Senior Product Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Senior Product Designer
Company: Cast AI
Location: Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia
Job Type: Full-time
Category: Product Design / GTM Operations
Date Posted: 2025-10-07
Experience Level: 5-10 Years
Remote Status: Fully Remote

🚀 Role Summary

• This Senior Product Designer role is critical for transforming and scaling Cast AI's product, focusing on delivering exceptional user experiences within a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• The position demands a strong blend of aesthetic design skills and deep technical understanding, particularly concerning API interactions and backend systems, crucial for a platform serving DevOps and engineers.
• You will be instrumental in identifying product improvement opportunities, defining user problems, and developing innovative solutions through comprehensive design phases, from research to usability testing.
• This role emphasizes collaborative ideation and close partnership with engineering, product, and sales teams to ensure seamless design implementation and product success.

📝 Enhancement Note: While the title is "Senior Product Designer," the emphasis on API documentation, technical awareness, and designing for a developer audience positions this role as having a strong connection to GTM Operations by enabling the effective adoption and utilization of a technical product. The target audience of engineers and DevOps professionals requires a nuanced understanding of their workflows and technical needs, which is a core aspect of GTM enablement.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Drive the end-to-end product design process, from initial concept and user research to detailed wireframing, prototyping, visual design, and iterative usability testing.
• Identify and deeply understand user problems and translate them into effective, intuitive design solutions that align with business objectives and technical capabilities.
• Conduct user research, including discovery sessions and usability studies, to gather insights that inform design decisions and validate hypotheses.
• Develop comprehensive user personas and journey maps to represent target users and their interactions with the Cast AI platform.
• Collaborate closely with engineering teams to understand technical constraints, API capabilities, and backend logic, ensuring designs are feasible and optimized for integration.
• Work cross-functionally with product management, engineering, and sales teams to ensure alignment on product strategy, development timelines, and go-to-market readiness.
• Articulate design concepts, rationale, and technical considerations clearly and persuasively to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Continuously learn and adapt to industry standards, best practices, and emerging technologies, particularly in AI and cloud-native environments, to enhance design expertise.
• Create comprehensive documentation detailing design solutions, implementation specifications, and user flows to support development and knowledge sharing.
• Thrive in an agile environment, demonstrating resilience and adaptability to evolving project requirements and tight deadlines, with a focus on rapid iteration and delivery.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibility to "Write comprehensive documents to describe solutions and implementation details" is a key indicator of a need for strong documentation skills, which are vital in operations roles for knowledge transfer, process standardization, and stakeholder alignment. This goes beyond typical design documentation and leans into operational clarity.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education:

• While no specific degree is mandated, a strong portfolio demonstrating equivalent experience and expertise in product design is essential.

Experience:

• Minimum of 5 years of hands-on, progressive experience in product design, with a clear track record of delivering successful user experiences for complex applications.
• Proven experience in designing for SaaS platforms, data visualization tools, or other data-heavy applications is highly desirable.

Required Skills:

• Product Design: Comprehensive expertise across the full design lifecycle, including user research, wireframing, prototyping, visual design, and usability testing.
• Technical Interpretation: Ability to understand and interpret API documentation, enabling the design of interfaces that effectively interact with backend systems.
• User Research & Analysis: Proficiency in conducting user research, developing user personas, and mapping user journeys to deeply understand user needs and behaviors.
• Collaboration & Communication: Exceptional ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams (engineering, product, sales) and articulate design decisions clearly to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Problem-Solving: Strong analytical and problem-solving skills to identify user problems and devise innovative, effective design solutions.
• Visual Design & Prototyping: Proficiency in industry-standard design tools (e.g., Figma, Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite) for creating high-fidelity mockups and interactive prototypes.
• Agile Methodologies: Experience working within agile development environments, demonstrating an ability to adapt to changing requirements and deliver iteratively.
• English Proficiency: Fluent in written and spoken English.

Preferred Skills:

• Data Visualization Design: Experience designing dashboards, reports, and data-intensive interfaces that effectively communicate complex information.
• AI/ML Familiarity: Strong curiosity and enthusiasm for exploring new technologies, including AI, and understanding their design implications.
• Developer Tooling: Familiarity with the challenges and workflows of DevOps engineers and developers, enabling the creation of user-centric tools.
• Design Systems: Experience contributing to or maintaining design systems for consistency and scalability.

📝 Enhancement Note: The requirement to "understand and interpret API documentation" and "design interfaces that can interact with backend systems" strongly suggests a need for a designer who can bridge the gap between technical implementation and user experience, a critical function in operations for ensuring product usability and adoption. This also implies a need for understanding system integrations and data flows.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• A comprehensive portfolio showcasing a minimum of 5 years of product design experience.
• Emphasis on designs for SaaS platforms, data visualization tools, or other data-heavy applications, demonstrating proficiency in handling complex information.
• Examples of end-to-end design process, from user research and problem definition to final implemented solutions.
• Case studies that highlight your ability to understand technical constraints, interpret API documentation, and design effective interfaces for backend systems.
• Clear articulation of your role in each project, the problem you solved, your design process, and the measurable impact of your work.

Process Documentation:

• Examples of comprehensive documents you have written to describe design solutions and implementation details, showcasing your ability to communicate complex technical and design concepts clearly.
• Documentation that illustrates your approach to user research, persona development, and journey mapping, demonstrating a structured methodology.
• Evidence of how you have collaborated with engineering teams to translate technical requirements into design specifications.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on API documentation interpretation and designing for backend systems means the portfolio should ideally include examples that demonstrate an understanding of how user interfaces connect with APIs and data structures. This is a unique requirement that bridges pure design with operational system understanding.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range:

• €4,000 - €6,500 gross per month, commensurate with experience level. This range is competitive for senior-level design roles across the specified European locations, considering the remote-first nature and the company's growth stage.

Benefits:

• Competitive Salary: €4,000 - €6,500 gross per month.
• Equity Options: Opportunity to own a part of Cast AI's growth.
• Flexible Remote Environment: Work from anywhere within Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, or Slovakia, with a remote-first culture.
• Learning & Development: A dedicated learning budget for professional development, including access to international conferences and courses.
• Personal Projects: 10% of work time allocated for personal projects or self-improvement.
• Equipment Budget: Funding to ensure you have the necessary tools and technology.
• Extra Days Off: Additional paid time off to support work-life balance.
• Annual Hackathon: An opportunity to innovate and collaborate on new ideas.
• Team-Building Budget & Company Events: Resources for fostering strong team connections and camaraderie.

Working Hours:

• Standard full-time hours, approximately 40 hours per week, with flexibility to accommodate a remote, global team.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range provided is for gross monthly income. For the specified countries, this typically translates to a competitive net income, especially for senior roles in tech. The remote-first nature across multiple European countries allows for flexibility but also requires coordination across different time zones.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry:

• Technology, specifically Cloud Cost Optimization and Application Performance Automation (APA) for Kubernetes and cloud environments. Cast AI operates within the rapidly evolving cloud infrastructure and AI sectors, serving a technically sophisticated customer base.

Company Size:

• Cast AI is a growing, well-funded startup with employees in over 32 countries. This indicates a dynamic, international environment with a significant scale of operations for its stage.

Founded:

• Cast AI was founded with the mission to automate cloud optimization, evolving into a leading APA platform. Its rapid growth and significant Series C funding ($108M) highlight its ambition and market traction.

Team Structure:

• Flat Structure: The company promotes an open, flat organizational structure, encouraging direct collaboration and reducing hierarchical barriers.
• Cross-functional Collaboration: Strong emphasis on working with design, engineering, product, and sales teams to bring products to life.
• Global Team: Composed of cloud experts and innovators from diverse international backgrounds.

Methodology:

• Agile Development: Workflows are designed for rapid iteration, with most feature projects completed in 1 to 4 weeks.
• Data-Driven Decisions: Insights from user research, data analysis, and performance metrics are used to inform product improvements.
• Continuous Learning: A culture that encourages ongoing skill development and adaptation to new technologies and industry standards.

Company Website:

• https://cast.ai/

📝 Enhancement Note: The flat structure and rapid iteration cycles characteristic of Cast AI suggest an environment where individual initiative and direct contribution are highly valued. For a Senior Product Designer, this means having significant autonomy and the ability to influence product direction, which aligns with operational efficiency through direct problem-solving.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level:

• This role is classified as "Senior," indicating a level of autonomy, expertise, and expected leadership in design execution. It requires a seasoned professional capable of tackling complex challenges independently while mentoring others and contributing to strategic design decisions.

Reporting Structure:

• The role likely reports to a Design Manager or Head of Product Design, with direct interaction and collaboration with Product Managers and Engineering Leads. The flat structure implies that reporting lines are less about rigid hierarchy and more about collaborative project leadership.

Operations Impact:

• As a Senior Product Designer, your work will directly impact the usability, adoption, and perceived performance of Cast AI's platform, particularly among its target audience of DevOps and engineers. Effective design in this space can significantly influence customer satisfaction, retention, and the overall success of the product in the competitive cloud optimization market. Your contributions are vital for translating complex technical capabilities into accessible and valuable user experiences, directly supporting go-to-market efforts by making the product easier to sell and use.

Growth Opportunities:

• Specialization: Deepen expertise in designing for developer-focused tools, cloud-native technologies, and AI applications.
• Leadership: Potential to lead design initiatives, mentor junior designers, and contribute to the evolution of the design practice at Cast AI.
• Skill Development: Access to learning budgets, conferences, and personal project time to acquire new skills in emerging technologies and design methodologies.
• Impactful Projects: Contribute to a rapidly growing product with significant market demand, offering the chance to see your designs directly influence a large user base and company growth.
• Career Progression: Opportunities to advance into lead design roles or related product management positions within a fast-growing tech company.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Operations Impact" section highlights how product design directly supports GTM operations by enhancing product adoption and user satisfaction. This role is crucial for enabling the sales and customer success teams by ensuring the product is intuitive and valuable.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type:

• Cast AI operates on a remote-first model, meaning there is no central physical office for this role. The work environment is distributed globally.

Office Location(s):

• While the company is headquartered in Miami, Florida, this role is open to candidates residing and legally able to work in Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, or Slovakia.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Digital Space: The primary workspace is digital, relying on collaboration tools and platforms for communication, project management, and design reviews.
• Operations Tools & Technology: Access to industry-standard design software, communication platforms (e.g., Slack, Zoom), and project management tools (e.g., Jira, Asana).
• Team Interaction: Opportunities for regular interaction with designers, product managers, and engineers through virtual meetings, design critiques, and collaborative sessions.

Work Schedule:

• A flexible work schedule is implied, aligning with a remote-first culture and approximately 40 hours per week. This allows for adaptation to different time zones while maintaining productivity and team collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The remote-first nature across multiple countries necessitates strong asynchronous communication skills and a proactive approach to collaboration, which are essential for operational efficiency in a distributed team.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A conversation with Talent Acquisition to assess initial fit, motivation, and alignment with the role and company culture.
• Design Manager Interview: A deeper dive into your design philosophy, experience, and approach to problem-solving, with a focus on technical understanding and collaboration.
• Home Task Assignment: A practical design challenge to assess your skills in a real-world scenario, likely involving a component of the Cast AI platform or a similar technical product.
• Case Study Review & Workshop: Presentation and discussion of your home task with the Design Team and Product Manager, involving collaborative ideation and problem-solving. This tests your ability to articulate your process and respond to feedback.
• Final Closing Interview: A final conversation to ensure cultural fit, discuss career aspirations, and answer any remaining questions.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Highlight Technical Design: Emphasize projects where you've tackled complex technical challenges, interpreted API documentation, or designed for developer audiences. Showcase your understanding of backend interactions and system logic.
• Process Over Polish: Detail your design process, including user research, problem definition, iterative design, and testing. Explain why you made certain decisions.
• Quantify Impact: Where possible, include metrics or qualitative feedback that demonstrate the success and impact of your designs (e.g., improved conversion rates, reduced support tickets, increased user satisfaction).
• SaaS & Data Visualization Focus: Prioritize examples of SaaS platforms, data visualization tools, or complex data-heavy applications.
• Clarity and Conciseness: Ensure your portfolio is well-organized, easy to navigate, and clearly articulates your contributions and outcomes.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the Domain: Familiarize yourself with Cast AI's product, the cloud optimization market, Kubernetes, and DevOps workflows.
• Think Technically: Be prepared to discuss how user interface elements interact with backend systems and APIs. Consider the constraints and possibilities of technical implementation.
• Practice Articulation: Rehearse explaining your design process, technical considerations, and problem-solving approach clearly and concisely.
• Collaborative Mindset: Approach the workshop phase with an open mind, ready to collaborate, receive feedback, and iterate on solutions with the team.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process heavily emphasizes practical application, technical understanding, and collaborative problem-solving, mirroring the operational demands of working in a fast-paced tech environment. The portfolio review is crucial for demonstrating the ability to translate technical complexity into user-friendly solutions.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Design & Prototyping: Figma is highly probable given its industry prevalence for collaborative design. Sketch and Adobe Creative Suite are also common.
• User Research & Usability Testing: Tools like UserTesting.com, Maze, or internal methods for gathering feedback.
• Collaboration & Communication: Slack, Zoom, Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Slides).
• Project Management: Jira, Asana, or Trello for task tracking and workflow management.

Analytics & Reporting:

• While not directly a designer's primary tool, understanding how to interpret data from analytics platforms (e.g., Google Analytics, Mixpanel, Amplitude) and how design impacts key metrics will be beneficial.
• Familiarity with dashboarding tools might be helpful for understanding how data is presented to users.

CRM & Automation:

• Primarily for understanding the sales and customer success workflows that interact with the product, rather than direct usage. Awareness of how product design influences CRM data capture and sales enablement is valuable.

📝 Enhancement Note: Proficiency in collaborative design tools like Figma is essential for remote teamwork and rapid iteration. The ability to understand and work with data and backend system logic is a key differentiator for this role, aligning with operational needs for data-informed design and efficient system integration.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Innovation & Automation: A core value is driving innovation through automation, as exemplified by their APA platform. This translates to a culture that embraces forward-thinking solutions and efficiency.
• Technical Excellence: A strong focus on deep technical understanding, particularly in cloud-native technologies like Kubernetes, and AI. This fosters an environment of continuous learning and rigorous problem-solving.
• Collaboration & Flat Structure: Encourages open communication, idea sharing, and teamwork across all levels, valuing collective effort over individual hierarchy.
• User-Centricity (with a Technical Lens): While focused on user experience, there's a clear emphasis on understanding the technical user (developers, DevOps), ensuring designs are both intuitive and technically sound.
• Agility & Speed: A culture that thrives on fast-paced development cycles, rapid iteration, and quick decision-making to stay ahead in a competitive market.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-functional Integration: Designers are expected to work intimately with product managers and engineers, acting as key collaborators in the product development lifecycle.
• Feedback-Driven: A culture that encourages seeking and providing constructive feedback among peers and across teams to foster continuous improvement in both design and product.
• Knowledge Sharing: Encourages the sharing of insights, learnings, and best practices, especially around technical aspects and design methodologies.
• Experimentation: A willingness to experiment with new design approaches and technologies, supported by the 10% personal project time and learning budget.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "technical user" and "automation" within the company values directly relates to the operational goal of making complex technical products accessible and efficient for users, aligning the designer's role with broader GTM and operational success.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Balancing Technical Depth with User Simplicity: Designing for a highly technical audience requires a deep understanding of complex systems (Kubernetes, APIs) while ensuring the user interface remains intuitive and accessible.
• Rapid Iteration Cycles: The fast-paced development environment (1-4 week projects) demands agility, efficient design processes, and the ability to deliver high-quality work under tight deadlines.
• Remote Collaboration: Effectively collaborating and maintaining strong working relationships with a globally distributed team requires excellent communication and asynchronous work skills.
• Staying Ahead of Technology: The cloud and AI landscape evolves rapidly, requiring continuous learning to keep design solutions relevant and effective.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Advanced Design Skills: Opportunities to hone skills in designing for complex technical systems, data visualization, and AI-driven products.
• Industry Exposure: Access to international conferences and courses funded by the learning budget to stay updated on design trends and cloud technologies.
• Mentorship & Leadership: Potential to grow into a design lead role, mentor junior designers, and contribute to strategic product decisions.
• Cross-Functional Expertise: Gain deep insights into engineering, product management, and sales operations through close collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges inherent in this role, such as balancing technical depth with user simplicity and adapting to rapid iteration, are directly relevant to operational efficiency and the effective deployment of technical products.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• Operations Strategy: "Describe a time you had to design for a complex technical system with limited documentation. How did you approach understanding the requirements and constraints?" (Focus on your process for technical discovery and API interpretation.)
• Collaboration & Stakeholder Management: "How do you ensure alignment between design, engineering, and product teams, especially when technical constraints limit design possibilities?" (Highlight your communication strategy and ability to find pragmatic solutions.)
• Problem-Solving: "Walk us through a challenging product design problem you solved for a developer audience. What was the user problem, your solution, and the outcome?" (Prepare a case study that demonstrates your technical empathy and problem-solving skills.)

Company & Culture Questions:

• Company Operations Culture: "What interests you about Cast AI's mission to automate cloud costs and performance, and how do you see your design role contributing to automation and efficiency?" (Research Cast AI's APA platform and discuss how design enables automation.)
• Operations Team Dynamics: "How do you approach receiving and giving feedback in a fast-paced, remote-first environment?" (Emphasize your collaborative approach and ability to adapt to constructive criticism.)
• Operations Impact Measurement: "How would you measure the success of a new feature you designed for a technical audience like DevOps engineers?" (Discuss relevant metrics like adoption rates, task completion time, error reduction, and user satisfaction.)

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Process Improvement Case Study: Structure your presentation around a project that showcases significant process improvement or problem-solving. Clearly define the problem, your approach, the technical considerations, your solution, and the measurable results.
• Metrics Presentation: Be prepared to present key metrics that demonstrate the impact of your design. Focus on how your design contributed to business goals, user efficiency, or technical adoption.
• Interactive Demonstration: If possible, use interactive prototypes to walk through user flows. Be ready to discuss the technical underpinnings of your design choices and how they integrate with backend systems.
• Company-Specific Alignment: Tailor your presentation to Cast AI by emphasizing designs that demonstrate an understanding of technical users, data visualization, or SaaS complexity.

📝 Enhancement Note: Preparing to discuss the "technical underpinnings" of design choices and how they "integrate with backend systems" is crucial for this role. This demonstrates an understanding of the operational flow from concept to implementation.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Senior Product Designer position:

• Submit your application through the provided application link on the Cast AI careers page.
• Portfolio Customization: Curate your portfolio to prominently feature projects demonstrating experience with SaaS platforms, data visualization, and designing for technical audiences. Highlight your ability to interpret API documentation and design for backend systems.
• Resume Optimization: Ensure your resume clearly articulates your 5+ years of experience, focusing on achievements related to user research, UI/UX design, prototyping, and cross-functional collaboration. Use keywords like "Product Design," "API Design," "Technical User Experience," and "SaaS."
• Interview Preparation: Practice articulating your design process, technical considerations, and problem-solving approach for each stage of the interview. Prepare specific examples for the home task and case study review.
• Company Research: Thoroughly research Cast AI's product, mission, and the cloud optimization/APA market. Understand their target audience (DevOps, engineers) and articulate why you are a strong fit for their technical and collaborative culture.

⚠️ 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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