Senior UX Designer, Advertising Platform

Google
Full-time$159k-231k/year (USD)San Francisco, United States

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Senior UX Designer, Advertising Platform

Company: Google

Location: San Francisco, California, United States

Job Type: Full-Time

Category: UX Design / Product Design

Date Posted: May 06, 2026

Experience Level: 6+ Years

Remote Status: On-site

🚀 Role Summary

  • Design and refine intuitive user experiences for Google's automated advertising systems, focusing on advertiser trust and business growth.

  • Collaborate closely with product managers, engineers, and cross-functional stakeholders to translate complex requirements into user-centered design solutions.

  • Develop comprehensive UX artifacts including user flows, wireframes, mockups, and high-fidelity prototypes to communicate design concepts effectively.

  • Champion design-centric improvements, advocating for user needs and business objectives throughout the product development lifecycle.

  • Leverage user insights and design expertise to evolve the Google design language and create industry-leading advertising platform experiences.

📝 Enhancement Note: While the job title is "Senior UX Designer," the responsibilities and preferred qualifications indicate a strong focus on product strategy, system-level thinking, and stakeholder influence, aligning closely with senior roles in product design and GTM operations strategy for platform products. The emphasis on "automation for advertising campaigns" and "AI-powered systems" suggests a need for understanding complex operational workflows and user trust in automated environments.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

  • Partner with Product Management and Engineering teams to define product requirements and translate them into user-centered design solutions for advertising platforms.

  • Craft detailed user flows, wireframes, storyboards, mockups, and high-fidelity prototypes to articulate design concepts and user journeys across complex advertising systems.

  • Conduct user research, synthesize feedback, and integrate findings into iterative product experience updates, ensuring alignment with advertiser needs and business goals.

  • Advocate for design-centered changes and improvements, influencing product strategy and driving consensus among senior stakeholders in a cross-functional environment.

  • Contribute to the evolution of Google's design language, ensuring consistency and a refined, magical user experience across all advertising and commerce products.

  • Design for AI-powered systems and automation, prioritizing the building of user trust and confidence for critical investment decisions.

  • Map user journeys across multiple surfaces and design scalable frameworks suitable for an enterprise advertising environment.

📝 Enhancement Note: The primary responsibilities highlight a deep involvement in the entire product development lifecycle, from conceptualization to execution. The emphasis on "automation for advertising campaigns" and "AI-powered systems" for an "enterprise environment" suggests a need for strong analytical skills and the ability to design for complex operational workflows.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education:

Experience:

  • Minimum of 6 years of professional experience in interaction design, product design, or UX design, with a proven track record of delivering successful user experiences.

  • Experience designing for advertising platforms, financial tools, or other complex enterprise products.

Required Skills:

  • Interaction Design: Deep understanding of interaction design principles and methodologies to create intuitive and effective user interfaces.

  • Product Design: Proven ability to translate user needs and business requirements into comprehensive product designs.

  • UX Design: Extensive experience in user experience research, design thinking, and user-centered design processes.

  • Automation Experience: Specific experience with automation for advertising campaigns, understanding the workflows and user needs involved.

  • Portfolio: A compelling portfolio showcasing design work, including interaction design, product design, and UX design projects, with a link provided in the resume. This should demonstrate problem-solving abilities and design rationale.

Preferred Skills:

  • System-Level Thinking: Ability to think holistically about user journeys across multiple surfaces and design scalable frameworks for enterprise environments.

  • Stakeholder Management: Experience influencing product strategy and building consensus with senior stakeholders in a collaborative, cross-functional organization.

  • Storytelling & Facilitation: Excellent communication skills, with a demonstrated ability to use storytelling and facilitation techniques to articulate design ideas and drive alignment.

  • Enterprise Product Design: Experience designing complex, robust solutions for enterprise-level applications and platforms.

  • AI/Agentic Systems Design: Specific experience in designing user interfaces for AI-powered systems, with a focus on building user trust and transparency.

  • User Research Integration: Ability to effectively integrate user feedback and research findings into the design process.

  • Wireframing & Prototyping: Proficiency in creating detailed wireframes, flow diagrams, storyboards, mockups, and high-fidelity prototypes.

📝 Enhancement Note: The preferred qualifications, particularly "Ability to think at a system level, mapping user journeys across multiple surfaces, and designing scalable frameworks for an enterprise environment," strongly suggest a need for candidates who can think strategically about the operational impact of design decisions on a large scale. This aligns with the demands of revenue or sales operations roles that focus on optimizing complex workflows.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

  • Demonstrated Impact: Showcase projects that clearly illustrate how your design solutions solved complex problems and achieved measurable business outcomes, particularly in advertising or enterprise contexts.

  • Process Documentation: Include case studies that detail your design process, from initial research and problem definition through ideation, iteration, and final implementation. Highlight your approach to understanding user needs and business requirements.

  • System-Level Design Examples: Provide examples of projects where you designed for complex systems, mapped user journeys across multiple touchpoints, or developed scalable frameworks.

  • Automation & AI Focus: If possible, include projects that demonstrate experience with designing for automation, AI-powered systems, or advertising campaign management, highlighting how you built user trust.

Process Documentation:

  • Workflow Design: Detail your methods for analyzing existing workflows, identifying pain points within advertising campaign management or enterprise systems, and designing optimized user flows.

  • System Integration: Explain how you considered the integration of your designs with existing backend systems, data pipelines, and automation tools.

  • User Feedback Loops: Describe your strategies for establishing and utilizing user feedback loops to refine designs and ensure continuous improvement in product performance and user satisfaction.

📝 Enhancement Note: Given the emphasis on complex advertising systems and automation, portfolio requirements should focus on demonstrating an understanding of operational workflows, system-level thinking, and the ability to design for efficiency and trust in automated environments. Candidates should be prepared to showcase how their designs impact business operations and revenue generation.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range:

  • US Base Salary: $159,000 - $231,000 per year.

  • Explanation: This range is provided for the San Francisco, California location and is determined by factors including role, level, job-related skills, experience, and education. Individual pay will be influenced by the specific work location and other relevant qualifications.

Benefits:

  • Bonus: Performance-based bonus opportunities.

  • Equity: Stock options or grants as part of the overall compensation package.

  • Comprehensive Benefits: Includes health insurance (medical, dental, vision), retirement savings plans (e.g., 401k), paid time off, parental leave, and other employee wellness programs.

  • Professional Development: Opportunities for continuous learning, training, and career advancement.

Working Hours:

  • Standard: This is a full-time position, typically requiring approximately 40 hours per week.

  • Flexibility: While the role is on-site, Google often offers some level of flexibility in daily schedules, allowing for effective management of design processes and collaboration.

📝 Enhancement Note: The provided salary range is a strong indicator of a senior-level role within a major tech company like Google. The inclusion of bonus and equity signifies a performance-driven compensation structure common for roles that directly impact business outcomes, such as those in operations or product strategy. The benefits package is competitive and designed to support employee well-being and professional growth.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Technology / Internet Services / Advertising Technology. Google operates at the forefront of digital advertising, providing platforms and tools that connect businesses with consumers worldwide. The company is a key player in search, cloud computing, AI, and consumer hardware.

Company Size: Extremely Large (Over 10,000 employees). Google's vast scale means significant resources, complex organizational structures, and a global impact. This size offers opportunities for immense learning and career progression but also requires navigating large-scale processes.

Founded: September 4, 1998. With decades of innovation, Google has a deeply ingrained culture of rapid iteration, data-driven decision-making, and a commitment to pushing technological boundaries.

Team Structure:

  • Multi-disciplinary UX Team: You will join a team composed of UX designers, researchers, and potentially other specialists, working collaboratively within a larger product area.

  • Cross-functional Collaboration: The role is highly collaborative, requiring close partnership with Product Managers, Engineers, UX Researchers, Marketing teams, and potentially Sales/Operations representatives.

  • Reporting: Senior UX Designers typically report to a UX Manager or Director, with a dotted line to Product Management leads for specific project alignment.

Methodology:

  • User-Centered Design: Google's core philosophy, "Focus on the user and all else will follow," permeates all design processes.

  • Data-Driven Insights: Decisions are heavily influenced by user research, A/B testing, and performance analytics.

  • Iterative Development: Products are continuously refined through agile methodologies, incorporating feedback and adapting to user needs and market changes.

  • Scalable Frameworks: Emphasis on creating design systems and frameworks that can be applied consistently across a broad range of products and user segments.

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

📝 Enhancement Note: Google's culture emphasizes innovation, data, and user focus. For an operations-adjacent role like this Senior UX Designer, understanding how design impacts user adoption, efficiency, and trust within complex advertising systems is crucial. The cross-functional nature means strong collaboration skills are paramount.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: Senior-Level UX Designer. This role is beyond entry-level or mid-level, requiring significant autonomy, strategic thinking, and the ability to mentor junior designers. It signifies a level where influencing product strategy and driving complex design initiatives is expected.

Reporting Structure: Typically reports to a UX Lead or Director within the Advertising and Commerce division. Close collaboration with Product Management and Engineering leads for day-to-day project execution.

Operations Impact: The role directly impacts the effectiveness and usability of Google's automated advertising systems. By improving advertiser trust, efficiency, and the ability to make informed investment decisions, this design work has a direct correlation to advertiser retention, campaign performance, and ultimately, Google's advertising revenue. Designing for trust in AI and automation is critical for scaling these revenue-generating platforms.

Growth Opportunities:

  • Leadership in Design: Potential to become a Design Lead or Principal Designer, taking ownership of larger product areas or strategic design initiatives.

  • Specialization: Deepen expertise in AI-driven design, automation interfaces, or enterprise-level platform design.

  • Cross-Functional Movement: Opportunities to move into Product Management or other strategic roles within Google, leveraging design thinking and user advocacy skills.

  • Mentorship: Opportunities to mentor junior designers, contributing to the growth of the UX team.

  • Impact on Core Products: Influence the user experience of products used by millions of advertisers globally, directly impacting business operations and revenue.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role offers a significant growth trajectory, moving beyond pure design execution to strategic influence. The emphasis on "advertising platforms," "automation," and "AI" positions this as a critical role for the revenue-generating arms of Google, providing ample opportunity to impact business outcomes and build a career in product strategy and operations.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Primarily on-site within Google's modern office campuses. These environments are designed to foster collaboration, innovation, and employee well-being.

Office Location(s): San Francisco, California, with potential access to other Google offices globally. The San Francisco office is a hub for many of Google's product development teams.

Workspace Context:

  • Collaborative Spaces: Open-plan areas, dedicated project rooms, and meeting spaces designed for team collaboration and brainstorming sessions.

  • Tools & Technology: Access to state-of-the-art design software, hardware, and internal tools developed by Google to enhance productivity and creativity.

  • Team Interaction: Frequent opportunities for informal and formal interactions with designers, engineers, product managers, and researchers, fostering a dynamic and intellectually stimulating environment.

Work Schedule:

  • Full-Time: Standard 40-hour work week.

  • Flexibility: While on-site, employees often have flexibility in their daily schedules to balance work and personal life, facilitating focus time for deep design work and collaborative sessions.

📝 Enhancement Note: The on-site requirement in a major tech hub like San Francisco suggests an environment rich in talent and innovation. The emphasis on collaboration and access to advanced tools is typical for top-tier tech companies and is conducive to complex problem-solving required in enterprise UX design.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

  • Initial Screening: A recruiter will review your application and resume, focusing on alignment with minimum and preferred qualifications, especially your experience with automation and advertising platforms.

  • Portfolio Review & Initial Interview: You will likely have an interview with a UX Manager or Senior Designer. This stage will heavily involve a review of your portfolio, focusing on your design process, problem-solving skills, and ability to articulate your work. Expect questions about your experience with automation, system-level design, and stakeholder management.

  • Design Challenge/Case Study: You may be given a design challenge (take-home or in-session) or asked to present a detailed case study from your portfolio. This will assess your ability to apply design thinking to a specific problem, your process, and your communication skills.

  • Cross-functional Interviews: Interviews with Product Managers and Engineers to assess collaboration style, technical understanding, and ability to integrate design with development.

  • Behavioral & Cultural Fit Interviews: Interviews with senior team members to evaluate leadership potential, communication style, problem-solving approach, and alignment with Google's values.

Portfolio Review Tips:

  • Curate Strategically: Select 3-5 of your strongest projects that best demonstrate the required skills, particularly those involving automation, enterprise platforms, or complex systems.

  • Tell a Story: For each project, clearly articulate the problem, your role, the process you followed (research, ideation, iteration), your design decisions and rationale, and the impact/outcomes. Use visuals effectively.

  • Highlight Operations Relevance: Emphasize how your designs addressed operational challenges, improved efficiency, built trust in automated systems, or supported business growth. Quantify impact where possible.

  • Showcase System Thinking: If you have examples of mapping complex user journeys or designing scalable frameworks, ensure these are prominent.

  • Prepare for Deep Dives: Be ready to discuss your design decisions in detail and answer questions about trade-offs, constraints, and alternative approaches.

Challenge Preparation:

  • Understand the Brief: Carefully analyze any design challenge prompt, identifying the core problem, target users, and any constraints.

  • Focus on Process: Even if time is limited, demonstrate a clear, user-centered design process. Prioritize key user flows and critical interactions.

  • Articulate Trade-offs: Be prepared to explain why you made certain design choices, especially when balancing user needs with business goals or technical feasibility.

  • Practice Presentation: Rehearse your presentation to ensure clarity, conciseness, and confidence.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process at Google is rigorous and designed to assess a wide range of skills. For this role, emphasis will be placed on understanding complex systems, designing for automation and trust, and influencing stakeholders, all critical aspects for roles that intersect with revenue and sales operations.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

  • Design Software: Figma, Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, Photoshop), InVision (for prototyping and collaboration).

  • Prototyping Tools: Figma, ProtoPie, Framer, or similar tools for creating interactive prototypes.

  • Wireframing Tools: Balsamiq, Axure RP, or the wireframing capabilities within Figma/Sketch.

Analytics & Reporting:

  • User Research Platforms: Tools for conducting user interviews, usability testing, and surveys (e.g., UserTesting.com, Qualtrics, SurveyMonkey).

  • Data Analysis Tools: Familiarity with how to interpret data from analytics platforms (e.g., Google Analytics, internal dashboards) to inform design decisions.

  • A/B Testing Tools: Understanding the principles and common tools used for A/B testing to optimize user experiences.

CRM & Automation:

  • Advertising Platforms: Deep familiarity with Google Ads, Google Ad Manager, or similar advertising platforms is highly preferred. Understanding the operational workflows within these platforms is key.

  • Automation Concepts: Familiarity with concepts related to marketing automation, campaign management workflows, and AI-driven decision support systems.

  • Collaboration Tools: Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Slides, Meet), Jira, Confluence for project management and documentation.

📝 Enhancement Note: Proficiency in industry-standard design tools is expected. However, for this role, an understanding of how design interfaces with complex advertising technology stacks, automation tools, and CRM systems is crucial. The ability to interpret data and contribute to A/B testing efforts will also be highly valued, reflecting a data-driven approach common in operations roles.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

  • User Focus: A deep commitment to understanding and serving the needs of advertisers, ensuring they can effectively manage their businesses and grow.

  • Data-Driven Decision Making: Reliance on data, research, and experimentation to inform design choices and measure impact.

  • Innovation & Iteration: A culture that encourages experimentation, learning from failures, and continuous improvement of products and processes.

  • Collaboration & Inclusivity: Valuing diverse perspectives, fostering open communication, and working together to achieve shared goals.

  • Impact & Accountability: A focus on delivering meaningful results and taking ownership of outcomes that drive business success.

Collaboration Style:

  • Cross-functional Partnership: Designers are expected to work seamlessly with Engineering and Product Management, acting as bridges between user needs and technical feasibility.

  • Open Communication: Encouraging candid feedback, constructive critique, and transparent sharing of ideas and challenges.

  • Agile & Adaptive: Working in an agile manner, being responsive to changing priorities and market dynamics, and adapting design strategies accordingly.

  • Knowledge Sharing: A culture of sharing best practices, design patterns, and insights across teams to elevate the overall design quality and efficiency.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on data-driven decisions, collaboration, and impact aligns closely with the core tenets of effective Revenue Operations and Sales Operations. A candidate who embodies these values will likely thrive in this role and contribute to the operational success of the advertising platform.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

  • Designing for Trust in AI: Creating interfaces for AI-powered advertising systems that users can understand, trust, and effectively control, especially when significant financial decisions are involved.

  • Complexity of Advertising Systems: Navigating the intricate workflows, terminology, and vast feature sets of enterprise-level advertising platforms.

  • Balancing Stakeholder Needs: Effectively managing the diverse and sometimes conflicting requirements of users (advertisers), product managers, engineers, and business stakeholders.

  • Scaling Design: Developing design solutions that are scalable across a broad product portfolio and can adapt to evolving advertising technologies and market trends.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

  • Advanced AI/ML Design: Deepen expertise in designing for cutting-edge AI and machine learning applications within advertising.

  • Enterprise Platform Strategy: Gain insights into strategic product development for large-scale enterprise software.

  • Cross-functional Leadership: Develop skills in influencing product strategy, managing stakeholders, and leading design initiatives in a highly collaborative environment.

  • Industry Conferences & Training: Access to Google's resources for professional development, including conferences, workshops, and internal training programs focused on design, technology, and business strategy.

  • Mentorship Programs: Opportunities for both receiving mentorship from senior leaders and providing mentorship to junior designers.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges presented are typical for senior roles in complex tech environments and directly relate to areas that operations professionals often address: managing complexity, building trust in automated processes, and scaling solutions. The growth opportunities are substantial, offering pathways into leadership and specialized areas critical for GTM strategy.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

  • "Describe a time you had to design for a complex, automated system. How did you ensure user trust and understanding?" (Focus on your process, risk mitigation, and how you simplified complexity.)

  • "How would you approach designing a new feature for an advertising platform that aims to increase advertiser ROI? What data would you look for, and what would be your initial design steps?" (Demonstrate strategic thinking, data literacy, and a user-centered approach.)

Company & Culture Questions:

  • "What do you know about Google's approach to advertising and user experience?" (Research Google's mission, values, and recent product announcements in advertising.)

  • "How do you see your design philosophy aligning with Google's 'Focus on the user and all else will follow' principle?" (Connect your personal design values to Google's core tenets.)

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

  • Structure Your Narrative: For each case study, start with the "Why" (problem/opportunity), move to the "What" (your solution), and conclude with the "How" (your process and impact).

  • Quantify Impact: Whenever possible, use metrics to demonstrate the success of your designs (e.g., increased conversion rates, reduced error rates, improved user satisfaction scores).

  • Showcase System Thinking: If applicable, use diagrams or flowcharts to illustrate how your design fits into the larger system or user journey.

  • Be Prepared for Deep Dives: Anticipate detailed questions about your design decisions, trade-offs, and alternative solutions. Be ready to discuss the "messy middle" of the design process.

📝 Enhancement Note: Interview preparation should focus on demonstrating a strategic mindset, a deep understanding of user-centered design principles applied to complex, automated systems, and strong collaboration and communication skills. Highlighting experience with advertising platforms and the ability to drive business impact will be key differentiators.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Senior UX Designer position:

  • Submit your application through the official Google Careers portal, ensuring your resume includes a viewable link to your portfolio.

  • Portfolio Customization: Tailor your portfolio to highlight projects demonstrating experience with automation, advertising platforms, enterprise products, and system-level design. Focus on case studies that showcase your process and quantifiable impact.

  • Resume Optimization: Clearly articulate your 6+ years of relevant experience, specifically mentioning "automation for advertising campaigns," "AI-powered systems," and "enterprise product design." Use keywords from the job description.

  • Interview Preparation: Practice articulating your design process, explaining complex design decisions, and discussing how your work drives business outcomes. Prepare to present a detailed case study from your portfolio.

  • Company Research: Thoroughly research Google's Advertising and Commerce products, their design philosophy, and their approach to AI and automation. Understand the competitive landscape and Google's unique value proposition.

⚠️ Important Notice: This enhanced job description includes AI-generated insights and operations industry-standard assumptions. All details should be verified directly with the hiring organization before making application decisions.


Application Requirements

Requires a bachelor's degree and at least 6 years of interaction or UX design experience, specifically with advertising campaign automation. Preferred candidates have experience with AI-powered systems, enterprise products, and the ability to influence product strategy.