Product Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Product Designer Company: Prelim Location: New York, New York, United States Job Type: FULL_TIME Category: Product Design / User Experience (UX) Date Posted: January 20, 2026 Experience Level: Mid-Level (2-5 years) Remote Status: Fully Remote (United States)

🚀 Role Summary

• Design and develop user-centered interfaces that enhance and expand Prelim's banking platform, focusing on usability, accessibility, and aesthetic quality.
• Drive the complete design lifecycle from conceptualization and wireframing to high-fidelity prototyping and final production-ready assets, ensuring meticulous attention to detail.
• Build and maintain robust design systems, interactive prototypes, and other critical design artifacts to support innovative feature development.
• Collaborate closely with customers, engineers, and product stakeholders to translate complex banking needs into intuitive and engaging user experiences.
• Contribute to a fast-paced, remote startup environment focused on transforming the financial services industry through technological innovation.

📝 Enhancement Note: While the provided job title is "Product Designer," the description heavily emphasizes user experience (UX) and user interface (UI) design responsibilities within the context of a technology product. This has been categorized as Product Design / User Experience (UX) to reflect the core functional area and attract relevant candidates. The role is positioned as mid-level due to the mention of "growing team" and the need for someone to "see designs from start to finish," suggesting a need for independent contribution rather than purely junior support.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• User-Centric Design Development: Craft pixel-perfect, user-centric designs that not only enhance the existing platform but also expand its capabilities, with a strong emphasis on improving usability and accessibility for banking customers.
• End-to-End Design Ownership: Take full ownership of the design process from initial ideation and concept development through to final production, ensuring the highest quality and consistency in all deliverables.
• Design System and Prototyping: Create, maintain, and evolve comprehensive design systems, interactive prototypes, and other essential design assets to effectively communicate innovative ideas and facilitate seamless development.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work in close partnership with Prelim's customers to gather feedback, engineers to ensure technical feasibility, and product managers to align design initiatives with strategic business objectives.
• Problem Solving and Innovation: Translate complex banking requirements and user needs into elegant, intuitive, and effective design solutions that drive customer acquisition and retention.
• Aesthetics and Detail: Maintain a commitment to excellence and a keen sensitivity to the finest design details, ensuring a polished and professional user experience across all touchpoints.
• Strategic Thinking: Apply strong systems thinking principles to design solutions that are scalable, maintainable, and align with the overall product vision and business goals.

📝 Enhancement Note: The original description was concise. These responsibilities have been elaborated to provide a clearer understanding of the scope and expectations for a Product Designer in a fintech startup, emphasizing the end-to-end nature of the role and the importance of cross-functional collaboration. Keywords like "user-centric," "end-to-end design ownership," "design systems," and "cross-functional collaboration" have been integrated to align with industry expectations.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While no specific degree is mandated, a background in Design, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Graphic Design, or a related field, demonstrated through experience and portfolio, is highly valued. Experience: 2-5 years of professional experience in Product Design, UX Design, or UI Design, with a proven track record of delivering high-quality consumer and/or enterprise-facing digital products.

Required Skills:

• Exceptional Portfolio: An outstanding portfolio showcasing a range of consumer and/or enterprise-facing work that demonstrates exceptional visual design, interaction design, and problem-solving skills.
• Design Software Proficiency: Mastery of industry-standard design and prototyping tools (e.g., Figma, Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite, InVision).
• User-Centered Design Principles: Deep understanding and practical application of user-centered design methodologies, usability best practices, and accessibility standards.
• Systems Thinking: Ability to think holistically about product ecosystems, understanding how individual components interact and contribute to the overall user experience and business objectives.
• Ambiguity Navigation: Comfort and effectiveness in navigating ambiguous situations, transforming early-stage ideas and vague requirements into clear, actionable design outcomes.
• Attention to Detail: A strong commitment to excellence and a meticulous eye for detail in all aspects of design, from typography and spacing to interaction flows and visual consistency.
• Proactive Collaboration: A habit of proactive and effective collaboration with cross-functional teams, including product managers, engineers, and stakeholders.
• Compelling Communication & Presentation Skills: Ability to clearly articulate design decisions, present concepts persuasively, and communicate effectively with diverse audiences.

Preferred Skills:

• Experience in the FinTech or Banking industry, with an understanding of financial products and customer onboarding processes.
• Experience designing for both web and mobile platforms.
• Familiarity with agile development methodologies.
• Basic understanding of front-end development principles (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) to better collaborate with engineers.

📝 Enhancement Note: The original qualifications were descriptive. This section expands on them by specifying common design tools, elaborating on "systems thinker" and "comfort with ambiguity," and adding preferred skills relevant to Prelim's industry and product type. The experience level has been inferred as Mid-Level based on the qualifications and responsibilities.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Case Study Depth: Showcase 2-3 detailed case studies that illustrate your problem-solving process, design decisions, and the impact of your work on user experience and business goals.
• Visual Design Excellence: Present high-fidelity mockups, interactive prototypes, and examples of UI design that demonstrate a strong aesthetic sense and attention to detail.
• Process Documentation: Clearly articulate your design process, including user research methodologies, wireframing, prototyping, user testing, and iteration stages.
• Impact Metrics: Where possible, include quantifiable results or evidence of how your designs have improved key metrics (e.g., conversion rates, user satisfaction, task completion time, reduction in support tickets).
• Systems Thinking Examples: Include examples that demonstrate your ability to design for scalability, maintainability, and consistency, such as contributions to design systems or complex feature sets.

Process Documentation:

• Workflow Design: Demonstrate experience in mapping out user flows and creating intuitive navigation structures for complex applications.
• Design System Contribution: Evidence of creating, contributing to, or utilizing design systems to ensure brand consistency and design efficiency across products.
• Prototyping and User Testing: Showcase the use of interactive prototypes to validate design concepts and present findings from user testing sessions.
• Iterative Improvement: Illustrate how you've used feedback and data to iterate on designs and drive continuous improvement in user experience.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a Product Designer role, a strong portfolio is paramount. This section outlines specific expectations for what such a portfolio should contain, emphasizing case studies, process, and impact. It connects these requirements to core operations and GTM principles like demonstrating ROI and process optimization through design.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: $110,000 - $130,000 USD per year. Benefits:

• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance.
• Stock options in a rapidly growing startup.
• Generous paid time off (PTO) and holidays.
• Remote work stipend for home office setup and expenses.
• Opportunities for professional development and continued learning in FinTech and product design.
• 401(k) plan (details may vary).

Working Hours: Standard full-time hours (approximately 40 hours per week), with flexibility to accommodate remote work and cross-time zone collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range was provided. Benefits have been inferred based on typical offerings for remote, full-time roles at US-based startups in the tech sector, especially those in FinTech, which often include equity. Working hours are a standard assumption for full-time roles.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: FinTech / Banking Technology. Prelim operates in a rapidly evolving sector focused on modernizing financial services through technology, particularly in customer onboarding and account opening processes. Company Size: Small, but growing startup. This implies a dynamic, fast-paced environment where individual contributions have a significant impact and roles can evolve. Founded: Prelim is a San Francisco-based startup, indicating a modern, tech-forward origin. The specific founding date isn't provided, but the context suggests a relatively young company focused on innovation.

Team Structure:

• Lean Operations: As a small, growing team, expect a flat hierarchy and direct collaboration across departments. The Product Designer will likely work closely with Product Management, Engineering, and potentially Customer Success.
• Cross-Functional Integration: Emphasis on seamless integration between design, product strategy, and engineering to ensure rapid iteration and high-quality product delivery.
• Remote-First Mentality: The team operates entirely remotely across the US, fostering a culture of asynchronous communication, trust, and accountability.

Methodology:

• Data-Driven Design: While not explicitly stated, expect design decisions to be informed by user research, customer feedback, and product analytics.
• Agile Development: Likely employs agile methodologies for product development, requiring designers to be adaptable and responsive to changing priorities.
• Focus on Customer Experience: A core tenet is improving the customer experience in banking, which drives design decisions and product strategy.

Company Website: https://prelim.com/

📝 Enhancement Note: Information on company culture, size, and industry has been synthesized from the "About Prelim" section and general knowledge of tech startups. The emphasis on "transforming banking" and "innovation" has been highlighted. The remote-first aspect is crucial for understanding team dynamics.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: Mid-Level Product Designer. This role requires independent contribution, end-to-end ownership of design projects, and the ability to work with ambiguity. It's a step beyond a junior designer, offering opportunities to shape product direction. Reporting Structure: While not explicitly stated, in a startup of this size, the Product Designer would likely report to a Head of Product, Lead Designer, or potentially a CTO, depending on the current team structure. Operations Impact: The Product Designer plays a critical role in the Go-To-Market (GTM) strategy by creating intuitive and efficient user experiences that directly impact customer acquisition, onboarding success, and overall customer satisfaction for banks. This directly influences revenue by enabling faster, more seamless account openings.

Growth Opportunities:

• Design Leadership: As the team grows, there's potential to take on more senior design responsibilities, mentor junior designers, and influence the overall design strategy and culture.
• Specialization: Opportunity to deepen expertise in FinTech UX, complex B2B/B2C onboarding flows, or design systems within a growing product.
• Strategic Influence: Contribute directly to product roadmap decisions and business strategy through design thinking and user advocacy.
• Skill Development: Exposure to a broad range of product development challenges and the opportunity to learn from experienced engineers and product leaders in a fast-paced environment.

📝 Enhancement Note: The career path for a Product Designer in a startup is often tied to the company's growth. This section outlines potential growth based on that trajectory, emphasizing the impact on GTM and revenue through enhanced user experience.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Fully remote. This means there is no central office; all work is conducted from home or a co-working space, with the team distributed across the United States. Office Location(s): Primarily remote within the United States. While the company is based in San Francisco, employees can work from anywhere within the US.

Workspace Context:

• Asynchronous Collaboration: The remote environment necessitates strong asynchronous communication skills, effective use of collaboration tools (e.g., Slack, Notion, Zoom), and clear documentation.
• Autonomy and Trust: Expect a high degree of autonomy in managing your workday and tasks, built on a foundation of trust and accountability.
• Access to Technology: The company provides the necessary tools and software (e.g., design software, communication platforms) to perform your role effectively in a remote setting.

Work Schedule: Flexible, but typically aligned with standard business hours within the US time zones to facilitate collaboration. Expect approximately 40 hours per week, with the ability to structure your day to optimize productivity.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "remote" aspect of the job is central to the work environment. This section details what a fully remote role entails, focusing on collaboration methods and the expected work structure.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A brief call with a recruiter or hiring manager to assess basic qualifications, cultural fit, and interest in the role and company.
• Portfolio Review & Design Challenge: Presentation of your portfolio, highlighting key projects and design process. This may be followed by a take-home design challenge or an in-depth discussion of a specific design problem relevant to Prelim's product.
• Team Interviews: Meetings with potential colleagues, including engineers and product managers, to assess collaboration style, technical understanding, and how you approach design problems within a team context.
• Final Interview: A conversation with a senior leader (e.g., Head of Product, CEO) to discuss strategic alignment, long-term vision, and cultural fit.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Storytelling: Frame your case studies as narratives – identify the problem, your approach, the decisions you made, and the outcomes.
• Show, Don't Just Tell: Use visuals, wireframes, prototypes, and user flow diagrams to illustrate your process and thinking.
• Highlight Impact: Quantify your contributions whenever possible. Explain why a design decision was made and what the resulting impact was.
• Tailor to Prelim: If possible, subtly tailor your presentation to showcase projects or skills relevant to FinTech, banking, or complex onboarding processes.
• Be Prepared to Discuss Details: Expect to dive deep into specific design choices, trade-offs, and how you handled technical constraints or ambiguous requirements.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the Problem: Thoroughly analyze any design challenge, asking clarifying questions if needed.
• Outline Your Approach: Clearly define the steps you will take to solve the problem, from research to ideation to final design.
• Focus on Process: Demonstrate your thought process, not just the final solution. Explain your assumptions and rationale.
• Consider Business Goals: Relate your design solutions back to Prelim's business objectives and customer needs.

📝 Enhancement Note: This section provides a structured overview of a typical interview process for a Product Designer role in a tech startup. It includes actionable advice for portfolio presentation and challenge preparation, emphasizing clarity, impact, and alignment with business goals.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Design Tools:

• Figma: Likely the primary tool for UI design, prototyping, and collaboration. Proficiency in Figma is almost certainly expected for a modern Product Designer.
• Sketch: May be used, especially if the company has legacy projects or specific team preferences.
• Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop): Useful for asset creation, image editing, and more complex visual tasks.

Prototyping & Collaboration Tools:

• InVision / Figma Prototypes: For creating interactive prototypes to test user flows and gather feedback.
• Miro / Mural: For collaborative whiteboarding, brainstorming, user journey mapping, and wireframing in a remote setting.
• Zoom / Google Meet: For video conferencing and real-time collaboration during interviews and team meetings.
• Slack: For day-to-day team communication and asynchronous updates.
• Notion / Confluence: Potentially used for documentation, design system guidelines, and project management.

Analytics & User Research Tools (Familiarity Valued):

• Google Analytics / Mixpanel / Amplitude: To understand user behavior on the platform.
• Hotjar / FullStory: For session recordings and heatmaps to analyze user interactions.
• UserTesting.com / Maze: For remote usability testing and feedback collection.
• SurveyMonkey / Typeform: For gathering qualitative feedback through surveys.

📝 Enhancement Note: This section details the likely technology stack for a Product Designer, focusing on design, prototyping, and collaboration tools. Familiarity with analytics and user research tools is also highlighted as beneficial for a data-informed design approach.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Customer Obsession: A deep commitment to understanding and serving the needs of both end-users and the banks using Prelim's platform.
• Innovation & Transformation: A drive to challenge the status quo and leverage technology to fundamentally improve the banking industry.
• Excellence & Craftsmanship: A dedication to high-quality design and a meticulous approach to problem-solving, valuing attention to detail.
• Collaboration & Transparency: An open and honest approach to teamwork, with a focus on clear communication and mutual support in a remote setting.
• Ownership & Accountability: A mindset where individuals take responsibility for their work and its outcomes, driving progress proactively.

Collaboration Style:

• Remote-First & Asynchronous: Emphasis on clear, concise written communication and well-documented decisions to accommodate different schedules and locations.
• Cross-Functional Partnership: Design is seen as integral to product development, fostering close working relationships with engineering and product management.
• Feedback-Oriented: A culture that encourages constructive feedback to continuously improve designs and processes.
• Proactive Engagement: Team members are expected to proactively share ideas, raise concerns, and contribute to discussions.

📝 Enhancement Note: Core values have been inferred based on the company's mission ("transforming banking," "innovation") and the nature of a remote startup ("collaboration," "ownership," "transparency"). The collaboration style is directly influenced by the remote work arrangement.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Navigating Ambiguity: As a startup, priorities can shift, and early-stage product development often involves undefined problems. The ability to thrive in such an environment is key.
• Balancing User Needs with Business Goals: Effectively translating user desires into solutions that also meet Prelim's strategic and revenue objectives.
• Technical Constraints: Designing solutions that are feasible within the engineering team's capacity and the current technology stack.
• Remote Collaboration Dynamics: Maintaining strong communication, alignment, and team cohesion in a fully distributed environment.
• Rapid Iteration: The pace of a startup requires quick design cycles and the ability to adapt designs based on feedback and new information.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• FinTech Domain Expertise: Gaining deep knowledge of the banking industry, regulatory environments, and user needs within financial services.
• Product Strategy Influence: Direct involvement in shaping product direction and strategy.
• Design System Development: Opportunity to build or significantly contribute to a growing design system.
• Cross-Disciplinary Learning: Working closely with experienced engineers, product managers, and business leaders.
• Professional Certifications/Courses: Potential support for relevant design or FinTech courses and conferences to enhance skills.

📝 Enhancement Note: Challenges and growth opportunities have been identified based on the context of a remote FinTech startup and a mid-level Product Designer role. The focus is on practical challenges and career advancement within this specific environment.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "Describe a time you had to design for a complex, ambiguous problem. How did you approach it, and what was the outcome?" (Focus on process, problem-solving, and results).
• "How do you prioritize design tasks when faced with multiple competing demands and tight deadlines?" (Assess time management, prioritization, and communication skills).
• "Walk us through a project in your portfolio where you had to collaborate closely with engineers and product managers. What were the key challenges, and how did you overcome them?" (Demonstrate collaboration, communication, and problem-solving).
• "How do you ensure your designs are accessible and inclusive for all users?" (Assess understanding of accessibility standards and user empathy).

Company & Culture Questions:

• "What interests you about Prelim's mission to transform banking?" (Show genuine interest and alignment with the company's purpose).
• "How do you approach receiving and giving constructive feedback?" (Assess cultural fit and collaboration style).
• "Describe your ideal remote work environment and how you maintain productivity and connection with your team." (Demonstrate understanding of remote work best practices).
• "Based on what you know about Prelim, what is one area of the product you think could be improved from a design perspective, and why?" (Show initiative, critical thinking, and understanding of the product).

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure Your Narrative: Begin with the problem statement, your role, your process (research, ideation, design), the solutions, and the impact/outcomes.
• Focus on 2-3 Key Projects: Select projects that best showcase your skills relevant to Prelim (e.g., complex workflows, user-centric solutions, strong visual design).
• Explain Your "Why": For every design decision, explain the rationale behind it, connecting it to user needs or business goals.
• Be Ready for Deep Dives: Expect questions about specific design choices, trade-offs, and your thought process.
• Highlight Systems Thinking: Showcase how you approach designing for scalability, consistency, and maintainability.

📝 Enhancement Note: Interview questions are tailored to assess core competencies for a Product Designer role in a startup: problem-solving, collaboration, design process, and cultural fit. Portfolio presentation advice focuses on clear storytelling and demonstrating impact.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Product Designer position:

• Submit your application through the provided link on Ashby.
• Portfolio Preparation: Curate your portfolio to highlight 2-3 of your strongest case studies that demonstrate your end-to-end design process, problem-solving skills, and impact. Ensure it clearly shows your visual design capabilities and understanding of user-centered design principles.
• Resume Optimization: Tailor your resume to emphasize relevant experience in product design, UX/UI, and any FinTech or SaaS background. Use keywords from the job description, such as "user-centered design," "prototyping," "design systems," and "collaboration." Quantify achievements where possible.
• Interview Practice: Prepare for behavioral questions by reflecting on your past experiences using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result). Practice articulating your design process and decisions clearly and concisely. Be ready to discuss your portfolio projects in detail.
• Company Research: Thoroughly review Prelim's website, understand their mission, target audience, and current product offerings. Research the FinTech landscape to grasp industry challenges and opportunities. This will help you ask insightful questions and demonstrate your genuine interest.

⚠️ 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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