Senior Product Designer - Core Products

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Senior Product Designer - Core Products

Company: FranConnect, LLC

Location: Herndon, Virginia, United States

Job Type: Full-Time

Category: Product Design / UX Design

Date Posted: May 01, 2026

Experience Level: Senior (5-8 years)

Remote Status: Hybrid / Remote OK

🚀 Role Summary

• Design and develop user experiences for complex, data-rich B2B SaaS core products, focusing on intuitive workflows and operational efficiency.

• Integrate AI-native design principles and tools across the product development lifecycle to accelerate iteration and enhance user outcomes.

• Collaborate closely with Product Management and Engineering teams, including offshore partners, to translate user needs and business requirements into high-quality, scalable design solutions.

• Contribute to and leverage a robust design system to ensure consistency and efficiency across FranConnect's multi-product platform, empowering development squads.

• Conduct user research utilizing product analytics (e.g., Pendo) and direct customer feedback to inform design decisions and validate solutions.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is specifically tailored for an experienced Product Designer with a strong track record in B2B SaaS. The emphasis on "AI-native design" and "multi-product platform" suggests a strategic focus on leveraging emerging technologies to scale design impact and maintain user experience consistency across a suite of interconnected software products, which is a critical aspect for growth-stage SaaS companies.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Conceptualize, design, and prototype user interfaces and complex workflows for core B2B SaaS products, prioritizing user-centricity and operational effectiveness.

• Proactively identify opportunities to integrate AI tools and methodologies into the design discovery, prototyping, and delivery phases to enhance team efficiency and product innovation.

• Partner with Product Managers to thoroughly understand product roadmaps, translate intricate business requirements into clear, actionable user stories, and define optimal user journeys.

• Drive the adoption and evolution of the design system by contributing new components, patterns, and guidelines, ensuring a unified and cohesive user experience across all FranConnect offerings.

• Conduct qualitative and quantitative user research, including usability testing, customer interviews, and analysis of product analytics data (e.g., Pendo), to uncover user pain points and validate design hypotheses.

• Collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams, including Product Managers, Engineers (both onshore and offshore in India), and other designers, to ensure seamless design implementation and high-fidelity product delivery.

• Present design concepts, rationale, and user research findings to internal stakeholders, including product leadership, and external customers, to gather feedback and secure buy-in.

• Support the continuous improvement of design processes and best practices within the product design team, fostering a culture of learning and innovation.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "complex workflows" and "operations-focused software" indicates that this role will likely involve designing intricate processes and management tools critical to the daily operations of franchise and multi-unit businesses. This requires a deep understanding of business logic, data management, and user efficiency within enterprise software environments.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While no specific degree is mandated, a Bachelor's degree in Design, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Computer Science, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience, is highly beneficial.

Experience: 5-8 years of professional product design experience, with a mandatory and proven track record in B2B SaaS environments.

Required Skills:

• B2B SaaS Experience: Essential. Applicants without this direct experience will not be considered.

• AI-Native Design & Application: Demonstrated experience in applying AI tools and methodologies to accelerate and enhance the product design process (e.g., AI-assisted prototyping, idea generation, content creation).

• Design System Development & Scaling: Proven ability to design, build, and scale a comprehensive design system that unifies user experience across a multi-product platform, enabling efficient execution by development squads.

• Complex Workflow Design: Expertise in designing intricate user flows and operational processes for data-rich, complex software applications.

• UX Fundamentals: Strong understanding of user-centered design principles, information architecture, interaction design, and visual design.

• User Research & Analytics: Proficiency in conducting user research, analyzing product analytics (e.g., Pendo), and synthesizing feedback to drive design decisions.

• Prototyping Tools: Mastery of industry-standard design and prototyping tools (e.g., Figma, Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite, InVision).

• Communication & Collaboration: Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to articulate design rationale clearly and collaborate effectively with diverse teams.

Preferred Skills:

• Experience working with offshore engineering teams, particularly in India, is a significant advantage.

• Familiarity with Agile development methodologies and a comfort level working in fast-paced, iterative environments.

• Ability to navigate ambiguity, adapt to change, and maintain effectiveness in evolving work settings.

• Experience in data visualization and dashboard design for B2B analytics platforms.

📝 Enhancement Note: The explicit requirement for "B2B SaaS experience" and the emphasis on "designing complex workflows or operations-focused software" are critical. This signals that candidates must demonstrate a deep understanding of enterprise software challenges, user efficiency within business processes, and the nuances of designing for professional users who rely on software for critical business functions. The mention of scaling a design system across a "multi-product platform" suggests a need for strategic thinking beyond individual feature design.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• A curated portfolio showcasing a minimum of 5-8 years of professional product design work, with a strong emphasis on B2B SaaS projects.

• Clearly demonstrate your role and contributions within each project, especially concerning complex workflow design and operational software.

• Feature case studies that highlight your experience with AI tools integrated into the design process, showcasing how AI accelerated iteration or improved outcomes.

• Include examples of your involvement in building, scaling, or contributing to design systems, illustrating their impact on consistency and efficiency across multiple products or squads.

• Showcase your user research methodologies, analytical skills (including examples of using tools like Pendo), and how data informed your design decisions.

• Present examples of successful collaboration with Product Managers and Engineering teams, particularly highlighting work with offshore teams if applicable.

Process Documentation:

• Ensure your portfolio clearly outlines the design process followed for each project, from discovery and research to ideation, prototyping, testing, and handoff.

• Highlight specific methodologies used for workflow analysis and optimization, detailing how you simplified complex processes for end-users.

• Document instances where you leveraged AI tools to streamline design workflows, enhance prototyping, or generate design solutions.

• Provide examples of how you contributed to or utilized design system documentation, emphasizing its role in maintaining consistency and scalability.

📝 Enhancement Note: For this role, the portfolio is paramount. Candidates must not only display strong visual and UX design skills but also evidence their strategic thinking regarding design systems, AI integration, and complex B2B SaaS workflows. A portfolio that clearly articulates the process and impact of their work, especially in terms of efficiency gains and user adoption within an operational context, will be highly valued.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range:

Based on industry benchmarks for a Senior Product Designer with 5-8 years of B2B SaaS experience in the Herndon, VA area (or remote within the US), the estimated salary range is $120,000 - $160,000 per year. This range can vary based on the candidate's specific experience, skills, and geographic location if remote.

Benefits:

• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance plans.

• 401(k) retirement savings plan with company match.

• Generous paid time off (PTO) and company holidays.

• Opportunities for professional development, including training, conferences, and access to learning resources.

• Potential for stock options or performance-based bonuses.

• Employee Assistance Program (EAP) for mental health and well-being support.

Working Hours:

The standard working hours for this role are approximately 40 hours per week, aligning with typical business operations. While the role is based in Herndon, VA, remote work is an option, suggesting flexibility in daily scheduling as long as core business hours and collaboration needs are met. Close coordination with offshore teams in India may require some flexibility in hours.

📝 Enhancement Note: Salary estimates are based on data from reputable compensation resources for Senior Product Designers in the technology sector, specifically within the B2B SaaS domain, considering the specified experience level and the Northern Virginia tech corridor's cost of living. The inclusion of remote work flexibility, especially with offshore collaboration, implies a need for strong self-management and asynchronous communication skills.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: FranConnect operates within the Franchise and Multi-Unit Management Software sector, a specialized niche within the broader B2B SaaS market. This industry is characterized by a focus on providing scalable solutions that drive growth, profitability, and operational efficiency for franchisors and multi-location businesses.

Company Size: FranConnect is a well-established company, indicated by its 20-year history and global presence. With over 1500 brands relying on its platform, it's a mid-to-large-sized enterprise software company, likely employing several hundred to over a thousand individuals globally. This size offers the stability of an established player with the potential for significant impact for individual contributors.

Founded: Founded 20 years ago, FranConnect has a mature history in the franchising software space. This long tenure suggests a deep understanding of the industry's evolving needs and a proven ability to adapt its offerings. Backed by private equity (Serent Capital), the company is likely focused on growth and innovation.

Team Structure:

• The Product Design team is likely structured to support multiple squads or product lines, with a Senior Product Designer contributing to core product development.

• Designers likely report into a Head of Product Design or a Design Lead, who oversees the design system and overall UX strategy.

Methodology:

• Data-Driven Design: Emphasis on using product analytics (Pendo) and customer feedback to inform design decisions and measure impact.

• Agile Development: Likely operates within an Agile framework, requiring iterative design, collaboration, and adaptability.

• Design System Centric: A strong focus on leveraging and contributing to a shared design system for consistency and scalability across a multi-product platform.

• AI Integration: Proactive adoption of AI tools to enhance design processes and outcomes.

Company Website: www.franconnect.com

📝 Enhancement Note: The company's focus on franchise and multi-unit management software means that operational efficiency, scalability, and data-driven decision-making are core to its value proposition. This translates to a product design role where understanding business processes, user workflows, and the impact of software on operational outcomes is crucial. The mention of Serent Capital ownership suggests a growth-oriented environment.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This is a Senior Product Designer role. In the context of operations, this means the individual is expected to not only execute design tasks but also to contribute strategically to product direction, process optimization, and the development of scalable design solutions. They are expected to operate with a high degree of autonomy, mentor junior designers, and influence product strategy through their UX expertise.

Reporting Structure: Typically, a Senior Product Designer would report to a Design Manager, Director of Product Design, or a Head of UX. They will work closely with Product Managers and Engineering Leads within specific product squads. The collaboration with offshore teams in India suggests a need for clear communication protocols and potentially some oversight or coordination.

Operations Impact: The Senior Product Designer's impact is crucial for FranConnect's growth and customer retention. By designing intuitive, efficient, and data-rich B2B SaaS products, they directly contribute to:

• Customer Acquisition: Demonstrating a superior user experience that differentiates FranConnect from competitors.

• Customer Retention: Ensuring users can effectively leverage the platform for their core business operations, leading to higher satisfaction and reduced churn.

• Operational Efficiency: Streamlining complex workflows, reducing training time, and enabling users to achieve their business goals faster.

• Product Scalability: Building a robust design system and utilizing AI to ensure the platform can accommodate future growth and feature expansion efficiently.

Growth Opportunities:

• Leadership Development: Opportunities to mentor junior designers, lead design initiatives for key product areas, and potentially move into a Lead Designer or Design Manager role.

• Strategic Influence: Contributing to product strategy discussions, influencing the adoption of new design technologies (like AI), and shaping the future of FranConnect's user experience.

• Skill Specialization: Deepening expertise in B2B SaaS design, AI-native design, design system architecture, or user research methodologies.

• Cross-functional Exposure: Gaining broader understanding of business operations, sales cycles, and the technical architecture of large-scale SaaS platforms.

📝 Enhancement Note: The role's emphasis on complex workflows, B2B SaaS, and AI integration positions it as a high-impact senior role. Growth opportunities will likely extend beyond pure design execution into areas of strategic product thinking, process improvement, and potential leadership within the design organization.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: The job listing indicates a primary location in Herndon, VA, with the possibility of remote work. This suggests a hybrid work environment where employees can choose to work from the office, remotely, or a combination of both. The office would likely be a modern tech workspace designed for collaboration.

Office Location(s): The primary office is located at 13865 Sunrise Valley Drive, Herndon, VA 20171. This is in a well-established business corridor in Northern Virginia, accessible by major roadways.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Spaces: The office environment likely features open workspaces, meeting rooms, and breakout areas designed to foster interaction and teamwork among designers, product managers, and engineers.

• Technology & Tools: Access to industry-standard design software, collaboration platforms, and potentially advanced hardware for prototyping and testing.

• Cross-functional Interaction: Frequent opportunities to engage with product teams, engineers (including offshore partners), and stakeholders to discuss design challenges and solutions. Remote employees will rely on digital collaboration tools for this interaction.

Work Schedule: The standard work schedule is approximately 40 hours per week. While remote work is supported, candidates should be prepared to coordinate with team members in different time zones, particularly offshore engineering teams in India, which may require some flexibility in daily working hours to ensure effective collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The hybrid/remote aspect of the role, coupled with offshore team collaboration, emphasizes the need for strong digital collaboration skills and effective time management. Candidates should be comfortable working asynchronously and proactively communicating to bridge geographical and temporal gaps.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A review of your resume and portfolio to assess experience, particularly in B2B SaaS, AI-native design, and design systems.

• Portfolio Presentation & Deep Dive: A session where you present 2-3 key projects from your portfolio, detailing your process, contributions, problem-solving approach, and the impact of your designs. Expect questions on how you used AI, scaled design systems, and handled complex workflows.

• Technical/Skills Assessment: This may involve a design challenge (e.g., a take-home exercise or a live whiteboard session) focused on a hypothetical B2B SaaS problem, assessing your UX fundamentals, problem-solving, and ability to articulate design rationale.

• Behavioral & Cultural Fit Interview: Discussion with hiring managers and team members to assess your collaboration style, communication skills, adaptability, and alignment with FranConnect's culture and values, especially regarding innovation and working with diverse teams.

• Final Interview: Potentially with senior leadership to discuss strategic thinking and overall fit for the role and company.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate Strategically: Select projects that best showcase your B2B SaaS experience, AI integration, design system work, and complex workflow design. Ensure each case study clearly defines the problem, your role, your process, the solutions, and the measurable outcomes or impact.

• Highlight AI & Design Systems: Explicitly call out how you leveraged AI tools in your process and how you contributed to or utilized design systems. Quantify the benefits if possible (e.g., "reduced iteration time by X%", "increased design consistency by Y%").

• Showcase Process & Rationale: Don't just show final mockups. Explain your design thinking, user research findings, decision-making process, and how you iterated based on feedback. For complex workflows, use flowcharts or diagrams to illustrate your approach.

• Be Prepared to Discuss: Have detailed answers ready for questions about your design choices, challenges faced, how you collaborated with PMs and Engineers, and how you handled feedback and ambiguity.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand B2B SaaS Nuances: Familiarize yourself with common challenges and user needs in enterprise software, focusing on efficiency, data management, and business process support.

• Think Systematically: When presented with a challenge, consider how your solution would integrate with existing systems and scale across a platform. Think about the design system implications.

• Articulate Your Process: Clearly explain your approach to the challenge, from understanding the problem to proposing a solution, even if time is limited. Focus on your thought process and problem-solving methodology.

• Consider AI Integration: Think about how AI might be applied to the problem or its solution, aligning with the role's emphasis.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process will heavily scrutinize the candidate's ability to demonstrate practical experience with AI in design, robust design system thinking, and expertise in complex B2B SaaS workflows. Candidates should prepare to articulate the "why" behind their design decisions and quantify the impact of their work.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Design & Prototyping: Figma (highly probable, given industry trends and its collaborative features), Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop).

• Collaboration & Communication: Slack, Microsoft Teams, Zoom for day-to-day communication and remote collaboration.

• Project Management: Jira, Asana, Trello for managing design tasks and workflows within Agile sprints.

Analytics & Reporting:

• Product Analytics: Pendo (explicitly mentioned), Google Analytics, Mixpanel, Amplitude for understanding user behavior and product usage.

• Data Visualization: Tableau, Power BI (potentially used by analytics teams, designers may need to interpret or contribute to dashboards).

CRM & Automation:

• CRM: Salesforce (common in B2B), HubSpot (less likely for core ops but possible).

• Automation: While not directly a designer's tool, understanding how automation impacts user workflows and potentially designing interfaces for automated processes is relevant.

📝 Enhancement Note: The explicit mention of Pendo is a strong indicator of the type of data-driven design approach expected. Proficiency in modern collaborative design tools like Figma is crucial, as is an understanding of how design integrates with analytics platforms to measure user engagement and product performance.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Innovation: A proactive approach to adopting new technologies like AI and exploring novel design solutions to drive product advancement.

• Collaboration: Strong emphasis on working effectively with cross-functional teams, including Product Management and Engineering (both onshore and offshore), fostering a shared sense of ownership.

• Data-Driven Decision Making: Utilizing product analytics, user research, and customer feedback as the foundation for design choices, ensuring solutions are grounded in user needs and business impact.

• Efficiency & Scalability: A commitment to designing streamlined workflows and leveraging design systems to ensure that solutions are not only effective but also scalable and maintainable across a multi-product platform.

• User-Centricity: Placing the needs and experience of B2B users at the forefront of all design efforts, aiming to deliver intuitive and empowering software.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-functional Integration: Designers are expected to be embedded within product squads, working closely with Product Managers and Engineers throughout the entire product development lifecycle.

• Open Feedback Culture: Encouraging constructive feedback on design work from all team members to refine solutions and foster continuous improvement.

• Knowledge Sharing: A culture that promotes sharing best practices, design patterns, and learnings from user research and AI experimentation.

• Agile & Iterative: Embracing an iterative approach where designs are continuously refined based on feedback and data, with a focus on delivering value incrementally.

📝 Enhancement Note: The company's values likely revolve around driving growth for its clients through technology, which translates to a culture that values innovation, efficiency, and data-informed strategies. For designers, this means a collaborative environment where UX is seen as a critical driver of business success.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Designing for Complexity: Effectively simplifying and optimizing intricate B2B workflows and data-rich interfaces for a diverse user base.

• Scaling Design Systems: Contributing to and maintaining a cohesive design system across a multi-product platform, ensuring consistency while allowing for squad autonomy.

• Integrating AI Seamlessly: Identifying and implementing AI functionalities that genuinely enhance user experience and operational efficiency without introducing unnecessary complexity or "AI for AI's sake."

• Cross-Cultural Collaboration: Effectively partnering with offshore engineering teams in India, navigating potential communication barriers, time zone differences, and cultural nuances.

• Navigating Ambiguity: Thriving in an evolving environment where product roadmaps and technological approaches (like AI) may shift, requiring adaptability and proactive problem-solving.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• AI in Design Specialization: Deepen expertise in leveraging AI tools for design research, ideation, prototyping, and content generation.

• Design System Architecture: Gain experience in the strategic development and governance of large-scale design systems.

• B2B SaaS Product Strategy: Develop a deeper understanding of business operations within the franchise and multi-unit sector, influencing product direction.

• Mentorship and Leadership: Opportunities to mentor junior designers, lead feature design efforts, and potentially step into team leadership roles.

• Industry Conferences & Training: Access to professional development resources to stay abreast of the latest trends in UX design, AI, and B2B SaaS.

📝 Enhancement Note: The primary challenges revolve around the complexity inherent in B2B SaaS, the strategic implementation of AI, and effective collaboration across diverse teams. Growth opportunities are focused on specialization in cutting-edge areas like AI in design and advanced design system management, alongside leadership development.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "Describe a complex B2B SaaS workflow you designed. What were the challenges, your approach, and the outcome?" (Focus on process, problem-solving, and impact.)

• "How have you integrated AI tools into your design process? Can you provide a specific example of how it accelerated iteration or improved a design outcome?" (Highlight practical application and benefits.)

• "How do you approach building or contributing to a design system for a multi-product platform? What are the key considerations for scalability and consistency?" (Demonstrate strategic thinking and system design expertise.)

Company & Culture Questions:

• "What excites you about FranConnect and our mission to empower franchise businesses?" (Show research and genuine interest.)

• "How do you handle ambiguity and adapt to changing priorities in a fast-paced tech environment?" (Illustrate resilience and flexibility.)

• "Describe your ideal collaboration with Product Managers and Engineers. How do you ensure alignment and shared understanding of design goals?" (Highlight teamwork and communication.)

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure for Impact: Organize your presentation around 2-3 strong case studies. For each, clearly state the problem, your role, the target users, your design process, key design decisions (especially regarding AI and design systems), the final solution, and measurable results or impact.

• Tell a Story: Frame your case studies as narratives that highlight your problem-solving journey and the value you delivered.

• Highlight AI & System Contributions: Explicitly call out where and how you used AI tools and how your work contributed to or leveraged the design system. Use visuals to demonstrate these aspects.

• Be Ready for Deep Dives: Anticipate detailed questions about your process, rationale, and specific design choices. Be prepared to discuss trade-offs and alternative solutions you considered.

• Engage and Inquire: Ask thoughtful questions about the team, the product roadmap, and design challenges at FranConnect to show engagement and strategic thinking.

📝 Enhancement Note: Interviewers will be looking for candidates who can articulate their design process, demonstrate strategic thinking in areas like design systems and AI, and show a clear understanding of B2B SaaS user needs. Practical examples and quantified results will be highly persuasive.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Senior Product Designer position:

• Submit your detailed resume and a link to your online portfolio through the FranConnect careers portal. Ensure your portfolio prominently features your B2B SaaS experience, AI integration examples, and design system contributions.

• Tailor your Resume & Portfolio: Customize your resume to highlight keywords and responsibilities mentioned in this job description, such as "B2B SaaS," "AI-native design," "design systems," and "complex workflows." Ensure your portfolio directly addresses these requirements with strong case studies.

• Prepare Your Portfolio Presentation: Practice presenting 2-3 of your most relevant projects, focusing on your design process, problem-solving, collaboration, and the impact of your work, particularly concerning AI and design systems.

• Research FranConnect: Understand their product offerings, target market (franchises/multi-unit businesses), and company values. Be prepared to discuss how your skills and experience align with their mission and culture.

• Anticipate Design Challenges: Familiarize yourself with common B2B SaaS design problems and consider how you would approach a design exercise related to workflow optimization or data-rich interfaces.

⚠️ 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.