Lead Product Designer - L6

Street Group
Full-time£70k-90k/year (GBP)

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Lead Product Designer - Cortex (L6)

Company: Street Group

Location: Manchester, England, United Kingdom

Job Type: FULL_TIME

Category: Product Design / UX Design (with a focus on AI & PropTech)

Date Posted: 2026-07-28

Experience Level: 8+ years (Lead level, with emphasis on demonstrated capability over exact tenure)

Remote Status: Hybrid (up to 4 days Work From Home)

🚀 Role Summary

  • Drive the strategic direction and user experience (UX) for cutting-edge agentic AI within the Street and Spectre product suites, defining a new product category.

  • Lead the design vision and execution across the entire product lifecycle, from ideation and prototyping to user testing and shipping, ensuring high-quality, user-centric solutions.

  • Collaborate closely with senior stakeholders, product managers, and engineering teams, acting as a strategic partner to influence product strategy and roadmap.

  • Define and establish design patterns for agentic AI UX, focusing on building user trust, transparency, and control within complex systems.

  • Leverage a deep understanding of AI capabilities and limitations to inform design decisions, ensuring that AI integration enhances, rather than hinders, user workflows and business objectives.

📝 Enhancement Note: While the provided job title is "Lead Product Designer," the responsibilities and requirements strongly indicate a role focused on the intersection of Product Design, UX Design, and AI Strategy. The emphasis on defining a "new category" and "agentic AI UX" suggests a strategic leadership position that goes beyond traditional product design, requiring a deep understanding of AI capabilities and their application in a business context. The "L6" designation typically implies a senior or lead individual contributor role within larger tech organizations, underscoring the expected level of autonomy and influence. The application of these skills within the PropTech sector is a key differentiator.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

  • Spearhead the design of agentic AI features across Street and Spectre, translating complex AI capabilities into intuitive and trustworthy user experiences for estate agents.

  • Define and document design patterns and best practices for agentic AI within the property technology (PropTech) domain, establishing a new standard for user interaction with AI systems.

  • Conduct user research and validation through rapid prototyping and testing with real estate professionals to iterate on AI-driven workflows and features.

  • Own the end-to-end design process for new AI product initiatives, ensuring alignment with business goals, technical feasibility, and user needs.

  • Collaborate with Product Managers to translate business requirements and user insights into actionable design strategies and product roadmaps.

  • Partner with Engineering teams to ensure accurate implementation of designs and provide technical guidance on AI integration from a user experience perspective.

  • Champion design thinking and best practices across the organization, setting the "craft bar" for AI-driven product design.

  • Make informed design trade-offs based on commercial impact and product performance metrics, defining and measuring success post-launch.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a blend of strategic product definition, hands-on design execution, and cross-functional leadership, particularly in the nascent field of agentic AI UX. The expectation to "define the patterns for a new category" and "set the craft bar" indicates a leadership role that requires proactive problem-solving and the ability to operate with significant autonomy in an undefined problem space.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: No specific degree is mandated, but a strong portfolio demonstrating relevant experience and capabilities is essential.

Experience: Typically 8+ years in product/UX design at a senior individual contributor level, with a demonstrable track record of operating at a Lead altitude. Experience in SaaS or complex product environments is beneficial; property experience is not a prerequisite.

Required Skills:

  • Agentic AI Expertise: Deep, hands-on knowledge and practical experience designing, prototyping, or shipping multi-step, tool-using AI agents. Understanding of how these agents function and potential failure points is crucial.

  • Agentic UX Vision: A well-formed point of view on designing for AI systems that require trust, transparency, and user control, including knowing when to incorporate human-in-the-loop mechanisms.

  • Strategic Design Leadership: Ability to drive product direction, influence roadmaps, and operate as a peer to senior product and engineering leadership.

  • User-Centric Design: Proven ability to conduct user research, rapid prototyping, and user testing to validate and iterate on designs.

  • Cross-functional Collaboration: Experience working effectively with Product Management and Engineering teams, fostering strong partnerships.

  • Ambiguity Tolerance: Comfort and proficiency in working within undefined problem spaces and proactively defining solutions.

  • Commercial Acumen: Ability to make design decisions informed by commercial impact and product performance metrics.

Preferred Skills:

  • Technical Fluency: Hands-on experience with coding for prototyping purposes is a significant advantage, given the close proximity of design to system functionality.

  • SaaS Product Experience: Familiarity with designing for Software-as-a-Service platforms.

  • PropTech Industry Knowledge: While not required, understanding the property technology landscape can be beneficial.

  • Design Systems: Experience in developing and utilizing design systems for consistency and efficiency.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "agentic AI depth" as a non-negotiable requirement, the first thing to be screened for, signifies that candidates without direct experience in designing AI agents (beyond personal workflow enhancement) are unlikely to be considered. The role demands a proactive, strategic mindset, characteristic of lead-level positions, rather than simply executing on defined tasks.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

  • Agentic AI Case Studies: Showcase specific projects where you designed, prototyped, or shipped agentic AI systems. Clearly articulate the problem, your approach, the AI's role, and the user outcomes.

  • Strategic Impact Demonstrations: Evidence of how your design decisions influenced product strategy, commercial performance, or user adoption. Quantifiable results are highly valued.

  • Systemic Design Thinking: Examples demonstrating your ability to design across a complex product suite (e.g., valuation, prospecting, marketing, sales progression) and create cohesive user experiences.

  • Ambiguity Navigation: Projects where you took an undefined problem space and defined the solution, demonstrating initiative and strategic foresight.

Process Documentation:

  • Workflow Design & Optimization: Showcase how you've mapped, analyzed, and optimized complex workflows, particularly those involving AI or automation.

  • Prototyping & Iteration: Illustrate your process for rapid prototyping, user testing, and iterative refinement of designs, especially for novel AI interactions.

  • Measurement & Performance Analysis: Provide examples of how you define success metrics for designs and analyze post-launch performance to inform future iterations.

📝 Enhancement Note: The portfolio must go beyond traditional UX case studies. It needs to explicitly demonstrate experience with agentic AI, strategic product thinking, and the ability to operate in ambiguity. Candidates should be prepared to discuss how they've defined new product categories and measured the business impact of their design work, especially in the context of AI.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: £70,000 - £90,000 GBP per annum. This is a competitive range dependent on experience, scope of responsibilities, and the candidate's demonstrated ability to operate at the lead level, particularly in the specialized area of agentic AI UX.

Benefits:

  • Hybrid Working: Flexibility to work from home up to 4 days per week.

  • Guilt-Free R&R: £1000 towards a holiday after the first year, with tax covered.

  • Professional Development: £500 annual Learning & Development budget for career growth.

  • Birthday Leave: Paid day off for your birthday.

  • Volunteering: 2 paid days per year for volunteering activities.

  • Enhanced Family Pay: Enhanced maternity, paternity, and adoption pay.

  • Well-being Support: Access to mental health and well-being support via Health Assured.

  • Flexible Working Hours: Adaptability in daily work schedules.

  • Commuter Benefits: Public transport season ticket loans.

  • Menopause Leave: Paid leave for menopause-related needs.

  • Holiday Buying Scheme: Option to purchase additional holiday days.

  • Sustainable Commuting: Cycle to Work scheme.

  • Electric Vehicle Scheme: Electric car salary sacrifice scheme.

  • Climate Positive: Contribution to a climate-positive company ethos.

  • Office Perks: Fully stocked fridge with Friday afternoon beers/alternatives, office dogs welcome.

  • Social Events: Company and team off-sites, events, and happy hours.

Working Hours: The standard full-time working hours are likely around 40 hours per week, with an emphasis on flexible working arrangements.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range provided is based on the listed GBP figures. The "competitive salary, dependent on experience" and the explicit statement "We'll build the package around your experience and the scope you bring" suggest that the posted range is a guideline, and there may be flexibility for exceptional candidates who demonstrate the required lead-level capabilities and specialized AI experience. The benefits package is comprehensive and reflects a modern, employee-centric approach.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: PropTech (Property Technology). Street Group is a fast-growing company aiming to transform the property market through technology.

Company Size: Not explicitly stated, but described as "one of the fastest-growing PropTech companies in the UK," suggesting a scale-up environment with significant growth trajectory. Likely falls within the small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) bracket, or potentially larger if growth has been rapid.

Founded: Company founded in 2017.

Team Structure:

  • Design as a Strategic Seat: Design is positioned as a core strategic function, driving direction alongside product and engineering, rather than being a support function.

  • Cross-functional Partnership: Close collaboration is expected with Product Managers and Engineering teams, operating as peers.

  • Direct User Access: A culture that values direct interaction with users, enabling rapid validation of ideas and prototypes.

  • Agile & Iterative: A fast-paced environment where strategy is tested by shipping and iterating quickly.

Methodology:

  • Data-Driven Validation: Emphasis on asking users and validating prototypes rather than guessing.

  • Iterative Shipping: Strategy is tested and refined through rapid product releases.

  • Commercial Focus: Design decisions are informed by business performance and user impact metrics.

Company Website: https://www.streetgroup.co.uk/

📝 Enhancement Note: The company culture is characterized by a strong emphasis on design's strategic importance, a fast-paced, iterative approach to product development, and a deep commitment to understanding and serving user needs through direct engagement. The PropTech sector context means solutions are aimed at real estate agencies, requiring an understanding of their business workflows.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This role is designated as "Lead Product Designer - L6," signifying a senior individual contributor role with significant autonomy, strategic influence, and leadership expectations. It is explicitly positioned as more than a "Senior+" role, requiring materially more scope, judgment, and responsibility.

Reporting Structure: While not explicitly detailed, the role implies reporting to a Head of UX or a similar senior leadership position within Product/Design. Direct collaboration with a Product Manager is expected, and influence extends to senior stakeholders and potentially co-founders.

Operations Impact: The Lead Product Designer will have a profound impact on the core product offerings (Street and Spectre), particularly in defining the user experience for a new, critical technology (agentic AI). This role directly influences how estate agencies operate, their efficiency, and their ability to win business, thereby impacting Street Group's market position and revenue potential.

Growth Opportunities:

  • Defining a New Product Category: Opportunity to be a pioneer in shaping the UX for agentic AI in the PropTech space, establishing personal and company-wide expertise.

  • Broad Product Ownership: Gaining deep context and design ownership across the entire product suite (valuation, prospecting, marketing, sales progression, property management).

  • Strategic Influence: Playing a key role in defining product strategy and roadmaps alongside senior leadership.

  • Skill Specialization: Deepening expertise in AI-driven design, complex system design, and user research within a high-growth environment.

  • Leadership by Example: Setting the standard for design craft and strategic thinking within the organization.

📝 Enhancement Note: This is a high-impact role for an experienced designer looking to take on significant strategic responsibility in a rapidly evolving technological landscape. The growth opportunities are substantial, focusing on pioneering new design paradigms and influencing the direction of a growing PropTech company.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: The company offers a hybrid working model, with the option to work from home up to 4 days per week. The office environment is described as "comfortable, relaxed," and welcoming to "office dogs."

Office Location(s): Manchester, England, United Kingdom. Specific office address details are not provided but the location is confirmed.

Workspace Context:

  • Collaborative Atmosphere: Emphasis on direct user interaction and close collaboration with Product and Engineering teams.

  • Innovative Technology: Access to and work on cutting-edge AI technology.

  • Relaxed Office Culture: A comfortable and informal office setting that fosters creativity and productivity, complemented by social perks like Friday drinks.

Work Schedule: Flexible working hours are offered, supporting a hybrid work arrangement and allowing individuals to manage their schedules effectively while ensuring productivity and collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The work environment is designed to balance focused, independent work (enabled by hybrid and flexible arrangements) with collaborative and creative team interactions. The company's culture aims to be supportive and productive, with practical benefits to enhance employee well-being and work-life balance.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

  • Stage 1: Introductory Call: An initial conversation with a member of the Talent team to assess initial fit and interest.

  • Stage 2: Technical Interview & Task: A deeper dive into design skills and AI expertise, including a specific Design & AI Task, conducted with the Head of UX.

  • Stage 3: Final Interview: A concluding interview with a Co-Founder to assess strategic alignment, cultural fit, and overall leadership potential.

Portfolio Review Tips:

  • Highlight Agentic AI: Clearly showcase your experience with agentic AI systems. Detail the problem, your unique contribution, the AI's role, and the tangible outcomes (user and business).

  • Demonstrate Strategic Impact: Use metrics and qualitative data to illustrate how your design decisions influenced product strategy, commercial success, or user adoption. Quantify where possible.

  • Showcase Breadth and Ambiguity: Present case studies that demonstrate your ability to design across a complex product suite and your comfort with undefined problem spaces. Explain your process for navigating ambiguity.

  • Articulate Your Point of View: Be prepared to clearly articulate your design philosophy, especially regarding AI UX, trust, transparency, and control.

  • Explain Your Process: Walk through your design process for key projects, emphasizing user research, rapid prototyping, iteration, and collaboration with technical teams.

Challenge Preparation:

  • AI Design Task: Expect a task related to designing for agentic AI. Focus on understanding the user's needs, the AI's capabilities and limitations, and how to build trust and control.

  • Strategic Thinking: Be ready to discuss how you would approach defining a new product category or solving a complex, undefined problem within the PropTech space.

  • Cross-functional Communication: Prepare to discuss how you collaborate with Product and Engineering, and how you make design trade-offs informed by business objectives.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process is structured to assess both technical design capabilities and strategic leadership, with a strong emphasis on AI experience. Candidates should meticulously prepare their portfolio to showcase relevant agentic AI projects and be ready to articulate their strategic thinking and problem-solving approach. The mention of a "Design & AI Task" indicates a practical assessment of their skills in this specific domain.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

  • Design & Prototyping Software: Proficiency in industry-standard tools such as Figma, Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite, or similar for creating wireframes, mockups, and interactive prototypes.

  • AI/ML Platforms: Familiarity with or understanding of platforms and frameworks used for developing and deploying AI agents (though direct development may not be required, understanding the ecosystem is key).

  • User Research & Testing Tools: Experience with tools for conducting user interviews, usability testing, and gathering feedback.

Analytics & Reporting:

  • Analytics Platforms: Experience with tools like Google Analytics, Mixpanel, Amplitude, or similar for tracking user behavior, product performance, and measuring design impact.

  • Data Visualization Tools: Ability to interpret and potentially create visualizations from data to communicate insights.

CRM & Automation:

  • CRM Systems: Familiarity with CRM systems is beneficial given the B2B nature of PropTech.

  • Collaboration & Project Management: Tools like Jira, Asana, Trello, or Slack for team collaboration and project tracking.

📝 Enhancement Note: While specific tools aren't listed, the role implies a need for strong proficiency in leading design and prototyping tools. Given the focus on agentic AI, an understanding of the underlying technological landscape, even if not hands-on coding, is highly advantageous. The ability to leverage data and analytics to inform design decisions is also critical.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

  • Design as a Strategic Partner: Valuing design's role in driving business outcomes, not just aesthetics.

  • User Obsession: A deep commitment to understanding and serving user needs through direct interaction and research.

  • Pace & Iteration: Embracing a fast-paced environment where continuous improvement through shipping and learning is key.

  • Ambiguity Navigation: Thriving in situations where problems are not yet defined, and proactively seeking solutions.

  • Commercial Awareness: Making design decisions that are informed by business impact and performance metrics.

Collaboration Style:

  • Peer-to-Peer: Fostering a collaborative environment where designers work as equals with Product Managers and Engineers.

  • Direct Communication: Encouraging open and frequent communication, especially with users.

  • Cross-Functional Synergy: Ensuring seamless integration between design, product, and engineering efforts to achieve shared goals.

📝 Enhancement Note: The company culture appears to be a blend of high-performance expectations with a supportive, user-centric, and collaborative atmosphere. The emphasis on design as a strategic lever and the embrace of rapid iteration are core to how Street Group operates and develops its products.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

  • Defining a New Category: The primary challenge is to define and establish the user experience for agentic AI in the PropTech sector, a space with no existing playbook.

  • Balancing AI Capabilities with User Trust: Designing AI systems that are powerful yet transparent, trustworthy, and controllable for users who may be unfamiliar with advanced AI.

  • Rapidly Evolving AI Landscape: Keeping pace with the extremely fast development of AI technology and its implications for product design.

  • Cross-functional Alignment on Novel Concepts: Ensuring consistent understanding and buy-in for AI-driven product directions across different departments.

  • Operating in Ambiguity: Consistently working in an environment where product direction and user needs are still being defined.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

  • Pioneering AI UX: Becoming a recognized expert in designing for agentic AI, a highly in-demand skill.

  • Strategic Product Leadership: Gaining significant experience in shaping product strategy and roadmaps at a high-growth company.

  • Broad Domain Exposure: Developing expertise across a wide range of real estate agency workflows.

  • Industry Conferences & Certifications: Utilizing the L&D budget for specialized training in AI, UX, or PropTech.

  • Mentorship & Leadership: Opportunities to mentor junior designers and influence design culture.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role presents significant challenges related to innovation and pioneering a new field, which in turn offers exceptional growth opportunities for a driven and adaptable designer. The ability to navigate ambiguity and shape future technology is a key aspect of this position.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

  • "How would you approach defining the initial user experience for agentic AI in a property sales context, considering the need for trust and transparency?" (Focus on your process, user research, and iterative approach)

  • "Describe a time you had to design for a completely new product category or technology. What were the key challenges and how did you overcome them?" (Highlight your ability to handle ambiguity and define new paradigms)

  • "How do you balance user needs with commercial objectives and technical constraints when making design trade-offs, especially with complex AI systems?" (Demonstrate your commercial fluency and strategic decision-making) Company & Culture Questions:

  • "What excites you most about the PropTech industry and Street Group's mission?" (Showcase your research and genuine interest)

  • "How do you see design functioning as a strategic partner within a fast-paced tech company like Street Group?" (Align your view with their stated culture)

  • "Describe your ideal collaboration with a Product Manager and Engineering team when working on innovative AI features." (Emphasize your peer-to-peer approach and communication style) Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

  • Structure Your Agentic AI Cases: Start with the problem and your strategic approach. Clearly explain the AI's role, your design decisions, and the resulting user and business impact. Use visuals effectively.

  • Quantify Impact: Wherever possible, present metrics that demonstrate the success of your designs (e.g., adoption rates, efficiency gains, user satisfaction improvements).

  • Discuss Ambiguity: Be prepared to talk through how you tackled undefined problems, your process for discovery, and how you arrived at your solutions.

  • Showcase Breadth: If possible, highlight projects that demonstrate your ability to work across different product areas or complex systems.

  • Be Ready for Technical Depth: Given the "technical fluency" preference, be ready to discuss the technical aspects of AI implementation and how your designs interact with the underlying technology.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview preparation should focus on demonstrating expertise in agentic AI, strategic thinking, and the ability to thrive in ambiguity. Candidates should be prepared to discuss their process, their point of view on AI UX, and how their design work drives business value. The portfolio presentation is a critical component for showcasing these capabilities.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Lead Product Designer position:

  • Submit your application through the provided application link: https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/streetgroup/f9c21762-199c-42b6-a0d7-3010d2253567

  • Curate Your Portfolio: Select 2-3 key projects that best showcase your experience with agentic AI, strategic design leadership, and ability to handle ambiguity. Ensure each case study clearly articulates your role, process, and impact.

  • Tailor Your Resume: Highlight your experience with AI, complex product design, cross-functional collaboration, and any PropTech or SaaS background. Use keywords from the job description where relevant.

  • Prepare Your Narrative: Practice articulating your experience, design philosophy, and your vision for agentic AI UX. Be ready to discuss your portfolio in detail during interviews.

  • Research Street Group: Understand their mission, products (Street and Spectre), and culture. Consider how your skills and experience align with their growth ambitions in the PropTech space.

⚠️ 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

Candidates must have extensive experience in product or UX design with a deep, hands-on understanding of agentic AI systems. You should be comfortable operating in an ambiguous environment and possess the ability to drive strategic design decisions.