Senior Product Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Senior Product Designer

Company: Yendo

Location: San Francisco, CA (Remote OK)

Job Type: Full-Time

Category: Product Design / Growth Design

Date Posted: April 16, 2026

Experience Level: 7+ Years

Remote Status: Remote OK

🚀 Role Summary

• Drive end-to-end product design initiatives, from conceptualization through to final execution, focusing on user experience and business impact.

• Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams including Product Management, Engineering, Data Science, and Growth to deliver innovative solutions.

• Champion design excellence and establish robust design standards within a fast-paced, high-growth environment.

• Leverage user research and product data to inform design decisions and guide rapid experimentation cycles.

• Integrate AI-supported methodologies into the product development lifecycle to enhance efficiency and output.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role sits within Yendo's Growth Team, indicating a strong focus on user acquisition, activation, and retention funnels. The emphasis on AI integration suggests a forward-thinking approach to design operations and workflow optimization.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Lead the entire design process for new features and product improvements, ensuring alignment with customer needs and business objectives.

• Develop comprehensive design artifacts, including low-fidelity user flows, high-fidelity mockups, interactive prototypes, and detailed workflows.

• Partner with Product Managers, Engineers, Data Scientists, and Growth Marketers to translate product strategy into exceptional user experiences.

• Contribute to and evolve the company's design system, ensuring scalability, accessibility (a11y), and consistency across mobile and web platforms.

• Actively research, socialize, and implement best practices in AI-supported product development and design research methodologies.

• Conduct and lead user research initiatives, including interviews and usability testing, to gather insights that inform design decisions and future feature roadmaps.

• Uphold and foster a culture of high-quality design craft, constructive feedback, and continuous process improvement within the design team.

• Mentor junior designers, guiding their craft and ensuring the team remains abreast of the latest design trends, tools, and capabilities.

• Actively participate in and contribute to the refinement of design team processes and rituals to enhance collaboration and efficiency.

• Develop a deep understanding of the fintech industry, including market dynamics, competitive landscape, and regulatory considerations impacting financial services products.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a blend of strategic design leadership and hands-on execution. The emphasis on AI and data-driven insights suggests a sophisticated approach to user experience design within the fintech sector.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While not explicitly stated, a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Design, Human-Computer Interaction, or a related field is often expected for senior-level product design roles. Equivalent practical experience will also be considered.

Experience: Minimum of 7 years of professional experience in digital product design, with a strong preference for direct experience in Growth Design and application funnels.

Required Skills:

• Proven expertise in end-to-end product design, from concept ideation to final implementation.

• Strong portfolio showcasing strengths in interaction design, product design, and systems thinking.

• High proficiency in Figma and modern design and prototyping tools (e.g., Claude Code, Cursor).

• Experience in conducting and planning user interviews, moderated/unmoderated usability testing, and concept testing.

• Deep understanding of design systems and their application in scaling design across multiple teams and platforms.

• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to articulate design decisions backed by data, research, and best practices.

• Demonstrated ability to influence stakeholders across various disciplines.

Preferred Skills:

• Direct experience in Growth Design, specifically within application funnels.

• Experience designing for mobile applications and responsive web experiences.

• Familiarity with designing to meet accessibility (a11y) standards, including annotations.

• Experience with complex application design.

• Proven ability to incorporate research findings and product data into design decisions.

• Bonus: Experience working in or designing for fintech, payments, or financial services products.

• Bonus: Previous experience implementing AI into the product development cycle.

📝 Enhancement Note: The requirement for a portfolio with specific examples (mobile, a11y, complex apps, research/data integration) is critical. "pw in your CV" likely refers to a password for a password-protected portfolio, which candidates must provide.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Showcase end-to-end design projects that highlight your problem-solving process, from understanding user needs and business goals to delivering a final solution.

• Include case studies demonstrating your strengths in interaction design, product design, and systems thinking, illustrating how you approach complexity and scale.

• Provide examples of mobile application design and responsive web experiences, detailing your design choices and rationale.

• Document your contributions to or use of design systems, explaining how you ensure consistency and scalability across projects and platforms.

• Present research findings and data analysis that informed your design decisions, demonstrating a data-driven approach to product development.

Process Documentation:

• Outline your approach to user research, detailing methodologies used (e.g., interviews, usability testing, concept testing) and how insights were translated into design actions.

• Demonstrate your workflow for creating design artifacts, from initial concept sketches and low-fidelity flows to high-fidelity mockups and interactive prototypes.

• Explain your collaborative process with cross-functional teams (PMs, Engineers, Data Scientists, Growth), emphasizing communication and alignment strategies.

• Detail your experience with AI-supported product development, including how AI tools or methodologies were integrated into design workflows or research processes.

📝 Enhancement Note: Candidates should prepare to articulate their design process clearly, emphasizing how they leverage research, data, and systems thinking to drive impactful product outcomes. The portfolio should serve as evidence of these skills, particularly in a growth and fintech context.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: $160,000 - $190,000 USD per year.

Benefits:

• Competitive Compensation: Reflects the Senior level and San Francisco market.

• Equity: Opportunity for ownership in a high-growth startup.

• Insurance: Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance plans.

• 401k: Retirement savings plan with potential company match.

• Unlimited PTO: Flexible paid time off policy to promote work-life balance.

Working Hours: Standard full-time hours are expected, likely around 40 hours per week, with flexibility offered due to the remote nature of the role. The emphasis on high-velocity execution suggests a dynamic work environment where efficiency and impact are key.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range is competitive for a Senior Product Designer role in San Francisco, especially for a Series A/B funded startup in the fintech space. The benefits package is standard for tech startups, with Unlimited PTO being a common perk.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Fintech / Financial Services, specifically leveraging AI to provide credit solutions for underserved populations.

Company Size: Yendo is a rapidly growing startup, likely in the Seed to Series B funding stage. This implies a dynamic, fast-paced environment with opportunities for significant individual impact.

Founded: Founded less than 2 years ago, indicating a modern, agile, and innovative operational structure.

Team Structure:

• The Design team is described as "small but mighty" and "tight knit," emphasizing close collaboration, mutual support, and frequent communication.

• Senior designers act as "bar raisers," establishing design excellence and standards.

• Designers work in "triads" (likely Product, Engineering, Design) and collaborate closely with Growth, Credit, and leadership teams.

Methodology:

• Customer obsession is a core tenet, driving all decisions and solutions.

• Emphasis on data-driven design and rapid experimentation with tight feedback loops.

• Integration of AI into workflows and product development is a key strategic initiative.

• Continuous learning and embracing new tooling and research methods are encouraged.

• A culture of challenging assumptions and advocating for the user is paramount.

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

📝 Enhancement Note: Yendo's mission to empower everyday people financially through AI-driven credit products is a strong cultural differentiator. The company culture values innovation, customer focus, and collaborative growth, which will appeal to designers seeking to make a tangible impact.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: Senior Product Designer. This level implies significant autonomy, strategic influence, and a leadership expectation within the design team. The role is responsible for leading complex projects and mentoring junior team members.

Reporting Structure: While not explicitly stated, a Senior Product Designer typically reports to a Design Lead, Head of Design, or potentially a Director of Product. They will work closely with Product Managers and Engineering Leads within their assigned "triad."

Operations Impact: Senior Product Designers at Yendo are expected to drive measurable impact across the business, particularly in growth metrics (customer acquisition, activation, retention). Their work directly influences customer trust, access to financial products, and the company's ability to scale its innovative credit solutions.

Growth Opportunities:

• Design Leadership: Opportunity to shape the design team's processes, standards, and culture as the company scales. Potential to grow into a Design Lead or Manager role.

• Skill Specialization: Deepen expertise in fintech UX, AI-driven product design, growth optimization, or design systems.

• Cross-Functional Influence: Develop strong partnerships with Product, Engineering, and Growth leadership, gaining broader business acumen.

• Mentorship: Formalized opportunity to mentor junior designers, honing leadership and coaching skills.

• Industry Expertise: Become a subject matter expert in the rapidly evolving fintech and AI landscape.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Senior" title and emphasis on "bar raising" suggest this role has significant growth potential beyond individual contribution, including leadership and strategic influence within the product organization.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Yendo offers a hybrid work model with options for remote work or working from their office in the Deep Ellum area of Dallas, Texas. This provides flexibility for employees based on their location and preference.

Office Location(s): While the role is listed as San Francisco, the company mentions being based in Dallas, Texas, with a nationwide team. The explicit mention of the Deep Ellum office suggests a physical hub, but the remote option is clearly stated and supported.

Workspace Context:

• Remote Flexibility: The "Remote OK" status and nationwide team imply a distributed work environment supported by robust digital collaboration tools and practices.

• Collaborative Hub: The Dallas office serves as a potential focal point for in-person collaboration, team events, and fostering company culture for those who prefer or are located nearby.

• Technology Stack: Expect access to modern design and collaboration tools essential for remote and hybrid work, including Figma, prototyping software, and communication platforms.

• Team Interaction: While remote, the emphasis on a "tight knit" design team suggests regular virtual check-ins, critiques, and communication channels are in place to maintain strong working relationships.

Work Schedule: Full-time, with an expectation of 40 hours per week. The fast-paced, high-growth environment and focus on "high-velocity execution" suggest that while flexibility exists, dedication to meeting ambitious goals is paramount.

📝 Enhancement Note: The ability to work remotely from anywhere in the United States is a significant perk. The mention of both San Francisco (as a location for the job posting) and Dallas (as the company base/office location) suggests that while the role is remote, the company may have a primary operational focus or team presence in Dallas. It's advisable for candidates to clarify their specific remote work location expectations with the hiring team.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A review of your CV and portfolio (ensure password is provided if applicable). Focus on demonstrating your experience in growth design, interaction design, and systems thinking.

• Hiring Manager/Team Interview: Discussion of your background, design philosophy, and experience. Expect questions about your approach to collaboration, problem-solving, and handling ambiguity.

• Design Challenge/Case Study Presentation: You will likely be asked to present a portfolio case study or complete a design exercise. Focus on articulating your process, the "why" behind your decisions, and the measurable impact of your work.

• Cross-Functional Interviews: Meetings with Product Managers, Engineers, and Data Scientists to assess collaboration style and technical understanding.

• Leadership Interview: Final discussion with senior leadership to evaluate cultural fit, strategic thinking, and alignment with Yendo's vision and values.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate Strategically: Select 3-5 of your strongest projects that best showcase your skills relevant to growth design, fintech, AI integration, and end-to-end product development.

• Tell a Story: For each project, clearly articulate the problem statement, your role, the design process you followed (research, ideation, iteration), the solutions you developed, and the outcomes or impact achieved. Quantify results whenever possible.

• Highlight Process: Emphasize your thinking and decision-making. Show wireframes, user flows, prototypes, and final designs, explaining the rationale behind each.

• Showcase Systems Thinking: Include examples of how you've contributed to or utilized design systems, demonstrating your understanding of scalability and consistency.

• Demonstrate Research & Data: Clearly show how user research and product data informed your design choices and led to successful outcomes.

• Accessibility (a11y): If possible, include examples of designing with accessibility in mind.

• Password Protection: If your portfolio is password-protected, ensure the password is included in your CV or application.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand Yendo's Mission: Research Yendo's product, target audience, and the problem they are solving in the fintech space.

• Focus on Growth: Prepare to discuss how design contributes to user acquisition, activation, and retention. Think about A/B testing design variations and optimizing conversion funnels.

• AI Integration: Be ready to discuss your thoughts on how AI can be leveraged in product design or development workflows, drawing from your experience or research.

• Fintech Nuances: Consider the unique challenges and opportunities in designing financial products (trust, security, regulation, user education).

• Articulate Your "Why": Practice clearly explaining the reasoning behind your design decisions, using data and user insights as support.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on AI integration and growth design means candidates should be prepared to discuss these areas specifically. Providing a password for a portfolio is a critical detail that should not be overlooked.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Figma: Essential for UI design, wireframing, prototyping, and collaboration. High proficiency is required.

• Modern Design & Prototyping Tools: This category includes tools like ProtoPie, Framer, or other advanced prototyping software that allows for complex interactions and animations.

• AI-Assisted Design Tools: The mention of "Claude Code" and "Cursor" suggests Yendo is exploring or actively using AI tools for code generation, design assistance, or content creation within the product development cycle. Familiarity with or a willingness to learn these is key.

Analytics & Reporting:

• Product Analytics Platforms: Tools like Amplitude, Mixpanel, or Google Analytics are likely used to track user behavior, measure feature adoption, and identify areas for optimization.

• Data Visualization Tools: Proficiency in tools that can translate raw data into actionable insights for design decisions.

CRM & Automation:

• While not directly a design tool, understanding how designs integrate with CRM systems (e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot) and marketing automation platforms can be beneficial for growth-focused roles.

📝 Enhancement Note: Proficiency in Figma is a baseline requirement. The mention of AI tools like Claude Code and Cursor indicates Yendo is at the forefront of adopting new technologies, and candidates with experience or curiosity in this area will be highly valued.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Customer Obsession: Prioritizing customer needs and impact in every design decision, ensuring solutions address real-world problems and enhance user experiences.

• Trust & Transparency: Communicating openly, honestly, and with humility to build strong relationships internally and externally.

• Diverse Perspectives: Valuing a variety of viewpoints to create stronger outcomes, fostering an inclusive environment where all team members feel respected and empowered.

• Embrace Growth Together: Driving with urgency, striving for excellence, and holding oneself accountable to high standards for continuous self-improvement and impactful results.

• Own Every Outcome: Demonstrating expertise and creativity, challenging norms, and questioning assumptions to innovate and delight customers.

• Courage to Challenge: Fostering a low-ego, collaborative environment with mutual respect, empowering each other to solve problems constructively without blame.

Collaboration Style:

• Tight-knit & Supportive: The design team emphasizes mutual support, frequent communication, and constructive critiques.

• Cross-functional Integration: Designers work closely with Product Managers, Engineers, Data Scientists, and Growth teams, forming "triads" to ensure alignment and shared goals.

• Feedback Culture: A culture that encourages open feedback and continuous improvement of both craft and processes.

• Agile & Iterative: Embracing rapid experimentation, tight feedback loops, and high-velocity execution in a fast-paced environment.

📝 Enhancement Note: Yendo's core values are deeply embedded in their operational philosophy. Candidates should be prepared to demonstrate how their work and collaboration style align with these principles, particularly customer focus, ownership, and a growth mindset.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Balancing Innovation with Regulation: Designing intuitive and user-friendly financial products within a heavily regulated industry requires careful consideration of compliance and security.

• Building Trust in Fintech: Establishing trust with customers who may have had negative experiences with traditional financial institutions or predatory lenders is paramount. Design plays a crucial role in conveying security and reliability.

• Scaling Design Operations: As a high-growth startup, maintaining design quality and consistency while rapidly expanding product offerings and team size presents a significant operational challenge.

• Integrating AI Effectively: Seamlessly incorporating AI into user-facing products and internal workflows requires careful UX consideration, ethical oversight, and continuous adaptation to new AI capabilities.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Fintech UX Mastery: Develop deep expertise in the nuances of financial product design, user behavior in finance, and regulatory requirements.

• AI in Design: Gain hands-on experience with cutting-edge AI tools and methodologies for design and product development, becoming a leader in this emerging field.

• Growth Design Strategy: Hone skills in optimizing user funnels, driving engagement, and leveraging data for iterative product improvements.

• Design System Leadership: Contribute significantly to a scalable design system, potentially leading its evolution and adoption across the organization.

• Mentorship and Leadership: Develop leadership capabilities through mentoring junior designers and influencing product strategy.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges presented are typical for a rapidly scaling fintech startup. Yendo offers ample opportunities for designers to develop specialized skills and grow into leadership roles by tackling these complex problems.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "Describe a time you led the end-to-end design of a complex digital product, focusing on how you navigated trade-offs between user needs, business goals, and technical constraints." (Prepare to detail your process, decision-making, and outcomes.)

• "How would you approach designing an AI-powered feature to assist users in our application process? What are the key user experience considerations and potential pitfalls?" (Focus on user-centricity, trust, and ethical AI implementation.)

Company & Culture Questions:

• "What attracts you to Yendo's mission of empowering everyday people financially, and how does your design philosophy align with our core values?" (Research Yendo's mission and values thoroughly and connect them to your personal and professional ethos.)

• "How do you foster collaboration and provide constructive feedback within a design team and with cross-functional partners like Product Managers and Engineers?" (Highlight your communication style, experience in triads, and low-ego approach.)

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure for Impact: Begin with a high-level overview of the project, followed by a deep dive into your process, highlighting key decisions and challenges. Conclude with the results and learnings.

• Quantify Your Impact: Wherever possible, use metrics and data to demonstrate the success of your designs (e.g., increased conversion rates, reduced drop-off, improved user satisfaction scores).

• Showcase Your Thinking: Don't just show final screens; explain the "why" behind your design choices, illustrating your problem-solving approach and user empathy.

• Engage Your Audience: Make it a conversation. Ask clarifying questions, be open to feedback, and demonstrate your ability to articulate complex ideas clearly and concisely.

• Tailor to Yendo: Emphasize projects that highlight experience in growth funnels, fintech, or complex application design, and demonstrate enthusiasm for Yendo's mission.

📝 Enhancement Note: Candidates should be prepared to discuss their experience with AI integration, growth design, and fintech specifically. The portfolio presentation is a critical component, so practicing clear articulation of process, rationale, and impact is essential.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Senior Product Designer position:

• Submit your application through the provided link on Ashby.

• Portfolio Customization: Ensure your portfolio is up-to-date, showcases relevant projects (Growth, Fintech, AI integration, Systems Design), and clearly articulates your process and impact.

Crucially, include the password for your portfolio if it is password-protected.

• Resume Optimization: Tailor your resume to highlight your 7+ years of experience, specific skills in interaction design, product design, systems thinking, user research, and proficiency in Figma. Quantify achievements where possible.

• Prepare Your Narrative: Practice articulating your design philosophy, your approach to growth design and AI integration, and how your work aligns with Yendo's customer-centric mission and values.

• Company Research: Deeply understand Yendo's product, target market, competitive landscape, and recent news. Familiarize yourself with their core values and how they translate into the work environment.

⚠️ 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.