Lead Product Designer (Canada)

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Lead Product Designer

Company: Dutch

Location: British Columbia, Canada; Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Ontario, Canada

Job Type: Full Time

Category: Product Design / User Experience (UX)

Date Posted: 2026-06-04

Experience Level: Mid-Senior Level (5+ years)

Remote Status: Remote

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead the design and development of user-centered experiences for both customer-facing and proprietary vet-facing medical platforms.

• Drive the creation and evolution of a cohesive design system to ensure scalability and consistency across all product touchpoints.

• Champion a data-driven approach to design, leveraging research, testing, and iteration to achieve measurable outcomes and optimize user journeys.

• Foster strong collaborative relationships with product management, engineering, visual design, and marketing teams to deliver high-quality, impactful design solutions.

• Translate complex user needs and business requirements into intuitive and engaging interfaces, from wireframes to high-fidelity prototypes.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is positioned as a Lead Product Designer, indicating a need for both hands-on execution and strategic design thinking. The emphasis on a "cohesive design system" and "measured outcomes" points to a focus on scalable, efficient design processes crucial for a growing startup in the telemedicine/veterinary care sector. The collaboration with a "proprietary vet-facing medical platform" suggests a dual-user experience design challenge, requiring an understanding of distinct user needs and workflows.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Design end-to-end user experiences, creating detailed wireframes, interactive prototypes, and comprehensive customer flows for web and mobile applications.

• Develop and maintain a robust design system, ensuring adherence to brand guidelines, usability standards, and scalability for future product iterations.

• Conduct user research, usability testing, and A/B testing to gather insights, validate design hypotheses, and drive continuous improvement of the product.

• Collaborate cross-functionally with Product Managers to define product strategy and requirements, and with Engineering to ensure feasibility and high-quality implementation of designs.

• Partner with Visual Designers and Marketing teams to ensure a consistent and compelling brand identity across all customer touchpoints and marketing materials.

• Champion best practices in interaction design, information architecture, and inclusive design principles throughout the product development lifecycle.

• Translate complex medical workflows and user needs into intuitive, efficient, and accessible interfaces for both pet owners and veterinary professionals.

• Proactively identify opportunities for design innovation and process optimization to enhance user satisfaction and business objectives.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a blend of tactical design execution (wireframes, prototypes, flows) and strategic design leadership (design system, collaboration, innovation). The mention of a "proprietary vet-facing medical platform" is a key differentiator, requiring a deep understanding of complex workflows beyond typical consumer applications.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: Bachelor's degree in Design, Human-Computer Interaction, Computer Science, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.

Experience: 5+ years of progressive experience in User Experience (UX) and Product Design, with a demonstrated history of successfully launching and iterating on digital products across web, mobile, and desktop platforms.

Required Skills:

• UX Design Expertise: Proven ability to create intuitive and effective user experiences, with a strong understanding of user-centered design principles.

• Interaction Design & Usability: Deep expertise in interaction design, information architecture, and usability testing to ensure products are both functional and user-friendly.

• Prototyping & Wireframing: Proficiency in creating detailed wireframes and interactive prototypes using industry-standard tools (e.g., Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD).

• Design Systems: Experience in developing, implementing, and maintaining design systems to ensure consistency, scalability, and efficiency in product development.

• Customer Flows & User Journeys: Ability to map out and design comprehensive user journeys and customer flows for complex applications.

• Collaboration & Communication: Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to articulate design decisions clearly and build strong partnerships with cross-functional teams.

• Agile & Iterative Design: Demonstrated ability to thrive in a fast-paced startup environment, adapting to changing priorities and embracing iterative design processes with a focus on measured outcomes.

• Inclusive Design: Commitment to inclusive design principles, ensuring products are accessible and usable by a diverse range of users.

Preferred Skills:

• Visual Design Acumen: Strong aesthetic sense and ability to contribute to visual design elements.

• User Research: Experience conducting user research, interviews, and surveys to gather qualitative and quantitative data.

• Startup Environment Experience: Proven ability to work effectively in a dynamic, fast-paced startup setting.

• Telehealth or Veterinary Industry Experience: Familiarity with the unique challenges and opportunities within the telehealth or pet care industries.

• Animal Lover: A genuine passion for animals, aligning with the company's core mission.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "5+ years of experience" aligns with a Lead role, emphasizing proven execution and problem-solving capabilities. The portfolio requirement is crucial, specifically asking for "launches, learnings, and insights as products mature," indicating a need for designers who can demonstrate product lifecycle management and continuous improvement. The "inclusive design philosophy" and "strong editorial sense" suggest a need for designers who can balance user needs with brand voice and accessibility.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Showcase a minimum of 3-5 distinct projects that demonstrate end-to-end product design capabilities, from initial concept to post-launch iteration.

• Clearly articulate your role and contributions within each project, highlighting problem identification, design process, and solutions implemented.

• Present robust user journeys and detailed customer flows, illustrating how you translated complex requirements into intuitive interfaces.

• Include case studies that highlight a history of product launches, detailing the learnings, insights, and iterative improvements made as products matured.

• Demonstrate proficiency in creating and utilizing design systems, showcasing examples of components, patterns, and their application.

• For each project, clearly outline the measured outcomes or impact of your design decisions, using data and metrics where possible. Process Documentation:

• Provide examples of how you document design processes, including user research findings, ideation sketches, wireframes, and prototype rationale.

• Illustrate your approach to user testing and iteration, showing how feedback was incorporated to refine designs.

• Showcase your understanding of collaboration workflows with engineering and product teams, demonstrating how design handoffs and feedback loops are managed.

• Where applicable, include examples of how you have contributed to or leveraged design systems for efficient development and consistent user experiences.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "launches, learnings, and insights as products mature" strongly suggests that the hiring team wants to see evidence of a designer's ability to manage a product's lifecycle and demonstrate continuous improvement, not just initial design concepts. This means portfolio pieces should ideally show evolution over time or describe iterative refinement based on user feedback and data.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: $80,000 - $90,000 CAD per year.

Benefits:

• Retirement Plan: Company-sponsored retirement savings plan to support long-term financial well-being.

• Robust Holiday Schedule: Generous paid time off, including a comprehensive holiday schedule for work-life balance.

• Growth Opportunities: Ample opportunities for professional development, career advancement, and skill enhancement within a growing company.

• Remote Work: Flexible remote working arrangement, allowing for work from home or any approved location within Canada.

Working Hours: Standard full-time hours, typically around 40 hours per week, with the flexibility inherent in a remote role.

📝 Enhancement Note: The specified salary range of $80,000-$90,000 CAD for a Lead Product Designer in Canada, considering the remote work arrangement and the company's tech-focused industry, is within the expected market range for mid-to-senior level design professionals. Benefits like a retirement plan and robust holiday schedule are standard for full-time roles, with "Growth Opportunities" being a key differentiator for ambitious candidates.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Veterinary Telemedicine / Pet Healthcare Technology. Dutch is at the forefront of transforming how pet parents access veterinary care, leveraging technology to provide convenient, expert treatment. This sector is rapidly growing, driven by increased pet ownership and demand for accessible healthcare solutions.

Company Size: The exact size isn't specified, but the mention of "successful startup founders" and backing by "world-class investors" suggests a growth-stage startup, likely between 50-200 employees, with ambitions for rapid scaling. This implies a dynamic, fast-paced environment where individual contributions have significant impact.

Founded: The founding date is not explicitly stated, but the company is described as having "successful startup founders" and being featured in prominent tech publications, indicating it's an established startup with a proven product-market fit and significant growth potential.

Team Structure:

• The design team is likely integrated within product development squads, working closely with Product Managers and Engineers.

• As a "Lead" position, this role will likely involve mentoring junior designers if they exist, and setting design standards for the team.

• Cross-functional collaboration is paramount, with close partnerships expected across Product, Engineering, Visual Design, and Marketing. Methodology:

• Data-Driven Design: A strong emphasis on research, testing, and measured outcomes to inform design decisions and product iterations.

• Agile & Iterative Development: A bias for swift action and continuous improvement, where designs are seen as evolving towards optimal solutions rather than being finalized in one go.

• Holistic System Thinking: Designing not just individual features but cohesive experiences and scalable design systems that support long-term growth.

Company Website: dutch.com

📝 Enhancement Note: The company's mission to "transforming veterinary care" and its backing by prominent investors ("Forerunner Ventures, Eclipse Ventures, and Bling Capital") position it as an ambitious player in the burgeoning pet-tech and telehealth space. The "Agile Like a Cat" and "Creativity is our Catnip" guiding principles suggest a culture that values innovation, speed, and creative problem-solving, which is typical of high-growth startups.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This "Lead Product Designer" role is a mid-to-senior level position. It requires not only strong individual contribution skills but also the ability to influence design direction, mentor others, and contribute to the strategic evolution of the product's user experience. It sits at the intersection of hands-on design execution and design leadership.

Reporting Structure: The Lead Product Designer will likely report to a Head of Product, Director of Design, or a similar senior leadership role within the product or design organization. They will collaborate closely with Product Managers and Engineering Leads within their assigned product area.

Operations Impact: The role has a direct and significant impact on Dutch's success by shaping the user experience for both pet parents and veterinarians. A well-designed platform enhances customer acquisition and retention, improves vet efficiency, and directly contributes to the company's mission of providing accessible and compassionate pet care. The iterative, data-driven approach ensures that design investments are aligned with measurable business outcomes.

Growth Opportunities:

• Design Leadership: Potential to grow into a Design Manager or Head of Design role as the company scales and the design team expands.

• Specialization: Opportunity to deepen expertise in specific areas such as UX research, design systems, or product strategy within the rapidly evolving pet-tech and telehealth sectors.

• Cross-Functional Advancement: Develop broader product management or strategic skills through close collaboration with leadership teams.

• Impactful Projects: Contribute to the foundational design of a rapidly growing platform, gaining experience in scaling complex digital products.

• Mentorship: Opportunity to mentor and guide junior designers, developing leadership and coaching skills.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Lead" title implies a step beyond individual contributor, often involving mentorship and strategic influence. The growth opportunities are tied to the startup's trajectory, offering potential for rapid advancement in design leadership or specialization within a high-demand industry.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Dutch operates with a fully remote work model within Canada. This means there isn't a central physical office for most employees, promoting flexibility and work-life balance.

Office Location(s): While the role is remote, the company specifies potential locations for this role in British Columbia, Edmonton (Alberta), and Toronto (Ontario). This may indicate regional hubs for occasional in-person team gatherings or a preference for candidates within these provinces for logistical or legal reasons.

Workspace Context:

• Flexibility: A remote work environment offers significant flexibility in structuring the workday, allowing designers to optimize their personal productivity.

• Technology-Enabled: As a tech company, expect access to modern collaboration tools and the necessary software for design and communication.

• Collaborative Culture: Despite being remote, the emphasis on collaboration suggests active participation in virtual meetings, design critiques, and team communication channels.

Work Schedule: Typically 40 hours per week, with the inherent flexibility of a remote role. This allows for greater autonomy in managing work hours, provided that collaboration needs with different time zones and team members are met.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Remote OK" status and specific Canadian locations suggest a distributed team. The emphasis on collaboration in a remote setting implies a need for strong asynchronous and synchronous communication skills, and active participation in virtual team activities.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A brief call with a recruiter to assess basic qualifications, cultural fit, and understanding of the role.

• Portfolio Review & Design Challenge: A session with the hiring manager and potentially other designers/product managers. This will involve a deep dive into your portfolio, discussing specific projects, your design process, and problem-solving approach. A design challenge (e.g., a take-home assignment or a live whiteboarding exercise) may be presented to assess practical design skills and strategic thinking.

• Cross-Functional Interviews: Meetings with key stakeholders from Product, Engineering, and potentially Marketing to evaluate collaboration skills, communication clarity, and ability to integrate design into the broader development process.

• Final Interview: A discussion with a senior leader (e.g., Head of Product or CEO) to assess strategic alignment, cultural fit, and long-term potential.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate Strategically: Select 3-5 projects that best showcase your experience in user journeys, design systems, and iterative product development, aligning with the job description's requirements.

• Tell a Story: For each project, clearly articulate the problem, your role, your design process, key decisions, challenges faced, and the measurable outcomes or learnings. Use visuals effectively to guide the narrative.

• Highlight Iteration: Emphasize how you used feedback, data, or testing to iterate and improve designs, showcasing your "passion for iteration" and "measured outcomes."

• Showcase Design System Work: If applicable, dedicate a section to your experience with design systems, demonstrating its impact on efficiency and consistency.

• Be Prepared for Deep Dives: Anticipate questions about your design rationale, trade-offs made, and how you collaborated with teams.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the Context: If given a take-home challenge, thoroughly understand the problem statement and Dutch's business context (telemedicine, pet care).

• Focus on Process: Demonstrate your design process, from problem definition and research to ideation, prototyping, and outlining testing/iteration plans.

• Prioritize Clarity: Present your solutions clearly and concisely, explaining your reasoning and how they address the user needs and business goals.

• Simulate Collaboration: If it's a live exercise, practice articulating your thoughts and decisions clearly, and be open to feedback and discussion.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "measured outcomes," "iterative design," and "design systems" in the job description strongly suggests these will be key focus areas during the portfolio review and any potential design challenge. Candidates should be ready to demonstrate how their designs have led to tangible results and how they approach continuous improvement.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Design & Prototyping: Figma (highly probable given industry trends and collaborative features), Sketch, Adobe XD.

• Wireframing: Figma, Sketch, Balsamiq.

• Collaboration: Slack, Zoom, Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Slides).

• Project Management: Jira, Asana, Trello.

Analytics & Reporting:

• Product Analytics: Amplitude, Mixpanel, Google Analytics.

• User Feedback Tools: Hotjar, UserTesting.com (or similar platforms).

CRM & Automation:

• CRM: Salesforce, HubSpot (less likely for core product design, but relevant for understanding customer lifecycle).

• Design System Management: Tools like Zeroheight or internal documentation platforms might be used.

📝 Enhancement Note: While specific tools aren't listed, a Lead Product Designer at a tech startup would be expected to be highly proficient in industry-standard design and prototyping tools, with Figma being a strong contender. Familiarity with product analytics and user feedback tools is also crucial for a data-driven, iterative design approach.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Pets First: This is the paramount guiding principle. All design decisions must prioritize the well-being and best interests of pets, reflecting a deep empathy for the company's mission.

• Agile Like a Cat: Embraces swift action, adaptability, and creative problem-solving. Encourages individuals to analyze options quickly and execute efficiently without letting perfectionism hinder progress.

• Creativity is our Catnip: Fosters an environment where innovative ideas are encouraged and valued. The team is expected to push boundaries and find novel solutions to make complex services accessible.

• Be the Human Your Dog Thinks You Are: Promotes kindness, empathy, and supportive collaboration. This value emphasizes clear communication, providing context, reinforcing positive behaviors, and helping colleagues understand and grow.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-Functional Integration: Seamless collaboration between design, product, and engineering is expected, with a focus on shared ownership and problem-solving.

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

• User-Centricity: All team members are expected to be advocates for the user, actively seeking and incorporating user feedback into their work.

• Data-Informed Decision Making: While creativity is key, decisions are grounded in data, research, and measurable outcomes.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Dutch Guiding Principles" are central to the company culture. The "Pets First" principle underscores the mission-driven nature of the company. The other principles ("Agile Like a Cat," "Creativity is our Catnip," "Be the Human Your Dog Thinks You Are") paint a picture of a culture that is innovative, fast-paced, empathetic, and collaborative.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Balancing User Needs and Business Goals: Effectively designing for both pet parents (convenience, trust) and veterinarians (efficiency, accuracy) within a regulated industry.

• Scaling Design Systems: Ensuring the design system remains robust, scalable, and adaptable as the product and company grow rapidly.

• Maintaining Innovation in a Fast-Paced Environment: The startup nature means constant prioritization and the need to deliver high-quality designs under tight deadlines.

• Remote Collaboration Dynamics: Fostering strong team cohesion and effective communication in a fully remote setting.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Telehealth & Pet Tech Expertise: Deep dive into the unique design challenges and opportunities within the rapidly evolving telehealth and pet industries.

• Design System Mastery: Opportunity to lead and expand expertise in building and managing scalable design systems.

• Cross-Functional Acumen: Develop a deeper understanding of product strategy, engineering constraints, and marketing impact through close collaboration.

• Leadership Skills: Hone leadership abilities through mentorship of junior designers and by influencing product direction.

📝 Enhancement Note: The primary challenges for this role will revolve around the inherent complexity of a dual-user platform (pet owners and vets), the demands of a scaling startup environment, and the nuances of building and maintaining a comprehensive design system. The growth opportunities are significant, tied to the company's rapid expansion and the in-demand nature of specialized product design skills.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "Describe a time you had to balance conflicting user needs or business requirements. How did you approach it, and what was the outcome?" (Focus on problem-solving, trade-offs, and user advocacy.)

• "How would you approach building or scaling a design system for a rapidly growing telemedicine platform like Dutch? What are the key considerations?" (Assess strategic thinking, system design, and scalability.)

• "Walk us through a project where your design decisions led to measurable business impact. What metrics did you track, and how did you influence them?" (Demonstrate data-driven design and ROI articulation.) Company & Culture Questions:

• "What interests you most about Dutch's mission to transform veterinary care, and how does that align with your personal values?" (Assess mission alignment and empathy.)

• "How do you embody our guiding principles of 'Pets First,' 'Agile Like a Cat,' and 'Creativity is our Catnip' in your work?" (Evaluate cultural fit and understanding of company values.)

• "Describe your experience working in a fast-paced, startup environment. How do you manage multiple priorities and adapt to change?" (Gauge adaptability and resilience.) Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure Your Narrative: For each project, clearly outline the problem, your specific role and responsibilities, your design process (research, ideation, prototyping, testing), key decisions, and the impact/learnings.

• Visualize Your Process: Use visuals effectively to show your journey from low-fidelity wireframes to high-fidelity mockups and prototypes. Include sketches, user flow diagrams, and system components.

• Quantify Impact: Whenever possible, present metrics or qualitative feedback that demonstrate the success of your designs. Focus on "measured outcomes" and "insights as products mature."

• Explain Your Rationale: Be prepared to articulate why you made certain design choices, discussing trade-offs and how your decisions aligned with user needs and business objectives.

• Demonstrate Collaboration: Highlight how you worked with cross-functional teams (PMs, Engineers, Marketing) and incorporated their feedback.

📝 Enhancement Note: Interview preparation should heavily focus on demonstrating a strong understanding of the "Pets First" principle, the ability to operate within an agile startup environment, and a portfolio that clearly showcases iterative design, measured outcomes, and design system proficiency. Be ready to discuss how your creative process aligns with "Creativity is our Catnip."

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Lead Product Designer position:

• Submit your application via the provided link on Lever.

• Customize Your Resume: Tailor your resume to highlight your 5+ years of UX and Product Design experience, specifically mentioning experience with customer flows, design systems, iterative design, and any relevant industry experience (telehealth, pet care). Use keywords from the job description.

• Curate Your Portfolio: Select 3-5 of your strongest projects that best demonstrate your skills in interaction design, usability, prototyping, design systems, and your ability to deliver measurable outcomes. Ensure each project clearly outlines the problem, your process, your role, and the results.

• Prepare Your Portfolio Walkthrough: Practice presenting your portfolio projects concisely, focusing on storytelling and clearly articulating your design decisions and their impact. Be ready to discuss your "launches, learnings, and insights as products mature."

• Research Dutch: Familiarize yourself with Dutch's mission, products, and guiding principles. Understand their position in the pet telemedicine market and be prepared to discuss how your design philosophy aligns with their values.

⚠️ 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.