Lead Visual Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Lead Visual Designer

Company: StashAway

Location: Kuala Lumpur, Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Job Type: FULL_TIME

Category: Marketing / Creative & Media / Art & Design

Date Posted: December 30, 2025

Experience Level: Mid-Senior (5-10 years)

Remote Status: Hybrid

🚀 Role Summary

• Drive the creative execution of impactful brand campaigns and user acquisition initiatives, leveraging strong visual design principles to enhance brand perception and customer engagement.

• Develop and deliver end-to-end creative assets across a spectrum of digital channels, including social media, CRM, and performance marketing platforms, ensuring consistent brand storytelling.

• Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams such as marketing, copywriting, and product development to align on project goals, timelines, and creative outputs, fostering a cohesive GTM strategy.

• Evolve and maintain the brand's illustration system and design system, contributing to a scalable and consistent visual identity across all customer touchpoints.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is positioned as a "Lead Visual Designer," implying a significant level of autonomy and responsibility for creative direction, particularly within brand and acquisition marketing. The emphasis on "end-to-end creative" and "driving multiple briefs" suggests a need for strong project management and strategic thinking beyond just execution. The role is deeply integrated into Go-To-Market (GTM) strategies by directly supporting customer acquisition and brand building efforts.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Ideate, design, and produce visually compelling creative assets for brand campaigns, user acquisition efforts, and ongoing marketing initiatives, ensuring alignment with StashAway's brand guidelines and strategic objectives.

• Execute creative across diverse digital channels, including social media platforms, email marketing (CRM), performance marketing ad creatives, and website landing pages, optimizing for channel-specific best practices.

• Contribute to the evolution of StashAway's illustration system and overall design system, collaborating with the Head of Brand and other designers to maintain visual consistency and scalability.

• Manage multiple design projects simultaneously from concept through final delivery, effectively prioritizing tasks and balancing needs from regional and local stakeholders to meet project deadlines.

• Partner proactively with marketing, copywriting, and product teams to understand campaign objectives, target audiences, and key messaging, translating these into impactful visual solutions.

• Ensure all creative deliverables meet the highest standards of craft, conceptual thinking, and on-brand storytelling, enhancing the overall customer experience.

• Support the development and implementation of a scalable design system, contributing to its adoption and effectiveness across all customer-facing materials and touchpoints.

• Deliver high-quality, on-brand creative that demonstrably improves key performance indicators such as click-through rates (CTR) and customer acquisition costs (CAC).

• Uphold and champion visual consistency and craft excellence across all customer-facing communications and marketing collateral, reinforcing brand integrity.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a blend of strategic creative development and tactical execution. The emphasis on "driving customer acquisition" and "improving click-through rates" directly links this design role to revenue-generating activities, making it a critical component of the GTM function. The need to manage "regional and local stakeholders" and support "Thai-specific initiatives" indicates a global or multi-market operational scope.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While no specific degree is listed, a Bachelor's degree in Graphic Design, Visual Communication, Fine Arts, or a related field is typically expected for a Lead Visual Designer role. A strong portfolio can often substitute for formal education.

Experience: 5-10 years of professional experience in visual design, with a significant portion focused on brand campaigns, digital marketing, and user acquisition initiatives. Proven experience in a lead or senior designer capacity is preferred.

Required Skills:

• Visual Design Expertise: Mastery in creating visually engaging and on-brand creative assets for digital platforms.

• Brand Campaign Development: Proven ability to conceptualize and execute creative for comprehensive brand campaigns.

• User Acquisition Design: Experience designing creatives specifically aimed at driving customer acquisition through various marketing channels.

• Creative Execution: Strong ability to translate campaign objectives and messaging into effective visual executions.

• Collaboration & Stakeholder Management: Demonstrated success in partnering with cross-functional teams (marketing, product, copy) and managing expectations with regional/local stakeholders.

• Illustration System Development: Experience in evolving and maintaining illustration styles and libraries.

• Design System Contribution: Familiarity with contributing to or utilizing design systems for scalable and consistent design.

• Digital Channel Proficiency: Expertise in designing for social media, CRM (email campaigns), performance marketing channels, and web.

• Conceptual Thinking: Ability to think conceptually and generate innovative design ideas.

• Craftsmanship & Quality: Commitment to high standards of visual craft, attention to detail, and on-brand storytelling.

• Project Management: Skill in managing multiple design projects from briefing to delivery, including prioritization and time management.

Preferred Skills:

• Performance Marketing Design: Specific experience designing for A/B testing and conversion rate optimization (CRO) in performance marketing.

• Motion Graphics/Animation: Basic proficiency in motion graphics or animation for dynamic digital assets.

• UI/UX Fundamentals: Understanding of UI/UX principles to ensure cohesive user experiences across marketing touchpoints.

• Illustration System Design: Experience leading the development or significant evolution of an illustration system.

• Cross-cultural Design Sensitivity: Experience designing for diverse markets, particularly Southeast Asia.

📝 Enhancement Note: The extensive list of required skills emphasizes the strategic and execution-oriented nature of this role within a GTM context. The ability to design for performance channels and contribute to a design system are key indicators of the role's impact on measurable business outcomes and operational efficiency.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Comprehensive Case Studies: Showcase a minimum of 3-5 detailed case studies demonstrating end-to-end creative campaign development, from initial concept and strategy to final execution and results.

• Brand Campaign Examples: Include examples of successful brand campaigns, clearly articulating the strategic brief, target audience, creative approach, and impact on brand perception.

• User Acquisition Creatives: Present a diverse range of user acquisition assets designed for various digital channels (e.g., social ads, display ads, CRM emails), highlighting how they were optimized for conversion.

• Systemic Design Contributions: Showcase contributions to design systems or illustration systems, illustrating how these efforts improved consistency, scalability, and efficiency in design production.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration Evidence: Where possible, include examples that demonstrate effective collaboration with marketing, product, or copywriting teams, highlighting your role in achieving shared goals.

• Metrics and ROI: For each case study, provide quantifiable results where available, such as improvements in CTR, conversion rates, customer acquisition, or brand engagement metrics.

Process Documentation:

• Workflow Design: Demonstrate an understanding of designing efficient creative workflows, from briefing and concepting to review and final delivery, with an emphasis on managing multiple stakeholders and priorities.

• Design System Implementation: Illustrate experience in contributing to or implementing design systems, explaining how this process ensures brand consistency and accelerates design production.

• Performance Optimization: Show examples of how your design decisions were informed by data and iterative testing to optimize creative performance across acquisition channels.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a visual design role deeply embedded in GTM, a portfolio is paramount. The emphasis on case studies, measurable results (ROI, CTR, CAC), and contributions to scalable systems (design/illustration) directly aligns with operational efficiency and revenue impact expectations. This section is critical for candidates to tailor their application.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: For a Lead Visual Designer with 5-10 years of experience in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the estimated annual salary range is approximately MYR 90,000 - MYR 140,000. This range is based on industry benchmarks for similar roles in Malaysia, considering the company's likely positioning as a fintech employer and the hybrid work model. Factors such as exact experience, portfolio strength, and specific skill set can influence the final offer.

Benefits:

• Competitive Total Compensation: Includes a competitive salary package and potential for employee stock options for full-time employees.

• Comprehensive Insurance: Access to panel outpatient GP clinic visits, group hospitalization and surgical insurance, and COVID-19 hospitalization coverage.

• Investment Benefits: Employee discount on asset management fees when investing with StashAway.

• Flexible Work Arrangements:

  • Work-from-home policy: Option to work from home or the office based on team and personal needs.
  • Work-from-anywhere policy: Ability to request remote work from another country for up to eight weeks annually.

• Unlimited Paid Annual Leave: Trust-based policy encouraging employees to take leave as needed, based on accountability for work.

• Personal Work Equipment Budget: A budget to ensure an optimal workstation setup, regardless of work location.

• Learning and Development: Annual L&D budget for professional and personal development, covering resources and tools to enhance job performance.

• Team Engagement:

  • Quarterly team bonding budget for cross-functional social activities.

  • Annual off-site event in Q4 for company-wide team bonding and activities. Working Hours: The role is based on a standard 40-hour work week, with flexibility offered through the work-from-home and work-from-anywhere policies, allowing for adaptability in scheduling to optimize productivity and work-life balance.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary estimate is based on general market data for Kuala Lumpur and the specified experience level. The benefits package is extensive, with a strong emphasis on employee well-being, flexibility, and continuous learning, which are attractive to professionals in creative and operations roles. The unlimited PTO is a notable benefit that aligns with a trust-based, performance-driven culture.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Financial Technology (FinTech) / Wealth Management. StashAway operates in a competitive and dynamic FinTech landscape, focusing on making investing accessible and user-friendly. This industry demands innovation, data-driven decision-making, and a strong emphasis on customer trust and experience.

Company Size: StashAway is a growing, venture-backed company. While the exact current headcount for the Kuala Lumpur office isn't specified, the company operates across multiple regions (Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia), suggesting a mid-to-large-sized organization with a significant international presence. This size implies a need for streamlined processes and scalable solutions, where design plays a crucial role in communication and user adoption.

Founded: StashAway was founded in 2016. This relatively young age means the company likely has a modern, agile, and entrepreneurial culture, with established but evolving processes.

Team Structure:

• The Lead Visual Designer will likely be part of the Marketing or Brand team, reporting to a Head of Brand or Marketing Director.

• This role requires close collaboration with other designers, copywriters, performance marketers, CRM specialists, and product managers.

Methodology:

• Data-Driven Design: Expect a strong emphasis on leveraging data analytics to inform design decisions, particularly for acquisition campaigns, to measure effectiveness and drive optimization.

• Agile Campaign Development: The need to manage multiple briefs and work with various stakeholders suggests an agile approach to campaign planning and execution, allowing for rapid iteration and adaptation.

• Brand Consistency & Scalability: A core methodology will revolve around maintaining a strong, consistent brand identity across all touchpoints while ensuring design solutions are scalable and efficient through design systems.

Company Website: https://www.stashaway.sg/ (Note: Website provided is for the parent/regional entity, specific Kuala Lumpur operations may have localized aspects.)

📝 Enhancement Note: Understanding StashAway's FinTech industry context is crucial. Design in this sector isn't just about aesthetics; it's about building trust, simplifying complex financial concepts, and driving user adoption. The company's global presence and tech-forward approach suggest an environment where operational efficiency and measurable impact are highly valued.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This role is positioned at a Mid-Senior to Lead level within the design function. It signifies a transition from individual contributor to a role with significant ownership, creative direction, and potential mentorship responsibilities. In a GTM context, this means contributing strategically to customer acquisition funnels and brand narrative development, rather than solely focusing on asset creation.

Reporting Structure: The Lead Visual Designer will likely report to a senior marketing or brand leader (e.g., Head of Brand, Marketing Director). They will collaborate extensively with marketers, copywriters, and product teams, acting as a key creative partner within the broader Go-To-Market (GTM) operations.

Operations Impact: The role has a direct impact on StashAway's growth objectives by:

• Driving Customer Acquisition: High-quality, effective visual creatives directly influence campaign performance, leading to more leads and customers.

• Enhancing Brand Equity: Consistent and compelling brand storytelling builds recognition, trust, and loyalty, which are critical for long-term customer retention and advocacy.

• Improving Operational Efficiency: Developing and utilizing design systems and scalable assets streamlines the creative production process, reducing time-to-market for campaigns.

Growth Opportunities:

• Leadership Development: Potential to grow into a Design Manager or Art Director role, leading larger creative projects or managing a team of designers.

• Strategic Creative Direction: Opportunity to shape the visual direction of StashAway's brand and marketing efforts across multiple markets.

• Specialization: Deepen expertise in specific areas like performance creative optimization, illustration system design, or brand strategy.

• Cross-functional Exposure: Gain broader understanding of marketing, product development, and FinTech operations through close collaboration.

• Global Experience: Work within a multi-market organization, gaining exposure to different regional marketing nuances and customer segments.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Lead" title suggests a pathway beyond pure design execution. Candidates should highlight any experience in mentoring, strategic input on campaign direction, or process improvement within creative operations. This role serves as a critical link between creative output and business outcomes, a hallmark of effective GTM operations.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: StashAway offers a hybrid work environment, allowing employees to choose between working from home or the office. This suggests a modern workplace culture that prioritizes flexibility and employee autonomy.

Office Location(s): The primary office location is Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Specific details about the office setup (e.g., co-working space, dedicated office) are not provided, but it's expected to be a professional environment conducive to creative collaboration.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Spaces: The hybrid model implies that office days are likely focused on collaboration, team meetings, brainstorming sessions, and fostering team cohesion.

• Technology & Tools: Expect access to industry-standard design software and hardware, with a personal budget for work equipment to ensure an optimal setup wherever the employee chooses to work.

• Cross-functional Interaction: The role necessitates frequent interaction with various teams, encouraging a dynamic and communicative work atmosphere.

Work Schedule: While a standard 40-hour work week is implied, the hybrid and work-from-anywhere policies offer significant flexibility. This allows for a degree of self-management in scheduling work to align with personal productivity peaks and project demands, which is beneficial for creative tasks requiring focused attention.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on flexibility (hybrid, WFA) is a significant aspect of StashAway's work environment. For a visual designer, this means the ability to create in an environment that best suits their creative process, while still having opportunities for in-person collaboration crucial for team alignment and ideation.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

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

• Portfolio Presentation & Skills Assessment: Typically involves a presentation of your portfolio to the hiring team, showcasing key projects and discussing your creative process, strategic thinking, and problem-solving abilities related to brand campaigns and user acquisition. This may include a live design exercise or a take-home assignment.

• Cross-functional Interviews: Meetings with key stakeholders from marketing, product, and copywriting teams to evaluate collaboration skills, communication effectiveness, and alignment on strategic goals.

• Hiring Manager/Director Interview: A final discussion with the hiring manager or department head to assess leadership potential, strategic vision, and overall fit with the company culture and team.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate Strategically: Select case studies that best represent your experience in brand campaigns, user acquisition, and digital channel execution. Prioritize projects with quantifiable results.

• Tell a Story: For each case study, clearly articulate the problem, your proposed solution, your specific role and contributions, the creative process, and the measurable impact (e.g., CTR, conversion rates, brand awareness).

• Highlight Systems Thinking: If you have examples of contributing to or developing design systems or illustration systems, showcase how these improved efficiency and consistency.

• Demonstrate Collaboration: Be prepared to discuss how you worked with cross-functional teams, managed feedback, and navigated stakeholder requirements.

• Showcase Craftsmanship: Ensure your portfolio is impeccably designed, reflecting your attention to detail and high standards of visual execution.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand StashAway's Brand: Research their current marketing campaigns, brand positioning, target audience, and competitive landscape.

• Anticipate Design Challenges: Be ready to discuss how you would approach designing for specific channels (e.g., social media ads, email campaigns) or for a particular campaign theme.

• Prepare for "Why": For every design choice, be ready to explain the strategic reasoning behind it, linking it back to business objectives like customer acquisition or brand building.

• Case Study Framework: Practice structuring your portfolio presentations using a clear framework: Objective -> Strategy -> Execution -> Results.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process for a Lead Visual Designer emphasizes not just creative talent but also strategic thinking, collaboration, and the ability to drive measurable business outcomes. A strong portfolio that demonstrates impact and process is critical, especially for a role tied to GTM operations.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Design Software: Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign) is essential. Figma is highly probable for collaborative design system work and UI/UX adjacent tasks.

• Prototyping/Animation Tools: Adobe After Effects for motion graphics, and potentially tools like Principle or ProtoPie for interactive prototypes.

• Collaboration Platforms: Slack for real-time communication, Jira or Asana for project management and workflow tracking.

Analytics & Reporting:

• Web Analytics: Google Analytics or similar platforms to understand user behavior and campaign performance.

• Social Media Analytics: Native analytics tools within platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc.

• CRM Analytics: Data from StashAway's CRM system (likely Salesforce or similar) to analyze email campaign performance.

• Dashboarding Tools: Potentially Tableau, Power BI, or Looker for visualizing campaign performance data, though direct design responsibility for dashboards might be limited.

CRM & Automation:

• CRM Systems: Familiarity with CRM platforms (e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot) where email campaigns are managed and customer data resides.

• Marketing Automation: Experience with marketing automation tools (e.g., Marketo, Pardot, HubSpot) for email campaign execution.

• Ad Platforms: Experience designing creatives for platforms like Google Ads, Facebook Ads Manager, LinkedIn Campaign Manager.

📝 Enhancement Note: Proficiency in core design tools is a given. However, for a role impacting GTM and growth, understanding how design integrates with marketing automation, CRM, and analytics platforms is crucial for demonstrating a data-informed and results-oriented approach.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Data-Driven Decision Making: StashAway likely emphasizes using data and analytics to inform creative choices and measure campaign effectiveness, aligning design efforts with measurable business outcomes.

• Customer Centricity: A core value will be understanding and designing for the target customer, ensuring that all creative is relatable, trustworthy, and addresses customer needs in the wealth management space.

• Agility & Adaptability: In the fast-paced FinTech industry, the ability to adapt quickly to market changes, iterate on designs, and manage multiple priorities is key.

• Collaboration & Transparency: Encouraging open communication and teamwork across departments to achieve shared goals, with a focus on clear feedback loops.

• Excellence & Craftsmanship: A commitment to high standards in all aspects of work, from the quality of design execution to the reliability of systems and processes.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-functional Partnership: Expect a highly collaborative environment where designers work hand-in-hand with marketers, copywriters, product managers, and potentially data analysts.

• Feedback-Oriented: A culture that encourages constructive feedback to improve creative output and processes, fostering continuous learning and improvement.

• Agile Workflow: Collaboration likely follows agile principles, with regular check-ins, iterative development, and a focus on delivering value quickly and efficiently.

📝 Enhancement Note: The values and collaboration style of a FinTech company like StashAway will heavily influence how design operates. Expect a culture that is both creative and analytical, with a strong emphasis on teamwork and achieving quantifiable business results through effective GTM strategies.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Balancing Brand & Performance: Effectively creating visuals that uphold strong brand identity while simultaneously driving performance metrics like CTR and conversions.

• Rapid Iteration in FinTech: Adapting quickly to new product features, market trends, and regulatory changes, requiring agile design responses.

• Managing Cross-Market Needs: Designing for diverse audiences across different Southeast Asian markets, requiring cultural sensitivity and localized creative approaches.

• Scalability of Creative Production: Ensuring design processes and assets can scale efficiently to meet the demands of a growing company and expanding product/service offerings.

• Demonstrating ROI of Design: Clearly articulating and proving the direct business impact of visual design efforts on key performance indicators.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Strategic Design Leadership: Developing skills in creative strategy, art direction, and potentially team leadership.

• FinTech Industry Expertise: Deepening understanding of financial products, user behavior in finance, and regulatory considerations impacting design.

• Advanced Digital Marketing Creative: Mastering the nuances of designing for performance marketing, A/B testing, and conversion rate optimization.

• Design Systems & Scalability: Gaining expertise in building and maintaining robust design systems that drive efficiency and brand consistency across large organizations.

• Global Marketing Exposure: Learning to adapt creative strategies for different cultural contexts and market dynamics within Southeast Asia.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges presented are common in growth-stage FinTech companies and directly relate to the operational demands of GTM functions. The growth opportunities focus on developing strategic leadership and specialized skills relevant to both design and the FinTech industry.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• Campaign Concepting: "Describe your process for developing a visual concept for a new user acquisition campaign targeting young professionals in Malaysia." (Focus on strategic thinking, target audience understanding, and creative ideation.)

• Brand Consistency: "How would you ensure visual consistency across a multi-channel campaign (social, email, web) while also optimizing creatives for each platform's performance?" (Tests understanding of brand guidelines, channel best practices, and optimization.)

• System Integration: "Imagine we're launching a new investment product. How would you leverage our existing design system and illustration style to create compelling launch assets quickly and efficiently?" (Assesses ability to work within established systems and drive operational efficiency.)

Company & Culture Questions:

• StashAway's Mission: "What excites you about StashAway's mission to make investing accessible, and how would your design approach support this?" (Evaluates alignment with company values and strategic vision.)

• Collaboration Experience: "Tell me about a time you collaborated with a marketing team on a challenging campaign. What was your role, and how did you ensure a successful outcome?" (Assesses teamwork and stakeholder management skills.)

• Impact Measurement: "How do you measure the success of your design work, particularly in driving customer acquisition or brand engagement?" (Focuses on data-driven approach and understanding of business impact.)

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Narrative is Key: Structure your presentation around compelling stories for each case study. Start with the problem/objective, detail your strategic approach and creative process, and conclude with the measurable results and your key learnings.

• Quantify Impact: Whenever possible, use data to demonstrate the effectiveness of your designs (e.g., "This ad creative increased CTR by 15%," "Our new email template improved open rates by 10%").

• Highlight Process: Show your thinking – sketches, wireframes, iterations, rationale behind design choices. This demonstrates your problem-solving methodology.

• Showcase System Thinking: If you have relevant examples, clearly explain your contribution to design systems or illustration libraries and how they benefited production efficiency and brand consistency.

• Be Ready for Live Design/Challenges: Practice quick ideation exercises and be prepared to articulate your design approach under time pressure for potential design challenges.

📝 Enhancement Note: Interview preparation should focus on demonstrating how your design skills translate into tangible business outcomes for StashAway, particularly in acquisition and brand building. Emphasize strategic thinking, data-informed decisions, and collaborative problem-solving.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Lead Visual Designer position:

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

• Portfolio Customization: Tailor your portfolio to highlight specific projects related to brand campaigns, user acquisition, and digital channel creative execution. Prioritize case studies with quantifiable results that align with StashAway's FinTech goals.

• Resume Optimization: Ensure your resume clearly articulates your experience with visual design, brand development, and performance marketing creative. Use keywords relevant to the job description, such as "visual design," "brand campaigns," "user acquisition," "digital marketing," and "project management."

• Interview Preparation: Practice presenting your portfolio, focusing on the strategic rationale behind your design choices and the measurable impact of your work. Be ready to discuss your experience with design systems and cross-functional collaboration.

• Company Research: Thoroughly research StashAway's brand, mission, target audience, and recent marketing efforts. Understand their position in the FinTech market and how design contributes to their growth strategy.

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

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