Senior Product Designer
π Job Overview
Job Title: Senior Product Designer Company: StubHub Location: New York, New York, United States Job Type: Full-Time Category: Product Design / User Experience Date Posted: 2025-09-29 Experience Level: 5-10 Years Remote Status: Hybrid (3 days in office/2 days remote)
π Role Summary
- Drive the evolution of core user flows for millions of consumers interacting with StubHub's platform, focusing on the end-to-end product journey for discovering, buying, and selling tickets to live events.
- Shape bold new product strategies and set the vision for user experiences across web and mobile platforms by translating high-level strategy into tangible design solutions.
- Champion user-centered thinking and design excellence, ensuring usability, accessibility, and brand expression are paramount in all design outputs.
- Foster a collaborative design culture by coaching and guiding junior and mid-level designers, elevating the overall quality of work and design practice within the team.
- Partner closely with product management, engineering, and data science to identify opportunities, define priorities, and align on roadmap execution for the Consumer Experience (CX) team.
π Enhancement Note: This role is positioned within the Consumer Experience (CX) team, indicating a strong focus on the fan journey. The emphasis on "shaping bold new bets" suggests opportunities for innovation beyond incremental improvements, requiring a blend of strategic thinking and execution. The explicit mention of coaching junior designers points towards a senior contributor role with leadership potential.
π Primary Responsibilities
- Lead the complete design lifecycle for user experiences, from initial problem framing and strategy definition through to the delivery of impactful, high-quality solutions.
- Collaborate with product managers, engineering leads, and data scientists to identify key user pain points and business opportunities, translating these into actionable product strategies and roadmap priorities.
- Develop compelling vision work for future product iterations, balanced with the execution of near-term improvements that demonstrably advance the product's capabilities and user satisfaction.
- Utilize a variety of research methods, including experiments, A/B testing, and user interviews, to gather quantitative and qualitative insights that inform design decisions and validate proposed solutions.
- Advocate for and maintain high standards of design excellence, ensuring that all designs adhere to usability best practices, accessibility guidelines (WCAG), and brand consistency.
- Contribute to the development and evolution of "Broadway," StubHubβs internal design system, by creating new components and patterns that enhance consistency and efficiency across the product suite.
- Mentor and provide constructive feedback to junior and mid-level designers, fostering their professional growth and helping them to elevate the quality and impact of their design work.
- Drive user-centered design principles throughout the product development process, ensuring that user needs and business goals are harmoniously integrated.
π Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a blend of strategic vision setting and hands-on design execution. The explicit mention of "experiments" suggests a data-driven approach to design validation, common in growth-focused product organizations. The responsibility to coach junior designers indicates an expectation of leadership and mentorship.
π Skills & Qualifications
Education:
- Bachelor's degree in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Interaction Design, Graphic Design, or a closely related field.
- Equivalent practical experience will also be considered as a substitute for a formal degree, demonstrating a commitment to hands-on learning and on-the-job skill development.
Experience:
- A minimum of 5 years of professional experience in product design or UX design roles.
- At least 2 years of experience specifically leading complex, end-to-end design projects from conception to launch.
Required Skills:
- Proven expertise in leading the design of complex, end-to-end user experiences across web and mobile platforms.
- Demonstrated ability to leverage both quantitative data (e.g., analytics, A/B test results) and qualitative insights (e.g., user interviews, usability testing) to drive design decisions.
- Exceptional proficiency in industry-standard design and prototyping tools (e.g., Figma, Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite, InVision, Axure).
- Strong understanding and application of user-centered design principles, usability heuristics, and accessibility standards (e.g., WCAG).
- Experience working within fast-paced, iterative product development environments, adapting to evolving priorities and project requirements.
- Ability to translate strategic objectives into tangible design artifacts, including user flows, wireframes, mockups, and interactive prototypes.
- Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to articulate design rationale and advocate for user needs to cross-functional teams and stakeholders.
- Experience contributing to or utilizing design systems to ensure consistency and efficiency in product design.
Preferred Skills:
- Experience designing for e-commerce or marketplace platforms, particularly in the ticketing or live events industry.
- Familiarity with agile development methodologies and experience working closely with engineering teams in such frameworks.
- Skills in conducting user research, usability testing, and synthesizing findings into actionable design recommendations.
- Experience coaching or mentoring junior designers, providing guidance and feedback to foster their development.
- A strong understanding of visual design principles and their application in creating engaging and intuitive user interfaces.
π Enhancement Note: The requirement for 5+ years of experience with at least 2 years of leadership on complex projects, combined with a Bachelor's degree or equivalent, positions this as a senior individual contributor role. The emphasis on both quantitative and qualitative insights, along with design tools and design systems, are standard but crucial for modern product design roles.
π Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements
Portfolio Essentials:
- A comprehensive portfolio showcasing a minimum of 3-5 significant design projects, with clear articulation of the applicant's direct contributions, role, and impact.
- For each project, detail the problem statement, design process, user research methodologies employed, and the rationale behind key design decisions.
- Demonstrate the ability to translate complex user needs and business requirements into elegant, user-friendly solutions across multiple platforms (web and mobile).
- Showcase experience with iterative design processes, including how feedback, data, and experiments were incorporated to refine designs and improve outcomes.
- Include examples of work that clearly highlights problem-solving skills, user advocacy, and a commitment to design excellence.
Process Documentation:
- Evidence of working collaboratively within cross-functional teams (Product, Engineering, Data) to define project scope, priorities, and design solutions.
- Examples of how user insights, A/B tests, or other data-driven methods were used to validate hypotheses and inform design iterations.
- Documentation or case studies demonstrating contributions to or the creation of design system components, ensuring consistency and scalability.
- Projects that illustrate an understanding of the full product development lifecycle, from concept and strategy to detailed design and post-launch analysis.
π Enhancement Note: The emphasis on a portfolio showcasing "direct contributions" and "impact" suggests a need for candidates to clearly articulate their individual role and the measurable outcomes of their design work. Demonstrating experience with data-driven design and design systems is critical for this senior role.
π΅ Compensation & Benefits
Salary Range: $180,000 - $240,000 USD per year.
Benefits:
- Accelerated Growth Environment: Opportunities for rapid skill and knowledge enhancement, with autonomy to lead experiments and tests on a large scale.
- Top Tier Compensation Package: Includes a competitive base salary, enticing stock incentives, and recognition for contributions.
- Flexible Time Off: Unlimited Flex Time Off policy to promote work-life balance and personal schedule management.
- Comprehensive Benefits Package: Includes 401k retirement savings plan, premium Health, Vision, and Dental Insurance options.
- Paid Parental Leave: A supportive benefit for new parents.
Working Hours:
- A standard full-time work week is expected, with the flexibility offered by the hybrid work arrangement and unlimited PTO promoting a healthy balance. Specific daily hours may vary based on team needs and project deadlines, but a commitment to delivering results is key.
π Enhancement Note: The provided salary range of $180,000 - $240,000 USD for New York, NY, aligns with senior-level product design roles in major tech hubs. The benefits package is robust, with a notable emphasis on growth opportunities and flexible time off, which are attractive perks for experienced professionals. The hybrid model (3 days in office) is also clearly stated.
π― Team & Company Context
π’ Company Culture
Industry: Live Events & Ticketing Marketplace. StubHub operates as a global marketplace connecting buyers and sellers of tickets for live events, including sports, music, comedy, and theater. This industry is characterized by high transaction volumes, dynamic pricing, and a strong focus on user trust and experience. Company Size: StubHub is a significant player in the ticketing industry, part of the larger Viagogo Group. While exact current employee numbers are dynamic, it operates with a global presence, indicating a medium to large-sized organization with established processes and teams. Founded: StubHub was founded in 2000. This long history suggests a company with a mature product, established market position, and evolving operational strategies.
Team Structure:
- The Consumer Experience (CX) team is responsible for the end-to-end product journey for fans. This team likely comprises Product Managers, Product Designers (including this Senior role), Front-end Engineers, and potentially UX Researchers and Data Analysts focused on the consumer-facing aspects of the platform.
- The Senior Product Designer will report into a Design Lead or Head of Product Design within the CX organization.
- Cross-functional collaboration is a cornerstone of this role, requiring close partnerships with Product Management, Engineering, Data Science, and potentially Marketing and Customer Support teams to ensure a cohesive and effective user experience.
Methodology:
- Data-driven decision-making is emphasized, with the use of experiments, A/B testing, and user insights to validate design hypotheses and drive product improvements.
- An iterative product development process is standard, allowing for continuous refinement and adaptation based on feedback and performance metrics.
- A strong focus on user-centered design principles guides the approach to problem-solving and experience creation.
- Contribution to and utilization of a design system ("Broadway") ensures consistency and efficiency in design execution.
Company Website: https://www.stubhub.com/
π Enhancement Note: The company's mission to "redefine the live event experience" suggests a culture that values innovation and a forward-thinking approach to product development. The emphasis on both consumer and seller experiences implies a complex ecosystem that requires a deep understanding of diverse user needs.
π Career & Growth Analysis
Operations Career Level: This role is classified as a Senior Product Designer. This level typically signifies an individual contributor with a high degree of autonomy, expected to lead significant product initiatives, mentor junior team members, and influence product strategy through design expertise. It's a key step towards potential Lead Designer or Design Manager roles.
Reporting Structure: The Senior Product Designer will likely report to a Design Lead or Director of Product Design within the Consumer Experience (CX) team. They will work closely with Product Managers and Engineering Leads on a day-to-day basis, forming a core trio for product development.
Operations Impact: The Senior Product Designer has a direct and substantial impact on StubHub's revenue and business success by shaping the core user journeys for millions of consumers. By optimizing the experience for discovery, purchase, and sale of tickets, this role directly influences conversion rates, customer satisfaction, repeat business, and overall platform engagement, all of which are critical drivers of revenue for a marketplace.
Growth Opportunities:
- Design Leadership: Potential to grow into a Lead Product Designer role, taking on more strategic oversight, managing larger product areas, and potentially leading a small team of designers.
- Specialization: Opportunity to deepen expertise in specific areas of the consumer journey (e.g., discovery, checkout, post-purchase) or to focus on areas like accessibility, design systems, or user research.
- Cross-functional Influence: Develop skills in influencing product strategy and roadmap decisions through strong design advocacy and data-backed recommendations.
- Mentorship: Enhance leadership and coaching skills by actively mentoring junior designers, contributing to the growth of the design team.
- Industry Exposure: Gain deep experience within the live events and ticketing industry, a dynamic and high-stakes market.
π Enhancement Note: The "Senior" title, coupled with responsibilities like leading complex projects and coaching junior designers, clearly indicates a leadership track within individual contribution. The impact on revenue through optimization of core user flows is a significant aspect of this role within a marketplace model.
π Work Environment
Office Type: The role is specified as Hybrid, requiring 3 days per week in the office and allowing for 2 days of remote work. This model aims to balance in-person collaboration and team synergy with flexibility.
Office Location(s): The role is available in either New York, NY, or Santa Monica, CA. This provides candidates with location flexibility within two major tech and cultural hubs.
Workspace Context:
- The office environment is designed for collaboration, with expectations for in-person interaction on designated days to foster team cohesion, brainstorming, and spontaneous problem-solving.
- Access to standard design tools and technologies will be provided, supporting efficient workflow and creativity.
- Opportunities for direct interaction with cross-functional team members (Product, Engineering, Data) will be frequent, facilitating integrated product development.
- The hybrid model allows for focused work during remote days, while office days can be optimized for collaborative sessions, design critiques, and team building.
Work Schedule:
- Standard full-time working hours are expected. The hybrid arrangement and unlimited PTO offer flexibility in managing personal time and work-life balance, allowing operations professionals to structure their days effectively for deep work and collaborative tasks.
π Enhancement Note: The hybrid model is clearly defined (3 days in office). The dual location options (NYC/Santa Monica) are a significant detail for candidates. The context suggests an environment that values both focused individual work and collaborative team engagement.
π Application & Portfolio Review Process
Interview Process:
- Initial Screening: A recruiter or hiring manager will review applications and portfolios to assess alignment with the role's core requirements and experience level.
- Portfolio Presentation & Design Exercise: Candidates will likely be asked to present a selection of their work from their portfolio, discussing their process, decision-making, and impact. This may be followed by a take-home design challenge or an in-studio design exercise focused on problem-solving and design thinking within StubHub's context.
- Cross-functional Interviews: Interviews with Product Managers, Engineering Leads, and potentially other Designers to evaluate collaboration skills, technical understanding, and approach to problem-solving.
- Hiring Manager/Leadership Interview: A final discussion with the hiring manager or a design leader to assess overall fit, strategic thinking, and alignment with team culture and company values.
Portfolio Review Tips:
- Curate Strategically: Select projects that best showcase your experience in leading complex design initiatives, your problem-solving abilities, and your impact on user experience and business outcomes. Prioritize projects relevant to marketplace dynamics or consumer-facing platforms.
- Tell a Story: For each project, clearly articulate the user problem, your role and responsibilities, the design process you followed, key decisions and rationale, and the measurable results achieved. Use visuals effectively to illustrate your work.
- Highlight Collaboration: Demonstrate how you worked with product, engineering, and data teams. Show examples of how you incorporated feedback and data into your design process.
- Showcase Process: Detail your approach to research, ideation, prototyping, testing, and iteration. Emphasize your user-centered methodology and your ability to adapt to challenges.
Challenge Preparation:
- Understand the Business: Research StubHub's business model, target audience, key competitors, and recent product developments. Understand the nuances of the live events ticketing market.
- Focus on Problem Framing: Be prepared to deconstruct a given problem, ask clarifying questions, and define the scope and objectives before jumping into solutions.
- Demonstrate Design Thinking: Show your ability to brainstorm multiple solutions, evaluate trade-offs, and justify your chosen approach with logic and user-centric reasoning.
- Consider Constraints: Be mindful of technical constraints, business goals, and the need for scalability and accessibility in your proposed solutions.
π Enhancement Note: The interview process is expected to be rigorous, with a strong emphasis on portfolio review and practical design problem-solving. Candidates should be prepared to articulate their process and impact clearly and concisely.
π Tools & Technology Stack
Primary Tools:
- Design & Prototyping: Figma (highly probable as a modern standard), Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop), potentially specialized tools like Axure or InVision for specific prototyping needs.
- Design Systems: Experience contributing to or leveraging established design systems (like StubHub's "Broadway") for consistent UI/UX.
- Collaboration Platforms: Slack, Microsoft Teams, Jira, Confluence for team communication, project tracking, and documentation.
Analytics & Reporting:
- Data Visualization Tools: Tableau, Looker, or similar platforms for understanding user behavior and product performance metrics.
- Web/App Analytics: Google Analytics, Amplitude, Mixpanel, or internal tools for tracking user interactions, conversion funnels, and engagement metrics.
- A/B Testing Tools: Optimizely, VWO, or internal experimentation platforms to validate design hypotheses.
CRM & Automation:
- While not directly a CRM role, understanding how design impacts CRM processes (e.g., customer lifecycle, lead nurturing) can be beneficial. Familiarity with how user data captured through the platform informs marketing automation is a plus.
- Integration Tools: Understanding how design interfaces connect with backend systems and APIs is advantageous.
π Enhancement Note: Proficiency in modern design tools like Figma is almost certainly expected. Experience with design systems is a key requirement given the mention of "Broadway." Familiarity with analytics and experimentation tools is crucial for a data-informed design approach.
π₯ Team Culture & Values
Operations Values:
- User-Centricity: A deep commitment to understanding and advocating for user needs, ensuring that every design decision prioritizes a positive and intuitive user experience for ticket buyers and sellers.
- Design Excellence: A pursuit of high-quality, polished, and impactful design solutions that are both aesthetically pleasing and highly functional, adhering to usability and accessibility standards.
- Collaboration & Teamwork: A belief in the power of collective intelligence, fostering an environment where open communication, constructive feedback, and shared ownership lead to better outcomes.
- Proactivity & Ownership: Taking initiative to identify opportunities for improvement, solve complex problems, and drive projects forward with a sense of responsibility and accountability.
- Growth Mindset: A continuous drive to learn, adapt, and improve, embracing new challenges, seeking feedback, and staying abreast of industry trends and best practices in design and technology.
Collaboration Style:
- Cross-functional Partnership: Actively engaging with Product Management and Engineering to ensure design solutions are aligned with business goals and technically feasible, fostering a shared understanding and mutual respect.
- Design Critiques & Feedback: Participating in regular design reviews, providing and receiving constructive criticism to elevate the quality of work.
- Knowledge Sharing: Contributing to the design team's collective knowledge base through sharing insights, best practices, and learnings from projects.
- Iterative Development: Embracing a collaborative approach to iterative design, where feedback loops are continuous and improvements are made incrementally based on data and user input.
π Enhancement Note: The core values emphasize user advocacy, quality, teamwork, and continuous improvement, which are essential for a senior design role in a product-driven organization. The collaboration style highlights the importance of working effectively within a multidisciplinary team.
β‘ Challenges & Growth Opportunities
Challenges:
- Balancing Innovation with Scalability: Driving innovative new features while ensuring they align with and enhance the existing, mature marketplace platform and design system.
- Navigating Complex User Journeys: Designing intuitive experiences for diverse user needs across the ticket buying and selling lifecycle, which can involve complex pricing, event details, and transaction flows.
- Data-Informed Decision Making: Effectively integrating and interpreting quantitative and qualitative data to validate design hypotheses and demonstrate ROI, especially in a fast-paced environment.
- Mentoring and Leadership: Effectively guiding and coaching junior designers while managing oneβs own design workload, requiring strong time management and interpersonal skills.
- Cross-Functional Alignment: Ensuring consistent vision and execution across product, engineering, and other stakeholders with potentially differing priorities.
Learning & Development Opportunities:
- Deep Dive into Live Events Industry: Gain specialized knowledge of the unique challenges and opportunities within the global ticketing and live events market.
- Advanced Design System Contribution: Play a key role in evolving and expanding StubHub's design system ("Broadway"), potentially becoming a subject matter expert.
- Leadership Development: Hone coaching, mentorship, and strategic influencing skills through direct experience with junior designers and cross-functional leadership.
- Experimentation & Optimization: Gain hands-on experience with A/B testing and experimentation methodologies to drive product optimization and user engagement.
- Exposure to Global Markets: Understand and design for diverse user bases across different countries and cultures, given StubHub's international presence.
π Enhancement Note: The challenges are typical for a senior role in a growing tech company, focusing on balancing innovation, collaboration, and data. The growth opportunities are well-aligned with career progression in product design, emphasizing leadership, specialization, and industry expertise.
π‘ Interview Preparation
Strategy Questions:
- "Describe a complex end-to-end user experience you designed from scratch. What was the problem, your process, and the outcome?" (Focus on problem framing, user research, iterative design, and quantifiable results.)
- "How do you balance user needs with business objectives and technical constraints in your design process?" (Highlight your ability to find optimal solutions through compromise and strategic thinking.)
- "Tell me about a time you had to influence stakeholders or team members who disagreed with your design direction. How did you approach it?" (Showcase your communication, persuasion, and collaboration skills.)
- "How do you leverage data and user research to inform your design decisions? Provide a specific example." (Demonstrate your data-driven approach and ability to translate insights into action.)
Company & Culture Questions:
- "What excites you about StubHub and the live events industry?" (Research StubHub's mission, recent news, and passion for live events.)
- "How do you contribute to fostering a positive and productive design culture?" (Discuss your experience with collaboration, feedback, and mentorship.)
- "Describe your experience working in a hybrid or remote environment. How do you ensure effective collaboration and communication?" (Emphasize your proactive communication and teamwork skills.)
- "How do you stay updated on the latest design trends and technologies?" (Show your commitment to continuous learning.)
Portfolio Presentation Strategy:
- Structure Your Narrative: For each case study, clearly outline the problem, your role, the process, your decisions, and the impact. Use a consistent structure for each project.
- Focus on Impact: Quantify your achievements whenever possible (e.g., increased conversion by X%, reduced error rate by Y%). If exact numbers aren't available, articulate the qualitative impact and learnings.
- Show, Don't Just Tell: Use high-fidelity mockups, interactive prototypes, and user flow diagrams to visually communicate your design solutions and process.
- Be Prepared for Deep Dives: Anticipate questions about specific design choices, trade-offs, challenges overcome, and how you would approach similar problems in the future.
- Tailor to StubHub: Connect your experience and examples to StubHub's business and user needs, demonstrating how you can add value to their team.
π Enhancement Note: The interview preparation focuses on demonstrating core product design competencies: strategic thinking, problem-solving, collaboration, data literacy, and effective communication. Candidates should be ready to articulate their process and impact with specific examples, tailored to StubHub's context.
π Application Steps
To apply for this Senior Product Designer position:
- Submit your application through the provided link on the StubHub careers portal.
- Portfolio Customization: Carefully select 3-5 of your most relevant and impactful design projects to showcase. Prioritize projects that demonstrate end-to-end ownership, complex problem-solving, and measurable results, ideally within e-commerce, marketplaces, or consumer-facing platforms.
- Resume Optimization: Tailor your resume to highlight your 5+ years of experience, specifically mentioning your 2+ years of leading complex design projects. Integrate keywords such as "Product Design," "User Experience," "Design Systems," "Prototyping," "User-Centered Design," "Data-Informed Design," and "Cross-functional Collaboration."
- Prepare Your Narrative: Practice articulating your design process, decision-making rationale, and the impact of your work for each selected portfolio project. Be ready to discuss your experience with user research, A/B testing, and design systems.
- Company Research: Familiarize yourself with StubHub's mission, values, product offerings, and recent news. Understand their target audience and the competitive landscape of the live events ticketing industry.
β οΈ 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.
Application Requirements
5+ years of professional experience as a product designer with a minimum of 2 years leading complex design projects is required. A bachelor's degree in HCI, Interaction Design, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience is also necessary.