Senior Product Designer (m/f) - German & English speaking

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Senior Product Designer (m/f) - German & English speaking

Company: RIB Software

Location: Berlin, Germany

Job Type: Full time

Category: Product Design / UX/UI Operations

Date Posted: 2026-08-26

Experience Level: 5-10 Years

Remote Status: Hybrid (2-3 days per week in the office)

🚀 Role Summary

• Spearhead the end-to-end design process for assigned product lines, encompassing user research, ideation, prototyping, user testing, and implementation across web and mobile platforms.

• Leverage Lean UX principles to drive efficient product development cycles, ensuring business objectives are met while prioritizing user needs.

• Conduct comprehensive user research and usability testing to gather actionable insights, directly informing design iterations and enhancements for a user-centric product experience.

• Collaborate closely with product management, development, and other stakeholders to align design strategies with business goals and ensure seamless integration of design into the product lifecycle.

• Contribute to the evolution and maintenance of a robust design system, ensuring consistency and scalability across the product suite and wider SaaS platform.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is positioned within the "Portfolio Management" division and reports to the Director Product Management, indicating a strategic involvement in product strategy and roadmap development. The emphasis on "shaping the user experience of products that help the construction industry work smarter, more efficiently, and more digitally" highlights a focus on GTM enablement through enhanced product usability and adoption.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Lead End-to-End Design Process: Take ownership of the complete design lifecycle for designated product lines, from initial user research and concept development through to high-fidelity prototyping, rigorous user testing, and successful implementation.

• Design System Stewardship: Actively contribute to and expand the company's design system, ensuring adherence to established guidelines and promoting its consistent application across web interfaces, native mobile applications (iOS/Android), and the broader SaaS platform ecosystem.

• Lean UX Facilitation: Design and lead workshops based on Lean UX methodologies to foster team alignment, translate complex business problems into user-centric solutions, and facilitate rapid iteration cycles based on feedback and analytical data.

• Customer-Centric User Research: Proactively plan, execute, and analyze in-depth user research initiatives, including interviews, surveys, contextual inquiries, and direct observation, to deeply understand customer behaviors, pain points, and motivations within the construction industry context.

• Iterative Usability Testing: Design and conduct comprehensive usability testing sessions for both web and mobile applications, employing interactive prototypes to gather quantitative and qualitative data, and using these insights to drive informed design improvements.

• Data-Informed Design Optimization: Collaborate with product teams to interpret event tracking and product analytics data from tools like Fullstory and UserPilot, identifying user behavior patterns, pinpointing usability friction points, and optimizing user flows for enhanced efficiency and satisfaction.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Foster strong working relationships with Product Managers, Engineers, and other key stakeholders to ensure design strategies are aligned with overarching business objectives and to facilitate smooth, integrated product development processes.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities emphasize a hands-on approach to design leadership, requiring the candidate to not only execute but also to lead and mentor within the design process. The specific mention of "building relationships with key customers to enable continuous research access" suggests a proactive, relationship-driven aspect to the user research function, crucial for a GTM context.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

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

Experience:

• 5+ years of professional experience as a Product Designer, with a demonstrably strong portfolio showcasing successful product design projects for web and mobile applications.

• Proven track record of delivering user-centric design solutions that have had a measurable impact on product adoption and user satisfaction. Required Skills:

• Product Design Leadership: Ability to lead the entire product design lifecycle, from discovery to delivery, with a strategic and user-focused approach.

• Lean UX & Agile Methodologies: Deep understanding and practical application of Lean UX principles and Agile development processes for iterative and efficient product creation.

• Hands-on User Research: Extensive experience planning and conducting direct customer interviews, contextual inquiries, and observational studies as a core, ongoing design practice.

• Design System Management: Strong expertise in utilizing, contributing to, and maintaining design systems to ensure consistency, scalability, and efficiency across product portfolios.

• Figma Proficiency: Expert-level skill in using Figma for wireframing, prototyping, and high-fidelity design.

• Mobile App Design Expertise: Proven experience designing native or hybrid mobile applications (iOS and/or Android), with a thorough understanding of platform-specific UX guidelines (Human Interface Guidelines, Material Design).

• Research & Analytics Tools: Familiarity with research organization tools like Dovetail and usability testing tools such as Useberry or Ballpark for efficient data analysis and feedback gathering.

• Data Interpretation: Ability to collaborate with product teams to interpret event tracking and product analytics data (e.g., Fullstory, UserPilot) and translate insights into actionable design improvements.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Excellent communication, interpersonal, and collaboration skills for effective teamwork with product managers, developers, and other stakeholders.

• Language Proficiency: Fluent German (C1 level) and professional proficiency in English (C1 level) for conducting research and collaborating with international teams and customers.

Preferred Skills:

• Understanding of the construction industry or related fields, providing domain-specific context for design solutions.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "hands-on user research" and "ongoing part of the design process" strongly suggests this role is not just about visual design but about deeply understanding and solving user problems within the B2B SaaS context, critical for GTM success. The requirement for fluency in both German and English is a key differentiator for roles operating in international markets.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• End-to-End Case Studies: Showcase 3-5 comprehensive case studies that detail your involvement in the entire product design process for both web and mobile applications. Each case study should clearly articulate the problem, your role, the design process, key decisions, user research conducted, and the final outcome with measurable results.

• Lean UX Application: Demonstrate practical application of Lean UX principles within your case studies, highlighting how you facilitated rapid iteration, user feedback integration, and problem-solving within Agile environments.

• Design System Contribution: Include examples of how you have utilized or contributed to design systems, illustrating your understanding of consistency, scalability, and efficiency in design execution.

• User Research & Testing Evidence: Provide concrete examples of user research methodologies employed (e.g., interviews, contextual inquiries) and usability testing outcomes, showing how insights directly influenced design decisions and improved user experience.

• Mobile Design Specifics: Feature at least one case study focused on native or hybrid mobile app design (iOS/Android), demonstrating adherence to platform-specific guidelines and a strong understanding of mobile UX patterns.

Process Documentation:

• User Journey Mapping: Evidence of creating user journey maps to visualize customer experiences and identify key touchpoints for optimization.

• Workflow Optimization: Documentation of how you have optimized user workflows through design interventions, with clear articulation of the process improvements and their impact.

• Prototyping & Testing Protocols: Examples of your process for creating interactive prototypes and setting up structured usability testing sessions, including how feedback was collected and analyzed.

• Data Integration Strategy: Showcase how you integrate product analytics and event tracking data into your design process to inform decisions and measure the impact of design changes.

📝 Enhancement Note: For a Senior Product Designer role, the portfolio is paramount. It should not only showcase visual design skills but also the strategic thinking, research capabilities, and process-driven approach required to solve complex user problems in a B2B SaaS environment. Demonstrating impact through metrics will be key.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: Based on industry benchmarks for Senior Product Designers in Berlin, Germany, with 5-10 years of experience, a competitive salary range is estimated to be between €70,000 - €95,000 annually. This estimate considers the specialized skills required, the hybrid work model, and the cost of living in Berlin.

Benefits:

• Attractive Compensation Package: Including competitive base salary and a pension scheme.

• Health Insurance: Comprehensive health insurance coverage.

• Company Share Ownership Program (WESOP): Opportunity to own a stake in the company's success.

• On-site Perks: Daily lunch buffets, snacks, and company breakfasts to enhance the office experience.

• Social & Networking: Organized after-work activities (e.g., wine tastings, yearly events) and informal team-building opportunities like table football.

• Flexible Work Model: Trust-based working hours and the possibility of hybrid work, allowing for a better work-life balance.

• Professional Development: Individual onboarding, team-based development, and training opportunities, including national and international career prospects within RIB Group or Schneider Electric.

Working Hours: Full Time, typically around 40 hours per week, with flexible working hours and a hybrid model allowing for 2-3 days per week in the Berlin office.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range is an estimate based on market data for similar roles in Berlin. The provided benefits list is extensive and highlights a company culture that values employee well-being, professional growth, and work-life integration, which can be a significant draw for experienced professionals.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Software solutions for project and enterprise process management in the construction and real estate industry. RIB Software is a key player in driving digital transformation within this traditionally complex sector.

Company Size: Over 2,500 employees worldwide, with over 500 in the DACH region. As part of Schneider Electric, it benefits from the scale and resources of a large global corporation.

Founded: RIB Software has over 60 years of industry experience, founded in 1961. This long history signifies deep domain expertise and a stable foundation.

Team Structure:

• Design Team: Spans seven countries across four continents, with main hubs in Germany, Denmark, South Africa, and India. This global distribution requires strong remote collaboration skills.

• Reporting Line: The Senior Product Designer will report to the Director Product Management, indicating a close link to product strategy and roadmap decisions.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: The role necessitates close collaboration with Product Managers, Developers, the Design System team, and other stakeholders to ensure cohesive product development.

Methodology:

• Digital Transformation Focus: The company is dedicated to making the construction industry more digital, efficient, and sustainable through its software solutions.

• Agile Development: The product development lifecycle is aligned with Agile methodologies, requiring designers to be adaptable and iterative.

• Data-Driven Design: Emphasis on utilizing event tracking and product analytics to inform design decisions and optimize user experiences.

Company Website: https://www.rib-software.com/

📝 Enhancement Note: RIB Software's mission to digitize the construction industry is a strong differentiator. The global nature of the design team and the hybrid work model require excellent communication and asynchronous collaboration skills. The company's long history combined with its focus on innovation and digital transformation presents an interesting dynamic for potential employees.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This is a Senior Product Designer role, indicating a level of expertise and autonomy. The individual is expected to lead the design process for a product line, mentor junior designers (implicitly), and significantly influence product strategy through user-centric insights. It sits at a critical juncture between design execution and product management.

Reporting Structure: Reporting to the Director Product Management places this role directly within the product development leadership. This provides visibility into strategic decisions and opportunities to influence the product roadmap.

Operations Impact: The Senior Product Designer's impact is measured by their ability to enhance product usability, drive user adoption, and contribute to the overall digital transformation goals of the construction industry. Success means creating products that enable customers to work "smarter, more efficiently, and more digitally," directly contributing to RIB Software's value proposition and market leadership.

Growth Opportunities:

• Design Leadership: Potential to grow into a Design Lead or Head of UX role within specific product areas or regions, managing larger teams and strategic initiatives.

• Domain Expertise: Deepen knowledge within the construction industry, becoming a subject matter expert that can drive innovative solutions for a complex sector.

• Cross-Functional Leadership: Transition into Product Management roles by leveraging deep user understanding and strategic product thinking.

• Global Collaboration: Develop advanced skills in managing distributed teams and collaborating across diverse cultural and geographical landscapes.

• Schneider Electric Synergy: Access to broader career development programs and opportunities within the larger Schneider Electric organization.

📝 Enhancement Note: The senior level implies responsibility for complex projects and potentially mentoring. The reporting structure to Product Management is advantageous for influencing product strategy. The growth opportunities highlight a clear path for career advancement within a large, established corporation.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Hybrid work model, with 2-3 days per week expected in the Berlin office. This suggests a modern workspace designed to support both focused individual work and collaborative team activities.

Office Location(s): Primarily Berlin, Germany, with Copenhagen, Denmark, as a secondary location option. The Berlin office is a key hub for the design team.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Hub: The Berlin office serves as a central point for design team interaction, fostering collaboration with the Head of UX and other team members.

• Technology & Tools: Access to industry-standard design and collaboration tools (Figma, Fullstory, Dovetail, etc.) is inherent to the role.

• Global Interaction: While based in Berlin, the role involves significant interaction with a globally distributed design team, necessitating effective virtual collaboration tools and practices.

Work Schedule: Full-time role with trust-based and flexible working hours, accommodating the hybrid model. This flexibility aims to support work-life balance, allowing employees to manage personal commitments alongside professional responsibilities.

📝 Enhancement Note: The hybrid model is a key feature, balancing the benefits of in-office collaboration with remote work flexibility. The global team structure implies a need for strong asynchronous communication skills and an appreciation for diverse working styles.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: HR or Recruiter call to assess basic qualifications, cultural fit, and interest in the role and RIB Software.

• Hiring Manager Interview: Discussion with the Director Product Management focusing on experience, leadership, and strategic approach to product design.

• Design Portfolio Review: A dedicated session where you will present 2-3 key case studies from your portfolio, detailing your process, decisions, and impact. Expect in-depth questions about your approach to user research, Lean UX, and design systems.

• Technical/Skills Assessment: Potentially a small design exercise or a discussion focused on specific tools (e.g., Figma) and methodologies (e.g., usability testing).

• Cross-Functional Team Interview: Meeting with developers, product managers, or other designers to assess collaboration skills and ability to integrate into the existing team dynamic.

• Final Interview: Potentially with a senior leader to confirm overall fit and discuss career aspirations.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Storytelling: Structure your case studies as compelling narratives. Clearly define the problem, your role, the challenges, your process, the solutions you designed, and the measurable outcomes.

• Process Focus: Emphasize your thought process and methodology. Detail why you made certain design decisions, supported by user research and data.

• Impact & Metrics: Quantify your achievements whenever possible. Use metrics related to user adoption, efficiency gains, conversion rates, or user satisfaction.

• Tool Proficiency: Be ready to discuss your proficiency with Figma and other relevant tools mentioned (e.g., research, analytics, testing platforms).

• German & English: Be prepared to present and discuss your portfolio in both German and English, demonstrating your language fluency.

Challenge Preparation:

• Design Exercise: If a design exercise is provided, focus on understanding the core problem, clearly outlining your assumptions, and demonstrating a structured approach to problem-solving within a given timeframe. Prioritize user needs and business goals.

• Lean UX Application: Be ready to discuss how you would apply Lean UX principles to a given scenario, emphasizing rapid prototyping, hypothesis testing, and iterative refinement.

• Stakeholder Communication: Practice articulating design decisions and their rationale to technical and non-technical stakeholders, demonstrating your ability to influence and align teams.

📝 Enhancement Note: The portfolio review is a critical step. Candidates should prepare to deeply articulate their design process and demonstrate how their work has driven tangible business and user outcomes. The dual language requirement means interview preparation should include practicing presentations in both languages.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Figma: Essential for UI/UX design, wireframing, prototyping, and collaborative design. Proficiency is a core requirement.

• Design Systems: Experience with creating, maintaining, or heavily utilizing design systems to ensure consistency and efficiency.

• Prototyping Tools: Proficiency in creating interactive prototypes within Figma or other similar tools for user testing and stakeholder demonstrations.

Analytics & Reporting:

• Fullstory / UserPilot (or similar): Experience interpreting event tracking and product analytics data to understand user behavior, identify pain points, and optimize user flows.

• Dovetail (or similar): Familiarity with research repository tools for organizing, analyzing, and sharing insights from user research data.

Usability Testing Tools:

• Useberry / Ballpark (or similar): Experience using tools designed for conducting usability testing on interactive prototypes and gathering quantitative/qualitative feedback.

Collaboration & Project Management:

• Agile/Scrum Tools: Familiarity with tools like Jira or Trello for managing tasks within an Agile development framework.

• Communication Platforms: Proficiency with tools like Slack, Microsoft Teams, or similar for daily team communication and collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The specific mention of tools like Fullstory, UserPilot, Dovetail, Useberry, and Ballpark indicates a strong emphasis on data-driven design and robust user research practices. Candidates should be prepared to discuss their experience with these or comparable tools.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• "Building Better Together": This core value emphasizes collaboration, partnership, and shared success, both internally within teams and externally with customers.

• Digital Transformation: A strong commitment to driving efficiency, sustainability, and innovation through digital solutions in the construction industry.

• Customer Centricity: Prioritizing user needs and feedback in product development, ensuring that solutions are practical and valuable for the construction sector.

• Innovation & Efficiency: A drive to continuously improve processes and products, leveraging technology to achieve better outcomes.

• People First: A culture that values its employees, supporting their development, well-being, and work-life balance.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-Functional Integration: Encourages close working relationships between design, product management, and engineering to ensure alignment and seamless product delivery.

• Global Teamwork: Embraces collaboration across diverse geographical locations and cultural backgrounds, requiring strong communication and empathy.

• Data-Informed Discussions: Decisions are often informed by data analysis and user insights, fostering a rational and objective approach to problem-solving.

• Iterative Feedback Culture: Openness to continuous feedback and iteration, a hallmark of Lean UX and Agile development.

📝 Enhancement Note: The company culture appears to be a blend of innovation-driven ambition (digitizing construction) and employee-centric support. The "Building Better Together" slogan strongly implies a collaborative spirit, essential for a globally distributed team.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Global, Distributed Team: Effectively collaborating and maintaining strong design cohesion across multiple time zones and continents requires excellent communication and asynchronous workflow management.

• Domain Complexity: Understanding the intricacies of the construction industry and translating them into user-friendly digital solutions can be challenging but rewarding.

• Balancing Innovation with Legacy: Integrating cutting-edge digital solutions into an industry that may have traditional workflows requires careful navigation and user education.

• Driving Adoption: Ensuring that new digital tools are adopted by users who may be accustomed to older methods requires a strong focus on user experience and demonstrable value.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Advanced UX Methodologies: Deepen expertise in Lean UX, user research techniques, and data analysis for design optimization.

• Design System Expansion: Contribute to and influence the strategic growth of a comprehensive design system used across multiple products and platforms.

• Industry Specialization: Develop deep expertise in the construction and real estate technology (PropTech/ConTech) sector.

• Global Collaboration Skills: Hone skills in managing projects and teams across diverse international environments.

• Leadership Development: Opportunities to mentor junior designers and potentially take on leadership roles within product design or UX management.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges are typical for a senior role in a company driving significant digital transformation in a complex industry. The growth opportunities are substantial, offering paths for both specialized expertise and broader leadership.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "Describe a complex product design challenge you faced and how you navigated it using Lean UX principles. What was the outcome?" (Focus on your process, user research, iteration, and measurable results.)

• "How would you approach designing a new feature for our construction management platform, considering both user needs and business objectives? Walk us through your initial steps." (Demonstrate your understanding of the design process, user research planning, and cross-functional collaboration.)

• "How do you ensure consistency and scalability in design across web and mobile applications, especially when working with a design system?" (Highlight your experience with design systems and your approach to maintaining brand and UX integrity.) Company & Culture Questions:

• "What interests you about RIB Software and our mission to digitize the construction industry?" (Research the company's vision, products, and recent news. Connect your passion for design to their mission.)

• "How do you contribute to a collaborative team environment, especially when working with a globally distributed team?" (Provide examples of your communication, empathy, and teamwork skills in cross-cultural and remote settings.)

• "How do you measure the success of your design work beyond user satisfaction? What key metrics do you focus on?" (Showcase your understanding of business impact and data-driven decision-making.) Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Select Diverse Case Studies: Choose projects that best highlight your skills in web, mobile, user research, Lean UX, and design systems.

• Focus on "Why": For each design decision, explain the reasoning behind it, backed by research or data.

• Quantify Impact: Use metrics to demonstrate the positive outcomes of your designs (e.g., increased user engagement, reduced task completion time, improved conversion rates).

• Articulate Process: Clearly walk through your design process, emphasizing your problem-solving approach and how you iterated based on feedback.

• Language Fluency: Be prepared to present and answer questions fluently in both German and English, demonstrating your professional communication capabilities.

📝 Enhancement Note: Preparation should heavily focus on demonstrating a deep understanding of the user, a structured and iterative design process, and the ability to communicate effectively in both required languages, especially when discussing your portfolio.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Senior Product Designer position:

• Submit your application through the provided Workday link.

• Tailor Your Resume: Highlight your 5+ years of experience, proficiency in Figma, Lean UX expertise, and specific experience with user research, mobile app design, and design systems. Use keywords from the job description.

• Curate Your Portfolio: Select 2-3 strong case studies that showcase end-to-end product design, emphasizing user research, Lean UX application, and measurable impact. Ensure it's easily accessible online.

• Practice Your Presentation: Rehearse presenting your portfolio case studies clearly and concisely in both English and German. Be prepared to answer in-depth questions about your process and decisions.

• Research RIB Software: Familiarize yourself with RIB's mission, products, and recent developments. Understand their role in digitizing the construction industry and how your design skills can contribute to their goals.

⚠️ 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.