Product Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Product Designer

Company: magicplan

Location: Berlin, Germany; Munich, Bavaria, Germany; Frankfurt, Hessen, Germany; Hamburg, Germany

Job Type: Permanent employee

Category: Product Design / UX

Date Posted: 2026-06-02T10:12:49

Experience Level: Mid-Level (2-5 years)

Remote Status: Hybrid (1 office day per 1-2 weeks)

🚀 Role Summary

• Drive product innovation by deeply understanding and designing solutions for complex user needs across diverse personas within the restoration industry.

• Lead end-to-end product design initiatives, from identifying customer problems and conducting user research to prototyping and validating solutions.

• Collaborate effectively within cross-functional pods and the broader design team to ensure high-quality, impactful design outcomes.

• Leverage AI tools and modern design workflows to enhance research synthesis, prototyping, and exploration phases.

📝 Enhancement Note: The role is explicitly for a Product Designer, not within a traditional Revenue Operations, Sales Operations, or GTM function. The focus is on user experience and product development, with a strong emphasis on user research, cross-functional collaboration, and leveraging AI in the design process. The "restoration work" context is critical for understanding the user pain points and the product's purpose.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Independently identify and define customer problems, initiating design projects without explicit prompting.

• Conduct comprehensive user research, including scheduling and executing user interviews, and performing onsite visits to gather deep field insights.

• Synthesize complex user feedback and research findings from multiple sources (including LLMs) to shape user journeys that accommodate various personas.

• Collaborate closely with Product Owners, Lead Engineers, QA, Sales, and Marketing colleagues within cross-functional pods to validate design direction and ensure alignment.

• Develop and present design solutions, from initial concepts to high-fidelity prototypes in Figma, and potentially coded prototypes.

• Participate actively in weekly design critiques to maintain craft standards and contribute to the design team's collective growth.

• Contribute to the development and maintenance of design standards and quality gates for product delivery.

• Engage in regular travel for customer visits, workshops, and internal meetings, approximately once a month.

📝 Enhancement Note: The description emphasizes proactive problem-solving, independent research leadership, and a hands-on approach to synthesis and validation. The integration of AI tools (LLMs, Cursor, Claude Code) is a specific requirement, indicating the company's forward-thinking approach to design workflows.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While no specific degree is mandated, a background or demonstrated expertise in Product Design, UX Design, Human-Computer Interaction, or a related field is expected.

Experience: 2-5 years of experience in Product Design or UX Design, with a proven track record of independently driving design projects from concept to validation.

Required Skills:

• Proficiency in conducting independent user research, including user interviews and onsite investigations.

• Strong ability to synthesize complex qualitative and quantitative data into actionable design insights.

• Expertise in creating user journey maps, wireframes, and high-fidelity prototypes using tools like Figma.

• Excellent collaboration and communication skills, with a proven ability to work effectively in cross-functional teams (pods).

• English and German language proficiency at C1 level or higher, essential for conducting onsite research.

• Proactive and self-motivated, with the ability to identify problems and propose solutions independently.

• Comfortable sharing work-in-progress and embracing feedback early and often. Preferred Skills:

• Experience designing for multiple user personas with potentially conflicting needs within the same product.

• Fluency in leveraging AI tools within the design workflow (e.g., for research synthesis, prompt-driven exploration, prototyping).

• Experience contributing to or owning a design system.

• Experience with coded prototypes or modern coding tools like Cursor, Claude Code, or v0.

• Familiarity with Agile methodologies and product development cycles.

• Willingness and ability to travel internationally, including to the US.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Must Haves" and "Nice-to-Haves" clearly delineate essential qualifications from advantageous ones. The emphasis on independent research and AI tool proficiency is a key differentiator for this role.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Demonstrate a history of independently identifying and solving user problems, showcasing the entire design process from inception to validation.

• Include case studies that highlight your approach to user research, including methods used, participant recruitment, and synthesis of findings.

• Showcase your ability to create compelling user journey maps and wireframes that address complex user flows.

• Present high-fidelity prototypes and explain the rationale behind design decisions, focusing on user-centricity and business objectives.

• Highlight any experience with design systems, including contributions or implementation strategies. Process Documentation:

• Provide examples of how you've documented your design process, from initial problem definition and research synthesis to ideation and validation.

• Showcase how you've utilized AI tools or advanced methodologies to streamline research, prototyping, or exploration.

• Illustrate how you've collaborated with engineering and product teams, demonstrating effective handoffs and feedback loops.

📝 Enhancement Note: The hiring process explicitly mentions a case study presentation, underscoring the importance of a well-structured portfolio that clearly articulates the candidate's design process, problem-solving approach, and impact. The emphasis on independent research and AI integration should be reflected in portfolio examples.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: An estimated salary range for a Product Designer with 2-5 years of experience in Berlin, Germany, is approximately €70,000 - €82,000 annually. This range is based on market data for similar roles in major German tech hubs, considering the company's industry and the role's mid-level seniority.

Benefits:

• 29 vacation days per year.

• Coverage for public holidays.

• Job Ticket coverage (public transportation pass).

• Support for Kindergarten/Kita expenses.

• Learning & Development budget for continuous professional growth.

• Regular team events for fostering camaraderie and networking.

• Access to a modern office in central Munich (if located there), with excellent public transport connections.

• Flexibility and autonomy within a remote-first, async-friendly culture.

Working Hours: Standard working hours are 40 hours per week, with a strong emphasis on flexibility and asynchronous work.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range is an estimation based on typical compensation for mid-level Product Designers in Germany. The provided benefits are directly listed in the job description and are standard for tech companies in the region. The "remote-first, async-friendly" culture suggests flexibility around specific working hours, provided core responsibilities and collaboration needs are met.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Software / Technology (specifically focused on the restoration and construction industry).

Company Size: magicplan is a growing tech company with an international team across Europe and North America. The specific size is not detailed, but the mention of "pods" and a "design team across pods" suggests a structured but agile organization.

Founded: The founding date is not specified, but the company has a developed product ("thousands of restoration teams rely on magicplan") and is undergoing "mid-restructuring," indicating a phase of growth and evolution.

Team Structure:

• The product team is organized into "pods," which are small, cross-functional teams (Product Owner, Lead Engineer, QA, Sales, Marketing).

• Designers are embedded within these pods to create direct impact but also belong to a larger, centralized design team that spans across pods for growth and craft standards.

• The company operates with a "remote-first, async-friendly" culture. Methodology:

• Problem-Solving: Emphasis on data-driven decision-making, user-centricity, and proactive problem identification.

• Workflow: Operates with daily stand-ups, async communication, and weekly design critiques as core rituals. "Vibe-coding" solutions and rapid prototyping are encouraged.

• Collaboration: Pod-based work for delivery, with design team collaboration for growth and quality. Regular in-person office days (Berlin) for specific collaborative activities.

Company Website: www.magicplan.app

📝 Enhancement Note: The "mid-restructuring" comment suggests candidates who are adaptable, comfortable with ambiguity, and eager to shape processes will be a good fit. The hybrid model with required office days (Berlin) indicates a commitment to in-person collaboration despite a remote-first approach.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This role is a mid-level Product Designer, focusing on individual contribution and impact within specific product areas. It requires autonomy in research and design execution.

Reporting Structure: Designers are part of a centralized design team for growth and standards but embedded within cross-functional pods for project delivery. They report to design leadership for craft and quality, while collaborating closely with Product Owners and engineers within their assigned pod.

Operations Impact: The Product Designer's primary impact is on the usability, effectiveness, and adoption of the magicplan product by restoration professionals. By understanding user needs and designing intuitive solutions, they directly influence customer satisfaction, operational efficiency for users, and ultimately, the company's product-market fit and growth within the restoration industry.

Growth Opportunities:

• Skill Advancement: Deepen expertise in user research methodologies, AI-driven design, and potentially design systems.

• Leadership Potential: Opportunity to influence design standards, mentor junior designers (as the team grows), and take ownership of significant product areas.

• Cross-Functional Exposure: Gain experience working closely with engineering, product, sales, and marketing, understanding the broader business context.

• Industry Specialization: Become an expert in the unique challenges and opportunities within the restoration technology sector.

• Process Shaping: Contribute to the ongoing restructuring and refinement of the product development and design processes.

📝 Enhancement Note: The role offers substantial growth opportunities by allowing the designer to shape processes and gain deep expertise in a niche industry, moving beyond standard product design tasks to strategic problem-solving.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: The company offers a hybrid work model. While "remote-first" is emphasized, there are scheduled office days in Berlin (every 1-2 weeks) for in-person collaboration ("Stickies on walls, coffee, the whole thing"). Munich also has an office available.

Office Location(s):

• Berlin, Germany (Alt-Moabit c/o B&O 59-61, 10555)

• Munich, Bavaria, Germany (Goethestr. 25A, 80336)

• Frankfurt, Hessen, Germany (address partially specified as 65812, likely near Frankfurt)

• Hamburg, Germany (address partially specified as 22303) Workspace Context:

• The work environment encourages autonomy and ownership, supported by asynchronous communication tools.

• Collaboration is a key aspect, facilitated through daily stand-ups, weekly design critiques, and scheduled in-person days.

• Access to modern tools and technology, including AI-powered development environments (Cursor, Claude Code).

Work Schedule: While a 40-hour work week is standard, the "async-friendly" culture suggests flexibility in daily schedules, allowing individuals to manage their time effectively around core collaboration needs and deadlines.

📝 Enhancement Note: Candidates should be comfortable with a hybrid setup, particularly if based near Berlin, and understand the value placed on both remote flexibility and in-person collaboration for certain activities.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

1. Screening Call: Initial conversation with HR (Andrea) to discuss logistics, mutual fit, and basic qualifications.

2. Hiring Manager Interview: In-depth discussion with Ash, Konstantin, or both, focusing on how you think and approach problems rather than just past projects.

3. Challenge/Case Study:

• Option A (Take-home): A case study assigned to you, which you complete and then present to a cross-functional panel.
• Option B (Live Whiteboard): Skip the take-home and directly engage in a live whiteboard session with the same panel.
• (This step occurs 2-3 working days after passing the hiring manager interview).

1. High Five: Final meeting with company leadership (Andreas, Robert, Bernd) for cultural and strategic alignment.

2. Offer: Extension of an offer letter.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Structure: Organize your portfolio around distinct case studies that clearly outline the problem, your role, the process undertaken, the solutions developed, and the outcomes/impact.

• Problem Framing: Clearly articulate the user problem you aimed to solve and the business context.

• Process Demonstration: Showcase your end-to-end design process, emphasizing your research methodology, ideation techniques, prototyping skills, and validation methods. Specifically highlight how you used AI tools or conducted independent research.

• Visuals: Include clear visuals of wireframes, mockups, prototypes, and user flows. If you have coded prototypes, include links or demos.

• Impact & Metrics: Quantify the impact of your designs wherever possible (e.g., improved conversion rates, reduced task completion time, increased user satisfaction scores). If quantitative data is unavailable, articulate qualitative outcomes and user feedback.

• Collaboration: Briefly mention how you collaborated with engineers, product managers, and other stakeholders.

• Conciseness: Be prepared to walk through your portfolio efficiently, focusing on the most relevant projects for this role.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the Context: Familiarize yourself with magicplan's product and target industry (restoration work). Anticipate challenges that require designing for complex workflows and diverse user needs.

• Research & Synthesis: If given a take-home challenge, dedicate significant time to user research (even simulated) and synthesizing findings.

• Problem-Solving: For whiteboard sessions, clearly articulate your thought process, ask clarifying questions, and think out loud. Focus on structured problem-solving.

• AI Integration: Be ready to discuss how you would incorporate AI tools into your approach for the specific challenge presented.

• Presentation Skills: Practice presenting your case study or whiteboard solution concisely and persuasively, highlighting your design rationale and impact.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process offers flexibility with the case study format, allowing candidates to choose between a take-home or a live whiteboard session. This suggests the company values both deep strategic thinking and on-the-spot problem-solving. The "High Five" indicates a final cultural alignment check with founders/senior leadership.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Design & Prototyping: Figma (explicitly mentioned for design work).

• Coding & Prototyping: Cursor, Claude Code, v0 (preferred/even better if you bring experience).

• AI Tools: LLMs (for research synthesis, prompt-driven exploration), AI features within development environments.

Analytics & Reporting: While not explicitly listed for the designer role, expect to work with data derived from analytics platforms to understand user behavior and product performance.

CRM & Automation: Not directly applicable to the Product Designer role, but awareness of how product design impacts CRM and sales processes could be beneficial.

📝 Enhancement Note: Proficiency in Figma is a baseline. Experience with AI-powered coding environments like Cursor and Claude Code, or prompt-driven design tools like v0, is a significant advantage and indicates the company's commitment to leveraging advanced technologies in their product development lifecycle.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Ownership & Trust: Employees are expected to take initiative and manage their work autonomously, within a remote-first, async-friendly framework.

• Collaboration: Strong emphasis on working together within pods and the broader design team, with a culture of early sharing and feedback.

• Craftsmanship: High standards for design quality are maintained through weekly critiques and a focus on user-centricity.

• Data-Driven Approach: Decisions are informed by user research, field signals, and potentially product analytics.

• Efficiency & Innovation: Encouragement to use modern tools and methods (like AI) to improve workflows and deliver solutions effectively.

• Adaptability: Openness to change and a willingness to help shape processes during the company's restructuring phase.

Collaboration Style:

• Pod-Centric Delivery: Tight integration with engineering, product, sales, and marketing within small, focused teams for project execution.

• Design Team Synergy: Regular design critiques and cross-pod collaboration for skill development, mentorship, and maintaining design standards.

• Async-Friendly: Reliance on clear documentation and communication tools to facilitate collaboration across different schedules and locations.

• In-Person Rituals: Scheduled office days are valued for intensive, in-person collaborative sessions.

📝 Enhancement Note: The culture appears to balance individual autonomy with strong team collaboration, leveraging both remote and in-person interactions. The "mid-restructuring" aspect implies a dynamic environment where team members are encouraged to contribute to process improvements.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Designing Across Conflicting Needs: The core challenge is to design a unified product experience that serves multiple user types (field workers, office managers, project leads) with potentially different goals and workflows within the restoration industry.

• Bridging Field and Office Contexts: Effectively translating the realities of on-site work into usable digital tools for office-based stakeholders.

• Navigating Restructuring: Adapting to ongoing changes in company structure and processes while delivering high-quality design work.

• Integrating AI Seamlessly: Effectively incorporating AI tools into the design workflow without compromising user experience or introducing complexity.

• Remote Collaboration Nuances: Mastering asynchronous communication and ensuring effective collaboration without constant real-time interaction.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Advanced Design Techniques: Opportunities to hone skills in complex user research, AI-assisted design, and potentially design system management.

• Industry Expertise: Becoming a subject matter expert in the restoration technology sector.

• Process Improvement: Actively contributing to and shaping the company's product development and design methodologies.

• Cross-Functional Acumen: Deepening understanding of engineering, product management, sales, and marketing functions.

• Mentorship: Potential to grow into a mentoring role as the design team expands.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges presented are directly tied to the product's domain and the company's current phase, offering significant opportunities for professional growth and skill development in niche areas.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "Describe a time you identified a customer problem you weren't explicitly asked to solve and how you went about validating and designing a solution." (Focus on your proactive approach, research methodology, and cross-functional collaboration).

• "How would you approach designing a feature for magicplan that needs to cater to both a field technician and an office administrator with potentially conflicting needs?" (Demonstrate your user persona mapping, journey synthesis, and ability to balance diverse requirements).

• "Walk us through your process for using AI tools in your design workflow, from research synthesis to prototyping." (Highlight specific tools, techniques, and how AI enhances your efficiency and creativity).

• "Imagine you're on a call with a potential customer who is struggling with data synchronization between field and office. What questions would you ask, and what would be your initial design considerations?" (Showcase your problem-solving methodology and user empathy).

• "How do you ensure your design work maintains high standards and quality, especially within a distributed/async team?" (Discuss your approach to critiques, documentation, and collaboration). Company & Culture Questions:

• "What do you know about magicplan and the restoration industry? Why are you interested in this specific domain?" (Research the company, its product, and the industry challenges).

• "How do you feel about working in a company that is currently mid-restructuring? What's your approach to ambiguity and process change?" (Emphasize your adaptability and willingness to contribute to shaping processes).

• "Describe your ideal collaboration style within a cross-functional pod. How do you handle disagreements with engineers or product owners?" (Highlight your communication, negotiation, and teamwork skills). Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Select 2-3 Strong Case Studies: Prioritize projects that showcase your independent research, problem-solving, AI integration, and ability to design for complex user needs.

• Tell a Story: For each case study, clearly articulate the problem, your process, the solution, and the impact.

• Highlight Your Role: Be specific about your contributions, especially if it was a team project.

• Show, Don't Just Tell: Use visuals (wireframes, mockups, prototypes) effectively. If you have coded prototypes, be ready to demo them.

• Quantify Impact: Use metrics or strong qualitative feedback to demonstrate the success of your designs.

• Be Prepared for Q&A: Anticipate questions about your decisions, challenges, and alternative approaches.

• Practice Your Pitch: Rehearse your presentation to ensure it's concise, engaging, and within the allotted time.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process emphasizes thinking and problem-solving over just shipped products. Candidates should be prepared to articulate their thought process deeply and demonstrate how they approach challenges, particularly those involving independent research and AI tools.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Product Designer position:

• Submit your application through the provided application link on magicplan's careers page.

• Portfolio Customization: Ensure your resume and portfolio are tailored to highlight your experience in user research, cross-functional collaboration, and ideally, your experience with AI tools in design. Select case studies that best demonstrate your ability to solve complex user problems independently.

• Resume Optimization: Clearly articulate your years of experience, key skills (User Research, UX Design, Prototyping, Figma, AI Workflow Integration), and language proficiencies (English & German C1). Quantify achievements where possible.

• Interview Preparation: Practice articulating your design process, problem-solving approach, and how you leverage AI. Prepare specific examples for behavioral questions related to collaboration, autonomy, and handling ambiguity. Rehearse your portfolio presentation.

• Company Research: Thoroughly understand magicplan's product, target market (restoration industry), and company values. Be ready to discuss why you are drawn to this specific domain and company culture.

⚠️ 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.