Sr. UX Designer at Klaviyo

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Sr. UX Designer

Company: Klaviyo

Location: Boston, MA

Job Type: Full-Time

Category: UX Design

Date Posted: 2025-06-09T17:17:08

Experience Level: Senior (5+ years)

Remote Status: On-site (Boston, MA)

🎨 Role Summary

Lead user-centered design initiatives for Klaviyo's web and digital platforms, focusing on strategic goals like design system scalability and personalized customer experiences.
Drive the evolution and maintenance of the Figma design system, ensuring accessibility best practices and fostering cross-team design efficiency.
Collaborate with diverse teams, including Brand & Creative, Web, Product & Integrated Marketing, Engineering, Events, and International teams, to craft intuitive user flows and wireframes.
Design data-driven interactive prototypes to gain alignment and create visually appealing, intuitive, and accessible experiences across Klaviyo's digital touchpoints.

📝 Enhancement Note: Based on the job title "Sr. UX Designer" and the responsibilities outlined, this role emphasizes a blend of strategic design thinking, hands-on execution within a design system context, and strong collaboration across multiple business functions. The focus on web presence, personalization, and international growth indicates a significant impact on Klaviyo's external brand and user acquisition/retention efforts.

🖼️ Primary Responsibilities

Lead in-depth user research, including accessibility testing and global user insights, to champion a customer-first approach and inform design decisions for diverse audiences.
Design intuitive and globally accessible information architectures that facilitate ease of use for users worldwide.
Develop low to mid-fidelity wireframes that effectively communicate design concepts, user flows, and incorporate accessibility and internationalization considerations early in the process.
Refine and evolve component libraries within the Figma design system to ensure scalability, consistency, and adherence to global accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1 and EAA Compliance).
Create interactive prototypes in Figma to effectively communicate responsive design concepts to stakeholders and leadership.
Collaborate with cross-functional teams to drive the maintenance and management of the Figma design system and component libraries, supporting localization and personalization efforts.
Champion and implement accessibility best practices throughout the design process to ensure inclusive experiences for the global user base.
Explore and experiment with AI tools to optimize design workflows, enhance design system efficiencies, and automate repetitive tasks to free up capacity for strategic design initiatives.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a strong emphasis on design systems, accessibility, and internationalization, which are critical for a global SaaS company like Klaviyo. The inclusion of "exploration of emerging technologies" suggests a forward-thinking design team interested in leveraging new tools for efficiency and innovation.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While not explicitly stated, a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Design, HCI, or a related field is typically preferred for a Senior UX Designer role. Equivalent practical experience with a strong portfolio demonstrating a deep understanding of design principles and methodologies is highly valued.

Experience: 5+ years of experience in UX design, with a strong preference for experience in a SaaS environment. A robust design portfolio showcasing web design skills, meticulous attention to detail, and significant experience building and maintaining design systems is essential.

Required Skills:

Expertise in UX Design principles, best practices, and methodologies, with a strong focus on user-centered and inclusive design.
Proven experience in developing, documenting, and implementing design systems in Figma.
Deep understanding and practical experience implementing WCAG guidelines (2.1) and EAA Compliance for accessibility in digital design.
Strong visual design skills with a keen eye for detail and the ability to create aesthetically pleasing, intuitive, and accessible interfaces.
Excellent communication skills with the ability to clearly articulate design strategy, concepts, and rationale, including accessibility considerations, to diverse stakeholders and leadership.
Strong problem-solving abilities with a knack for transforming complex ideas into seamless, intuitive, and engaging web and digital experiences.
Extensive experience in usability testing, user/design research, and analyzing user feedback from diverse user groups.
Ability to independently lead design projects from inception to completion, demonstrating solid prioritization and time-management skills.
Familiarity with front-end development principles (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) to facilitate effective collaboration with engineering teams.

Preferred Skills:

Experience creating web-friendly animations (microinteractions, animated iconography, kinetic typography).
Proficiency with motion design tools such as Rive, Jitter, GSAP, or Lottie.
Experience in a fast-paced, growth-stage company environment.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on SaaS experience, design systems, and accessibility aligns with the technical nature of Klaviyo's product and their stated goals for international growth and personalization. The preferred skills in motion design suggest an interest in enhancing the visual polish and engagement of their web presence.

🎨 Portfolio & Creative Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

Showcase a minimum of 3-5 detailed case studies demonstrating your end-to-end UX design process for web and digital platforms.
Include projects that highlight your experience in building, maintaining, and utilizing design systems in Figma.
Feature examples of responsive design solutions and your approach to designing for diverse screen sizes and devices.
Demonstrate your understanding and implementation of accessibility best practices (WCAG 2.1) in your design solutions.

Process Documentation:

Clearly articulate your user research methodologies, including how you gather and analyze insights from global and diverse user groups.
Detail your approach to information architecture design, emphasizing how you organize content for intuitive navigation and global accessibility.
Illustrate your wireframing process, showing the evolution from low-fidelity sketches to mid-fidelity layouts that communicate user flows and design concepts effectively.
Explain your prototyping techniques in Figma, demonstrating how you create interactive prototypes to validate design solutions and communicate with stakeholders.
Showcase your process for documenting and contributing to design systems, including component creation, usage guidelines, and version control.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a Senior UX Designer role at a company focused on scalability and internationalization, demonstrating a robust design process that incorporates research, accessibility, and design system thinking is paramount. Detailed case studies that walk through the problem, solution, and impact, particularly in a web or SaaS context, will be critical for portfolio review.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: $100,000 - $150,000 USD per year. This range reflects the cost of labor across various U.S. geographic markets. The specific base salary offered will be determined by factors including the applicant’s job-related skills, relevant experience, education or training, and work location.

Benefits:

Participation in the company’s annual cash bonus plan.
Potential for variable compensation (OTE) depending on the role's structure.
Equity grants as part of the total compensation package.
Potential for sign-on payments.
Comprehensive health benefits plan.
Welfare benefits.
Wellbeing benefits.

Working Hours: Full-time standard business hours, typically 40 hours per week. Flexibility may be available depending on project needs and team agreements, supporting creative flow and collaboration across time zones if applicable.

📝 Enhancement Note: The provided salary range is explicitly stated by the company and appears competitive for a Senior UX Designer role in the Boston area, taking into account the cost of living and market rates for experienced design professionals in the SaaS industry. The comprehensive benefits package, including equity, is typical for a public technology company of Klaviyo's size.

🎯Team & Company Context

🏢 Company & Design Culture

Industry: Marketing Services / B2C CRM. Klaviyo is a leading provider of marketing automation and customer relationship management (CRM) solutions specifically built for B2C brands. This industry context means design plays a crucial role in creating intuitive interfaces for complex marketing workflows and personalized customer experiences.

Company Size: 1,001-5,000 employees (LinkedIn data: ~2,780 employees). A company of this size indicates established processes, dedicated design teams, and opportunities for both specialization and cross-functional collaboration. It's large enough to have significant resources but potentially small enough for individual contributions to have a noticeable impact.

Founded: 2012. Founded over a decade ago, Klaviyo has a history of growth and evolution. Understanding their journey and mission "to empower creators to own their destiny" provides insight into their values and how design contributes to their strategic direction.

Team Structure:

The role is within the Brand & Creative Team in Marketing, suggesting a focus on external-facing web and digital platforms rather than the core product UI.
Collaboration is expected with Brand & Creative, Web, Product & Integrated Marketing, Engineering, Events, and International teams, indicating a highly cross-functional environment.
The design team likely has specialized roles (UX, UI, Visual Design, Motion Design) contributing to a unified creative vision.

Methodology:

Strong emphasis on user-centered design principles and methodologies, driven by in-depth user research and feedback.
Utilizes wireframing and interactive prototyping in Figma for design exploration and stakeholder alignment.
Focus on building and maintaining a scalable design system in Figma for consistency and efficiency.
Incorporates accessibility best practices (WCAG 2.1, EAA Compliance) as a core part of the design process.
Interest in exploring emerging technologies and AI tools to optimize design workflows suggests a forward-thinking approach to design operations.

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

📝 Enhancement Note: Being part of the Brand & Creative team within Marketing means the UX Designer will focus on the public-facing website and marketing-related digital experiences, distinct from the core product design team. This requires a strong understanding of brand identity, marketing objectives, and user acquisition funnels in addition to core UX skills.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Design Career Level: Senior UX Designer. This level typically involves leading complex design projects, mentoring junior designers (though not explicitly stated as a requirement), contributing significantly to design strategy, and influencing cross-functional teams. Responsibilities include a high degree of autonomy and ownership over design deliverables.

Reporting Structure: Likely reports to a Design Manager or potentially a Director or Head of Brand & Creative within the Marketing organization. The reporting structure will influence the level of strategic input and leadership opportunities available.

Design Impact: This role has a direct impact on Klaviyo's external brand perception, user acquisition through the website, and potentially customer engagement with marketing-related digital experiences. The focus on international growth and personalization means the design work will influence a global audience and contribute to key business metrics.

Growth Opportunities:

Advancement to a Lead UX Designer or Design Manager role, potentially leading a team focused on specific areas of the web or marketing digital experience.
Specialization in areas like design systems architecture, accessibility consulting, or emerging design technologies within the Brand & Creative team.
Increased influence on overall design strategy for Klaviyo's web presence and digital marketing efforts.

📝 Enhancement Note: At the Senior level, growth often involves increasing scope of responsibility, technical specialization (like design systems or accessibility), or moving into leadership. The cross-functional nature of this role at Klaviyo also presents opportunities to become a key design partner for various business units.

🌐 Work Environment

Studio Type: On-site in Boston, MA. This suggests a collaborative office environment is central to the team's workflow and culture. While remote-friendly practices might exist for flexibility, the primary work location is the Boston office.

Office Location(s): 125 Summer St, Floor 7, Boston, Massachusetts 02110, US. Being located in a major city like Boston provides access to a large design community and potential industry events.

Design Workspace Context:

Expect a collaborative workspace designed to facilitate interaction between designers and cross-functional team members.
Access to necessary design tools, hardware, and potentially dedicated creative spaces for brainstorming and workshops.
Opportunities for impromptu discussions, whiteboarding sessions, and in-person design critiques, which are often more fluid in an on-site setting.

Work Schedule: Standard full-time work schedule, likely 9 am - 5 pm or similar, Monday to Friday. While the job description mentions flexibility for creative flow, being on-site in Boston implies aligning with typical office hours for team collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: An on-site role emphasizes the value Klaviyo places on in-person collaboration for this specific team. Candidates should be prepared for daily commutes and the benefits and potential drawbacks of a traditional office environment compared to remote work.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Design Interview Process:

Initial screening call with a recruiter to discuss experience, fit, and basic qualifications. Prepare to articulate your design journey and interest in Klaviyo.
Interview(s) with members of the Brand & Creative team and potentially cross-functional partners (Engineering, Marketing). Focus on demonstrating your UX process, problem-solving skills, and collaboration style.
A portfolio review/presentation where you walk through selected case studies, focusing on your role, process, challenges, and impact. Be prepared to discuss your design system experience and approach to accessibility and internationalization.
Potentially a design challenge or take-home assignment to assess your practical design skills, problem-solving approach, and ability to work within constraints.
Final interview(s) with leadership (e.g., Design Manager, Director) to discuss strategic thinking, leadership potential, and cultural fit.

Portfolio Review Tips:

Select case studies that specifically showcase your experience in web design, SaaS environments, design systems, and accessibility.
For each case study, clearly outline the problem, your role, the target users, your design process (research, ideation, prototyping, testing), key decisions, and the impact of your design. Quantify results whenever possible (e.g., increased conversion, reduced support tickets).
Dedicate a section or specific examples to demonstrate your expertise in building and using design systems, highlighting efficiency gains and consistency improvements.
Explicitly discuss how you incorporated accessibility considerations (WCAG 2.1) into your design solutions.
Present your portfolio with a clear narrative and be prepared to discuss the "why" behind your design decisions.

Challenge Preparation:

If a design challenge is assigned, carefully read the requirements and constraints. Ask clarifying questions if needed.
Allocate dedicated time to complete the challenge, focusing on demonstrating your process, not just the final output.
Structure your presentation of the challenge solution to walk the interviewers through your thinking, research (if applicable), ideation, and design decisions.
Be prepared to discuss alternative solutions considered and why you chose your final approach.
Practice articulating your design rationale and how your solution addresses the original problem and user needs.

ATS Keywords: Accessibility, AI Tools, Analytics, Animation, Brand, Case Studies, Component Libraries, Creative, CSS, Customer Feedback, Customer-First, Design Concepts, Design Principles, Design Process, Design Rationale, Design Research, Design Systems, Digital Platforms, EAA Compliance, Emerging Technologies, Engineering Teams, Figma, Front-End Development, Global User Insights, GSAP, HTML, Inclusive Design, Information Architecture, Interactive Prototypes, International Growth, Internationalization, Jitter, JavaScript, Kinetic Typography, Leadership, Localization, Lottie, Marketing, Microinteractions, Motion Design, Personalization, Portfolio, Prioritization, Problem-Solver, Product Marketing, Prototyping, Rive, SaaS, Scalability, Stakeholders, Strategic Goals, Time Management, UI Design, Usability Testing, User Flows, User Research, User-Centered Design, User Feedback Analysis, Visual Design, WCAG 2.1, Web Design, Wireframing.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process for a Senior UX Designer at a company like Klaviyo will heavily rely on assessing both strategic thinking and tactical execution, with a significant focus on the candidate's portfolio and ability to articulate their design process. Specific preparation around design systems, accessibility, and potentially a design challenge is advisable.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Design Tools:

Figma: Essential for UI design, interactive prototyping, and particularly for building and maintaining the design system and component libraries. Expect to work extensively within Figma, leveraging its collaboration and versioning features.
Potentially other prototyping tools depending on specific project needs for advanced interactions.

Collaboration & Handoff:

Collaboration tools like Slack or similar for team communication and cross-functional updates.
Project management tools (e.g., Asana, Jira) to track design tasks, progress, and collaborate with engineering and marketing teams.
Handoff processes involving tools that integrate with Figma or provide detailed design specifications for developers.

Research & Testing:

Tools for conducting user research interviews and usability testing (e.g., Zoom, user testing platforms).
Analytics platforms to gather data on user behavior and measure the impact of design changes.
Tools for gathering and analyzing user feedback.

📝 Enhancement Note: Figma is clearly the central design tool for this role at Klaviyo, emphasizing the importance of design system proficiency. Familiarity with standard collaboration and user research tools is also expected for effective teamwork and user-centered design practices.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Design Values:

User-Centered: A deep commitment to understanding and prioritizing user needs and feedback throughout the design process, particularly for diverse and global audiences.
Accessibility Champion: Valuing and actively implementing accessibility best practices (WCAG 2.1, EAA Compliance) as a core tenet of design quality and inclusivity.
Collaborative: Working closely with cross-functional teams (Marketing, Engineering, etc.) to align design solutions with business goals and technical feasibility.
Detail-Oriented: A keen eye for visual design quality and meticulous attention to detail in creating intuitive and aesthetically pleasing interfaces within the design system.
Innovative: A willingness to explore emerging technologies and new approaches to optimize design workflows and enhance user experiences.

Collaboration Style:

Expect a collaborative environment with regular design critiques and feedback sessions within the Brand & Creative team.
Strong emphasis on cross-functional collaboration, requiring effective communication with non-design stakeholders to articulate design rationale and build consensus.
Contribution to and utilization of a shared design system, fostering consistency and efficiency across design and development teams.

📝 Enhancement Note: Based on the job description's language, the design culture at Klaviyo appears to value user-centricity, accessibility, collaboration, and a drive for continuous improvement and innovation, particularly concerning design systems and emerging technologies.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Design Challenges:

Maintaining and evolving a scalable design system in a fast-growing company with diverse web and digital platforms. Requires strong organizational skills and the ability to anticipate future needs.
Ensuring consistent accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1, EAA Compliance) across a complex web presence and advocating for inclusive design practices within cross-functional teams.
Balancing creative innovation with the need for consistency and efficiency provided by the design system. Finding opportunities to push boundaries while adhering to established patterns.
Collaborating effectively with multiple teams and stakeholders (Marketing, Engineering, International) with potentially varying priorities and technical constraints.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

Deepen expertise in design systems architecture and management, potentially taking on a leadership role in this area.
Become a subject matter expert in accessibility, influencing design practices across the organization.
Explore and implement emerging design technologies and AI tools, contributing to the team's innovation efforts.
Develop stronger strategic influence by partnering closely with marketing and international teams on key growth initiatives.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges highlighted are typical for a Senior UX Designer focused on web and brand experiences in a growing tech company. They present significant opportunities for skill development in areas like design system leadership, accessibility expertise, and cross-functional influence, aligning with senior-level growth trajectories.

💡 Interview Preparation

Design Process Questions:

"Walk me through your process for tackling a complex web design project, from initial research to final handoff." Be prepared to use a case study from your portfolio as an example.
"Describe a time you used user research or testing to significantly change a design direction. What were the results?" Highlight your customer-first approach and data-driven decision-making.
"How do you approach designing for accessibility (WCAG 2.1)? Provide examples of how you've implemented accessibility best practices in your work." Demonstrate your knowledge and practical experience.

Company Culture Questions:

"How do you collaborate with engineers and marketing teams throughout the design process?" Emphasize your communication skills and ability to work cross-functionally.
"Describe your experience working with and contributing to design systems. What are the key benefits and challenges?" Showcase your expertise in this critical area for the role.
"How do you stay updated on the latest UX trends, accessibility standards, and emerging design technologies?" Demonstrate your passion for continuous learning and innovation.

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

Start with a brief overview of your background and design philosophy.
Select 2-3 key case studies that best demonstrate your skills relevant to this role (web design, design systems, accessibility, research).
For each case study, clearly articulate the problem, your specific role and responsibilities, your process, key design decisions with rationale, challenges faced and how you overcame them, and the measurable impact of your work.
Be prepared to deep dive into specific design decisions, showing wireframes, prototypes, and final designs.
Allocate time to specifically discuss your experience with design systems and accessibility within your case studies or as a separate topic.
Practice your presentation to ensure smooth transitions and clear articulation of your process and impact.

📝 Enhancement Note: Interview preparation should focus on demonstrating a strong design process, technical expertise in design systems and accessibility, and the ability to collaborate effectively in a cross-functional environment. Using specific examples from your portfolio to illustrate your points will be highly effective.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this design position:

Submit your application through this link.
Customize your resume to highlight your senior-level UX design experience, particularly in web design, SaaS, design systems, and accessibility, using relevant ATS keywords found in this description.
Refine your online portfolio to prominently feature detailed case studies showcasing your end-to-end design process, design system contributions, and examples of accessible design solutions.
Prepare for interviews by practicing articulating your design process, discussing your portfolio case studies in detail, and anticipating questions about design systems, accessibility, collaboration, and problem-solving.
Research Klaviyo's mission, products (specifically their web presence and marketing focus), and recent news to demonstrate your understanding of the company and how your design skills can contribute to their goals.

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

Sr. UX Designer