UX Design Lead

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: UX Design Lead

Company: Cylake, Inc

Location: Sunnyvale, California, United States

Job Type: Full-Time

Category: Product Design / User Experience

Date Posted: March 05, 2026

Experience Level: 5-10 Years

Remote Status: On-site

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead the establishment of design foundations and standards for a next-generation cybersecurity platform, driving exceptional user experience across a diverse product portfolio.

• Own the complete user experience strategy, from intricate analyst workflows to executive-level dashboards, ensuring intuitive and elegant solutions for security professionals.

• Architect and build a scalable design system, including reusable component libraries and design patterns, to facilitate product growth and maintain visual polish.

• Collaborate directly with engineering and product leadership to translate complex security capabilities into user-friendly and visually appealing interfaces.

• Act as a key contributor in a small, agile team, shaping product direction and establishing design excellence as a core differentiator from the inception of the company.

📝 Enhancement Note: The absence of specific "Revenue Operations" or "Sales Operations" keywords in the input data suggests this role is focused on Product Design within the GTM (Go-To-Market) umbrella, specifically on the product development side rather than post-launch GTM operational efficiency. The emphasis on "cybersecurity products" and "enterprise IT tools" indicates a B2B focus.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Define and implement comprehensive UX/UI design strategies for a suite of cybersecurity products, encompassing analyst workflows, administrative controls, and executive dashboards.

• Develop and maintain a robust design system, including detailed style guides, component libraries, and reusable patterns, ensuring consistency and scalability across the platform.

• Conduct user research, create user personas, and map out user journeys to deeply understand the needs of security professionals and translate them into effective design solutions.

• Design data-dense interfaces with a strong emphasis on information hierarchy, effective data visualization, and clear presentation of complex security-related information.

• Create intuitive workflows that balance speed and efficiency for high-stakes situations, while ensuring clarity and minimizing cognitive load for users.

• Collaborate closely with product managers and engineers throughout the product development lifecycle, from ideation and wireframing to high-fidelity mockups and final implementation, ensuring design integrity.

• Proactively identify design opportunities within new domains, making principled design decisions even in ambiguous environments with incomplete information.

• Drive visual design excellence, paying meticulous attention to typography, color systems, spacing, and overall aesthetic to create polished, professional, and trustworthy interfaces.

• Mentor junior designers (if applicable) and contribute to the growth of the design function within the organization.

• Address and mitigate "signal fatigue" by designing intelligent filtering, prioritization, and alert systems that improve the signal-to-noise ratio for security analysts.

📝 Enhancement Note: While the core responsibilities are product-focused, a UX Design Lead in a cybersecurity context often interfaces with GTM teams to understand market needs and competitive landscapes. Responsibilities include translating business requirements into user-centric designs that support product adoption and customer satisfaction, which indirectly impacts revenue.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education:

Experience:

• 7+ years of progressive UX/UI design experience, with a proven track record of delivering successful digital products.

• Minimum of 3 years specifically designing for complex security products and enterprise IT tools, demonstrating an understanding of the unique challenges and user needs in this domain.

• Substantial experience in establishing and scaling design systems, component libraries, and design patterns across sophisticated product interfaces.

Required Skills:

• Interaction Design: Expertise in defining user flows, wireframing, prototyping, and creating intuitive navigation structures for complex applications.

• Visual Design: Strong command of typography, color theory, layout, and visual hierarchy to create aesthetically pleasing and professional interfaces.

• Design Systems: Proven ability to create, implement, and maintain comprehensive design systems, component libraries, and pattern libraries that ensure consistency and efficiency.

• Data Visualization & Information Hierarchy: Skill in designing interfaces that effectively present and organize large volumes of data, with expertise in information hierarchy and data visualization best practices.

• User Research & Persona Development: Ability to conduct user research, define user personas, and translate findings into actionable design requirements.

• Autonomy & Ambiguity Tolerance: Demonstrated capacity to work independently, navigate ambiguous situations, and make sound, principled design decisions with incomplete information.

• Problem-Solving: Strong analytical and problem-solving skills to tackle complex design challenges in a fast-paced environment.

• Collaboration: Excellent communication and interpersonal skills to effectively collaborate with product managers, engineers, and leadership.

• Portfolio: A strong, curated portfolio showcasing both interaction and visual design excellence, with examples relevant to enterprise software and/or cybersecurity.

Preferred Skills:

• Timeline-Based Interfaces & Graph Visualizations: Experience designing with timeline-based interfaces, graph/network visualizations, and temporal data representation.

• Mentorship & Team Growth: Experience mentoring junior designers or contributing to the growth and development of a design team.

• Signal Fatigue & Prioritization: Background in addressing signal fatigue, improving signal-to-noise ratios, and designing intelligent filtering/prioritization systems.

• Agile Development: Familiarity with agile development methodologies and experience working within cross-functional agile teams.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "design systems," "component libraries," and "design patterns" strongly indicates a need for a candidate who can not only design but also architect and scale the design foundation. For a "lead" role, experience in mentoring or team growth is a significant plus, suggesting potential for future team expansion.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Comprehensive Case Studies: Showcase 3-5 detailed case studies that highlight your process from problem identification to final solution. Each case study should clearly articulate the user problem, your role, the design process undertaken, key design decisions, and the quantifiable impact of your work.

• Design System Examples: Include examples of design systems, component libraries, or pattern libraries you have developed or significantly contributed to. Demonstrate how these systems promote consistency, scalability, and efficiency.

• Data-Dense Interface Design: Present examples of designing complex, data-intensive interfaces, showcasing your ability to manage information hierarchy, create effective data visualizations, and ensure usability.

• Workflow Optimization: Illustrate instances where you designed or refined workflows to improve speed, efficiency, and clarity, particularly in high-stakes or complex operational environments.

• Cross-Persona Design: Provide examples of designs that cater to multiple user personas within an organization (e.g., analysts, administrators, executives), demonstrating an understanding of diverse user needs.

Process Documentation:

• User-Centered Design Process: Clearly outline your approach to user research, ideation, wireframing, prototyping, usability testing, and iterative design.

• Design System Development Lifecycle: Detail the steps involved in creating, documenting, and maintaining a design system, including how you gather requirements, define components, and ensure adoption.

• Collaboration Methodology: Explain how you collaborate with product managers, engineers, and stakeholders, including your methods for feedback, iteration, and presenting design solutions.

• Metrics and Impact Measurement: Describe how you measure the success of your designs, focusing on UX metrics, user satisfaction, and business impact (e.g., task completion rates, error reduction, adoption metrics).

📝 Enhancement Note: For a lead role responsible for establishing design foundations, a portfolio that demonstrates not just design execution but also strategic thinking, system-level thinking, and the ability to influence product direction is crucial. The emphasis should be on how the candidate has architected design solutions that scale and deliver measurable business value.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: $150,000 – $250,000 per year

Benefits:

• Comprehensive Health Coverage: Medical, dental, and vision insurance plans designed to support employee well-being.

• Retirement Savings Plan: 401(k) or equivalent with potential company matching, supporting long-term financial security.

• Paid Time Off: Generous vacation, sick leave, and paid holidays to ensure work-life balance.

• Stock Options/Equity: Opportunity to participate in the company's growth through equity grants, aligning employee success with company success.

• Professional Development: Support for continuous learning, including training, conferences, and resources to enhance skills.

• Life and Disability Insurance: Protection for employees and their families.

• Commuter Benefits: Assistance for employees commuting to the Sunnyvale office.

Working Hours:

• Standard full-time work hours, typically around 40 hours per week. While the role is on-site, the company may offer some flexibility depending on team needs and project deadlines, though core hours will be expected for collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range provided is competitive for a Lead UX Designer role in the Sunnyvale, California area, reflecting the high cost of living and the demand for experienced design professionals in the tech industry, especially within specialized fields like cybersecurity. The benefits package is standard for a tech startup, with equity being a key component for early-stage companies.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Cybersecurity Technology / Enterprise Software

Company Size: Small Team (Startup Environment)

Founded: Cylake, Inc. was founded with the goal of building the next generation of cybersecurity products. The company is described as being "from the ground up" and "from the very start," indicating a nascent stage, likely within the last 1-3 years.

Team Structure:

• Small, Agile Team: Operates with a lean structure, fostering close collaboration and rapid decision-making.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Heavy emphasis on direct collaboration between UX Design, Engineering, and Product Leadership.

• Industry Veterans: Led by experienced professionals with a proven track record in building successful companies and products.

• Flat Hierarchy: Likely a less hierarchical structure common in startups, enabling direct access to leadership and decision-makers.

Methodology:

• Agile Development: Likely employs agile methodologies for rapid iteration and product development.

• User-Centric Design: A strong focus on understanding and addressing end-user needs, particularly security professionals.

• Data-Driven Decision Making: Emphasis on using data and insights to inform design and product strategy.

• Iterative Improvement: A culture of continuous refinement and improvement based on feedback and performance metrics.

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

📝 Enhancement Note: As a startup, Cylake likely emphasizes a culture of innovation, ownership, and rapid execution. The "small team" aspect means each member has a significant impact, and the "ground-floor opportunity" suggests a chance to shape processes and culture. The cybersecurity focus implies a need for high attention to detail, security consciousness, and an understanding of complex B2B enterprise needs.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This is a senior individual contributor role, designated as "Lead." It signifies a high level of expertise and responsibility, with the expectation of setting direction and standards. It's a critical role that bridges individual contribution with potential future team leadership.

Reporting Structure: The UX Design Lead will likely report directly to a Head of Product, CTO, or a Chief Design Officer if one exists. They will work closely with engineering leads and product managers.

Operations Impact: While not directly an "Operations" role in the traditional sense (Revenue Ops, Sales Ops), this UX Design Lead role has a significant impact on the GTM strategy by:

• Product Adoption: Creating intuitive products that are easy to adopt and use, directly influencing customer acquisition and retention.

• Customer Satisfaction: Delivering exceptional user experiences that lead to higher customer satisfaction and loyalty, reducing churn.

• Market Differentiation: Establishing the product as a leader in usability and design within the competitive cybersecurity market.

• Sales Enablement: Providing a product that is easy to demonstrate and understand, supporting sales efforts.

• Efficiency Gains: Designing workflows that reduce the time and effort required for users to perform critical tasks, indirectly impacting operational efficiency for customers.

Growth Opportunities:

• Team Leadership: Potential to build and lead a design team as the company grows.

• Strategic Product Influence: Opportunity to significantly shape the product roadmap and long-term vision.

• Deep Domain Expertise: Develop specialized knowledge in cybersecurity UX, a highly in-demand niche.

• Founding Team Contribution: Be part of the foundational team, influencing company culture and processes from the outset.

• Skill Expansion: Opportunities to expand into product strategy, user research leadership, or even product management.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Lead" title suggests a pathway to managing a team, but the primary focus for now is establishing design excellence. The impact on "operations" here is indirect but critical, influencing customer success and market adoption, which are key GTM metrics.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: The role is on-site in Sunnyvale, California, indicating a need for an office-based work environment. This suggests a collaborative workspace designed for in-person interaction and team synergy.

Office Location(s): Sunnyvale, California, a hub for technology companies in Silicon Valley, offering access to a vibrant tech ecosystem.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Hub: The office environment is likely designed to foster collaboration, with open spaces, meeting rooms, and areas for spontaneous discussions.

• Tools & Technology: Access to modern design software, hardware, and collaboration tools necessary for UX/UI design and product development.

• Team Interaction: Opportunities for frequent face-to-face interaction with engineering, product management, and leadership, facilitating rapid feedback loops and alignment.

• Startup Atmosphere: Expect a dynamic, fast-paced environment common in early-stage companies, with a focus on innovation and shared goals.

Work Schedule:

• A standard 40-hour work week is expected, typical for full-time roles. While the role is on-site, the company may offer some flexibility around core working hours to accommodate project needs, but consistent presence and availability for team collaboration during business hours are essential.

📝 Enhancement Note: The on-site requirement is typical for startups where team cohesion, spontaneous collaboration, and direct mentorship are prioritized, especially for a lead role establishing foundational elements.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A brief call with a recruiter or hiring manager to assess basic qualifications, experience, and cultural fit.

• Portfolio Review: A dedicated session where you will present your portfolio, walking through key case studies and explaining your design process, decision-making, and impact. This is a critical stage for a Lead role.

• Design Challenge/Exercise: You may be given a take-home assignment or an in-person/virtual design exercise related to a cybersecurity problem, requiring you to apply your UX/UI skills and demonstrate your problem-solving approach.

• Cross-Functional Interviews: Interviews with engineering leads, product managers, and potentially other senior members of the leadership team to assess collaboration skills, technical understanding, and strategic thinking.

• Final Interview: Likely with a co-founder or senior executive to discuss vision, long-term contributions, and final cultural alignment.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate Strategically: Select 3-5 of your strongest projects that best demonstrate your experience in enterprise software, complex data interfaces, and ideally, cybersecurity.

• Tell a Story: For each project, clearly articulate the problem, your role, the challenges faced, your design process, key decisions, and the measurable outcomes or impact.

• Highlight System Thinking: Clearly showcase your experience with design systems, component libraries, and how you ensure scalability and consistency.

• Demonstrate Process: Go beyond final mockups; show wireframes, user flows, research insights, and iteration.

• Quantify Impact: Whenever possible, use data and metrics to demonstrate the success of your designs (e.g., improved task completion, reduced errors, increased user satisfaction).

• Tailor to Cylake: Briefly explain how your skills and experience align with Cylake's mission and the specific challenges of designing for cybersecurity.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the Domain: Research common UX challenges in cybersecurity, such as information overload, alert fatigue, complex workflows, and the need for trust and clarity.

• Focus on Process: Demonstrate a structured approach to problem-solving, even for a short exercise. Outline your steps, assumptions, and rationale.

• Think Scalability: Consider how your proposed solution could scale within a larger platform or design system.

• Communicate Clearly: Practice articulating your design decisions and rationale concisely and effectively.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a Lead UX role, the portfolio review is paramount. Candidates should be prepared to defend their design decisions, articulate their process in detail, and demonstrate strategic thinking beyond just visual execution. The emphasis on "design systems" and "complex data interfaces" will likely be heavily scrutinized.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Design & Prototyping Software: Figma (highly probable given industry trends and Ashby platform usage), Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop).

• Prototyping Tools: InVision, Principle, ProtoPie, or Figma's built-in prototyping capabilities.

• User Research & Testing Platforms: UserTesting.com, Maze, Lookback, or similar tools for remote usability testing and feedback collection.

Analytics & Reporting:

CRM & Automation:

• Not directly applicable to this UX role, but understanding how products integrate with CRMs (like Salesforce) or automation platforms could be a plus for enterprise B2B contexts.

📝 Enhancement Note: Figma is the de facto standard for many modern design teams, especially startups, due to its collaborative features. Proficiency in this tool is highly likely to be expected.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• User-Centricity: A deep commitment to understanding and serving the needs of security professionals, ensuring products are not just functional but also usable and valuable.

• Excellence & Polish: A dedication to high-quality design, attention to detail, and creating polished, professional interfaces that build trust.

• Collaboration & Ownership: A culture where team members take ownership of their work, collaborate effectively across disciplines, and contribute to shared goals.

• Innovation & Impact: A drive to build cutting-edge products that make a significant impact in the cybersecurity domain.

• Adaptability & Agility: The ability to thrive in a fast-paced startup environment, adapt to changing requirements, and iterate quickly.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-Functional Integration: Expect close working relationships with engineering and product management, involving frequent communication, feedback sessions, and joint problem-solving.

• Design-Led Approach: As a Lead, you'll be expected to champion design thinking and best practices across teams, influencing product decisions through user advocacy.

• Open Communication: A culture that encourages open dialogue, constructive feedback, and transparent sharing of ideas and challenges.

• Iterative Feedback Loops: Regular opportunities to share work-in-progress, receive feedback, and incorporate it into subsequent design iterations.

📝 Enhancement Note: Startup culture often blends professional rigor with a sense of shared mission. For a Lead UX Designer, demonstrating leadership through collaboration and advocacy for the user will be key.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Complexity of Cybersecurity Domain: Navigating the intricate technical landscape and unique user needs of cybersecurity professionals.

• Balancing Usability with Security: Designing interfaces that are both highly secure and intuitive to use, a common tension in this field.

• Establishing Design Foundations: As a ground-floor hire, the challenge of defining and implementing design standards, systems, and processes from scratch.

• Ambiguity and Rapid Iteration: Thriving in a startup environment where priorities may shift and requirements are not always fully defined.

• Signal Fatigue Mitigation: Designing effective solutions for information overload and alert management, a critical pain point for security analysts.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Deep Domain Expertise: Gaining specialized knowledge in UX for cybersecurity, a highly valuable and niche skill set.

• Design System Architecture: Opportunity to architect and build a comprehensive design system from its inception, a significant career achievement.

• Product Strategy Influence: Directly contribute to the strategic direction of a new product line within a growing company.

• Leadership Development: Potential to grow into a design management role as the company scales.

• Exposure to Industry Veterans: Learning from experienced leaders in both cybersecurity and startup environments.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges presented are typical for a lead role in an early-stage, specialized tech company. The growth opportunities are significant, offering a chance to build something from the ground up and develop highly sought-after expertise.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "How would you approach establishing a design system for a new cybersecurity platform from scratch, considering scalability and adoption by both designers and engineers?"

• "Describe a time you had to design for a complex, data-dense interface. What were the key challenges, and how did you approach information hierarchy and data visualization?"

• "Given the high-stakes nature of cybersecurity, how do you ensure your designs balance efficiency with clarity and minimize user error?"

• "Walk me through your process for translating complex technical requirements into user-friendly workflows."

Company & Culture Questions:

• "What interests you most about Cylake and our mission in cybersecurity?"

• "How do you see your role contributing to Cylake's success as a foundational member of the team?"

• "Describe your ideal team collaboration dynamic, especially in a startup environment."

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure is Key: Begin with a brief overview of your career and focus areas. For each portfolio piece, use a clear narrative arc: Problem -> Your Role -> Process -> Solution -> Impact.

• Highlight System Contributions: Emphasize any work related to design systems, component libraries, or pattern definition.

• Showcase Data-Driven Design: Present how you used user research, data, or analytics to inform your design decisions.

• Demonstrate Problem-Solving: Clearly articulate the challenges you faced and how your design solutions addressed them effectively.

• Be Ready for Deep Dives: Anticipate detailed questions about your design choices, trade-offs, and the reasoning behind them.

• Prepare Questions: Have thoughtful questions ready for the interviewers about the product, team, challenges, and company vision.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process will heavily focus on demonstrating strategic thinking, system-level design capabilities, and a deep understanding of the cybersecurity domain's UX challenges. Be prepared to articulate your process and defend your design decisions with strong rationale.

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📌 Application Steps

To apply for this UX Design Lead position at Cylake, Inc:

• Submit Your Application: Navigate to the provided application link on Ashby and complete the initial application form.

• Curate Your Portfolio: Carefully select 3-5 of your most relevant projects that showcase your expertise in enterprise UX, data-dense interfaces, design systems, and ideally, cybersecurity. Ensure each project clearly details the problem, your process, your role, and the impact.

• Tailor Your Resume: Highlight your 7+ years of UX/UI experience, specifically mentioning your 3+ years in security products/enterprise IT tools. Emphasize your experience with design systems, data visualization, and autonomous problem-solving. Use keywords from the job description.

• Practice Your Presentation: Rehearse walking through your portfolio. Be ready to articulate your design process, rationale, and the measurable outcomes of your work. Prepare to discuss how you would approach the challenges of building a design foundation at Cylake.

• Research Cylake: Familiarize yourself with Cylake's mission, the cybersecurity industry landscape, and common UX challenges in this space. Understand the implications of working in a small, early-stage startup.

⚠️ 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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