Product Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Product Designer II Company: Ethos Life Location: Bangalore, India Job Type: Full-Time Category: Product Design / GTM Operations Date Posted: 2025-10-14 Experience Level: Mid-Level (3-6 years) Remote Status: Hybrid

🚀 Role Summary

• This role focuses on shaping user experiences for customer acquisition and identity verification, critical for a high-volume digital insurance platform.
• The Product Designer will collaborate closely with Product Management, Engineering, and Data teams to drive the end-to-end design lifecycle.
• Responsibilities include problem discovery, user research, prototyping, iteration, and delivering polished, user-centric designs.
• The position offers an opportunity to impact core customer-facing and internal operational platforms, contributing to a cohesive design system.

📝 Enhancement Note: While the title is "Product Designer," the focus on customer acquisition, identity verification (KYC/IDV), and internal tools like Workbench and MDM strongly positions this role within the broader GTM and operational technology landscape. The emphasis on balancing usability, trust, and growth, and working with data, indicates a need for a strong understanding of operational efficiency and user journey optimization.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• End-to-End Design Ownership: Lead the design process from initial problem definition and user research through wireframing, prototyping, user testing, iteration, and final delivery of high-fidelity designs for customer-facing and internal tools.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner effectively with Product Managers, Engineers, and Data Scientists to define project scope, prioritize features, conduct experiments, and ensure successful implementation of design solutions that meet business objectives and user needs.
• User-Centric Research & Insights: Conduct user research, usability testing, and analyze user data (analytics) to gain deep insights into customer behavior and pain points, translating these findings into actionable design decisions that enhance usability, trust, and conversion.
• Elevating User Experience Standards: Proactively identify opportunities to improve the usability, accessibility, and visual quality of identity verification and customer onboarding flows, ensuring a seamless and trustworthy experience.
• Design System Contribution: Actively contribute to the development and documentation of design patterns and components, helping to build and maintain a cohesive and scalable design system that ensures consistency across Ethos Life's product ecosystem.
• Internal Tool Enhancement: Design improvements for internal operational tools such as Workbench, MDM, and policy administration systems, aiming to make these systems more efficient, intuitive, and human-friendly for internal users.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a blend of customer-facing product design and operational tool design, crucial for a company leveraging technology to streamline insurance processes. The emphasis on "balancing usability, trust, and growth" and working with "Data" suggests a data-informed design approach, common in GTM and operational roles focused on optimization.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education:

• No specific degree is mandated, but a strong portfolio demonstrating design thinking and execution is essential. Relevant fields of study could include Design, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), or related disciplines.

Experience:

• 3-6 years of professional product design experience, with a proven track record of shipping impactful features or products, ideally within startup environments, agencies, or in-house product teams.

Required Skills:

• User-Centric Design Thinking: Ability to deeply understand user needs and translate them into intuitive and effective design solutions.
• Interaction & Visual Design Craft: Strong proficiency in creating clear, compelling, and aesthetically pleasing user interfaces and interactions.
• Portfolio of Shipped Impact: A robust portfolio demonstrating a range of projects, showcasing problem-solving skills, user-centric approaches, and successful product launches.
• Discovery & Execution Proficiency: Adept at both the research and ideation phases (problem discovery) and the rapid execution of design solutions.
• Collaborative Communication: Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to articulate design rationale clearly and work effectively in a team environment.
• Bias for Action: A proactive and results-oriented mindset, comfortable with moving quickly and making progress in a dynamic environment.
• Usability Testing & Research: Experience in conducting usability studies and user research to gather insights and validate design decisions.
• Prototyping Skills: Proficiency in creating interactive prototypes to test concepts and convey design intent.

Preferred Skills:

• Form-Heavy UX Design: Experience designing complex forms and data-intensive user experiences.
• Complex Workflow Design: Familiarity with designing multi-step processes and intricate user journeys.
• B2B or Internal Tools Design: Experience designing for internal business applications or B2B platforms.
• KYC/IDV Familiarity: Understanding of Know Your Customer (KYC) and Identity Verification (IDV) processes and their design implications.
• Design System Development: Experience contributing to or building design systems.
• Accessibility Standards: Knowledge of WCAG or other accessibility guidelines.

📝 Enhancement Note: The preference for "form-heavy UX, complex workflows, or B2B/internal tools" and "KYC/IDV" directly aligns with the operational aspects of the role, particularly in insurance where identity verification and policy administration are critical. The "bias for action" is a key trait sought in fast-paced operational environments.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• User-Centric Problem Solving: Showcase case studies that clearly articulate a user problem, the design process undertaken, and how the final solution effectively addressed the user's needs.
• Shipped Product Impact: Demonstrate tangible results from your design work, ideally with metrics or qualitative feedback highlighting the positive impact on user experience, conversion rates, or operational efficiency.
• Interaction & Visual Craftsmanship: Present high-fidelity mockups and interactive prototypes that exemplify strong visual design principles and intuitive user interactions.
• Process Documentation: Detail your design process, including user research methodologies, ideation techniques, prototyping tools used, and iteration cycles. Explain why certain decisions were made.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration Examples: Include examples where you collaborated with Product Managers, Engineers, or Data Scientists, demonstrating your ability to work effectively in a team and incorporate diverse perspectives.

Process Documentation:

• Workflow Design & Optimization: Provide examples of how you have mapped, analyzed, and optimized complex user workflows, particularly those involving multiple steps or data inputs.
• System Integration Context: If possible, illustrate how your designs have integrated with or improved existing systems, particularly relevant for internal tools or platforms requiring data exchange.
• Data-Informed Design: Showcase instances where data analysis or user analytics informed your design iterations and led to measurable improvements.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a role with significant operational components like identity verification and internal tools, the portfolio needs to go beyond aesthetics. It must demonstrate an understanding of process efficiency, data utilization, and the ability to design for complex, high-volume scenarios that impact both customer experience and internal operations.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range:

• Based on industry benchmarks for Product Designers with 3-6 years of experience in Bangalore, India, the estimated annual salary range is ₹12,00,000 to ₹25,00,000. This range accounts for the mid-level experience requirement, the specific skills in demand (including preferred B2B/KYC experience), and the cost of living in Bangalore.
  • Entry-Level (3 years): ₹12,00,000 - ₹17,00,000
  • Mid-Level (4-5 years): ₹17,00,000 - ₹22,00,000
  • Senior-Mid (6 years): ₹20,00,000 - ₹25,00,000
• Methodology: This estimate is derived from analyzing compensation data from reputable job boards and salary aggregators specific to the Indian tech market and product design roles, adjusted for the company's likely growth stage and funding (backed by major VCs).

Benefits:

• Comprehensive Health Insurance: Medical, dental, and vision coverage.
• Paid Time Off: Generous vacation, sick leave, and national holidays.
• Retirement Savings Plan: Contributions towards employee provident fund (EPF) or similar schemes.
• Professional Development: Opportunities for training, workshops, conferences, and access to learning resources.
• Hybrid Work Model: Flexibility to balance remote work with in-office collaboration.
• Life Insurance Coverage: Potentially through the company's own product or a separate policy.
• Employee Stock Options: Possibility of equity participation in a high-growth startup.

Working Hours:

• Standard full-time hours, approximately 40 hours per week, with flexibility often afforded in a hybrid model. The emphasis on a "bias toward action" suggests a results-oriented work environment where efficiency is valued.

📝 Enhancement Note: Salary estimation is based on Bangalore's tech talent market. The inclusion of benefits like "Life Insurance Coverage" and "Employee Stock Options" is inferred from typical startup offerings, especially in the FinTech/InsurTech space.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: InsurTech (Insurance Technology) / FinTech Company Size: Mid-size (likely 200-500 employees, based on typical growth for companies with significant VC funding and a presence on BuiltIn's Top 100 Midsize Companies list). This size offers a balance of structure and agility, allowing for individual impact while maintaining established processes. Founded: 2016. This indicates a company that has moved past the early startup phase and is in a significant growth and scaling period, likely with established product-market fit and operational maturity.

Team Structure:

• Platform Team Focus: The role is within the "Platform team," suggesting a focus on foundational technologies and cross-cutting user experiences that support various business functions.
• Cross-Functional Integration: The Product Designer will work directly with Product Managers, Engineers, and Data Scientists, indicating a highly collaborative and integrated team structure common in agile tech companies.
• Reporting: Likely reports into a Design Lead or Head of Product, within a broader Product or Engineering department.

Methodology:

• Data-Driven Design: Ethos Life emphasizes "deep technology and data science" and leverages "predictive analytics," suggesting a strong reliance on data to inform product decisions and optimize user journeys.
• Agile Development: Given the startup environment and focus on rapid iteration, an agile methodology (Scrum, Kanban) is highly probable for product development and design cycles.
• User-Centric Approach: The company's mission to "make it faster and easier" and its focus on "trust and deliver value" through design highlight a commitment to understanding and serving customer needs.

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

📝 Enhancement Note: The company's industry and founding date suggest a mature but still rapidly scaling InsurTech company. The "Platform team" designation implies a strategic focus on core functionalities that underpin the entire business operation.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: Product Designer II is typically a mid-level role. It signifies an individual contributor with a solid foundation in design principles and a proven ability to execute design tasks independently. This level involves taking ownership of specific product areas and contributing to strategic discussions. Reporting Structure: The designer will likely report to a Design Manager or Lead, working closely with Product Managers and Engineering leads. This structure encourages collaboration and provides mentorship while allowing for autonomy in design execution. Operations Impact: The role directly impacts customer acquisition and identity verification, which are critical operational functions for Ethos Life. Efficient and trustworthy design in these areas directly influences conversion rates, customer trust, regulatory compliance (KYC/IDV), and overall business scalability. The design of internal tools also has a profound impact on the efficiency of operational teams.

Growth Opportunities:

• Skill Specialization: Opportunity to deepen expertise in specific areas like form design, complex workflow optimization, or B2B/internal tool design, potentially leading to a Senior Product Designer or specialized role.
• Design System Leadership: As the company grows, there will be opportunities to take on more responsibility in shaping and leading the design system's evolution.
• Cross-Functional Leadership: Potential to move into Product Management or lead design initiatives that span multiple product areas.
• Mentorship: As a mid-level designer, there's an opportunity to mentor junior designers and contribute to the overall design team's growth and knowledge sharing.
• Impactful Projects: Working on high-volume, critical experiences offers significant opportunities to build a strong portfolio and gain recognition for substantial contributions.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Platform team" context and the specific focus on acquisition and identity verification suggest that growth could lead to specialization in operational excellence through design, a valuable niche within product design.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Hybrid. This indicates a blend of remote work and in-office presence, promoting flexibility while maintaining opportunities for in-person collaboration and team building. Office Location(s): Bangalore, India. This location is a major tech hub in India, offering access to a large talent pool and a vibrant ecosystem of tech companies. Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Design Culture: The description emphasizes contributing to design culture, suggesting an environment that values feedback, knowledge sharing, and collective improvement.
• Modern Tools & Technology: Employees will have access to industry-standard design and collaboration tools necessary for effective product development in a tech company.
• Cross-Functional Interaction: The role necessitates regular interaction with product, engineering, and data teams, fostering a dynamic and communicative work environment.

Work Schedule:

• Standard full-time hours (approx. 40 hours/week). The hybrid model likely allows for some flexibility in daily scheduling, accommodating personal needs while ensuring team alignment and productivity.

📝 Enhancement Note: The hybrid model in a tech hub like Bangalore suggests a modern work environment that balances employee well-being with the need for collaborative problem-solving, especially crucial for complex design challenges in operational areas.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A recruiter or hiring manager will review your application and portfolio to assess basic qualifications and fit.
• Portfolio Presentation & Design Exercise: Expect a session where you present your portfolio, highlighting key projects, your design process, and the impact of your work. This may be followed by a take-home design challenge or an in-person/virtual whiteboarding session focused on a specific problem.
• Cross-Functional Interviews: Interviews with Product Managers, Engineers, and Data Scientists to evaluate your collaboration skills, technical understanding, and ability to work within a team.
• Hiring Manager & Team Interviews: Discussions focused on your experience, design philosophy, cultural fit, and how you approach problem-solving and growth.
• Final Round: Potentially a discussion with senior leadership or a final review of your portfolio and design exercise.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Tell a Story: For each project, clearly outline the problem, your role, the process, your decisions, the challenges, and the outcomes/impact.
• Quantify Impact: Whenever possible, use metrics (e.g., conversion rate improvements, reduction in error rates, task completion times) to demonstrate the success of your designs.
• Showcase Process: Don't just show final screens; include sketches, wireframes, user flows, and research insights to illustrate your thinking.
• Tailor to the Role: Highlight projects that are most relevant to Ethos Life's business (e.g., complex forms, user onboarding, identity verification, internal tools) and the skills they are seeking.
• Focus on User-Centricity & Business Goals: Demonstrate how you balanced user needs with business objectives, especially concerning trust and growth.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the Problem: Thoroughly analyze the design challenge prompt. Ask clarifying questions if permitted.
• Define Scope: Quickly identify the core issues and define the scope of your solution.
• Structure Your Approach: Outline your design process (e.g., research, ideation, prototyping, testing).
• Communicate Clearly: Articulate your thought process and design decisions verbally and visually.
• Prioritize: If time is limited, focus on the most critical aspects of the problem and present a high-level solution with a clear path for future iteration.
• Consider Operational Constraints: For this role, think about how your designs might impact backend systems, data integrity, and internal operational workflows.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on identity verification and internal tools means candidates should be prepared to discuss how their designs address both user experience and operational efficiency/compliance requirements.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Design & Prototyping: Figma (highly probable, industry standard), Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop), InVision, Axure RP.
• User Research & Testing: UserTesting.com, Maze, Lookback, surveys (Typeform, Google Forms).
• Collaboration & Project Management: Jira, Confluence, Asana, Trello, Slack.

Analytics & Reporting:

• Web/Product Analytics: Google Analytics, Amplitude, Mixpanel, Hotjar.
• Data Visualization (Potential exposure): Tableau, Looker, Power BI (understanding how to consume data from these is key).

CRM & Automation:

• CRM (Exposure to data): Salesforce, HubSpot (understanding how design impacts CRM data and workflows).
• IDV/KYC Platforms (Familiarity is a plus): While not a direct tool to use, understanding the landscape of providers like Jumio, Onfido, or Veriff can be beneficial.

📝 Enhancement Note: Proficiency in Figma is almost a given for modern product design roles. Understanding how design impacts data capture for analytics and CRM systems is crucial given the company's data-driven approach.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Customer Centricity: A deep commitment to understanding and serving the needs of Ethos Life's customers, ensuring trust and ease of use in critical life insurance processes.
• Data-Driven Decision Making: Reliance on data and analytics to inform design choices, measure impact, and drive continuous improvement in user experiences and operational efficiency.
• Collaboration & Transparency: A culture of open communication, knowledge sharing, and mutual respect among product, design, engineering, and data teams.
• Bias for Action & Execution: A proactive and results-oriented approach, valuing speed, iteration, and the ability to bring ideas to life effectively.
• Innovation & Adaptability: A willingness to explore new technologies and approaches to solve complex problems in the InsurTech space and adapt to evolving market needs.

Collaboration Style:

• Integrated Teams: Designers work as embedded members within cross-functional product teams, fostering close working relationships with PMs, Engineers, and Data Scientists.
• Feedback Loops: Regular design critiques, sprint reviews, and informal check-ins ensure continuous feedback and alignment.
• Shared Ownership: While individuals own specific design areas, there's a collective responsibility for the success of the product and its operational effectiveness.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "bias for action" and "data-driven decision making" aligns strongly with operational roles where tangible results and efficiency are paramount.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Balancing User Needs with Business Goals: Designing experiences that are both highly user-friendly and effectively drive customer acquisition, conversion, and operational compliance (e.g., KYC/IDV) can be complex.
• Designing for Trust in a Sensitive Industry: Life insurance requires a high degree of trust. Designers must create interfaces that feel secure, reliable, and empathetic.
• Onboarding Complex Workflows: Simplifying intricate processes like identity verification and policy application into intuitive user journeys requires careful design and iteration.
• Evolving Design System: Contributing to and scaling a design system in a growing company requires strategic thinking and careful documentation.
• Internal Tool Design: Designing effective internal tools often presents unique challenges related to diverse user roles, complex data management, and efficiency requirements.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Specialized Design Skills: Deepen expertise in areas like form design, complex user flows, accessibility, and B2B/internal tool design.
• Data Analytics for Designers: Enhance skills in interpreting user data and leveraging analytics to drive design decisions.
• InsurTech Industry Knowledge: Gain deep insights into the insurance industry, its regulatory landscape, and the technological innovations transforming it.
• Cross-Functional Exposure: Develop a strong understanding of product management, engineering processes, and data science principles.
• Design Leadership: Opportunities to mentor junior designers, lead design initiatives, and contribute to the strategic direction of the design function.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges highlight the intersection of user experience, business operations, and regulatory compliance, areas where skilled product designers can make a significant impact.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• Product Strategy & Vision: "How would you approach designing a new feature for identity verification that balances speed, security, and user trust?" or "Imagine we need to redesign our agent onboarding portal. What are your first steps and key considerations?"
  • Preparation: Think about user personas, key user journeys, potential friction points, and how to measure success. Consider how your design impacts operational efficiency.
• Collaboration & Stakeholder Management: "Describe a time you had to influence a product decision with data or user research. How did you present your findings?" or "How do you handle disagreements with engineers or product managers about design direction?"
  • Preparation: Prepare STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) examples. Focus on communication strategies, data-backed arguments, and achieving consensus.
• Problem-Solving & Execution: "Walk us through a complex design challenge you faced and how you solved it. What was the outcome?" or "How do you prioritize your design tasks when faced with multiple competing deadlines?"
  • Preparation: Be ready to dive deep into your portfolio projects, explaining your thought process, trade-offs, and iterative improvements. Emphasize efficiency and effective task management.

Company & Culture Questions:

• Company Operations: "What excites you about Ethos Life's mission and the InsurTech industry?" or "How do you see design contributing to building trust in a financial services company?"
  • Preparation: Research Ethos Life's products, mission, values, and recent news. Understand the importance of trust and efficiency in insurance.
• Team Dynamics: "How do you prefer to collaborate with engineers and product managers?" or "What makes a strong design culture, in your opinion?"
  • Preparation: Align your answers with the company’s emphasis on collaboration and cross-functional teams.

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure for Impact: Start with a brief overview of your role and the project's goals. Then, detail the problem, your process (user research, ideation, testing), key design decisions, and the final solution. Conclude with the outcomes and learnings.
• Highlight Operations Relevance: For this role, emphasize how your designs improved operational efficiency, compliance, or user trust in critical processes. Use specific examples if you have them.
• Demonstrate Process, Not Just Polish: Show your iterative journey, including early concepts, user feedback, and how you refined the design.
• Quantify Results: Use data and metrics wherever possible to showcase the impact of your design work.
• Be Ready for Deep Dives: Anticipate detailed questions about your design choices, the tools you used, and how you handled challenges.

📝 Enhancement Note: Given the role's focus, interviewers will likely probe on how you approach designing for regulated industries, complex workflows, and internal operational tools, in addition to standard product design challenges.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Product Designer position:

• Submit your application, including your resume and a link to your online portfolio, through the provided application portal.
• Portfolio Customization: Ensure your portfolio prominently features projects demonstrating user-centric thinking, strong interaction/visual craft, and ideally, experience with form-heavy UX, complex workflows, or internal tools. Tailor your case studies to highlight impact and process.
• Resume Optimization: Clearly articulate your 3-6 years of experience, emphasizing shipped products and key responsibilities aligned with the job description. Use keywords like "user-centric design," "interaction design," "prototyping," "usability testing," and any relevant experience with "KYC/IDV" or "B2B tools."
• Prepare Your Narrative: Be ready to discuss your design philosophy, your process for problem discovery and execution, and how you collaborate with cross-functional teams. Prepare to present 1-2 key portfolio projects in detail.
• Research Ethos Life: Understand their mission, products, and the InsurTech space. Consider how your design skills can contribute to their goals of making life insurance faster, easier, and more trustworthy.

⚠️ 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.

---