Lead Product Designer & UXR

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Lead Product Designer & UXR

Company: BukuWarung

Location: Jakarta, Jakarta, Indonesia

Job Type: Full-Time

Category: Product Design & User Experience

Date Posted: September 13, 2026

Experience Level: 5-10 Years

Remote Status: On-site

🚀 Role Summary

• Drive design excellence and user experience across all BukuWarung products, encompassing mobile and web applications, by setting clear design vision and standards.

• Build and maintain a scalable design system to ensure consistency, efficiency, and brand integrity across all product touchpoints.

• Establish and lead robust user research practices, from initial discovery to evaluative testing, to deeply understand merchant needs and pain points.

• Act as a player-coach, leading critical design initiatives while simultaneously mentoring and developing the design and research team members.

• Foster a data-informed mindset, leveraging both quantitative and qualitative data to guide design decisions and product strategy.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is a hybrid "player-coach" position, indicating a need for both hands-on design execution and team leadership. The emphasis on "merchant needs" and "SEA markets, particularly Indonesia" suggests a focus on building products for micro-merchants within the Indonesian financial technology (fintech) landscape. The "AI-first product team" directive implies a strong expectation for leveraging AI tools in design and research workflows.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Define and champion the design vision and overarching standards for all BukuWarung products, ensuring a cohesive and high-quality user experience across mobile and web platforms.

• Develop, implement, and maintain a scalable design system, serving as the single source of truth for UI components, patterns, and guidelines to drive consistency and efficiency.

• Conduct thorough design quality reviews for the team, providing constructive feedback and ensuring all design outputs meet high standards of usability and aesthetic appeal.

• Lead end-to-end product design for key strategic initiatives, acting as a hands-on contributor while also guiding and coaching junior designers on complex projects.

• Establish and lead comprehensive user research practices, encompassing generative research (discovery, ethnography) and evaluative research (usability testing, user interviews) to uncover deep insights into merchant behaviors and pain points.

• Cultivate an in-depth understanding of micro-merchant needs, market dynamics, and operational challenges within the Indonesian context, informing product development.

• Define and operationalize research methodologies, tools, and cadences for the design and research team, ensuring a systematic approach to user insights.

• Drive capability building within the design and research function through dedicated mentorship, training sessions, and knowledge-sharing initiatives.

• Collaborate closely with Product Managers, Engineering teams, and other internal stakeholders to ensure seamless integration of design and research insights into product roadmaps and development cycles.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a dual focus on strategic leadership (vision, standards, research strategy) and hands-on execution (leading critical initiatives, design quality reviews). The emphasis on "merchant understanding" and "SEA markets" points to a specialized domain within fintech, requiring a deep user empathy for micro-merchants.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While not explicitly stated, a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Design, Human-Computer Interaction, Psychology, or a related field is typically expected for leadership roles in this domain.

Experience: 7+ years of progressive experience in product design, with a minimum of 3 years in a dedicated leadership or management capacity overseeing design teams. An additional 2+ years of direct experience in UX Research is also required.

Required Skills:

• End-to-End Product Design: Proven track record of designing user-centered, visually appealing, and functional interfaces for both mobile and web applications from concept to launch.

• User Experience Research: Expertise in conducting a range of research methodologies, including generative (e.g., interviews, surveys, ethnographic studies) and evaluative (e.g., usability testing, heuristic evaluations, A/B testing).

• Design System Development & Management: Experience in creating, contributing to, or scaling design systems to ensure consistency and efficiency across product portfolios.

• Leadership & Mentorship: Demonstrated ability to manage, coach, and mentor designers and researchers, fostering team growth and high performance.

• Proficiency in Design Tools: Mastery of industry-standard design and prototyping tools, with a specific emphasis on Figma.

• Data-Informed Decision Making: Ability to leverage quantitative (analytics, A/B test results) and qualitative (user research findings) data to inform and validate design decisions.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Strong ability to work effectively with Product Management, Engineering, Marketing, and other business units to achieve shared goals.

• Communication & Influence: Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to articulate design rationale clearly and persuasively, influencing stakeholders without direct authority.

• Agile Methodologies: Experience working within agile development frameworks (Scrum, Kanban) and adapting design processes accordingly.

Preferred Skills:

• Consumer or SMB Product Experience: Prior experience designing for consumer-facing products or small to medium-sized businesses.

• Fintech or Financial Services Experience: Familiarity with the unique challenges and opportunities within the fintech or financial services industry.

• SEA Market Experience: Specific experience designing for markets in Southeast Asia, with a strong preference for Indonesia.

• AI Tool Proficiency: Experience leveraging AI tools for design exploration, research synthesis, workflow automation, and enhancing design output.

📝 Enhancement Note: The requirement for 3 years in a leadership role suggests the company is looking for someone who has managed people, not just projects. The explicit mention of "AI Tools" as a preferred skill indicates a forward-thinking approach to design and research, prioritizing candidates who can integrate AI into their workflows to boost productivity and innovation.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Comprehensive Case Studies: Showcase 3-5 detailed case studies demonstrating end-to-end product design process for complex mobile and web applications. Each case study should clearly outline the problem, your role, the design process, key decisions, and measurable outcomes.

• User Research Integration: Highlight specific examples within case studies where user research (generative and evaluative) directly informed design iterations and led to improved user experiences or business metrics.

• Design System Contribution: Include examples of your involvement in building, scaling, or maintaining design systems, showcasing components, patterns, and guidelines you've developed or contributed to.

• Leadership & Mentorship Examples: Provide evidence of your leadership experience, such as examples of how you've mentored team members, reviewed designs, or guided strategic design decisions.

• Data-Driven Design: Demonstrate how you've used quantitative and qualitative data to drive design decisions and measure the impact of your work.

Process Documentation:

• User Research Framework: Document your approach to establishing and executing user research operations, including how you define research questions, select methodologies, recruit participants, and synthesize findings.

• Design Process Workflow: Outline your typical design workflow from problem definition and ideation through to high-fidelity design, prototyping, and handoff to engineering, emphasizing collaboration points.

• Design System Implementation Strategy: Detail your approach to building and maintaining a design system, including governance, contribution guidelines, and adoption strategies.

• AI Integration Strategy: Explain how you envision leveraging AI tools within the design and research process to enhance efficiency, creativity, and insight generation.

📝 Enhancement Note: Given the "player-coach" nature of the role and the emphasis on research, the portfolio should clearly articulate both the candidate's individual design and research contributions, as well as their ability to lead and mentor others. The inclusion of AI tool usage in the portfolio is a critical differentiator.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: For a Lead Product Designer & UXR role in Jakarta, Indonesia, with 7+ years of experience and leadership responsibilities, the estimated annual salary range is IDR 400,000,000 to IDR 700,000,000. This estimate is based on industry benchmarks for senior design and research roles in major Indonesian tech hubs, considering the company's focus on fintech and its growth stage.

Benefits:

• Competitive Salary: Reflecting the seniority and leadership scope of the role.

• Health Insurance: Comprehensive medical coverage for employees and potentially dependents.

• Paid Time Off: Generous annual leave, sick leave, and public holidays.

• Professional Development: Opportunities for training, workshops, conferences, and access to learning resources.

• Stock Options/Equity: Potential for equity participation, aligning employee success with company growth.

• Performance Bonuses: Annual or bi-annual bonuses tied to individual and company performance.

• Flexible Work Environment: While on-site, the company may offer some flexibility within the standard working hours.

• Team Events & Social Activities: Opportunities for team building and fostering a strong company culture.

Working Hours: A standard full-time work week of approximately 40 hours, typically Monday through Friday. The company operates within the Asia/Jakarta timezone.

📝 Enhancement Note: Salary estimation is based on general market data for senior roles in Jakarta's tech sector. Actual compensation may vary based on specific experience, negotiation, and the company's compensation philosophy. The "AI Mindset" section in the job description suggests that candidates who can demonstrate proficiency and strategic use of AI tools may command higher compensation.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Fintech / Financial Services for Micro-Merchants. BukuWarung operates within the rapidly growing Indonesian fintech sector, focusing on empowering micro-merchants with digital tools for financial management and business operations. This context implies a fast-paced, innovative, and user-centric environment.

Company Size: The provided LinkedIn data indicates a company size of 51-200 employees. This suggests a dynamic, growth-stage environment where individuals can have significant impact, but also requires adaptability and a willingness to contribute across various functions.

Founded: Founded in 2019, BukuWarung is a relatively young company, indicating a startup culture that is likely agile, experimental, and focused on rapid scaling and product development.

Team Structure:

• Design & Research Function: This role leads the dedicated Design & Research function, implying a growing team that the Lead will be responsible for building and mentoring.

• Reporting Structure: The Lead Product Designer & UXR reports directly to the Head of Product, placing the design function at a strategic level within the product organization.

• Cross-functional Collaboration: Close collaboration is expected with Product Managers, Engineering teams, and Business teams across various "tribes" (likely cross-functional product teams), emphasizing a highly integrated product development process.

Methodology:

• AI-First Product Team: A core methodology is the leverage of AI tools to enhance output and impact across all product functions, including design and research.

• Data-Driven Product Development: Decisions are informed by both quantitative and qualitative data, integrating user insights and business metrics.

• Agile Development: The team operates using agile methodologies, requiring flexibility and iterative development processes.

• User-Centric Design: A strong emphasis on understanding and addressing the needs, behaviors, and pain points of the target user (micro-merchants).

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

📝 Enhancement Note: The "AI-First" approach is a significant cultural and methodological differentiator. Candidates should be prepared to discuss how they integrate AI into their design and research workflows. The company's focus on micro-merchants in Indonesia means that understanding local market nuances and user behaviors is paramount.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This is a senior leadership position, a "Lead" role, signifying responsibility for both individual contribution and team management. It sits at the intersection of individual contributor expertise and managerial oversight, often referred to as a "player-coach" role.

Reporting Structure: The role reports directly to the Head of Product. This indicates high visibility and direct influence on product strategy and execution. The Lead will manage a team of designers and researchers, setting their direction and fostering their development.

Operations Impact: The Lead Product Designer & UXR will have a direct and significant impact on the success of BukuWarung's products by ensuring they are user-centric, intuitive, and effectively meet the needs of micro-merchants. This impact translates directly to user adoption, engagement, and ultimately, business growth and revenue.

Growth Opportunities:

• Team Expansion & Leadership: Opportunity to build and scale the design and research team, defining its structure, processes, and culture.

• Strategic Product Influence: Contribute to high-level product strategy and roadmap decisions, shaping the future direction of BukuWarung's offerings.

• Deep Domain Expertise: Develop specialized knowledge in fintech for micro-merchants in Southeast Asia, becoming a subject matter expert in a critical market.

• AI Innovation: Lead the integration of cutting-edge AI tools into design and research practices, setting new standards for efficiency and creativity.

• Potential for Director-Level Roles: Successful performance and team growth could lead to opportunities for higher leadership positions, such as Head of Design or VP of Product Design.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "player-coach" aspect means that career growth isn't solely about people management but also about continued hands-on contribution and thought leadership in design and research. The emphasis on AI also presents a unique growth path for those looking to specialize in this emerging area of product development.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: On-site in Jakarta, Indonesia. This suggests a traditional office environment where in-person collaboration, team cohesion, and direct mentorship are prioritized.

Office Location(s): Jakarta, Indonesia. This is a major metropolitan hub in Southeast Asia, offering access to talent, resources, and a vibrant business ecosystem.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Environment: The office setting likely fosters spontaneous interactions, brainstorming sessions, and easier cross-functional alignment between design, product, and engineering.

• Tools & Technology: Access to modern design and research tools (Figma, AI tools) is expected, supported by the company's IT infrastructure.

• Team Interaction: Regular face-to-face interactions with direct reports, peers, and leadership, facilitating strong working relationships and a shared team culture.

Work Schedule: A typical full-time schedule, likely Monday to Friday, within standard business hours for the Jakarta timezone (Asia/Jakarta). While on-site, the company may offer some flexibility depending on team needs and project deadlines.

📝 Enhancement Note: The on-site requirement is important for candidates who thrive in a collaborative, in-person setting. It also implies a company culture that values direct interaction and team synergy.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A review of your resume and portfolio to assess qualifications and experience.

• Hiring Manager Interview: Discussion with the Head of Product to understand your leadership style, design philosophy, and strategic thinking. Expect questions about your experience managing teams and setting design vision.

• Design & Research Challenge: A take-home assignment or a live design/research exercise focused on a real BukuWarung problem or a similar scenario. This will assess your problem-solving skills, design process, and ability to integrate research insights.

• Team Interviews: Meetings with potential direct reports (designers/researchers) and cross-functional peers (Product Managers, Engineers) to evaluate collaboration style, mentorship capabilities, and cultural fit.

• Final Interview: Potentially with a co-founder or senior executive to discuss overall vision, alignment with company values, and long-term potential.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Showcase Leadership: Clearly articulate your role in leading design initiatives and mentoring team members.

• Detail Your Process: Walk through your end-to-end design and research process for each case study, explaining your rationale and decisions.

• Highlight Research Impact: Emphasize how user research findings directly influenced your design solutions and led to measurable improvements.

• Demonstrate Design System Expertise: If applicable, showcase your contributions to design systems and how they drive efficiency.

• Integrate AI Usage: Explain how you've used AI tools to enhance your design and research workflows, showing tangible benefits.

• Quantify Results: Whenever possible, use data and metrics to demonstrate the impact of your work on user behavior and business outcomes.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the User: Research BukuWarung's target audience (micro-merchants in Indonesia) and their specific needs and challenges.

• Think AI-First: Consider how AI tools can be leveraged to solve the problem presented in the challenge.

• Structure Your Approach: Clearly define the problem, your assumptions, research approach (even if simulated), design iterations, and proposed solutions.

• Be Prepared to Present: Practice articulating your thought process, design decisions, and research rationale concisely and persuasively.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process is designed to assess both hard skills (design, research, AI) and soft skills (leadership, communication, collaboration). The portfolio review is critical, and candidates should prepare to discuss their work in detail, with a strong emphasis on leadership and AI integration.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

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

• Prototyping Tools: In-app prototyping within Figma or specialized tools like Protopie for more advanced interactions.

• Design System Platforms: Tools for managing design system libraries, documentation, and version control.

• AI Design Tools: Leveraging AI for tasks such as:

  • Design Exploration: Generating UI concepts, layouts, or variations.
  • Research Synthesis: Summarizing user interview transcripts, identifying themes.
  • Content Generation: Drafting UI copy or user feedback summaries.
  • Workflow Automation: Streamlining repetitive design tasks.

• User Research Platforms: Tools for user interviews, usability testing, surveys, and participant management (e.g., UserTesting.com, Lookback, SurveyMonkey).

Analytics & Reporting:

• Product Analytics Tools: Tools like Google Analytics, Mixpanel, Amplitude for tracking user behavior, feature adoption, and engagement metrics.

• Data Visualization Tools: Tableau, Power BI, or similar for creating dashboards and communicating insights to stakeholders.

• A/B Testing Tools: Optimizely, VWO, or in-house solutions for running experiments and optimizing designs.

CRM & Automation:

• CRM: While not directly a design tool, understanding how CRM data (e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot) can inform user segmentation and personalization is beneficial.

• Project Management Tools: Jira, Asana, Trello for managing design tasks, sprints, and cross-functional workflows.

• Collaboration Tools: Slack, Microsoft Teams for daily communication and team coordination.

📝 Enhancement Note: The explicit mention of "AI Tools" as a preferred skill and the "AI Mindset" section highlight the importance of candidates being comfortable and proactive in using AI for design and research. This is not just a nice-to-have but a key differentiator.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• AI-First: A commitment to leveraging AI to amplify human capabilities, driving innovation and efficiency across all aspects of product development.

• User-Centricity: A deep dedication to understanding and serving the needs of micro-merchants, ensuring products are valuable, usable, and accessible.

• Data-Driven: A culture that values evidence and uses both quantitative and qualitative data to inform decisions, measure impact, and drive continuous improvement.

• Collaboration: Strong emphasis on cross-functional teamwork, open communication, and shared ownership of product success.

• Agility & Iteration: A willingness to adapt quickly, experiment, learn from failures, and iterate rapidly to deliver value.

• Impact-Oriented: A focus on delivering tangible business results and making a meaningful difference in the lives of micro-merchants.

Collaboration Style:

• Integrated Teams: Designers and researchers work intimately with Product Managers and Engineers within agile "tribes," fostering a shared understanding and collaborative problem-solving.

• Open Feedback Culture: Encourages constructive feedback loops across all levels to ensure continuous improvement in design quality and research rigor.

• Knowledge Sharing: Active promotion of sharing insights, best practices, and learnings through presentations, documentation, and informal discussions.

• Empowerment: Team members are empowered to take initiative, propose solutions, and contribute to strategic decisions.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "AI-First" value is central to BukuWarung's culture. Candidates should be prepared to discuss their personal alignment with this value and how they envision applying AI in their daily work.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Scaling Design & Research: As BukuWarung grows, the challenge will be to scale the design and research function effectively, maintaining quality and efficiency while onboarding new team members.

• Deep Merchant Understanding: Continuously deepening the understanding of diverse micro-merchant needs and behaviors across different regions and business types in Indonesia.

• Balancing Player & Coach Roles: Effectively managing the demands of hands-on design/research work alongside leadership responsibilities, ensuring both individual contribution and team development are prioritized.

• Integrating AI Seamlessly: Effectively integrating AI tools into established workflows without compromising creativity, critical thinking, or ethical considerations.

• Navigating a Fast-Paced Environment: Adapting to the rapid iteration cycles and evolving priorities typical of a growth-stage fintech startup.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Advanced AI in Design: Opportunities to explore and implement cutting-edge AI applications for design and research, potentially leading to specialized expertise.

• Product Strategy Leadership: Direct involvement in shaping product strategy, offering a pathway to broader product leadership roles.

• Fintech Domain Expertise: Deepening knowledge of financial products, regulations, and user needs within the Indonesian fintech landscape.

• Mentorship & Team Building: Developing strong people management and team-building skills through direct leadership of a growing design and research team.

• Industry Exposure: Potential to represent BukuWarung at industry events, share insights on AI in design, or contribute to thought leadership.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges are framed as opportunities for growth. Candidates should highlight how their skills and experience can address these challenges and how they see themselves developing within the company.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "How would you approach building a design system from scratch for a rapidly growing fintech product serving micro-merchants?"

• "Describe your process for establishing user research practices in a new or evolving product team. How would you prioritize research efforts?"

• "Imagine you have limited resources and need to design a new feature for BukuWarung. How would you leverage AI tools to accelerate your design and research process while ensuring user needs are met?"

• "How do you balance your responsibilities as a hands-on designer/researcher with your role in leading and mentoring a team?" Company & Culture Questions:

• "What excites you about BukuWarung's mission and our focus on micro-merchants in Indonesia?"

• "How do you see yourself contributing to an 'AI-First' product team culture?"

• "Describe a time you had to influence stakeholders without direct authority. What was the outcome?"

• "How do you stay updated on the latest trends in product design, UX research, and AI applications?" Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure Your Narrative: For each case study, clearly define the problem, your specific role and contributions, the design/research process undertaken, key decisions made (especially those informed by data or AI), and the measurable impact.

• Highlight AI Integration: Explicitly showcase instances where AI tools were used, explaining the tool, the task, and the benefit (e.g., "Used ChatGPT for initial research synthesis, which reduced synthesis time by 30% and identified key themes faster").

• Emphasize Leadership: Discuss how you guided team members, facilitated collaboration, or made strategic design decisions.

• Be Data-Driven: Present metrics and outcomes clearly, explaining how you measured success and what you learned.

• Prepare for Q&A: Anticipate questions about your design choices, research methodologies, and leadership approach. Be ready to defend your decisions and articulate your thought process.

📝 Enhancement Note: Candidates should prepare to speak extensively about their experience with AI tools in design and research. The ability to articulate how AI enhances efficiency, creativity, and insight generation will be crucial. Demonstrating a deep understanding of the Indonesian micro-merchant landscape is also highly advantageous.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Lead Product Designer & UXR position:

• Submit your application through the provided application link on careers-page.com.

• Curate Your Portfolio: Select 3-5 of your strongest case studies that best demonstrate your end-to-end product design, UX research leadership, and AI integration capabilities. Ensure each case study clearly outlines the problem, your role, process, decisions, and measurable outcomes.

• Tailor Your Resume: Highlight your leadership experience (3+ years), UX research background (2+ years), proficiency in Figma, and any experience with AI tools, fintech, or SEA markets. Quantify achievements wherever possible.

• Prepare Your Presentation: Practice walking through your portfolio with a focus on your leadership approach, how research informed your design, and specific examples of using AI tools to enhance your work.

• Research BukuWarung: Understand their mission, target audience (micro-merchants), existing products, and "AI-First" product philosophy to tailor your responses and demonstrate genuine interest.

⚠️ 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.