Senior Product Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Senior Product Designer

Company: Civica

Location: Leeds, England, United Kingdom

Job Type: Full-Time

Category: Product Design / User Experience

Date Posted: 2025-10-27

Experience Level: 5-10 Years

Remote Status: Hybrid

🚀 Role Summary

• Spearhead the creation of visually compelling, pixel-perfect user interfaces that are both aesthetically pleasing and highly functional, meeting stringent accessibility standards and aligning with core business objectives.

• Drive collaboration across Product Managers, Engineers, Researchers, and fellow Product Designers to ensure seamless execution of designs throughout the entire product development lifecycle.

• Develop and validate high-fidelity prototypes to effectively communicate design concepts, facilitate design reviews, and iterate based on critical feedback, user research, and data-driven insights.

• Utilize and actively contribute to the company's proprietary 'Firefly' design system, ensuring design consistency, scalability, and adherence to established design principles across all digital products.

• Champion inclusive design practices and ensure all product outputs comply with WCAG and other relevant accessibility standards, making digital experiences accessible to all users.

📝 Enhancement Note: The role is described as "Hybrid," but the Workable listing specifies "TELECOMMUTE" with a primary location in Leeds. This suggests a strong emphasis on in-office presence in Leeds with potential for remote work within the UK, requiring clarification on the expected office days per week.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Visual Design & Delivery: Craft visually engaging, pixel-perfect user interfaces that are both beautiful and highly usable, ensuring they meet accessibility standards and align with business goals.

• Collaboration & Teamwork: Work closely with product designers, product managers, engineers, and researchers to bring designs to life throughout the product lifecycle.

• Prototyping & Validation: Develop high-fidelity prototypes to communicate design ideas, run design reviews, and iterate based on feedback, research, and data insights.

• Design Systems & Standards: Use and contribute to the Firefly design system, ensuring consistency, scalability, and adherence to established design principles.

• Accessibility & Inclusion: Advocate for inclusive design and ensure compliance with accessibility standards (e.g., WCAG).

• Culture & Growth: Promote a collaborative, positive, and feedback-driven culture focused on continuous improvement, creativity, and design excellence.

• Brand & Identity Evolution: Deliver high-quality designs that reflect and evolve Civica’s brand identity, adapting to the changing needs of modern digital experiences.

• Mentorship: Support and inspire other designers, promoting continuous improvement and raising the quality and impact of the team’s work.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a strong emphasis on both individual contribution in visual design and prototyping, as well as significant collaborative and leadership aspects. The expectation to "use and contribute to the Firefly design system" indicates a need for a candidate who can not only follow existing standards but also help evolve them. The mentorship responsibility suggests a senior-level expectation for guiding junior team members.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While no specific degree is mandated, a strong academic foundation in Design, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), or a related field is often beneficial. Candidates should demonstrate equivalent practical experience.

Experience: 5+ years of progressive experience in visual/product design roles, with a proven track record of successfully delivering high-quality digital products across diverse platforms and industries.

Required Skills:

• Visual Design Expertise: A robust portfolio showcasing exceptional UI design skills, including mastery of typography, color theory, layout, and visual hierarchy across web, mobile, and other digital platforms.

• Design Craft & Execution: Demonstrated ability to translate complex requirements and abstract ideas into intuitive, visually compelling, and user-friendly interfaces.

• Prototyping & Collaboration: Proficiency in creating high-fidelity interactive prototypes using industry-standard tools and a strong ability to collaborate effectively with researchers, product designers, and developers to refine and test designs.

• Design Systems Proficiency: Proven experience using and contributing to established design systems, ensuring design consistency, scalability, and efficiency across multiple products and platforms.

• Accessibility Standards: Solid understanding of accessibility principles and best practices, with knowledge of WCAG guidelines and other relevant standards to ensure inclusive design outcomes.

• Brand Stewardship: Ability to deliver high-quality designs that accurately reflect and evolve Civica’s brand identity, adapting to evolving digital landscapes.

• Communication & Teamwork: Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to articulate design decisions clearly, provide constructive feedback, and foster a positive team environment.

• Mentorship Capability: Demonstrated ability to support, inspire, and guide other designers, contributing to skill development and overall team performance.

Preferred Skills:

• Experience in the Government & Public Sector technology industry.

• Familiarity with user research methodologies and the ability to synthesize research findings into design decisions.

• Experience with Agile/Scrum development methodologies.

• A strong understanding of front-end development principles (HTML, CSS, JavaScript) to better collaborate with engineers.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Core Competencies" section in the original description directly translates into the required skills. The emphasis on a "proven track record" and "strong portfolio" indicates that practical application and demonstrable results are paramount. The distinction between "using and contributing" to design systems suggests a need for an experienced designer who can both maintain standards and help drive their evolution.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Visual Design Excellence: Showcase a range of projects demonstrating exceptional UI design capabilities, including detailed examples of typography, color palettes, and layout composition.

• Process & Problem-Solving: Present case studies that clearly outline design challenges, your approach to problem-solving, user research integration, and iterative design processes.

• Prototyping & Interaction: Include examples of high-fidelity prototypes that illustrate complex user flows, interactive elements, and the overall user experience.

• Design System Contribution: If possible, highlight any contributions made to design systems, illustrating how consistency and scalability were achieved.

• Accessibility Implementation: Provide evidence of how accessibility standards were integrated into your design process and final deliverables.

• Brand Alignment: Demonstrate how your designs have successfully aligned with or evolved brand identity guidelines.

Process Documentation:

• Design Workflow: Clearly articulate your end-to-end design process, from initial concept and user research to final asset delivery and collaboration with development teams.

• Iterative Design: Show examples of how feedback, user testing, and data analysis informed design iterations and led to improved outcomes.

• System Integration: Explain how your designs integrate with existing user experience frameworks and design systems, ensuring coherence and efficiency.

📝 Enhancement Note: As this is a Senior Product Designer role, the portfolio is critical. The emphasis on "proven track record" and "strong portfolio" implies that candidates must be able to visually and narratively demonstrate their design process, problem-solving skills, and impact on product success. The requirement to contribute to a design system also suggests the need for examples of system thinking in their portfolio.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: Based on industry benchmarks for Senior Product Designers in Leeds, England, with 5-10 years of experience, a competitive salary range is estimated to be between £50,000 and £70,000 per annum. This range accounts for the cost of living in the region, the seniority of the role, and the specific responsibilities outlined.

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 off for volunteering activities.

• Financial Well-being & Security:

  • Pension Contributions: 5% employer match to support retirement savings.
  • Income Protection: Up to 75% salary cover in case of long-term illness.
  • Life Assurance: A tax-free lump sum equivalent to 4x the annual salary.
  • Critical Illness Cover: A £25,000 lump sum, with the option to extend coverage to dependents.

• Health & Perks:

  • Private Medical Insurance: For fast access to private healthcare services.

  • Health Cash Plan: Allows claiming back costs for physiotherapy, therapies, and other health services.

  • Dental Insurance: Coverage for routine and emergency dental care.

  • Affinity Groups: Opportunities to join employee-led communities.

  • Bounty Bonus: A referral bonus program for recommending successful candidates. Working Hours: Standard full-time hours are expected, likely around 37.5-40 hours per week. The hybrid nature of the role suggests flexibility in how these hours are structured, with a balance between in-office and remote work.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range is an estimate based on typical Senior Product Designer roles in the UK, specifically in a major city like Leeds. Actual compensation will depend on the candidate's specific experience, skills, and performance during the interview process. The provided benefits are comprehensive and reflect a strong commitment to employee well-being.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Technology, specifically focused on digital solutions for the Government & Public Sector. Civica aims to improve outcomes for citizens and public sector organizations through technology.

Company Size: Civica is a significant player in its sector, implying a medium to large enterprise structure. This typically means established processes, opportunities for structured career growth, and a diverse range of projects.

Founded: While the founding date isn't explicitly stated in the provided text, Civica has a history of providing software and services to the public sector, suggesting a mature and stable organization.

Team Structure:

• User Experience (UX) Team: The Senior Product Designer will be part of the User Experience team, working alongside other designers, researchers, and product managers.

• Cross-functional Collaboration: The role necessitates close collaboration with product managers, engineers, and researchers, indicating a highly integrated and agile product development environment.

• Reporting: Likely reporting to a Head of UX, Design Lead, or Product Management lead, with direct interaction with senior stakeholders.

Methodology:

• Data-Driven Design: Emphasis on using research and data insights to inform design decisions and iterate on products.

• Agile Development: Collaboration with engineering teams suggests adherence to Agile or Scrum methodologies, requiring designers to be adaptable and responsive to iterative development cycles.

• Design System Centricity: A core focus on leveraging and contributing to a design system ('Firefly') promotes efficiency, consistency, and scalability in design output.

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

📝 Enhancement Note: Civica's mission to serve the public sector suggests a culture that values impact and social good. The "Why You'll Love Working with Us" section emphasizes employee well-being, growth, and making a difference, indicating a supportive and purpose-driven work environment. The emphasis on a "feedback-driven culture" points to an open and collaborative atmosphere.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: Senior Product Designer. This level signifies a high degree of autonomy, expertise, and responsibility. Senior designers are expected to lead design efforts, mentor junior team members, and contribute strategically to product vision and design system evolution.

Reporting Structure: The Senior Product Designer will likely report to a Design Manager or Head of UX. They will work closely with Product Managers and Engineering Leads, forming part of a cross-functional product team.

Operations Impact: The Senior Product Designer's work directly impacts user satisfaction, product adoption, and ultimately, the effectiveness of Civica's digital solutions for public services. High-quality, accessible design is crucial for user engagement and achieving business objectives within the public sector.

Growth Opportunities:

• Leadership Development: Opportunities to lead design initiatives, mentor junior designers, and potentially move into Lead or Managerial roles within the UX team.

• Skill Specialization: Deepen expertise in areas such as UX research, interaction design, accessibility, or design system management.

• Strategic Contribution: Influence product strategy and design direction through expert contributions and collaboration with senior stakeholders.

• Industry Impact: Contribute to products that serve millions of citizens and public sector professionals, offering a unique opportunity for impactful work.

• Continuous Learning: Access to training, conferences, and internal knowledge-sharing sessions to stay abreast of the latest design trends and technologies.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Senior" title implies significant growth potential beyond this role, including leadership and strategic influence. The company's stated commitment to employee development ("unlock the best version of yourself, achieve career growth") reinforces this. The focus on public sector impact provides a unique career trajectory distinct from typical commercial product design roles.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Hybrid. This indicates a mix of in-office work at the Leeds location and remote work. The specific balance will need to be clarified, but it suggests a need for strong remote collaboration skills alongside in-person teamwork.

Office Location(s): Leeds, England, United Kingdom. This is a major city with good transport links, offering a vibrant working environment.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Hub: The Leeds office likely serves as a hub for in-person collaboration, team meetings, workshops, and brainstorming sessions.

• Modern Tools & Technology: Access to industry-standard design tools like Figma and FigJam, along with other necessary software and hardware for delivering high-quality design work.

• Team Interaction: Opportunities for direct interaction with designers, product managers, engineers, and researchers, fostering a dynamic and integrated work environment.

Work Schedule: Standard full-time hours, with flexibility inherent in a hybrid model. This allows for managing personal commitments while ensuring consistent contribution to project timelines and team collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The hybrid model requires candidates to be comfortable with both independent remote work and collaborative in-office sessions. The emphasis on collaboration in the job description suggests that in-office days will be highly focused on team interaction and strategic discussions.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A review of your CV and portfolio to assess your experience, skills, and fit with the role.

• Portfolio Presentation: An in-depth session where you will present key projects from your portfolio, discussing your process, design decisions, and impact. Expect to dive deep into visual design, prototyping, and problem-solving.

• Skills Assessment: Potential for a practical design exercise or challenge, either take-home or during a live session, to evaluate your design craft, problem-solving approach, and tool proficiency (e.g., Figma).

• Behavioral & Cultural Fit: Interviews with hiring managers and team members to assess your communication skills, collaboration style, mentorship capabilities, and alignment with Civica's values and culture.

• Final Interview: May involve senior leadership to discuss strategic contributions and overall fit.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Showcase Process, Not Just Polish: Clearly articulate the problem, your research methodology, design iterations, rationale behind key decisions, and the measurable impact of your work.

• Highlight Senior-Level Contributions: Emphasize your leadership, mentorship, and strategic input on projects. Showcase how you've influenced design direction and improved team processes.

• Demonstrate Tool Proficiency: Ensure your prototypes are interactive and well-executed. If you've contributed to design systems, provide clear examples of your contributions and their impact.

• Emphasize Accessibility: Explicitly mention and demonstrate how you've incorporated accessibility best practices into your designs.

• Tailor to Civica: Research Civica's products and mission to connect your portfolio projects to their context, particularly their work in the public sector.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the Brief: If given a design challenge, thoroughly analyze the problem statement, target users, and constraints.

• Focus on Strategy and Process: Even if time is limited, demonstrate a thoughtful approach that includes user-centricity, iteration, and consideration of technical feasibility.

• Communicate Clearly: Be prepared to articulate your design decisions and rationale effectively, just as you would in a portfolio review.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "proven track record," "strong portfolio," and "mentorship" signals that the interview process will heavily scrutinize practical experience and the ability to articulate design thinking. A strong portfolio that clearly outlines process and impact is crucial for advancing.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Figma: The core design tool for UI design, prototyping, and collaboration. Proficiency is essential.

• FigJam: Used for collaborative whiteboarding, brainstorming, and ideation sessions.

• Design System Tools: Experience with tools or methods for managing and contributing to design systems.

Analytics & Reporting:

CRM & Automation:

• While not direct CRM tools, an understanding of how design integrates with product management platforms (e.g., Jira, Confluence) and potentially customer feedback tools is advantageous for cross-functional collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: Figma and FigJam are explicitly mentioned, making them critical requirements. The role involves contributing to a design system, implying familiarity with the principles and possibly tools associated with design system management and version control.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Impact & Purpose: A strong drive to create products that make a tangible difference in the lives of citizens and the efficiency of public services.

• Collaboration & Teamwork: Valuing open communication, shared ownership, and mutual support within cross-functional teams.

• Continuous Improvement: A commitment to learning, iterating, and constantly enhancing design quality and processes.

• User-Centricity & Accessibility: Placing the user at the heart of all design decisions and ensuring inclusivity for all.

• Creativity & Excellence: Fostering an environment where innovative ideas are encouraged and high-quality design is a standard.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-functional Integration: Designers work seamlessly with product managers, engineers, and researchers, sharing insights and contributing to a unified product vision.

• Feedback-Driven: An open culture where constructive feedback is regularly exchanged to refine designs and improve team processes.

• Knowledge Sharing: Encouraging the sharing of best practices, learnings, and design techniques to elevate the entire team's capabilities.

📝 Enhancement Note: Civica's mission and stated values emphasize making a positive impact, which is a key cultural driver. The emphasis on a "feedback-driven culture" and "continuous improvement" suggests an environment where designers are empowered to grow and contribute beyond just execution.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Balancing User Needs with Business Goals: Effectively mediating between user desires, technical constraints, and business objectives to deliver optimal solutions.

• Navigating Complex Public Sector Requirements: Understanding and designing for the unique needs, regulations, and user bases within the public sector.

• Evolving Design Systems: Contributing to and maintaining a design system ('Firefly') that scales across diverse products and evolving user needs.

• Driving Design Excellence in a Hybrid Environment: Ensuring consistent quality and collaboration across a team that works both remotely and in the office.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Advanced Design Skills: Opportunities to deepen expertise in cutting-edge UX/UI design techniques, accessibility standards, and interaction design patterns.

• Mentorship & Leadership: Developing leadership skills by mentoring junior designers and potentially leading design initiatives.

• Industry Exposure: Engaging with professionals across the public sector technology landscape, understanding broader industry trends and challenges.

• Formal Training: Access to courses, workshops, and conferences focused on design, user experience, and product development.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges are inherent to senior roles in established companies, particularly those in the public sector. The growth opportunities align with standard senior-level progression, focusing on leadership, strategic impact, and continuous skill enhancement.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "Describe a time you had to balance conflicting stakeholder requirements. How did you approach it, and what was the outcome?" (Focus on negotiation, user advocacy, and outcome-driven solutions.)

• "How do you approach designing for accessibility? Can you walk us through an example where you implemented accessibility best practices?" (Highlight your understanding of WCAG and practical application.)

• "Describe your process for contributing to or evolving a design system. What are the key considerations?" (Focus on consistency, scalability, documentation, and collaboration.)

Company & Culture Questions:

• "What interests you about Civica's mission, particularly our work in the public sector?" (Research Civica's impact and connect it to your personal drive.)

• "How do you foster a collaborative and feedback-driven environment within a design team?" (Share examples of your communication and team-building approaches.)

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure Your Narrative: For each case study, clearly define the problem, your role, the process, key decisions, challenges, solutions, and measurable impact.

• Focus on Your Contributions: Explicitly detail what you did, especially in team projects.

• Showcase Iteration: Present multiple design directions or iterations that demonstrate your problem-solving process and ability to respond to feedback.

• Highlight Visual Craft: Ensure your presentation visuals are clean, well-designed, and effectively showcase your UI skills.

• Prepare for Q&A: Anticipate questions about your design rationale, trade-offs, and how you handle constructive criticism.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process is likely to be rigorous, focusing on practical application, strategic thinking, and cultural fit. Candidates should be ready to demonstrate not only their design skills but also their ability to lead, mentor, and contribute strategically to the team and company's mission.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Senior Product Designer position:

• Submit your application through the provided link on Workable.

• Curate Your Portfolio: Select 3-5 of your strongest projects that best showcase your visual design skills, problem-solving process, prototyping capabilities, and experience with design systems and accessibility. Tailor your presentation to highlight projects relevant to Civica's public sector focus.

• Optimize Your Resume: Highlight your 5+ years of relevant experience, specific tool proficiencies (Figma, FigJam), achievements in UI/UX design, and any experience contributing to design systems or leading design initiatives. Use keywords from the job description.

• Prepare Your Presentation Narrative: Practice walking through your portfolio case studies, clearly articulating your design process, decisions, and the impact of your work. Be ready to discuss challenges and how you overcame them.

• Research Civica: Understand their mission, products, and the value they bring to the public sector. Prepare thoughtful questions about their design challenges, team culture, and design system.

⚠️ 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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