Senior Product Designer I

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Senior Product Designer I

Company: Axon

Location: Seattle, Washington, United States (with flexibility for remote work near US R&D Hubs)

Job Type: Full-Time

Category: Product Design, Design Systems, UX Design

Date Posted: 2025-06-09T19:49:48

Experience Level: Senior (6+ years)

Remote Status: Remote OK (near US R&D Hubs)

🎨 Role Summary

• Lead the strategic design and implementation of Axon's Spark Design System, crucial for a major flagship product redesign.
• Champion the adoption and evolution of the design system across Axon's extensive product ecosystem, ensuring consistency and efficiency.
• Collaborate closely with cross-functional product and engineering teams to expand the design system, meeting diverse product needs and workflows.
• Integrate cutting-edge AI tools and technologies to enhance the design system's development, maintenance, and scalability.
• Define and track key success metrics to demonstrate the tangible impact and value of the design system to stakeholders and the broader organization.
• Conduct rigorous usability research and testing on system components to maintain effectiveness, consistency, and adherence to accessibility standards.
• Partner with product and feature teams to align platform and systems strategies, ensuring seamless and cohesive user experiences across all touchpoints.
• Stay abreast of design industry trends, emerging technologies, and customer insights to inform strategic design decisions and maintain a competitive edge.
• Shape global design patterns, vision, and processes that guide the user experience, contributing to Axon's overall design excellence.
• Serve as a design mentor and advocate, raising the visual design bar and promoting tool proficiency within the design team and across the company.

🖼️ Primary Responsibilities

• Lead the design and technical delivery of the Spark Design System components and documentation for a significant redesign initiative.
• Drive the adoption and evangelization of the design system across multiple product teams, providing guidance and support for its implementation.
• Work collaboratively with software engineers to ensure accurate translation of design system components into code, maintaining visual and functional integrity.
• Define and refine design tokens, component specifications, and usage guidelines within the design system documentation.
• Conduct usability testing specifically on design system components and patterns to identify areas for improvement and ensure ease of use for both designers and developers.
• Integrate automated accessibility checks and ensure all design system elements comply with WCAG standards.
• Partner with product managers to prioritize design system backlog items based on business needs and impact across the product portfolio.
• Develop and maintain a robust versioning and release process for the design system, communicating updates and changes effectively to stakeholders.
• Contribute to the development of a shared understanding of design principles and best practices across design, product, and engineering teams.
• Research and evaluate new design tools, technologies, and methodologies that can enhance the design system and overall design workflow.
• Provide mentorship and guidance to other designers on design system usage, contribution, and best practices.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: Master’s degree or equivalent experience in Human-Computer Interaction, Human Factors, Interaction Design, or a related design field.

Experience: 6+ years of progressive experience in product design, with a minimum of 2 years specifically leading design systems for medium to high-complexity digital products. A strong portfolio showcasing design system contributions and complex product design work is essential.

Required Skills:

• Extensive experience designing and scaling comprehensive design systems for complex digital products.
• Deep understanding of design thinking methodologies, user-centered design principles, and iterative design processes.
• Proficiency in conducting UX research, including diverse methodologies and data analysis techniques, to inform design system decisions and validate components.
• Strong visual design skills with a keen eye for detail, typography, color theory, and layout.
• Mastery of industry-standard design tools, particularly Figma, including advanced features for component creation, variants, and design system management.
• Experience designing for multiple platforms (web, mobile) and interaction modalities (touch, mouse, keyboard).
• Solid understanding of front-end development possibilities and constraints ('what can be built' and 'how to build it').
• Proven ability to collaborate effectively with product managers, engineers, and other stakeholders throughout the product development lifecycle.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to articulate complex design decisions and the value of the design system to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently and manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
• Experience integrating and leveraging AI tools within the design workflow or design system development is a plus.

Preferred Skills:

• Experience with coding prototypes (e.g., HTML, CSS, JavaScript) to demonstrate complex interactions or validate technical feasibility.
• Familiarity with accessibility standards (WCAG) and experience implementing inclusive design practices within a design system.
• Experience mentoring junior designers or contributing to a design team's growth and development.
• Knowledge of public safety or government technology sectors.

🎨 Portfolio & Creative Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Include detailed case studies showcasing your process for designing, building, and maintaining design systems.
• Demonstrate your contribution to the strategic evolution and adoption of a design system across multiple products or teams.
• Present examples of complex product design challenges you've solved, highlighting your problem-solving skills and user-centered approach.
• Showcase your visual design skills through examples of UI components, patterns, and overall product interfaces.
• If applicable, include examples of research methodologies used and how insights informed design decisions.

Process Documentation:

• Clearly articulate your design process from initial problem definition and research through ideation, prototyping, testing, and implementation.
• Detail your approach to documenting design system components, guidelines, and best practices for consumption by designers and developers.
• Explain how you collaborate with cross-functional teams (product, engineering) throughout the design system lifecycle.
• Provide insights into how you measure the success and impact of the design system on product development efficiency and user experience consistency.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: USD 124,500 - USD 199,200 per year. This range reflects the base pay for a Senior Product Designer I role at Axon and varies based on geographic market, experience level, and other factors. The listed range covers Axon's lowest to highest geographic markets in the US.

Benefits:

• Competitive base salary and a 401k retirement plan with employer matching contributions.
• Discretionary paid time off, offering flexibility for work-life balance and creative rejuvenation.
• Comprehensive paid parental leave policy for all employees.
• Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance plans to support your health and well-being.
• Fitness programs to encourage a healthy and active lifestyle.
• Emotional and Mental Wellness support resources.
• Access to Learning & Development programs for continuous skill enhancement and career growth in design and related fields.
• Snacks available in the physical offices for those who choose to work on-site.
• Total compensation package includes base pay, bonus opportunities, and stock awards.

Working Hours: Standard full-time hours (approximately 40 hours per week), with flexibility often required to collaborate with teams across different time zones or to accommodate creative flow and project deadlines.

🎯Team & Company Context

🏢 Company & Design Culture

Industry: Public Safety Technology. Axon specializes in developing connected devices and cloud software solutions for law enforcement and public safety agencies, aiming to enhance safety and justice. The design work directly impacts critical workflows and the lives of first responders and the communities they serve.

Company Size: 1,001-5,000 employees globally. As a larger, public company, Axon offers established processes, resources, and opportunities for impact, while the design team likely operates with a degree of autonomy within specific product areas.

Founded: 1993. Axon has a nearly 30-year history, evolving from a less-lethal weapons company (TASER) to a comprehensive public safety technology provider. This history suggests a blend of established practices and a drive for innovation in new technology areas like AI and cloud software.

Team Structure:

• The role reports to a Product Design Manager within the Digital Evidence Management System (DEMS) team.
• The DEMS team focuses on complex challenges related to managing massive amounts of digital evidence, involving cloud and local storage solutions.
• The Senior Product Designer will specifically own the Spark Design System, collaborating across multiple product pillars and design teams within Axon.
• The team culture is described as friendly, open, and introspective, emphasizing productivity and work-life balance.
• Strong cross-functional collaboration with product management and engineering teams is a core aspect of the workflow.

Methodology:

• Emphasis on deeply understanding customers (first responders) through direct engagement, such as ride-alongs.
• Focus on improving workflows for ingestion, playback, management, access control, searching, and sharing of digital evidence files.
• Iterative design and development processes are likely employed given the description of a fast-paced environment and collaboration across product teams.
• Integration of AI tools into the design system development suggests an embrace of emerging technologies and forward-thinking design practices.

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

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Design Career Level: This is a Senior Product Designer (Level I) role, indicating an expectation of significant experience, leadership in specific areas (like design systems), and the ability to work autonomously on complex problems. It is typically a step above a mid-level designer and may involve mentoring or guiding less experienced team members.

Reporting Structure: The role reports to a Product Design Manager within the DEMS team. This suggests a clear reporting line with guidance and support from design leadership, while the senior level implies a high degree of independence in executing responsibilities.

Design Impact: The Senior Product Designer will have a significant impact by leading the design system for a major flagship product redesign and influencing the design consistency across Axon's entire product ecosystem. The work directly contributes to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of public safety professionals.

Growth Opportunities:

• Opportunities to deepen expertise in design systems, potentially leading to roles focused on design system architecture or strategy.
• Potential for growth into design leadership roles (e.g., Design Lead, Design Manager) within the DEMS team or other product areas at Axon.
• Exposure to complex technical challenges in cloud software, data management, and AI integration, enhancing technical design skills.
• Opportunities to mentor and guide other designers, developing leadership and coaching abilities.
• Participation in learning and development programs offered by Axon to further enhance design skills and explore new areas.

🌐 Work Environment

Studio Type: Axon offers a flexible work environment with the option to work from home extensively, coupled with the opportunity to collaborate in-person at US R&D Hubs (Seattle, Scottsdale, Atlanta, or Boston). This provides a hybrid model balancing remote work flexibility with opportunities for physical team interaction.

Office Location(s): Seattle, Washington is the primary listed location, with the flexibility to work remotely from other US locations near R&D Hubs. This distributed model requires strong skills in remote collaboration and communication.

Design Workspace Context:

• The hybrid model allows designers to choose the environment that best supports their creative process, whether it's a home office or a physical office space.
• Physical office locations likely offer dedicated workspaces, meeting rooms, and potentially design-specific resources or studios for in-person collaboration, workshops, and brainstorming sessions.
• Effective use of digital collaboration tools is essential to maintain strong connections and workflows with team members who may be working remotely or from different locations.

Work Schedule: The standard work schedule is full-time. While specific daily hours may be flexible to accommodate remote work and different time zones, the role requires active participation in team meetings, collaboration sessions, and key project milestones.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Design Interview Process:

• Initial screening call with HR or a recruiter to discuss your experience and interest in the role. Prepare to articulate your background, particularly your experience with design systems.
• Portfolio review round with members of the design team. Be prepared to walk through case studies showcasing your design system work and product design process in detail.
• Potential for a design challenge or take-home exercise to assess your problem-solving skills and ability to apply design thinking to a relevant problem.
• Interviews with the hiring manager (Product Design Manager), potentially other design team members, product managers, and engineering leads to assess technical skills, collaboration style, and cultural fit.
• Final interview(s) with design leadership or other key stakeholders.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate your portfolio to prominently feature case studies related to design systems. Clearly articulate your role, the challenges faced, your process, and the impact of your work.
• For product design case studies, focus on demonstrating your user-centered approach, problem-solving skills, and ability to navigate complexity.
• Clearly document your design process, including research, ideation, prototyping, testing, and collaboration with cross-functional teams.
• Highlight your proficiency with Figma and other relevant design tools, showing how you use them effectively in your workflow and for design system management.
• Be prepared to discuss the technical aspects of design systems and how you collaborate with engineers on implementation.

Challenge Preparation:

• If given a design challenge, take the time to understand the problem thoroughly and ask clarifying questions.
• Structure your solution presentation to clearly articulate your process, rationale, and design decisions.
• Focus on demonstrating your user-centered approach and ability to think strategically about the problem.
• Be prepared to discuss trade-offs and consider technical feasibility and business constraints.

ATS Keywords: Design Systems, Product Design, UX Design, UI Design, Figma, Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite, Prototyping, Wireframing, User Research, Usability Testing, Information Architecture, Interaction Design, Visual Design, Design Thinking, Agile, Scrum, Collaboration, Communication, Design System Management, Component Library, Design Tokens, Accessibility (WCAG), Cross-Functional Teams, Stakeholder Management, Public Safety, Cloud Software, Digital Evidence Management, AI Integration, Mentorship, Leadership, Problem Solving, Case Studies, Portfolio, Design Process.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Design Tools:

• Figma: Mastery is required, likely including advanced features for component creation, variants, auto layout, and collaborative design system management.
• Other design tools (e.g., Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite) may be used, but Figma is explicitly highlighted as the primary tool.

Collaboration & Handoff:

• Tools for design handoff to engineering, potentially including features within Figma or dedicated handoff tools like Zeplin or Abstract (though not explicitly mentioned).
• Collaboration platforms (e.g., Slack, Microsoft Teams) for communication and file sharing with cross-functional teams.
• Project management tools (e.g., Jira, Asana) for tracking design tasks and collaborating with product and engineering.

Research & Testing:

• Tools for conducting user research, such as remote testing platforms, survey tools, and potentially analytics platforms to gather user data.
• Prototyping tools (likely within Figma or separate tools like InVision or Axure) for creating interactive prototypes for testing and demonstration.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Design Values:

• Protect Life Mission: Axon's core mission influences the design work, requiring a deep understanding of the needs and safety of public safety professionals and the communities they serve.
• Customer Focus: Deeply understanding customers through direct engagement and empathy is a core value, essential for designing effective and impactful solutions.
• Collaboration: The team emphasizes collaboration across product and engineering, requiring strong communication and teamwork skills.
• Openness and Candor: The team culture encourages open communication and speaking one's mind, fostering a transparent and introspective environment.
• Productivity and Efficiency: The team aims to avoid unnecessary processes and meetings to focus on delivering impactful work.

Collaboration Style:

• Close collaboration with product managers and engineering teams throughout the design process, from early-stage definition through implementation.
• Partnership across different product pillars and design teams to ensure consistency and adoption of the design system.
• Emphasis on open communication, feedback exchange, and a lack of "red tape" or unnecessary rituals.
• Likely involves regular design critiques and opportunities for knowledge sharing within the design team.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Design Challenges:

• Leading the design system for a major redesign of a flagship product, requiring strategic thinking, strong execution, and effective change management.
• Ensuring the adoption and consistent application of the design system across a large and diverse product ecosystem with multiple teams and potentially different technology stacks.
• Integrating new technologies, including AI tools, into the design system workflow effectively and ethically, considering the sensitive nature of public safety data.
• Balancing the needs of different product teams while maintaining the integrity and scalability of the core design system.
• Staying current with evolving accessibility standards and ensuring the design system supports inclusive design practices across all products.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Opportunities to become a subject matter expert in design systems and their application in complex enterprise environments.
• Exposure to cutting-edge technologies like AI and their integration into design workflows.
• Deepening understanding of the unique challenges and needs of the public safety sector.
• Potential to participate in industry conferences, workshops, and training programs to enhance skills in design systems, UX research, and emerging technologies.
• Mentorship opportunities within the Axon design team.

💡 Interview Preparation

Design Process Questions:

• Be prepared to walk through your end-to-end design process for a complex project, particularly one involving a design system. Emphasize your research methods, ideation process, prototyping, testing, and collaboration.
• Discuss your experience in defining and scaling design systems. Be ready to talk about your approach to component creation, documentation, versioning, and evangelization.
• Explain how you approach user research and incorporate insights into your design decisions, specifically regarding design system components and patterns.
• Describe your experience collaborating with engineers on design system implementation and handoff.
• Be ready to discuss a time you faced a significant design challenge on a design system project and how you overcame it.

Company Culture Questions:

• Research Axon's mission ("Protect Life") and values. Be prepared to discuss how your own values and experience align with the company's mission and the public safety sector.
• Ask thoughtful questions about the design team's culture, collaboration style, and how design is valued within the organization.
• Discuss your experience working in cross-functional teams and how you build strong working relationships with product managers and engineers.
• Be prepared to talk about your approach to receiving and giving design feedback in a collaborative environment.

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure your portfolio presentation to tell a compelling story about your design system work. Highlight the problem you were solving, your strategic approach, key decisions made, and the impact of your design system on product development and user experience.
• For product design case studies, focus on demonstrating your user-centered process and the impact of your designs on user outcomes.
• Be prepared to discuss the rationale behind your design decisions and how they align with user needs and business goals.
• Practice presenting your work clearly and concisely, highlighting your key contributions and learnings.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this design position:

• Submit your application through this link.
• Tailor your resume and cover letter to highlight your experience with design systems, product design, and collaboration with cross-functional teams. Use relevant ATS keywords from the list provided.
• Prepare your design portfolio to showcase your strongest design system case studies and complex product design work, focusing on process, impact, and collaboration.
• Research Axon and the public safety industry to demonstrate your understanding of the company's mission and the unique challenges of designing for this sector.
• Practice your portfolio presentation and be prepared to discuss your design process, rationale, and collaboration style in detail during interviews.