Staff Product Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Staff Product Designer

Company: Linktree

Location: Los Angeles, California, United States / San Francisco, California, United States

Job Type: FULL_TIME

Category: Product Design / User Experience (UX)

Date Posted: 2026-08-06T21:07:28

Experience Level: 10+ years (implied by Staff-level scope)

Remote Status: Fully Remote or Hybrid

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead end-to-end product design for core surfaces, from initial problem framing to shipping high-craft user experiences.

• Drive design excellence and elevate the craft of the broader design team through influence and mentorship.

• Integrate AI tools and methodologies natively into the design process for exploration, prototyping, and final product delivery.

• Collaborate closely with Product Management, Engineering, Research, and Design Systems teams to ensure cohesive and impactful product development.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Staff" title and the emphasis on influencing the broader team strongly indicate a senior-level role requiring significant experience and leadership potential beyond individual contribution. The explicit mention of AI integration suggests this is a core competency and a forward-looking aspect of the role.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Product Ownership & End-to-End Design: Take full ownership of a core product surface or problem area, guiding it from ambiguous problem definition through to polished, shipped product. This includes user research synthesis, ideation, wireframing, prototyping, visual design, and ensuring production fidelity.

• Design Leadership & Mentorship: Act as a design leader within the team, setting high standards for craft and product thinking. Mentor and guide fellow designers, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and shared learning in product design principles.

• Strategic Problem Framing: Define and frame ambiguous problems into clear, actionable design challenges. Utilize strong product judgment to prioritize what is genuinely worth building, aligning design efforts with business objectives and user needs.

• Cross-Functional Partnership: Forge strong, collaborative relationships with Product Managers, Engineers, UX Researchers, and Design System specialists. Ensure seamless integration of design into the product development lifecycle, from conception to launch and iteration.

• AI-Powered Design Practice: Leverage AI tools and capabilities as a baseline for design exploration, rapid prototyping, and refining user interfaces. Contribute to evolving Linktree's design practice by experimenting with and advocating for innovative AI applications in design.

• Systems Thinking & Scalability: Design scalable patterns and solutions that can be applied consistently across various product surfaces and integrated into the existing design system, ensuring a cohesive user experience.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities are structured to reflect the seniority and scope expected of a Staff Product Designer, emphasizing leadership, strategic thinking, and deep integration with AI tools, which is a key differentiator for this role.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While no specific degree is listed, a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Design, HCI, Computer Science, or a related field is typically expected for a Staff-level role. Equivalent practical experience will also be considered.

Experience: 10+ years of progressive experience in product design, with a proven track record of shipping successful consumer-facing products at scale. Experience in the creator economy or with platforms serving creators is a significant plus.

Required Skills:

• Product Design Expertise: Deep understanding of user-centered design principles, product strategy, and the full product development lifecycle.

• Range with a Spike: Demonstrated versatility across interaction design, visual design, and prototyping, coupled with a recognized area of deep expertise (e.g., complex interaction patterns, AI-driven features, platform strategy).

• Staff-Level Scope: Proven ability to operate at a strategic level, influencing product direction, setting design standards, and mentoring other designers.

• AI Integration: Proficient in using AI tools within the design workflow, with the capacity to push the boundaries of AI-assisted design practices.

• Systems Thinking: Ability to design and maintain scalable design systems and understand how individual components contribute to a larger, cohesive user experience.

• Collaboration & Communication: Excellent interpersonal skills for effective collaboration with cross-functional teams (PM, Engineering, Research) and for leading through influence.

• Prototyping & Production Fidelity: Skill in creating high-fidelity prototypes and working closely with engineering to ensure accurate implementation.

Preferred Skills:

• Experience within the creator economy or with platforms serving creators and small businesses.

• Familiarity with data analysis and using insights to inform design decisions.

• Experience with A/B testing and iterating on designs based on performance metrics.

• Strong understanding of platform ecosystems and how to design for them.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Staff-level scope" and "Range with a spike" are key indicators of seniority. The AI integration requirement is highlighted as a baseline and an opportunity for advancement, suggesting candidates should be forward-thinking in their approach to design technology.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• End-to-End Case Studies: Showcase 2-3 comprehensive case studies detailing your process from problem identification to shipped product. Each case study should clearly articulate the challenge, your role, the design process, key decisions, and the measurable impact of your work.

• Demonstration of Range: Include examples that illustrate your versatility across different design disciplines (e.g., interaction design, visual design, prototyping).

• Showcase of Spike: Highlight projects where you leveraged a specific area of expertise to