Senior Product Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Senior Product Designer
Company: Civica
Location: Bristol, England, United Kingdom
Job Type: Full-Time
Category: Product Design / User Experience
Date Posted: 2026-01-16
Experience Level: 5-10 Years
Remote Status: On-site / Hybrid

🚀 Role Summary

• Drive the creation of visually engaging, accessible, and user-friendly digital product experiences that align with user needs and business objectives.
• Collaborate closely with product managers, engineers, and researchers to deliver high-quality design solutions throughout the entire product lifecycle.
• Develop and refine high-fidelity prototypes to effectively communicate design concepts, gather feedback, and iterate on user-centric solutions.
• Contribute to and leverage the 'Firefly' design system to ensure consistency, scalability, and adherence to established design principles across all products.
• Champion inclusive design practices and ensure all product designs meet or exceed accessibility standards (e.g., WCAG).

📝 Enhancement Note: While the job is listed as "TELECOMMUTE", the description later specifies "On-site / Hybrid" and discusses the importance of in-person collaboration, suggesting a blended approach. Candidates should clarify expectations regarding remote work flexibility during the application process. The role is clearly focused on visual and UI design within a broader product development context, emphasizing the craft and execution of digital interfaces.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Visual Design & UI Craft: Create pixel-perfect, visually compelling user interfaces that are both aesthetically pleasing and highly usable, ensuring alignment with Civica's brand identity and business goals.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Actively partner with product designers, product managers, engineers, and UX researchers to translate design concepts into functional and desirable digital products.
• Prototyping & Iteration: Develop high-fidelity interactive prototypes using industry-standard tools to visualize design solutions, facilitate design reviews, and iterate based on user feedback, research findings, and data analytics.
• Design System Contribution: Utilize and contribute to the 'Firefly' design system, ensuring consistency, maintainability, and scalability of design elements across various platforms and products.
• Accessibility & Inclusive Design Advocacy: Promote and implement inclusive design principles, ensuring all deliverables meet accessibility standards (WCAG) and cater to a diverse user base.
• Design Process Improvement: Contribute to a positive, feedback-driven design culture focused on continuous improvement, creative problem-solving, and achieving design excellence.
• Brand Evolution: Deliver high-quality designs that reflect and evolve Civica's brand, adapting to the dynamic needs of modern digital experiences.
• Mentorship & Inspiration: Provide guidance and inspiration to junior designers and team members, fostering a culture of learning and elevating the overall quality and impact of the design team's work.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a strong emphasis on visual design execution, collaboration within a product team, and active participation in design system development, aligning with typical senior-level expectations in product design. The inclusion of "brand evolution" suggests the role may also involve strategic input into the company's visual identity.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education:

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

Experience:

• 5+ years of professional experience in visual and/or product design roles, with a demonstrated history of successfully delivering high-quality digital products across various platforms (web, mobile, etc.).
• Proven experience working within cross-functional product development teams, collaborating effectively with product managers, engineers, and researchers.
• Experience in using and contributing to established design systems is highly valued.

Required Skills:

• Visual Design Expertise: Exceptional UI design skills, with a strong command of typography, color theory, layout principles, and visual hierarchy for digital interfaces.
• Prototyping Proficiency: Skilled in creating high-fidelity interactive prototypes using tools like Figma, FigJam, or similar platforms to effectively communicate design intent and user flows.
• Design System Utilization: Ability to leverage and contribute to design systems, ensuring consistency and scalability of design elements across products.
• Accessibility Standards Knowledge: Understanding of WCAG guidelines and best practices for inclusive design, ensuring products are usable by everyone.
• Collaboration & Communication: Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to articulate design decisions clearly, provide constructive feedback, and work effectively within a team environment.
• User-Centric Design Thinking: Ability to translate complex user needs and business requirements into intuitive, user-friendly, and visually appealing interfaces.

Preferred Skills:

• Design Research Integration: Experience working with UX researchers and incorporating user research insights and data analytics into the design process.
• Brand Development Acumen: Ability to understand and contribute to evolving brand identity through design.
• Mentorship Experience: Demonstrated experience in mentoring or guiding less experienced designers.
• Agile/Scrum Methodologies: Familiarity with agile development processes and how design integrates within them.

📝 Enhancement Note: The required skills emphasize a blend of technical design craft (visuals, prototyping, design systems) and soft skills (collaboration, communication, user-centricity). The "5+ years" experience level, coupled with the mentorship requirement, clearly positions this as a senior individual contributor role with potential for informal leadership.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Visual Design Showcase: A comprehensive portfolio demonstrating exceptional visual design skills, including UI design, typography, color theory, and layout across web, mobile, and other digital platforms. Showcase the evolution of designs from concept to final delivery.
• Problem-Solving Case Studies: Include detailed case studies that illustrate your approach to solving complex design challenges. Clearly articulate the problem, your process, the solutions you designed, and the impact of your work using relevant metrics.
• Prototyping Demonstrations: Showcase examples of high-fidelity prototypes you have created, highlighting their interactivity and how they were used for validation and feedback.
• Design System Contributions: If applicable, provide examples of your contributions to design systems, illustrating how you maintained consistency, scalability, and adherence to design principles.
• Accessibility Considerations: Highlight instances where you actively considered and implemented accessibility standards (e.g., WCAG) in your designs.

Process Documentation:

• Articulate your design process clearly, from initial concept and user research to final design delivery and iteration.
• Demonstrate how you collaborate with cross-functional teams (product managers, engineers, researchers) throughout the design and development lifecycle.
• Explain how you incorporate feedback, user research, and data insights into your design iterations.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a Senior Product Designer role, the portfolio is critical. It should not only showcase aesthetic skill but also the strategic thinking, problem-solving methodology, and collaborative process behind the designs. Highlighting contributions to design systems and accessibility is particularly important for this role.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range:

• Based on industry benchmarks for Senior Product Designers in Bristol, UK, with 5-10 years of experience, the estimated salary range is likely between £50,000 and £70,000 per annum. This range can vary based on the specific scope of responsibilities, the candidate's precise experience, and negotiation.

Benefits:

• Time Off & Work-Life Balance:
  • 25 Days Annual Leave + bank holidays, with the option to purchase up to 10 additional days.
  • "Days of Difference" – Up to 3 extra paid days per year for volunteering activities.
• Financial Well-being & Security:
  • Pension Contributions: 5% employer match.
  • Income Protection: Up to 75% salary cover for long-term illness.
  • Life Assurance: 4x salary tax-free lump sum.
  • Critical Illness Cover: £25,000 lump sum, with an option to extend to dependents.
• Health & Perks:
  • Private Medical Insurance: Providing fast access to private healthcare services.
  • Health Cash Plan: Reimbursement for expenses like physiotherapy, therapies, and more.
  • Dental Insurance: Coverage for routine and emergency dental care.
  • Affinity Groups: Opportunities to join employee-led communities based on shared interests.
  • Bounty Bonus: A referral bonus program for recommending successful candidates.

Working Hours:

• Standard full-time working hours are expected, likely around 37.5-40 hours per week. While the role is listed as "TELECOMMUTE" and offers hybrid flexibility, specific daily hours and on-site expectations should be clarified.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary estimate is based on general UK market data for similar roles and experience levels in a major city like Bristol. The benefits package is comprehensive, indicating a commitment to employee well-being and financial security, which is attractive to senior professionals.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Technology / Software / Public Sector Services. Civica specializes in providing software, technology, and outsourcing services to public sector organizations and businesses. This context implies a focus on creating reliable, accessible, and impactful solutions for government and essential services. Company Size: Large. Civica is a significant player in its sector, suggesting a structured environment with established processes, but also opportunities for impact within a large organization. The description implies a dedicated User Experience team. Founded: While the founding date isn't explicitly stated in the provided text, Civica has a long history, suggesting stability and experience in the market.

Team Structure:

• User Experience Team: The role sits within Civica's User Experience team, indicating a dedicated group focused on design and user-centric product development.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: The Senior Product Designer will work closely with Product Managers, Engineers, and Researchers, highlighting a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach to product development.
• Reporting: Likely reports to a Head of UX, Design Lead, or Product Management Lead, within a structure that values design input.

Methodology:

• User-Centric Approach: Emphasis on understanding user needs and translating them into intuitive and usable designs.
• Design System Driven: Commitment to using and contributing to the 'Firefly' design system for consistency and efficiency.
• Iterative Design: Use of prototyping, feedback loops, and data insights to refine designs continuously.
• Agile Environment: Implied collaboration within product teams suggests an agile or iterative development process.

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

📝 Enhancement Note: Civica's focus on the public sector is a key differentiator. This likely means a strong emphasis on accessibility, reliability, and the societal impact of the products designed. The "Firefly" design system is a specific internal asset that candidates should be aware of.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: Senior Individual Contributor. This role is for an experienced designer who can operate independently, mentor others, and contribute to design system evolution. It's a step beyond mid-level, requiring strategic thinking and significant craft expertise. Reporting Structure: The Senior Product Designer will likely report to a Design Manager, Head of UX, or a Senior Product Manager, working within a broader product development team. They will also collaborate heavily with engineering and product management peers. Operations Impact: The role directly impacts the usability, accessibility, and visual appeal of Civica's digital products, which in turn affects user adoption, satisfaction, and the effectiveness of public services. The Senior Product Designer's work will influence how citizens and public sector employees interact with critical systems.

Growth Opportunities:

• Leadership within Design: Potential to grow into a Design Lead role, managing a small team or a specific product area's design efforts.
• Design System Expertise: Deepen expertise in design systems, potentially becoming a system owner or architect.
• Cross-Product Strategy: Influence design strategy across multiple Civica products or platforms.
• Specialization: Develop deeper expertise in areas like accessibility, user research, or interaction design.
• Mentorship Development: Enhance leadership and coaching skills by mentoring junior designers.

📝 Enhancement Note: The career path for a Senior Product Designer often involves either deepening technical and strategic design expertise or moving into leadership and management roles. Civica's size and focus on public sector tech provide ample opportunities for both within specialized domains.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: The role is described as "TELECOMMUTE" but also "Hybrid," suggesting a flexible work model where employees are expected to be in the office for a portion of the week. This typically means a modern office environment designed for collaboration. Office Location(s): Bristol, England, United Kingdom. This implies access to a well-established tech hub with local amenities. Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Spaces: The office environment likely includes meeting rooms, breakout areas, and potentially hot-desking or dedicated team spaces to facilitate interaction with product managers, engineers, and other designers.
• Technology Access: Expect access to standard design software, hardware, and collaborative tools necessary for high-quality product design work.
• Team Interaction: Opportunities for regular face-to-face interaction with the UX team and wider product development departments.

Work Schedule:

• Standard full-time hours (likely 37.5-40 hours per week) are expected. The hybrid nature allows for flexibility in managing work location, but core working hours and team synchronization will be important.

📝 Enhancement Note: The hybrid nature of the role is a key aspect. Candidates should be prepared for a mix of remote and in-office work, with the expectation that in-office days will be used for collaborative activities.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A review of your CV and portfolio to assess experience, skills, and alignment with the role requirements.
• Portfolio Presentation & Discussion: An interview where you will present your portfolio, walk through selected case studies, and discuss your design process, decision-making, and collaboration methods. Expect questions on how you approach problem-solving, handle feedback, and contribute to design systems.
• Technical/Skills Assessment: This might involve a design exercise (e.g., a take-home challenge or a live design session) to evaluate your visual design craft, problem-solving abilities, and understanding of user-centric principles.
• Team/Culture Fit Interview: Meeting with potential team members (designers, engineers, product managers) to assess collaboration style, communication skills, and cultural alignment with Civica's values.
• Final Interview: Potentially with a senior leader (e.g., Head of UX, Director) to discuss strategic fit, career aspirations, and overall suitability for the role.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate Strategically: Select 3-5 of your best projects that showcase a range of skills relevant to this role: strong visual design, complex problem-solving, collaboration, and design system usage.
• Tell a Story: For each project, clearly articulate the problem, your role and responsibilities, your design process, key decisions made, challenges faced, solutions implemented, and the impact (quantified with metrics if possible).
• Highlight Collaboration: Show how you worked with others (PMs, engineers, researchers) and incorporated their feedback.
• Showcase Craft: Ensure your visual examples are polished, demonstrating excellent UI design, typography, and layout.
• Accessibility Focus: If possible, include a project where accessibility was a key consideration and explain your approach.
• Design System Example: If you have experience with design systems, clearly outline your contributions and how they benefited the product.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the Context: If given a take-home challenge, thoroughly understand the brief, the target audience, and the business goals.
• Focus on Process: Clearly document your thought process, assumptions, and design decisions. It's not just about the final output but how you got there.
• Time Management: Be realistic about what you can achieve within the given timeframe. Prioritize core elements of the design solution.
• Presentation Readiness: Prepare to present your challenge solution clearly and concisely, anticipating questions about your choices.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process is likely to be multi-stage, with a significant emphasis on the portfolio. Candidates should be prepared to demonstrate not just their design skills but also their collaborative approach and understanding of product development lifecycles, especially within a public sector context.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Design & Prototyping: Figma (highly proficient, including FigJam for collaboration), Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator).
• Design Systems: Experience with and contribution to design systems (e.g., using Figma libraries, Storybook integration knowledge is a plus).
• Collaboration Tools: Jira, Confluence, Slack, Microsoft Teams.

Analytics & Reporting:

• While not directly a designer's tool, understanding how to interpret data from tools like Google Analytics, Adobe Analytics, or product-specific dashboards to inform design decisions is valuable.

CRM & Automation:

• Generally not directly used by Product Designers, but awareness of CRM principles might be helpful when designing customer-facing portals or integrated solutions.

📝 Enhancement Note: Proficiency in Figma is almost a given for modern UI/UX roles, and its inclusion here is key. Experience with design systems is explicitly mentioned, so familiarity with component libraries and design tokens is important.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• User-Centricity: A deep commitment to understanding and serving the needs of users, particularly citizens and public sector employees.
• Quality & Craftsmanship: Dedication to delivering high-quality, polished, and effective design solutions.
• Collaboration: Valuing teamwork and open communication across disciplines to achieve collective goals.
• Continuous Improvement: A mindset of learning, iterating, and seeking ways to enhance both products and processes.
• Impact & Purpose: A drive to create products that make a tangible positive difference in public services and for the communities they serve.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-Functional Integration: Working seamlessly with product managers, engineers, researchers, and other stakeholders.
• Feedback-Driven: Openness to constructive criticism and actively seeking feedback to refine designs.
• Transparent Communication: Clearly articulating design rationale and decisions to all relevant parties.
• Mentorship and Support: A culture where senior members support and guide junior team members, fostering collective growth.

📝 Enhancement Note: Given Civica's focus on public services, the values likely lean towards impact, reliability, and inclusivity, in addition to standard design excellence and collaborative principles.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Balancing User Needs with Business/Public Sector Constraints: Designing solutions that are both user-friendly and meet stringent public sector requirements, technical limitations, and budget considerations.
• Scaling Design Systems: Ensuring the 'Firefly' design system can effectively support a diverse and growing product portfolio.
• Driving Adoption of Design Best Practices: Championing user-centric design and accessibility across different teams and stakeholders who may have varying levels of design maturity.
• Navigating Complex Stakeholder Landscapes: Working with multiple stakeholders within public sector organizations, each with unique requirements and perspectives.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Advanced Design Skills: Opportunities to attend workshops, conferences, or online courses to deepen expertise in new design techniques, tools, or emerging trends.
• Design Leadership: Potential to take on more responsibility in mentoring, guiding projects, and contributing to design strategy.
• Industry Exposure: Gaining deep knowledge of the public sector technology landscape and the unique challenges and opportunities within it.
• Design System Development: Contributing to the strategic direction and evolution of Civica's core design system.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges are typical for senior roles in established tech companies, particularly those serving complex sectors like government. The growth opportunities are geared towards both deepening technical expertise and developing leadership capabilities.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "Describe a complex design challenge you faced and how you approached it. What was the outcome, and what did you learn?" (Focus on problem-solving methodology, iteration, and impact).
• "How do you balance user needs with business objectives and technical constraints? Provide an example." (Demonstrate strategic thinking and pragmatism).
• "How have you contributed to or utilized a design system in your previous roles? What are the benefits and challenges?" (Showcase understanding of design systems and their practical application).
• "How do you incorporate accessibility principles into your design process? Can you give an example of a design decision you made that improved accessibility?" (Highlight your commitment to inclusive design).

Company & Culture Questions:

• "What interests you about Civica and our work in the public sector?" (Research Civica's mission, recent projects, and values).
• "How do you approach collaboration with product managers and engineers? Describe a time you had a disagreement and how you resolved it." (Assess teamwork and communication skills).
• "How do you stay updated on the latest design trends and technologies?" (Show your commitment to continuous learning).
• "How would you contribute to fostering a positive and collaborative design culture?" (Align your approach with Civica's stated values).

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Select Impactful Projects: Choose projects that best showcase your visual design craft, problem-solving skills, collaborative approach, and understanding of design systems and accessibility.
• Structure Your Narrative: For each project, clearly outline: the problem, your specific role, your process (discovery, ideation, design, testing, iteration), key decisions and rationale, challenges, and the measurable impact of your solution.
• Highlight Collaboration: Explicitly mention how you worked with other teams and incorporated their input.
• Showcase Visual Polish: Ensure your presentation materials are as well-designed and polished as your end deliverables.
• Be Prepared for Deep Dives: Anticipate detailed questions about specific design choices, technical constraints, and user research insights.

📝 Enhancement Note: Interview preparation should focus on demonstrating not just design skills but also strategic thinking, collaboration, and an understanding of Civica's specific context within the public sector technology space.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Senior Product Designer position:

• Submit your application through the provided Workable link.
• Portfolio Customization: Ensure your portfolio prominently features projects that align with the job description's emphasis on visual design, UI craft, collaboration, design systems, and accessibility. Tailor your project selection and descriptions.
• Resume Optimization: Update your resume to highlight your 5+ years of relevant experience, specific achievements in visual design and UI, experience with Figma/FigJam, and any contributions to design systems or accessibility initiatives. Use keywords from the job description.
• Prepare Your Narrative: Practice walking through your portfolio projects concisely and impactfully, being ready to discuss your design process, decision-making, and collaborative experiences.
• Research Civica: Understand Civica's mission, its work in the public sector, and its 'Firefly' design system. Be prepared to articulate why you are a good fit for their specific context and 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.