Sr. Design Technologist, Websites, Amazon Ads Marketing

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Sr. Design Technologist, Websites, Amazon Ads Marketing

Company: Amazon

Location: Seattle, Washington, United States

Job Type: Full-Time

Category: Marketing Operations / Design Technology

Date Posted: 2026-08-14

Experience Level: Mid-Senior Level (4+ years)

Remote Status: On-site

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead UX web flow strategy and architect a universal design system for Amazon Ads' primary digital channels, optimizing advertiser discovery, learning, and action.

• Drive end-to-end ownership of the design system for Adobe Experience Manager (AEM), defining component behaviors, responsive design, and accessibility standards.

• Apply a product design mindset to AEM components, treating each as a product with defined user problems, success metrics, and iteration cycles.

• Compress design-to-production timelines by building production-grade front-end code (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, React) and eliminating handoff bottlenecks.

• Design for dual audiences (human and machine) by incorporating structured data, semantic hierarchy, and GEO principles for enhanced AI/LLM discoverability.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is a hybrid of UX strategy and front-end engineering, focusing on the technical implementation and governance of design systems within AEM for marketing websites. It's less about traditional prototyping and more about strategic ownership and direct technical contribution to production environments.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Own and define the UX web flow strategy for advertising.amazon.com and Amazon Ads Academy, mapping user decision paths and designing conversion-optimized page structures.

• Architect, govern, and evolve the universal design system for AEM, establishing interaction patterns, responsive behaviors, WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility standards, and clear usage guidelines for authoring teams.

• Treat AEM components as individual products: identify user problems, set key performance indicators (KPIs), prototype variations, and drive iterative improvements based on user research and data analytics.

• Significantly reduce design-to-production timelines by developing and delivering production-ready front-end code (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, React) that engineering teams can directly adopt, leveraging tooling and automation to streamline handoffs.

• Ensure pages are structured for both human advertiser engagement and machine discoverability (AI/LLM), utilizing structured data, semantic hierarchy, and GEO principles.

• Lead design quality reviews for vendor partners, facilitate consensus on experience trade-offs, and influence engineering architecture to maintain design fidelity at scale across multiple marketplaces and languages.

• Mentor designers and technologists by defining prototyping workflows, establishing standards and best practices, and building mechanisms to enhance team speed and efficiency.

📝 Enhancement Note: The core responsibility lies in bridging the gap between design and engineering, specifically within the AEM platform, by owning the technical execution and strategic direction of website components and user flows. This involves a high degree of autonomy and direct impact on production systems.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While no specific degree is mandated, a strong foundation in computer science, human-computer interaction, graphic design, or a related field is highly beneficial, often demonstrated through experience and portfolio.

Experience: Minimum of 4 years of progressive experience in front-end technologist roles, UX prototyping, or front-end engineering, with a proven track record of delivering polished, fluid, and engaging user experiences.

Required Skills:

• 4+ years of front-end technologist, engineer, or UX prototyper experience.

• Demonstrated experience developing visually polished, engaging, and highly fluid UX prototypes.

• Proficiency in modern front-end programming languages: HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.

• Experience with front-end JavaScript frameworks, particularly React.

• Proven ability to collaborate effectively with UX designers, Product Managers, and technical partners.

• Experience reviewing user research findings and data analytics to inform strategic and user-friendly design decisions.

• Ability to build production-grade front-end code that engineering teams can adopt directly.

• Familiarity with accessibility standards, specifically WCAG 2.1 AA. Preferred Skills:

• Experience with Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) for component architecture and design system governance.

• Knowledge of databases and AWS database services such as ElasticSearch, Redshift, DynamoDB.

• Familiarity with machine learning (ML) tools and methods.

• Experience with structured data, semantic hierarchy, and GEO principles for SEO and AI discoverability.

• Mentorship experience, including defining workflows, standards, and best practices.

• Experience in the digital advertising or marketing technology space.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on "compressing the gap between a Figma file and a live page from weeks to days" and "eliminating the handoff bottleneck" strongly suggests a need for deep technical expertise in front-end development and a proactive approach to bridging design and engineering workflows, rather than just executing on provided specs.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• An available online portfolio is mandatory, showcasing visually polished, engaging, and highly fluid UX prototypes.

• Include coding samples in front-end programming languages (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, React) demonstrating production-grade quality.

• Showcase examples of design system architecture, component definition, and implementation.

• Highlight case studies demonstrating collaboration with UX, Product, and technical partners on web experiences.

• Present evidence of using user research and data to drive strategic and user-friendly design decisions. Process Documentation:

• Demonstrate experience in defining and documenting component interaction patterns, responsive behaviors, and accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1 AA).

• Provide examples of how you have compressed design-to-production timelines through tooling, automation, or direct code contribution.

• Illustrate your approach to treating components as "small products" with defined user problems, success metrics, and iteration cycles.

• Showcase your methods for ensuring design fidelity and consistency at scale across multiple marketplaces and languages.

📝 Enhancement Note: The portfolio is critical, not just for showcasing design skills, but for demonstrating a deep understanding of front-end implementation, design system governance, and the ability to directly contribute production-ready code. A focus on process efficiency and data-driven iteration is key.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: The base salary range for this position in Seattle, Washington is $154,200 - $208,600 USD annually.

Benefits:

• Comprehensive health insurance package: medical, dental, vision, and prescription coverage.

• Basic Life & AD&D insurance, with options for supplemental life plans.

• Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and Mental Health Support.

• Medical Advice Line.

• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs).

• Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage.

• 401(k) matching program.

• Paid Time Off (PTO).

• Parental Leave.

• Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) as part of the overall compensation package.

Working Hours: Standard full-time work hours are expected, likely around 40 hours per week, with the possibility of extended hours during critical project phases, common in fast-paced tech environments.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range provided is specific to Seattle, WA, and reflects a mid-to-senior level role in a major tech hub. The comprehensive benefits package is standard for large tech organizations like Amazon, with particular emphasis on family support and long-term financial planning. RSUs are a significant component of Amazon's total compensation.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: E-commerce, Cloud Computing, Digital Advertising, Technology. Amazon operates across a vast spectrum of industries, with this role specifically situated within Amazon Ads, a key growth area focused on providing advertising solutions for sellers and vendors on Amazon's platforms.

Company Size: Amazon is a global technology giant with over 1.5 million employees worldwide, indicating a highly structured and resource-rich environment.

Founded: Amazon was founded in 1994, signifying a long history of innovation and market leadership.

Team Structure:

• The Website Experiences team is part of Amazon Ads Marketing, responsible for primary digital channels including advertising.amazon.com and Amazon Ads Academy.

• This role likely involves close collaboration with UX designers, product managers, front-end engineers, content strategists, and marketing stakeholders.

• The team operates with a global scope, managing experiences across 20+ marketplaces and 23 languages, necessitating strong cross-functional and cross-regional communication. Methodology:

• Data-driven decision-making is paramount, with an emphasis on user research, A/B testing, and performance metrics to guide strategy and iteration.

• A strong focus on customer obsession drives the product and experience development process.

• Agility and speed are critical, with a goal to compress design-to-production timelines and iterate rapidly.

• High standards are maintained for quality, design fidelity, and technical execution.

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

📝 Enhancement Note: Amazon's culture is characterized by its "Leadership Principles," which emphasize customer obsession, ownership, bias for action, and continuous learning. This role, by owning components as products and driving rapid iteration, directly aligns with the principles of ownership and bias for action.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This role is classified as a Senior Design Technologist. It sits at a mid-to-senior level, requiring significant individual contribution and technical expertise. It bridges the gap between pure design and pure engineering, offering a unique career path for those with hybrid skills. The responsibilities indicate a significant level of autonomy and influence over strategic decisions regarding website architecture and user experience.

Reporting Structure: While not explicitly stated, a Senior Design Technologist typically reports to a Design Lead, Engineering Manager, or Product Manager within the Website Experiences team. They would be expected to work independently on assigned components and strategies while collaborating closely with their peers and cross-functional partners.

Operations Impact: The impact of this role is substantial. By owning the UX web flow strategy and the universal design system for major Amazon Ads platforms, the Design Technologist directly influences how millions of advertisers interact with Amazon's advertising solutions. This impacts advertiser acquisition, engagement, education, and ultimately, revenue generation for Amazon Ads. Compressing development cycles also leads to faster deployment of new features and improvements, driving business agility.

Growth Opportunities:

• Technical Specialization: Deepen expertise in front-end development, design systems, AEM, and potentially emerging technologies like AI/ML integration into web experiences.

• Leadership & Mentorship: Progress into roles with greater team leadership responsibilities, mentoring junior designers and technologists, and defining team-wide best practices.

• Product Strategy: Move into product management or UX strategy roles, leveraging deep technical understanding to shape the direction of digital advertising experiences.

• Cross-functional Mobility: Transition into roles within core engineering, product management, or specialized UX research teams within Amazon.

• Architectural Influence: Grow to influence broader architectural decisions for web platforms across Amazon.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role offers a distinct career trajectory for individuals with a blend of design and engineering skills. The emphasis on owning components as products and driving end-to-end execution within a large organization like Amazon provides significant opportunities for impactful contributions and career advancement.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: This role is designated as On-site, meaning the individual will be expected to work from an Amazon office location. Amazon offices are typically modern, professional environments designed to foster collaboration and productivity.

Office Location(s): Seattle, Washington, USA. This is a major hub for Amazon, offering a vibrant tech ecosystem and extensive amenities.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Environment: Amazon offices are designed to encourage collaboration, with open-plan areas, meeting rooms, and informal gathering spaces. This role will require frequent interaction with designers, engineers, and product managers.

• Tools and Technology: Employees have access to a robust technology stack, including high-performance workstations, various software tools for design, development, and project management, and comprehensive internal Amazon systems.

• Team Interaction: Expect regular team meetings, design reviews, and cross-functional syncs, facilitating knowledge sharing and problem-solving. The emphasis on compressing timelines suggests a fast-paced, iterative work environment.

Work Schedule: While the core work is expected to be around 40 hours per week, the fast-paced nature of Amazon and the nature of product development often mean flexibility is required, potentially including occasional work outside standard hours to meet project deadlines or respond to urgent issues.

📝 Enhancement Note: The on-site requirement in Seattle suggests a highly collaborative and integrated work environment, typical of major tech companies, where physical proximity facilitates rapid communication and problem-solving, crucial for roles focused on bridging design and engineering.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A recruiter will likely review your resume and portfolio for core qualifications.

• Technical Phone Screen: You may have a call with a hiring manager or team member to discuss your experience, technical skills, and portfolio highlights.

• On-site/Virtual Loop: This typically involves a series of interviews (4-6 sessions) with different team members, including designers, engineers, and product managers.

  • Portfolio Review: A dedicated session where you walk through your online portfolio, discussing your design process, technical implementation, problem-solving approach, and the impact of your work. Be prepared to dive deep into specific projects.
  • Technical Interviews: Questions focused on front-end technologies (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, React), design systems, accessibility, and potentially AEM. Expect coding challenges or system design questions related to component architecture.
  • Behavioral Interviews: Questions assessing your alignment with Amazon's Leadership Principles (e.g., Customer Obsession, Ownership, Bias for Action, Dive Deep, Insist on the Highest Standards). Use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) to structure your answers.
  • UX Strategy/Problem-Solving: Scenarios where you'll be asked to outline your approach to defining UX flows, architecting a design system, or solving a specific web experience challenge.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate Strategically: Select projects that best demonstrate your hybrid skills in design strategy, front-end development, design system ownership, and impact on user experience and production timelines.

• Tell a Story: For each project, clearly articulate the problem, your role, the challenges, your solution (including technical details and design rationale), and the measurable results or impact.

• Highlight Technical Implementation: Specifically call out the front-end code, component architecture, and design system principles you applied. Demonstrate how you bridged design and engineering.

• Showcase Data & Metrics: If possible, include data that shows the impact of your work, such as improved conversion rates, reduced development time, or increased user engagement.

• Be Ready for Deep Dives: Prepare to answer detailed questions about your technical choices, design decisions, and problem-solving process for each project.

Challenge Preparation:

• Front-End Fundamentals: Brush up on core HTML, CSS, and JavaScript concepts, as well as modern frameworks like React. Understand concepts like component-based architecture, state management, and responsive design.

• Design Systems: Be ready to discuss best practices for creating, maintaining, and scaling design systems, including component libraries, style guides, and governance models.

• Accessibility: Thoroughly understand WCAG 2.1 AA standards and how to implement them in front-end code.

• Amazon's Leadership Principles: Study each principle and prepare specific examples from your experience that illustrate how you embody them.

• AEM Knowledge: If you have AEM experience, be prepared to discuss its component model and how you'd manage a design system within it.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process at Amazon is known for its rigor. For this role, demonstrating a clear ability to translate design concepts into production-ready code, manage technical aspects of a design system, and drive efficiency in development cycles will be paramount. Your portfolio is your primary tool to showcase these capabilities.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Front-end Development: HTML, CSS, JavaScript, React.

• Design System Governance: Tools for documenting and managing component libraries, design tokens, and usage guidelines (e.g., Storybook, internal Amazon tools).

• Content Management System (CMS): Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) is explicitly mentioned as the platform for component architecture.

• Prototyping Tools: While not a primary focus, familiarity with tools like Figma, Sketch, or Adobe XD for understanding design inputs is beneficial.

Analytics & Reporting:

• Web Analytics Platforms: Tools like Adobe Analytics, Google Analytics, or internal Amazon analytics systems to track user behavior, conversion rates, and campaign performance.

• Data Visualization Tools: Potentially tools for creating dashboards and reports to communicate insights to stakeholders.

CRM & Automation:

• CRM: While not a direct CRM role, understanding how website experiences integrate with CRM systems for lead generation and customer data management is a plus.

• Automation Tools: Experience with build tools, CI/CD pipelines, and scripting for automating development and deployment processes.

• Cloud Services: Knowledge of AWS services is preferred, particularly those related to databases (ElasticSearch, Redshift, DynamoDB) and potentially content delivery networks (CDNs).

📝 Enhancement Note: Proficiency in React and AEM is crucial. The role also implies a need for understanding data analytics to measure component performance and drive iteration, as well as awareness of cloud infrastructure (AWS) given Amazon's ecosystem.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Customer Obsession: A fundamental Amazon principle. This role translates to deeply understanding advertiser needs and designing/building web experiences that solve their problems and facilitate their success.

• Ownership: Taking full responsibility for components as "small products," from conception through iteration, ensuring their quality and effectiveness.

• Bias for Action: Moving quickly to implement solutions, compress timelines, and iterate based on feedback and data.

• Invent and Simplify: Finding innovative ways to solve complex problems, such as eliminating handoff bottlenecks and designing for dual audiences.

• Insist on the Highest Standards: Maintaining high quality in code, design, accessibility, and performance across all web experiences.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-functional Integration: Highly collaborative, working closely with UX designers, Product Managers, front-end engineers, and potentially marketing and business teams to ensure cohesive experiences.

• Data-Driven Feedback: Utilizing user research and performance metrics to inform design decisions and foster constructive feedback loops.

• Mentorship and Knowledge Sharing: A culture of raising the bar by mentoring colleagues and sharing best practices to improve the entire team's capabilities.

📝 Enhancement Note: The culture emphasizes speed, ownership, and a deep commitment to customer needs, all within a highly structured and data-driven environment. Successful candidates will thrive in a fast-paced setting where they are empowered to make significant technical and strategic contributions.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Balancing Speed and Quality: Compressing design-to-production timelines while maintaining high standards for code quality, accessibility, and user experience.

• Scale and Complexity: Managing a universal design system across 20+ marketplaces and 23 languages, ensuring consistency and performance globally.

• Dual Audience Design: Effectively designing web experiences that cater to both human advertisers and AI/LLM discoverability simultaneously.

• Cross-team Alignment: Driving consensus and maintaining design fidelity across multiple internal teams and external vendor partners.

• Bridging Design and Engineering: Eliminating handoff bottlenecks requires constant communication, clear documentation, and direct technical contribution.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Advanced Front-end Technologies: Deepen expertise in React, modern JavaScript, and potentially newer web development paradigms.

• Design System Architecture: Gain in-depth experience in building and scaling complex, enterprise-level design systems.

• AEM Expertise: Become a subject matter expert in Adobe Experience Manager for component development and content management.

• AI/ML Integration: Explore how AI and Machine Learning can be leveraged for web content optimization and user experience personalization.

• Leadership and Mentorship: Develop skills in leading projects, mentoring junior team members, and influencing broader technical strategy.

• Industry Conferences and Training: Opportunities to attend relevant industry events and pursue certifications to stay current with best practices in web development and design technology.

📝 Enhancement Note: The role presents significant opportunities for growth by tackling complex, large-scale challenges at a leading tech company. The emphasis on innovation and continuous improvement means there's ample scope for skill development and career advancement.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "How would you approach defining the UX web flow strategy for a new advertising product launch on advertising.amazon.com?" (Focus on user journey mapping, conversion path design, and data integration.)

• "Describe your process for architecting and governing a universal design system for a large-scale website like Amazon Ads. How do you ensure adoption and consistency across multiple teams and regions?" (Emphasize component definition, documentation, accessibility, and governance models.)

• "Imagine a key component in our design system is underperforming based on user data. How would you diagnose the issue, propose solutions, and iterate on the component to improve its effectiveness?" (Highlight data analysis, A/B testing, and iterative development.) Company & Culture Questions:

• "Tell me about a time you had to balance competing priorities between design aesthetics and technical feasibility. How did you resolve it?" (Assesses problem-solving and collaboration.)

• "Describe a project where you took complete ownership. What were the challenges, and how did you ensure its success?" (Evaluates the "Ownership" Leadership Principle.)

• "How do you ensure your work aligns with customer needs, even when faced with tight deadlines?" (Tests "Customer Obsession" and "Bias for Action.") Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure for Impact: Organize your portfolio presentation logically, perhaps by project type or by demonstrating a progression of skills. Start with a strong overview of your role and the project's objective.

• Highlight Technical Execution: For each project, explicitly detail the front-end technologies used (HTML, CSS, JS, React), any design system components you built or contributed to, and how you ensured accessibility.

• Quantify Results: Whenever possible, use metrics to demonstrate the impact of your work. This could be conversion rate improvements, reduced page load times, faster development cycles, or positive user feedback.

• Showcase Process: Explain your thought process, the challenges you encountered, and how you overcame them. Demonstrate your ability to iterate and learn.

• Prepare for Deep Dives: Anticipate detailed questions about your code, design decisions, and problem-solving methodologies. Be ready to explain why you made certain choices.

Challenge Preparation:

• Live Coding/Component Building: Be prepared for a practical exercise where you might need to build a small component or solve a front-end problem within a given timeframe.

• Design System Audit/Improvement: You might be asked to critique an existing component or suggest improvements to a design system.

• Scenario-Based Problem Solving: Given a hypothetical web experience problem, outline your approach to solving it from a design technology perspective.

📝 Enhancement Note: Amazon's interview process is rigorous and focused on assessing both technical skills and alignment with their Leadership Principles. For this role, clearly demonstrating your ability to bridge design and engineering, own technical solutions, and drive efficiency will be crucial. Your portfolio and your ability to articulate your process and impact are key.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Sr. Design Technologist position:

• Submit your application through the Amazon Jobs portal.

• Curate Your Portfolio: Ensure your online portfolio prominently features projects that showcase your expertise in front-end development (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, React), design system architecture, AEM implementation, accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1 AA), and quantifiable impact on user experience and development timelines.

• Optimize Your Resume: Tailor your resume to highlight your 4+ years of relevant experience, emphasizing your ability to own UX strategy, architect design systems, and compress design-to-production cycles. Use keywords from the job description such as "Design Technologist," "Front-end Engineering," "Design Systems," "AEM," and "UX Strategy."

• Prepare Your Presentation: Practice walking through your portfolio projects, clearly articulating the problem, your technical and design solutions, and the measurable results. Be ready to discuss your process for treating components as products and driving iteration.

• Research Amazon's Leadership Principles: Study each principle and prepare specific, concrete examples from your professional experience that demonstrate how you embody them, particularly "Customer Obsession," "Ownership," and "Bias for Action."

⚠️ 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.

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