ownership of consumer-facing applications. Experience in a 0-1 product development environment is highly desirable.

Required Skills:

• UX/UI Design: Proficient in crafting intuitive user experiences and polished user interfaces for both mobile and web applications.

• Design Systems: Demonstrated ability to build, document, and maintain design systems, including component libraries and style guides.

• Prototyping: Skilled in creating interactive prototypes using tools like Figma, Sketch, or Adobe XD to effectively communicate design concepts and test user flows.

• User Research: Experience conducting qualitative user research (interviews, usability testing) and interpreting findings to inform design decisions.

• Product Analytics: Ability to leverage quantitative data and analytics tools to understand user behavior and measure design impact.

• Visual Design: Excellent aesthetic judgment, with a strong sense of typography, color theory, layout, and brand consistency.

• Interaction Design: Deep understanding of user interaction principles and best practices for creating engaging and efficient user journeys.

• Communication: Exceptional verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to articulate design rationale clearly and concisely to technical and non-technical stakeholders.

• Ownership & Initiative: Proactive, resourceful, and comfortable making informed decisions with incomplete information, demonstrating true ownership of design outcomes.

Preferred Skills:

• Brand Design: Light experience with brand identity development or evolution.

• Healthcare Industry: Familiarity with the complexities of the US healthcare system, medical billing, or insurance.

• AI/ML Integration: Experience designing interfaces for AI-powered features or products.

• Marketing Site Design: Experience designing effective marketing websites that drive user acquisition.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "0-1 product work" and "owning and elevating design" suggests a need for a candidate who can not only execute but also define the design function and strategy from its inception, indicating a higher level of autonomy and strategic input expected from this role.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Showcase end-to-end product design processes, detailing problem identification, user research, ideation, wireframing, prototyping, UI design, and iteration based on user feedback and data.

• Include at least one comprehensive case study demonstrating the development of a user experience for a consumer-facing mobile or web application, ideally in a regulated or complex industry.

• Highlight contributions to or creation of design systems, showcasing components, patterns, and the impact on design consistency and development efficiency.

• Present visual design examples that demonstrate strong aesthetic judgment, clean hierarchy, and a high bar for polish.

• Clearly articulate the user needs and business objectives addressed by each project, along with the design decisions made and the resulting outcomes or learnings. Process Documentation:

• Demonstrate a structured approach to design problem-solving, including how ambiguity is managed and translated into actionable design solutions.

• Provide examples of how user research and product analytics were integrated into the design process to inform decisions and measure success.

• Illustrate experience in iterating on designs based on feedback from engineering, product management, and leadership.

• Showcase the ability to collaborate effectively with engineering teams, ensuring design feasibility and smooth implementation.

📝 Enhancement Note: Given the "Founding Product Designer" title, the portfolio is crucial. It needs to demonstrate not just execution skills but the ability to define and build design processes and systems from scratch, reflecting the 0-1 nature of the role. The emphasis on "clarity in ambiguous spaces" and "smart tradeoffs" suggests a need to see how the candidate navigates uncertainty in their case studies.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: $170,000 - $220,000 USD per year.

Benefits:

• Competitive Salary

• Equity options in a seed-stage, well-funded company.

• Comprehensive Health Insurance: Medical, Vision, and Dental coverage.

• One Medical Membership for convenient healthcare access.

• Mental Health Benefits to support well-being.

• Meal Allowance for daily expenses.

• Unlimited Paid Time Off (PTO) to encourage work-life balance.

• 401K Plan for retirement savings.

Working Hours: 40 hours per week. While a standard work week is expected, the hybrid nature and emphasis on "Move with Urgency and Focus" suggests flexibility in structuring work to achieve outcomes, particularly for the remote engineering team.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range is typical for a senior-level Product Designer in a high-cost-of-living area like New York City, especially for a founding role with significant impact and equity potential. The comprehensive benefits package reflects a startup environment prioritizing employee well-being and long-term investment.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Healthtech, specifically focused on improving the US healthcare system through AI and regulatory compliance to help consumers navigate medical bills and insurance.

Company Size: Seed-stage startup, well-funded with $17M in funding. This implies a small, agile team where individual contributions have a significant impact.

Founded: Founded by a former Oscar Health leader. This indicates strong leadership experience and a deep understanding of the healthcare industry's challenges and opportunities.

Team Structure:

• The core EPD (Engineering, Product, Design) team is small and collaborative, with the Product Designer working directly with the CEO and product management.

• Engineering is primarily remote across the US, requiring effective remote collaboration strategies.

• The design function is nascent, with this role being the primary designer responsible for building out the design philosophy and systems. Methodology:

• Data-Driven Decision Making: Emphasis on pairing user research with product analytics to ground design and product decisions in real user needs and observed behavior.

• Agile & Iterative Development: Characterized by "fast cycles," "moving quickly," and "iterative development," suggesting a lean and adaptable approach to product building.

• Ownership & Urgency: Core principles include "Move with Urgency and Focus" and "Own the Outcome," fostering a proactive and results-oriented environment.

• Cross-functional Collaboration: Strong emphasis on close partnerships between design, engineering, and product management to ensure cohesive product development.

Company Website: https://grantedhealth.com/

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Founding Product Designer" role implies a significant opportunity to shape the company's product vision and design ethos. The startup environment means close proximity to executive leadership and a direct line of influence on product strategy, which is a key differentiator for candidates seeking impact.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This role represents a critical "Founding" level position within the design function. It is beyond a typical mid-level designer and signifies an individual contributor with significant strategic influence and the potential to grow into a design leadership role. The scope includes defining the design function's trajectory.

Reporting Structure: The Founding Product Designer will likely report directly to the CEO or Head of Product, given the early-stage nature of the company and the direct partnership mentioned in the job description. This offers high visibility and direct access to executive decision-making.

Operations Impact: The product design directly impacts user adoption, trust, and retention in a highly sensitive sector (healthcare). Successful design translates complex healthcare navigation into simple, actionable steps, which is crucial for Granted's mission and its ability to generate revenue by saving users money and time. A strong design is a key driver of market differentiation and customer acquisition.

Growth Opportunities:

• Design Leadership: As the company scales, there will be clear opportunities to lead the design function, build and manage a design team, and define the long-term design strategy.

• Strategic Influence: Direct involvement in product strategy and roadmap definition, offering a chance to influence the company's direction beyond design execution.

• Skill Specialization: Opportunity to deepen expertise in consumer healthtech, AI-driven product design, and building foundational design systems.

• Impactful 0-1 Work: The chance to build a category-defining product from its earliest stages, creating a significant portfolio piece and career milestone.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Founding" title and explicit mention of "broader design leadership" opportunities as the company scales are key growth indicators. This is not just a design execution role but a foundational one with a clear path toward leadership.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Hybrid work model. This involves a combination of in-office collaboration in NYC and remote work, particularly with the engineering team.

Office Location(s): New York City, New York. This provides access to a vibrant tech and design ecosystem. The physical presence in NYC is for collaboration with product and leadership.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Hub: The NYC office serves as a central point for in-person collaboration with product and leadership teams, fostering rapid iteration and brainstorming.

• Tech-Enabled Environment: While specific tools aren't detailed here, expect modern design and collaboration software to support both in-office and remote interactions.

• Cross-functional Interaction: Frequent interaction with engineering (remote) and product management (likely co-located or hybrid), requiring strong communication and alignment skills.

Work Schedule: Standard 40-hour work week. The hybrid nature allows for flexibility, but the "Move with Urgency and Focus" principle suggests a results-oriented approach where work hours are structured to achieve objectives efficiently.

📝 Enhancement Note: The hybrid model in NYC is a significant factor. It balances the benefits of in-person collaboration for critical design strategy and team building with the flexibility of remote work, aligning with modern work trends while catering to specific operational needs for a startup.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: Review of resume and portfolio to assess experience, skills, and alignment with the role's requirements.

• Portfolio Presentation & Discussion: Candidates will likely present their portfolio, walking through key case studies, design process, and decision-making rationale. Expect questions about their approach to 0-1 product development, design systems, and handling ambiguity.

• Cross-functional Interviews: Meetings with engineering, product management, and potentially the CEO to assess collaboration style, strategic thinking, and cultural fit.

• Design Challenge (Potentially): A small, focused design exercise or take-home project to evaluate practical design skills, problem-solving abilities, and communication within a defined timeframe.

• Final Interview: Discussion with executive leadership to confirm alignment on vision, culture, and expectations for the role.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Tell a Story: Structure case studies to clearly articulate the problem, your role, the process, the solutions, and the measurable outcomes or learnings.

• Highlight 0-1 Experience: Emphasize projects where you built something from scratch, defined its direction, and navigated significant ambiguity.

• Showcase Design System Impact: If applicable, clearly demonstrate how your design system work improved efficiency, consistency, or scalability.

• Demonstrate User + Data Mindset: Explain how you used research and analytics to inform your design decisions and measure success.

• Articulate Trade-offs: Be ready to discuss difficult decisions, compromises made, and the rationale behind them.

• Focus on Polish & Craft: Ensure your portfolio presentation itself is well-designed, reflecting your visual taste and attention to detail.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the Problem Space: Familiarize yourself with Granted's mission, the healthcare industry's challenges, and the competitive landscape.

• Focus on User Needs: Approach any design challenge by first identifying the core user problem and validating assumptions.

• Prioritize & Scope: In a timed challenge, learn to prioritize key features or flows and make reasonable scope assumptions.

• Communicate Your Process: Clearly articulate your thought process, design decisions, and any assumptions made.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "0-1 product work," "clarity in ambiguous spaces," and "partnering tightly with engineering, Product Management, and the CEO" suggests interviewers will heavily scrutinize how candidates navigate uncertainty, make strategic decisions, and collaborate effectively in a lean startup environment.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Design & Prototyping: Figma is the industry standard for collaborative design and prototyping, highly likely to be the primary tool. Sketch and Adobe XD are also possibilities.

• Design Systems: Tools that facilitate the creation and maintenance of design systems, such as zeroheight, Storybook (for component documentation), or internal wikis/documentation platforms.

• User Research Platforms: Tools like UserTesting.com, Maze, Lookback, or SurveyMonkey for conducting remote usability tests and gathering feedback.

• Product Analytics: Platforms such as Amplitude, Mixpanel, or Google Analytics to track user behavior and measure feature adoption.

• Collaboration & Communication: Slack for real-time communication, Jira or Asana for task management (especially with engineering), and potentially Confluence for documentation.

Analytics & Reporting:

• Tools for tracking user engagement, conversion rates, and feature usage.

• Dashboards for visualizing key metrics and design performance.

CRM & Automation: While not directly a design tool, understanding how design impacts CRM workflows and user journeys within automated processes is beneficial.

📝 Enhancement Note: While the job description doesn't explicitly list tools, a Founding Product Designer in a seed-stage startup would typically be expected to be proficient in industry-standard design and prototyping tools like Figma, and to have experience in setting up or significantly contributing to design systems. Familiarity with analytics and user research tools is also critical for a data-driven approach.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Move with Urgency and Focus: Prioritize effectively and identify the most efficient paths to achieve goals, reflecting a startup's need for speed.

• Own the Outcome: Take full responsibility for projects from conception to completion, demonstrating initiative and accountability.

• Commit to Your Craft: Maintain a high standard for design quality, paying close attention to detail and striving for excellence in execution.

• Play to Win: A competitive and ambitious mindset focused on achieving market leadership and delivering significant value to users.

• Feedback is Fuel: Embrace intellectual honesty and actively seek/provide constructive feedback to drive continuous improvement.

• We’re One Team: Foster a collaborative spirit, valuing collective achievement and mutual support across all functions.

Collaboration Style:

• Close Partnership: High degree of collaboration with CEO, Product Management, and Engineering, requiring clear communication and shared understanding.

• Iterative & Feedback-Oriented: An environment that encourages regular feedback loops to refine designs and product direction quickly.

• Cross-functional Integration: Design is expected to be deeply integrated into the product development process, not a siloed function.

📝 Enhancement Note: The explicit list of company principles provides clear insight into the expected work ethic and collaboration style. Candidates should align with these values, particularly "Move with Urgency and Focus," "Own the Outcome," and "Commit to Your Craft," as they define the day-to-day operational tempo.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Building from Scratch: Establishing design processes, systems, and a cohesive UX identity for a product that is moving from early traction to scale.

• Navigating Ambiguity: Working in a fast-paced startup environment with evolving priorities and undefined problem spaces requires adaptability and strong problem-solving skills.

• Balancing Speed and Polish: The need to move quickly for rapid iteration while maintaining a high standard of design craft and user experience.

• Cross-functional Alignment: Ensuring consistent understanding and execution of design vision across a hybrid team, including remote engineers.

• Healthcare Complexity: Translating intricate and often frustrating healthcare processes into user-friendly experiences.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Foundational Design Leadership: Opportunity to build and shape a design function from the ground up, gaining experience in strategy, team building, and process creation.

• Deep Healthtech Expertise: Gaining in-depth knowledge of the healthcare industry, its regulatory landscape, and user needs.

• 0-1 Product Mastery: Extensive experience in launching and scaling a product in its critical early stages, a highly sought-after skill.

• Mentorship & Strategic Partnership: Direct mentorship and collaboration with experienced founders and leadership.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges are inherent to a "founding" role in a seed-stage company. The growth opportunities are significant, particularly for individuals aspiring to leadership roles and seeking to make a tangible impact on a product's trajectory.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "Describe your approach to building a design system from scratch for a 0-1 product. What are the key considerations and potential pitfalls?"

• "How would you translate a complex, potentially frustrating healthcare billing process into a simple, trustworthy user experience? Walk us through your thought process."

• "Given our fast-paced environment, how do you balance the need for rapid iteration with maintaining a high standard of design craft and polish?"

• "Tell us about a time you had to make significant design trade-offs due to technical constraints or business priorities. How did you navigate this?"

• "How do you integrate user research and product analytics into your design process, especially when dealing with ambiguous problems?" Company & Culture Questions:

• "How do you see your role as a Founding Product Designer contributing to Granted's mission and values, particularly 'Move with Urgency and Focus' and 'Commit to Your Craft'?"

• "Describe your ideal collaboration style with engineering, product management, and executive leadership."

• "What excites you most about the healthtech industry and the challenges of improving the US healthcare system?"

• "How would you contribute to building and elevating Granted's design culture?" Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Highlight 0-1 Projects: Focus on case studies that showcase your ability to start from scratch, define problems, and build solutions with limited existing structure.

• Showcase Design System Work: If you have experience building or significantly contributing to design systems, dedicate time to explaining their components, principles, and impact.

• Demonstrate Process & Rationale: Clearly articulate why you made certain design decisions, referencing user research, data, and business goals.

• Emphasize Collaboration: Mention how you worked with cross-functional teams (engineering, PM) throughout the design process.

• Quantify Impact: Where possible, use metrics to demonstrate the success of your designs (e.g., increased conversion rates, reduced support tickets, improved user satisfaction).

📝 Enhancement Note: Prepare to discuss your experience with ambiguity, design system creation, and balancing speed with quality. The interview will likely assess your ability to think strategically, operate autonomously, and collaborate effectively in a high-growth startup setting.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Product Design position:

• Submit your application through the provided link on Ashby.

• Curate Your Portfolio: Select 2-3 of your strongest case studies that best demonstrate your 0-1 product experience, design system contributions, and ability to handle complex user flows. Ensure your portfolio is polished and clearly communicates your design process and outcomes.

• Tailor Your Resume: Highlight experience relevant to consumer apps, design systems, user research, and working in fast-paced environments. Quantify achievements wherever possible.

• Prepare Your Narrative: Be ready to articulate your passion for Granted's mission, your understanding of the healthcare space, and how your skills align with the company's values and the role's requirements. Practice presenting your portfolio and answering behavioral questions related to ownership, collaboration, and problem-solving.

• Research Granted: Thoroughly understand Granted's mission, product, funding, and founding team. Familiarize yourself with the challenges in the US healthcare system and how AI can play a role.

⚠️ 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.