Staff Product Designer, Internal Tools

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Staff Product Designer, Internal Tools

Company: Facet

Location: United States

Job Type: FULL_TIME

Category: Product Design / Internal Tools

Date Posted: 2026-09-02

Experience Level: 7+ Years

Remote Status: Remote Solely

🚀 Role Summary

• Lead the end-to-end product design lifecycle for Facet's critical internal web-based software tools, focusing on enhancing user experience and operational efficiency.

• Drive user research initiatives to deeply understand the needs of internal teams, particularly financial planners and operations staff, and advocate for their workflows.

• Architect and design intuitive information architecture and complex UI patterns to optimize daily tasks, reduce friction, and increase the capacity of internal users.

• Collaborate closely with Product Management and Engineering to transform legacy systems into streamlined, scalable, and reliable workspaces that support business objectives.

• Integrate AI capabilities into the design process and product solutions to boost designer efficiency and end-user productivity within complex data-intensive environments.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is positioned as a "Staff" level designer, indicating a high degree of autonomy, strategic influence, and ownership over significant product areas. The focus on internal tools for a financial services company suggests a need for deep understanding of complex workflows, data density, and regulatory considerations, even in an internal capacity. The emphasis on "untangling legacy information architecture" and "designing for dense information architecture" points to a need for strong information architecture and systems thinking skills, beyond typical consumer-facing UI polish.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Own the complete product design process for Facet's internal web-based software, from problem definition and information architecture to UI design, prototyping, and successful implementation.

• Translate complex financial planning and operational mental models into clear, intuitive user experiences and robust UI patterns that ensure consistent execution of Facet's unified philosophy.

• Systematically untangle and consolidate fragmented legacy information architecture across multiple internal platforms, creating logical, efficient, and unified workflows.

• Design comprehensive workflow solutions for financial planners and sales teams, focusing on optimizing critical tasks such as meeting scheduling, note capture, message management, and daily task execution.

• Conduct continuous user research with internal teams to validate interaction patterns, identify unmet workflow needs, and champion the needs of power users who rely heavily on these tools daily.

• Design interfaces that clearly communicate system actions and statuses, fostering team confidence in automated processes and reducing reliance on manual workarounds.

• Make pragmatic design decisions, balancing deep UX craft with the need to ship functional, efficient solutions that drive operational efficiency and meet business targets.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a significant focus on process optimization and system-level thinking. The emphasis on "workflow design," "information architecture," and "consolidating fragmented tools" indicates that this role requires a strong operational mindset, aiming to directly impact business unit economics and staff capacity. The requirement to "make pragmatic design decisions" suggests an understanding of trade-offs between ideal UX and business velocity, a common challenge in operations-focused design roles.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

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

Experience: 7+ years of professional product design experience, with a proven track record of shipping software for data-intensive workflows, internal tools, or specialized professional platforms. Experience in the fintech or wealth management sectors is a significant advantage.

Required Skills:

• Expertise in leading the complete product design process, including user research, discovery, journey mapping, information architecture, UI design, and prototyping.

• Demonstrated ability to design for complex, data-intensive workflows and internal professional platforms.

• Strong systems thinking capabilities, with a natural inclination to identify structural patterns, reusable components, and scalable mental models.

• High proficiency in Figma, including experience with design systems – maintaining, extending, and contributing to them.

• Proven experience in user research, user journey mapping, and translating research insights into actionable design solutions.

• Comfort and experience partnering closely with engineering teams to ensure designs are implemented effectively and accurately.

• Ability to articulate and advocate for design decisions to cross-functional peers and stakeholders.

• Experience integrating AI capabilities to enhance designer productivity and end-user efficiency. Preferred Skills:

• Direct experience designing for financial planning, wealth management, or investment operations.

• Familiarity with the regulatory and compliance considerations within the financial services industry.

• Experience in transforming legacy systems and consolidating fragmented tools.

• Understanding of how to design interfaces that clearly communicate system actions and build user trust in automation.

• Experience with A/B testing and other methods for validating design impact on operational metrics.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Staff" title and the 7+ years of experience requirement suggest this role is senior, expected to operate with significant autonomy and influence strategic design decisions for internal tools. The explicit mention of "data intensive workflows, internal tools, or specialized professional platforms" over "pure consumer visual polish" is critical for candidates to understand the specific focus and portfolio requirements. The preference for fintech experience and the requirement to showcase systems thinking are key differentiators for operations-minded designers.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Must showcase strong information architecture, systems thinking, and complex workflow design capabilities.

• Examples should demonstrate how you've tackled systemic problems and designed scalable solutions, not just isolated UI fixes.

• Include case studies that detail the problem framing, research methodologies, design process, and measurable outcomes of your work on internal tools or data-intensive platforms.

• Demonstrate your ability to design for dense information displays and optimize complex daily tasks for professional users.

• Highlight your collaboration with engineering and product management, showing how you navigated technical constraints and stakeholder feedback. Process Documentation:

• Case studies should clearly articulate the process you followed, including:

  • Discovery and User Research: Methods used to understand internal user needs and pain points.

  • Information Architecture: How you structured and organized complex data and functionality.

  • Workflow Design: Detailing the optimization of specific operational tasks and user journeys.

  • Prototyping and Iteration: How you tested and refined designs based on feedback.

  • Implementation and Impact: Documenting the final solution and its effect on efficiency, capacity, or business metrics.

📝 Enhancement Note: The portfolio requirement is highly specific and directly aligns with the operational nature of this role. Candidates must prioritize showcasing their ability to handle complexity, structure information logically, and improve efficiency through design, rather than solely focusing on visual aesthetics. This is a critical filter for candidates applying for operations-adjacent design roles.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: $175,000 - $200,000 base salary per year.

Benefits:

• Competitive Compensation: $175,000 - $200,000 base salary + bonus.

• Ownership: Equity in a rapidly growing company on the path to becoming the "Next Great Financial Services Company."

• Flexibility: Remote-first culture—work from anywhere in the U.S.

• Time Off: Flexible Paid Time Off (PTO).

• Comprehensive Benefits and Perks: Medical, dental, vision, 401(k) match, disability insurance, paid parental leave, wellness reimbursement, and education reimbursement programs.

Working Hours: Standard full-time hours are expected, with flexibility due to the remote-first nature of the role. The role is designed to support operational efficiency, implying a need for consistent availability during core business hours for collaboration, though specific daily schedules may vary.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary range provided is a base salary. The inclusion of a bonus and equity indicates a total compensation package that could exceed the stated base range. The benefits are comprehensive and align with a modern tech company, with specific mentions of wellness and education reimbursement that support continuous learning, crucial for a Staff-level role. The mention of "remote-first culture" and "work from anywhere in the U.S." offers significant flexibility. The estimated "40" working hours is a standard benchmark for full-time roles, but the "flexible" nature of the remote setup implies a focus on output and results over strict time tracking.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Financial Services / Fintech. Facet is redefining the industry by providing holistic financial planning beyond investments, leveraging a "human-plus-tech" approach. This means operations are critical to delivering on their promise of objective, personalized advice at scale.

Company Size: Facet is a rapidly growing company, indicated by its ambition to become the "Next Great Financial Services Company" and its focus on scaling operations. The "Staff" level designer role suggests a maturing product and engineering organization that requires senior talent to tackle complex challenges.

Founded: Facet was founded in 2016. This relatively young company history suggests an agile, innovative, and fast-paced environment where the internal tools are likely still evolving to support rapid growth and new service offerings.

Team Structure:

• The Staff Product Designer will likely be part of a Product team, collaborating closely with Product Managers and Engineers.

• They will work across various internal teams, including Financial Planning, Sales, Support, and Investment Operations, indicating a highly cross-functional role.

• The design team structure is not explicitly detailed, but a Staff Designer typically operates with significant autonomy and may mentor or guide other designers as the team grows. Methodology:

• Data-Driven Operations: The company's success relies on its "human-plus-tech" approach, implying a strong emphasis on data to drive efficiency and member outcomes. Internal tools are designed to support this.

• Process Optimization: A core function of this role is to "untangle complex workflows" and "optimize daily tasks," highlighting a culture focused on continuous improvement and efficiency within operational processes.

• User-Centricity (Internal): While serving external members, the role emphasizes understanding and advocating for internal users (planners, sales, ops), ensuring tools are designed to empower them.

Company Website: https://facet.com/

📝 Enhancement Note: Facet's positioning as a disruptor in financial advisory, combined with its "human-plus-tech" model, means that internal tools are not just support systems but critical enablers of their core service. The focus on operations and efficiency within these tools is paramount to their business model. The company's rapid growth and recognition (USA TODAY, Newsweek) suggest a dynamic, performance-oriented culture.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This is a "Staff" level Product Designer role, signifying a senior individual contributor position. It implies a high degree of autonomy, strategic impact, and the ability to influence product direction for internal tools. The role is expected to tackle complex, systemic problems and lead design efforts without direct reporting lines to a design manager, though collaboration with Product Management is key.

Reporting Structure: The Staff Product Designer will likely report into a Head of Product, VP of Product, or potentially a Head of Design if such a function exists. They will work in close partnership with Product Managers and Engineering Leads for the internal tools they are responsible for. The role demands strong collaboration across various operational departments.

Operations Impact: The work of this designer will directly impact the efficiency, capacity, and productivity of Facet's core operational teams (financial planners, sales, support, investment operations). By improving internal tools, this role contributes to the company's ability to scale its member services, reduce operational costs, enhance employee satisfaction, and ultimately drive business unit economics and member success.

Growth Opportunities:

• Technical & Strategic Depth: Opportunity to become a deep expert in designing for complex financial workflows and internal operations, a highly valuable niche.

• Leadership & Mentorship: As a Staff Designer, there is potential to mentor junior designers, shape design processes, and influence the broader product strategy for internal systems.

• Career Progression: Potential to move into Principal Designer roles, management positions within design or product, or transition into Product Management roles focused on internal platforms.

• Skill Development: Continuous learning in areas like AI integration, advanced information architecture, and user research for professional users.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Staff" designation is crucial. It signifies that this role is not just about executing design tasks but about strategic thinking, problem-solving at a systemic level, and influencing the direction of internal tooling. The growth opportunities lean towards deepening expertise in a specialized area and potentially taking on leadership responsibilities within the product organization.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: Facet operates with a "remote-first" culture. This means the primary work environment is virtual, with an emphasis on asynchronous communication and digital collaboration tools.

Office Location(s): While the role is remote-first, it is specified as "work from anywhere in the U.S." This indicates that while physical office presence isn't required, there might be an established legal or operational presence within the United States for tax and employment purposes.

Workspace Context:

• Digital Collaboration: Expect extensive use of tools like Slack, Zoom, Figma, and project management software for communication, collaboration, and design reviews.

• Autonomy & Flexibility: The remote-first model offers significant autonomy over one's work environment and schedule, balanced by the need to collaborate effectively with distributed teams.

• Operations Focus: The workspace context is geared towards enabling efficient operations; therefore, access to robust digital tools and clear communication channels is essential.

Work Schedule: While specific hours are not detailed, a full-time commitment is expected. Given the remote-first nature and the need to collaborate with teams across the U.S., flexibility in scheduling might be available, but coordination for meetings and urgent tasks will be necessary. The focus will be on output and achieving operational efficiency goals.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "remote-first" and "work from anywhere in the U.S." aspects are key differentiators. This suggests a company that trusts its employees to manage their time and workspace effectively, prioritizing results. For operations professionals, this often means a focus on asynchronous communication and clear documentation to ensure continuity and alignment across distributed teams.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A review of your resume and portfolio, with a strong emphasis on the portfolio's demonstration of information architecture, systems thinking, and complex workflow design for internal tools or data-intensive applications.

• Hiring Manager / Recruiter Call: Discussion about your experience, motivations, and alignment with the role and company culture.

• Design Challenge / Portfolio Presentation: A deeper dive into your portfolio, potentially including a specific design challenge or a presentation of a past project that highlights your approach to solving complex workflow problems. This will assess your ability to articulate your design process, rationale, and impact.

• Cross-Functional Interviews: Meetings with Product Management, Engineering, and potentially representatives from internal teams (e.g., financial planners) to assess collaboration skills, technical understanding, and ability to advocate for internal users.

• Final Interview: Likely with a senior leader (e.g., Head of Product, VP) to discuss strategic thinking, leadership potential, and overall fit.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Prioritize Relevance: Curate your portfolio to prominently feature projects that align with the job description's emphasis on internal tools, complex workflows, data-intensive design, and systems thinking. Consumer-facing polish is secondary.

• Structure for Clarity: For each case study, clearly articulate the problem, your role, the process you followed (research, IA, design, testing), the solutions you implemented, and the measurable impact or outcomes achieved.

• Showcase Systems Thinking: Explicitly call out how you identified and addressed systemic issues, created reusable components, or developed scalable mental models.

• Demonstrate Research & Collaboration: Highlight your user research methods for internal users and how you collaborated with product and engineering.

• Quantify Impact: Where possible, use data and metrics to demonstrate the efficiency gains, capacity increases, or other operational improvements resulting from your designs.

Challenge Preparation:

• Anticipate Workflow Problems: Be prepared to discuss how you would approach redesigning or optimizing a specific complex workflow relevant to financial planning or operations.

• Focus on IA and Systems: If a design challenge is given, consider how you would structure the information and components to be scalable and intuitive for professional users.

• Articulate Trade-offs: Be ready to discuss the pragmatic decisions you would make, balancing ideal UX with technical constraints and business priorities.

• AI Integration: Think about how AI could be leveraged within the proposed solutions to enhance efficiency for both the end-user and the designer.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process heavily emphasizes the portfolio's alignment with the specific requirements of designing complex internal tools. Candidates should tailor their portfolio and preparation to showcase their ability to solve operational challenges through design, not just aesthetic execution. The "Staff" level implies a need to demonstrate strategic thinking and influence.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Design & Prototyping: Figma (highly proficient, including design system management).

• User Research: Tools for conducting interviews, surveys, and usability testing (specific tools not listed, but expect standard industry practices).

• Collaboration & Communication: Slack, Zoom, Google Workspace (Docs, Sheets, Slides).

• Project Management: Tools like Jira, Asana, or similar for tracking design tasks and collaborating with engineering.

Analytics & Reporting:

• While not directly a designer's primary tool, familiarity with how internal tools feed into analytics platforms (e.g., for tracking operational efficiency, user adoption) is beneficial. This might involve understanding data points tracked by tools like Amplitude, Mixpanel, or internal BI dashboards. CRM & Automation:

• CRM Context: Understanding the principles of CRM systems and how internal tools might integrate with or supplement CRM functionalities for sales and planning teams is advantageous.

• Automation Principles: Familiarity with how automation is applied within internal workflows to reduce manual effort and increase efficiency.

📝 Enhancement Note: Figma is explicitly called out as a requirement, and proficiency within design systems is crucial. The role implies working within a tech stack that supports remote collaboration and agile development. While the designer might not directly manage analytics or CRM tools, understanding their role in the broader operational ecosystem is important for context.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Efficiency & Optimization: A core value is driving operational efficiency and continuously optimizing workflows to improve productivity and reduce friction for internal teams.

• Data-Informed Design: Decisions are expected to be grounded in user research, data analysis, and an understanding of business metrics.

• Collaboration & Teamwork: A strong emphasis on working collaboratively with cross-functional peers (Product, Engineering, internal business units) to achieve shared goals.

• Pragmatism & Impact: A value placed on shipping functional solutions that deliver tangible impact, understanding that sometimes "good enough" that ships is better than "perfect" that never does.

• User Advocacy: Championing the needs of internal users, ensuring that tools are designed to empower them and facilitate their success.

Collaboration Style:

• Cross-Functional Integration: Expect to work closely with Product Managers to define requirements and strategy, and with Engineers to ensure feasible and high-quality implementation.

• Open Communication: A culture that likely encourages early sharing of work, constructive feedback, and transparent discussions about challenges and trade-offs.

• Systems-Oriented Discussions: Collaboration will likely involve discussions about information architecture, reusable components, and the broader impact of design decisions on the internal tool ecosystem.

📝 Enhancement Note: The company culture, as inferred from the role description, is one that values impact, efficiency, and collaborative problem-solving. For a Staff Product Designer, this means being comfortable with ambiguity, driving consensus, and making reasoned decisions that move operational objectives forward.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Untangling Legacy Systems: The significant challenge of redesigning and consolidating fragmented legacy information architecture and tools into a cohesive, intuitive system.

• Balancing Complexity & Usability: Designing for dense information and complex workflows while ensuring the interfaces remain intuitive and easy to use for professional users who spend many hours in the tools.

• Driving Adoption of Automation: Designing interfaces that clearly communicate automated processes and build user trust, encouraging a shift from manual habits to efficient, automated workflows.

• Cross-Functional Alignment: Navigating the needs and priorities of various internal departments (planning, sales, ops) to create solutions that serve the broader organization.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Deep Domain Expertise: Gaining in-depth knowledge of the financial planning and wealth management industry from an operational perspective.

• AI Integration Mastery: Developing expertise in applying AI and automation principles within product design to enhance efficiency.

• Strategic Design Leadership: Opportunities to shape the future of internal tooling and influence product strategy at a senior level.

• Mentorship & Skill Sharing: Potential to mentor junior designers and contribute to the growth of the design function within Facet.

📝 Enhancement Note: The primary challenge lies in the complexity of internal tools for a specialized industry. The growth opportunities are centered around developing deep expertise in this niche and progressing into more strategic or leadership-focused design roles.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• "Describe a time you had to untangle complex legacy information architecture. What was your process, and what were the outcomes?"

• "How do you approach designing for dense information displays and complex professional workflows compared to consumer-facing products?"

• "Walk us through a project where you integrated AI or automation into a product to improve user efficiency. What were the challenges and learnings?"

• "How do you prioritize design decisions when faced with technical constraints or conflicting stakeholder needs?" Company & Culture Questions:

• "Based on your understanding of Facet's mission, how would you approach designing internal tools to best support financial planners and members?"

• "What is your experience working in a remote-first environment, and how do you ensure effective collaboration with distributed teams?"

• "How do you advocate for internal users and ensure their needs are met when designing tools that impact multiple departments?" Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Focus on Process & Impact: For each case study, clearly articulate the problem, your specific role, the research and design process, the solutions you implemented, and the measurable impact on efficiency or business outcomes.

• Highlight Systems Thinking: Explicitly call out instances where you identified and solved systemic issues, designed reusable components, or developed scalable mental models.

• Demonstrate IA Skills: Show how you structured complex information and workflows logically and intuitively.

• Quantify Results: Use metrics whenever possible to demonstrate the success of your designs.

• Be Prepared for Deep Dives: Anticipate questions about your design rationale, trade-offs made, and how you collaborated with engineering and product.

📝 Enhancement Note: Interview preparation should heavily focus on demonstrating the candidate's ability to handle complexity, think systemically, and drive operational efficiency through design. The portfolio presentation is a critical component, so candidates must be ready to articulate their process and impact clearly and concisely, with a strong emphasis on the unique demands of internal tooling in a regulated industry.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Staff Product Designer position:

• Submit your resume and a link to your online portfolio through the provided application portal.

• Portfolio Customization: Ensure your portfolio prominently features case studies demonstrating your expertise in information architecture, complex workflow design, and systems thinking, ideally with examples related to internal tools or data-intensive applications. Prioritize projects showcasing your problem-solving approach and measurable impact over purely visual aesthetics.

• Resume Optimization: Tailor your resume to highlight your 7+ years of experience, specific skills in Figma and design systems, and any experience with fintech, wealth management, or internal tools. Use keywords from the job description, such as "information architecture," "workflow design," and "systems thinking."

• Interview Preparation: Practice articulating your design process and the impact of your work. Prepare specific examples that showcase your ability to lead design initiatives, collaborate effectively, and make pragmatic decisions. Be ready to discuss how you would approach the challenges outlined for this role.

• Company Research: Familiarize yourself with Facet's mission, values, and approach to financial advice. Understand how internal tools contribute to their "human-plus-tech" model and their goal of scaling services.

⚠️ 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.