(Senior) Product Designer (all genders)

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: (Senior) Product Designer Company: envelio Location: Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany Job Type: Full-Time Category: Product Design / UX/UI Design Date Posted: July 15, 2025 Experience Level: Mid-Level to Senior (2-5 years implied) Remote Status: Hybrid / Fully Remote Option Available

🚀 Role Summary

• Drive the continuous development and strategic evolution of envelio's Intelligent Grid Platform (IGP) through expert product design.
• Collaborate intensively within cross-functional squads, including Product Managers (PMs) and Engineering Managers (EMs), to define and execute application design and user experience enhancements.
• Synthesize complex stakeholder feedback and user context into actionable design visions, user workflows, and high-fidelity mockups and prototypes.
• Contribute to and influence the company's design system by defining new requirements and components, ensuring consistency and scalability across the platform.
• Act as a key liaison between design, product, engineering, and customer-facing teams to champion user experience and product usability improvements.

📝 Enhancement Note: The job title "(Senior) Product Designer" suggests a role that can accommodate candidates with varying levels of experience, likely from 2-5 years upwards. The responsibilities indicate a significant impact on product strategy and design direction, typical of a senior-leaning role, but the core functions are also accessible to experienced mid-level designers. The emphasis on collaboration within a "tech trio" (PM, EM, PD) and influencing the design system points towards a highly integrated and impactful design role.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Lead the product design process for assigned applications within the Intelligent Grid Platform (IGP), from conceptualization to final implementation, in close partnership with the Product Manager and Engineering Manager.
• Analyze user context, gather stakeholder feedback from various departments (including Customer Success), and translate this input into detailed usage requirements and design specifications.
• Develop comprehensive user workflows, wireframes, low-fidelity to high-fidelity mockups, and interactive clickable prototypes using Figma to effectively communicate design solutions.
• Conduct design evaluations and user testing in coordination with stakeholders, presenting findings and iterating on designs based on feedback to ensure optimal user experience and usability.
• Actively contribute to the evolution of the company's design system by identifying needs, proposing new components, and collaborating with the Team Lead and fellow designers to maintain design consistency and efficiency.
• Champion user-centric design principles and best practices throughout the product development lifecycle, ensuring that user needs and business objectives are met.
• Communicate design decisions, rationale, and outcomes effectively to cross-functional teams, including engineering, product management, and customer success.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a full-cycle product design role, emphasizing strategic input ("product design visions"), user research synthesis ("analyze context," "synthesize feedback"), and hands-on design execution ("mockups," "prototypes"). The requirement to contribute to the design system and collaborate across multiple teams (product, engineering, customer success) indicates a need for strong communication and systems thinking, common in growing SaaS companies.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education:

• Formal education in Design, HCI, Computer Science, or a related field is beneficial but not strictly required; a strong portfolio demonstrating equivalent practical experience is highly valued.

Experience:

• Proven professional experience in product design, with a demonstrable track record of successfully designing and launching web-based applications, ideally within a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) environment.
• Experience leading the design process from initial concept through to successful implementation, working closely with product and development teams to ensure design fidelity.
• Demonstrated experience in analyzing user context and synthesizing stakeholder feedback into actionable design requirements and user workflows.

Required Skills:

• UX/UI Design: Expertise in creating intuitive, user-friendly, and visually appealing interfaces for complex web applications.
• Interaction Design: Strong understanding of user interaction principles and the ability to design seamless user journeys.
• Figma Proficiency: Advanced skills in Figma, including mastery of Auto Layout, components, variants, and creating complex clickable prototypes.
• Visual Design: Excellent visual design skills with a keen eye for detail, typography, color theory, and layout.
• Communication & Collaboration: Exceptional ability to articulate design decisions, gather feedback, and collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams and stakeholders.
• Design Process Management: Ability to confidently lead and manage the end-to-end design process from concept to implementation.
• English Fluency: Professional fluency in English for all work-related communication.

Preferred Skills:

• SaaS Environment Experience: Prior experience designing for SaaS platforms, understanding common user needs and business models.
• Design System Contribution: Experience in contributing to or building design systems, including defining component libraries and style guides.
• Front-End Technologies: Knowledge of HTML and CSS, enabling a better understanding of implementation constraints and possibilities.
• German Language Skills: B2 level knowledge of German.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on Figma, particularly Auto Layout and components, suggests that efficient and scalable design practices are highly valued. The "optional" mention of HTML/CSS indicates that while not mandatory, a basic understanding of front-end development is a significant plus, allowing for more informed design decisions and collaboration with engineers. The "all genders" phrasing and the "Perfection is a myth!" quote suggest an inclusive and growth-oriented culture, where practical skills and potential are prioritized over rigid adherence to every single criterion.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• A comprehensive portfolio showcasing a range of UX/UI and interaction design projects, demonstrating your ability to solve complex user problems.
• Projects that clearly illustrate your end-to-end design process, from initial research and concept development to final mockups and prototyping.
• Examples of how you have translated stakeholder feedback and usage requirements into tangible design solutions.
• Demonstrations of your proficiency with design tools, specifically Figma, including examples of reusable components and complex prototypes.
• Evidence of contribution to design systems or a strong understanding of design system principles.

Process Documentation:

• Case studies within your portfolio should detail the problem statement, your design process, the solutions implemented, and the impact of your design decisions.
• Showcase how you have iterated on designs based on feedback and data, highlighting the decision-making process.
• Illustrate your approach to collaborating with product managers and engineers to ensure successful design implementation.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a product design role, the portfolio is paramount. It should not just showcase final deliverables but also the thinking, process, and collaboration behind them. Candidates should be prepared to walk through specific projects, explaining their role, the challenges faced, how they leveraged Figma's advanced features, and the outcomes achieved. Highlighting contributions to design systems or style guides will be particularly strong.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range:

• Given the location (Cologne, Germany), the experience level (Mid-Level to Senior), and the industry (SaaS/Tech), a competitive salary range for a (Senior) Product Designer in Germany would typically fall between €55,000 and €80,000 annually. This estimate is based on industry benchmarks for similar roles in major German tech hubs and considers the company's focus on advanced technology. A precise figure would depend on the candidate's specific experience and demonstrated skill set.

Benefits:

• Flexible Work Environment: Choice between fully remote work or a hybrid model at the Cologne office.
• International Remote Option: Opportunity for remote work from abroad for up to three months per year, offering flexibility for personal travel or extended stays.
• Generous Paid Time Off: 30 holidays plus 3 additional corporate holidays ensure ample time for rest and rejuvenation.
• Health & Wellness Support: Partnerships for sports memberships encourage an active lifestyle.
• Mobility Budget: A monthly allowance for mobility expenses, such as bicycle leasing (Jobrad) or public transport (ÖPNV), promoting sustainable commuting.
• Professional Development: Dedicated time and resources allocated for individual growth and skill enhancement.
• Retirement Planning: Contribution to an envelio pension plan to support long-term financial security.
• Team Engagement: Regular company and team events foster a strong sense of community and collaboration.

Working Hours:

• Standard full-time working hours are implied (likely 40 hours per week), with flexibility offered through remote and hybrid work arrangements, allowing for better work-life integration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The benefits package is quite attractive, particularly the flexibility offered with remote and international remote options, which are significant draws for tech talent. The mobility budget and health support are also strong points. The salary estimation is based on general German market data for experienced designers in the tech sector; actual compensation will be subject to negotiation.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Energy Technology / Software (specifically Grid Management Software) Company Size: Over 150 employees, indicating a scale-up phase with established processes but still agile enough for significant individual impact. Founded: envelio was founded to address challenges in the energy transition, suggesting a mission-driven culture focused on innovation and sustainability.

Team Structure:

• The role is situated within a cross-functional "squad," typically comprising a Product Manager, Engineering Manager, and engineers, plus the Product Designer. This structure promotes autonomy and end-to-end ownership.
• Collaboration extends beyond the immediate squad to other Product Designers, Language Specialists, and Customer Success Managers, emphasizing a holistic approach to user experience.
• Reporting likely goes through a Design Lead or Head of Product/Design, facilitating mentorship and design system alignment.

Methodology:

• Agile development methodologies are implied, with teams working in sprints and focusing on iterative development.
• A strong emphasis is placed on analyzing user context and stakeholder feedback to guide product development and design decisions.
• The company values continuous growth and evolution, encouraging a proactive approach to learning and improvement ("own it, love it, grow with it").

Company Website: envelio.com

📝 Enhancement Note: The company culture is described as mission-driven, collaborative, and focused on growth and ownership. The "geek humor," "love for emojis," and "random facts" suggest a friendly and informal work environment, typical of many tech startups and scale-ups. The "150 envelians" figure points to a company that has moved beyond the early startup phase and is building a solid foundation.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This role is positioned as a "(Senior) Product Designer," indicating a mid-to-senior level of responsibility. It involves not only executing design tasks but also contributing to product strategy, influencing the design system, and collaborating across multiple departments. Reporting Structure: The designer works within a "squad" alongside a PM and EM, suggesting a flat, collaborative structure. They will likely report to a design lead or manager who oversees the broader design team and design system. Operations Impact: The Product Designer plays a crucial role in shaping the user experience and usability of envelio's Intelligent Grid Platform (IGP). This directly impacts customer satisfaction, adoption rates, and ultimately, the company's success in driving the energy transition. Effective design can streamline complex grid management tasks, making the platform more valuable and competitive.

Growth Opportunities:

• Design Leadership: Opportunity to take on more ownership of product areas, mentor junior designers, and influence the overall design strategy and direction of the IGP.
• Specialization: Potential to deepen expertise in specific areas of UX/UI, interaction design, or design systems, becoming a subject matter expert.
• Cross-Functional Exposure: Gain broader experience by working closely with product management, engineering, and customer success, understanding different facets of the business.
• Design System Ownership: Contribute significantly to the growth and governance of the design system, a critical asset for scalable product development.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "(Senior)" aspect of the title is important. Candidates should highlight their experience in driving design strategy, leading projects, and influencing product direction, not just execution. Growth potential leans towards specialization and leadership within the design function, or potentially moving into product management roles given the close collaboration.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: envelio offers a hybrid working mode at its Cologne office, alongside a fully remote option. This suggests a modern workplace designed for collaboration and flexibility. Office Location(s): The primary office is located at Hildegard-von-Bingen-Allee 2, 50933 Cologne, Germany. Workspace Context:

• The hybrid model implies a collaborative office environment where designers can interact with colleagues from product, engineering, and other departments.
• Access to design tools and technology is a given, with Figma being the primary tool.
• The "squad" structure encourages close working relationships within product teams. Work Schedule: While a standard full-time schedule is expected, the remote and hybrid options provide flexibility in managing work hours and location, which can be beneficial for deep work or personal commitments.

📝 Enhancement Note: For candidates considering the hybrid option, understanding the typical office days and team collaboration patterns within the Cologne office would be beneficial. The flexibility offered by the remote and hybrid options is a key selling point for envelio's work environment.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A review of your application, resume, and most importantly, your portfolio. Be prepared to highlight relevant projects that showcase your skills in UX/UI, interaction design, and your process.
• Hiring Manager/Team Interview: A discussion focused on your experience, design philosophy, and how you approach product design challenges. Expect questions about your collaboration style and how you handle feedback.
• Portfolio Walkthrough & Design Exercise: You will likely present specific case studies from your portfolio, explaining your process, decisions, and outcomes. A design challenge or take-home assignment might be given to assess your practical skills and problem-solving approach within a given timeframe.
• Team/Cross-functional Interviews: Meet with members of the product team, engineering team, and potentially other designers or stakeholders to assess cultural fit and collaboration capabilities.
• Final Interview: Potentially with a senior leader to discuss overall fit, career aspirations, and confirm alignment with company values.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate Selectively: Choose 3-4 of your strongest projects that best demonstrate the required skills (UX/UI, interaction design, Figma proficiency, SaaS experience if applicable).
• Tell a Story: For each project, clearly articulate the problem, your role, the process you followed, the tools you used (especially Figma features), the challenges you overcame, and the impact of your design. Use visuals effectively.
• Highlight Process: Emphasize your thought process, user research synthesis, iteration cycles, and how you incorporated feedback. This is as important as the final designs.
• Showcase Figma Skills: Include examples that demonstrate your mastery of Figma, such as complex component libraries, auto layout usage, and sophisticated interactive prototypes.
• Quantify Impact: If possible, include metrics or outcomes that demonstrate the success of your designs (e.g., improved conversion rates, reduced task completion time, positive user feedback).

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the Domain: Familiarize yourself with envelio's Intelligent Grid Platform and the energy sector. Think about the typical users and their goals.
• Practice Design Exercises: Be ready to tackle a problem statement that might involve user flow mapping, wireframing, or UI design for a specific feature.
• Time Management: If given a take-home assignment, manage your time effectively to deliver a polished solution. For live exercises, practice thinking aloud and articulating your process concisely.
• Focus on Trade-offs: Be prepared to discuss design trade-offs and justify your decisions, considering technical constraints and business goals.

📝 Enhancement Note: The portfolio is the most critical part of the application. Candidates should prepare to deep-dive into their showcased projects, demonstrating not just the final output but the strategic thinking and problem-solving skills behind it. Understanding envelio's mission and product is also key for preparation.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Figma: The core tool for UX/UI design, wireframing, prototyping, and component management. Advanced proficiency is expected.
• Design System Tools: Likely integrated within Figma or separate tools for managing design tokens, component libraries, and style guides.

Analytics & Reporting:

• While not explicitly mentioned for the designer role, familiarity with how analytics tools (e.g., Google Analytics, Mixpanel, Pendo) are used to track user behavior and product performance would be beneficial for understanding user data and impact.

CRM & Automation:

• Not directly relevant to the Product Designer's core tools, but understanding how CRM data might inform user personas or customer success feedback could be useful.

📝 Enhancement Note: The explicit mention of Figma, including Auto Layout and components, makes it clear that this is the primary tool. Candidates should emphasize their proficiency in these specific Figma features within their portfolio and during interviews.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Ownership: Taking responsibility for one's work and driving projects to completion ("own it").
• Passion: Enthusiasm for the work and the company's mission ("love it").
• Growth Mindset: Commitment to continuous learning, evolution, and self-improvement ("grow with it").
• Collaboration: Working effectively with diverse teams and stakeholders to achieve common goals.
• User-Centricity: Prioritizing user needs and experience in all design decisions.
• Data-Informed Decisions: Utilizing feedback and data to guide design choices and optimizations.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-functional Squads: Working closely with PMs and EMs to define product direction and execution.
• Design Team Integration: Collaborating with fellow product designers, language specialists, and the design lead to maintain consistency and share knowledge.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Proactively communicating with and gathering input from various departments to ensure designs meet diverse needs.
• Constructive Feedback: Openness to receiving and giving feedback to improve designs and processes.

📝 Enhancement Note: The company's stated values ("own it, love it, grow with it") are central to their culture. Candidates should reflect these values in their responses, demonstrating initiative, passion for the domain, and a commitment to personal and professional development.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Balancing User Needs with Business Goals: Effectively translating complex energy grid requirements and stakeholder feedback into user-friendly designs that also meet business objectives.
• Scaling the Design System: As the company and product grow, ensuring the design system remains robust, scalable, and easy to maintain will be an ongoing challenge.
• Cross-functional Alignment: Maintaining consistent design vision and implementation across different squads and departments requires strong communication and negotiation skills.
• Remote/Hybrid Collaboration: Ensuring seamless collaboration and effective communication within a distributed or hybrid team environment.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Deepen SaaS Design Expertise: Gain extensive experience in designing complex B2B SaaS applications within a critical industry (energy).
• Contribute to Design System Evolution: Play a key role in shaping and scaling a growing design system, a valuable skill for future roles.
• Mentorship: Potential for mentorship from experienced designers and product leaders within envelio.
• Industry Knowledge: Develop expertise in the energy technology sector and the specific challenges of grid management.

📝 Enhancement Note: Candidates should be prepared to discuss how they would approach these challenges, demonstrating problem-solving skills and a proactive attitude. Highlighting how they seek out learning opportunities to overcome challenges will be viewed favorably.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "How do you approach designing for a complex B2B SaaS product in a domain like energy technology?" (Focus on understanding the user, breaking down complexity, iterative design).
• "Describe a time you had to synthesize conflicting stakeholder feedback. How did you resolve it and what was the outcome?" (Highlight communication, negotiation, and prioritization skills).
• "How do you contribute to or utilize a design system in your workflow? What are the benefits and challenges?" (Showcase understanding of design consistency and efficiency).
• "Walk us through a challenging UX problem you solved using Figma, specifically leveraging features like Auto Layout or components." (Be ready with a specific portfolio case study).

Company & Culture Questions:

• "What interests you about envelio and our mission to drive the energy transition?" (Research the company's mission and values).
• "How do you embody our values of 'own it, love it, grow with it' in your work?" (Provide specific examples of initiative, passion, and learning).
• "Describe your ideal team collaboration style." (Focus on communication, feedback, and cross-functional teamwork).

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure: Use a clear narrative for each project: Problem -> Process -> Solution -> Outcome.
• Visuals: Ensure high-quality mockups and prototypes are presented. Annotate key design decisions and interactions.
• Figma Demonstration: Be prepared to share specific Figma files or screens that highlight your use of advanced features.
• Quantify Impact: If possible, present data or user testimonials that demonstrate the success of your designs.
• Conciseness: Respect time limits; focus on the most impactful aspects of your projects.

📝 Enhancement Note: Preparation should focus on articulating the "why" behind design decisions, demonstrating a strategic approach, and showcasing practical skills with Figma. Understanding envelio's specific product and mission will be crucial for tailoring responses.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Product Designer position:

• Submit your application through the provided link on the envelio careers page.
• Portfolio Optimization: Carefully curate your portfolio to highlight 3-4 projects that best showcase your UX/UI, interaction design, and Figma skills, emphasizing your process and impact. Tailor your portfolio to align with the responsibilities and requirements listed in the job description.
• Resume Tailoring: Ensure your resume clearly articulates your relevant experience, key skills (especially Figma, UX/UI, interaction design), and achievements. Use keywords from the job description naturally.
• Interview Preparation: Practice articulating your design process, decision-making, and collaboration style. Prepare specific examples from your portfolio to address potential interview questions. Research envelio's product and mission.
• Company Research: Familiarize yourself with envelio's Intelligent Grid Platform, its mission in the energy sector, and its company culture. Understanding their market position will help you tailor your responses and demonstrate 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.