Design Lead

Overview

PeopleGrove is a B2B SAAS for higher ed universities to extend career access and advancement to their students and alumni. We are invested in changing the higher education world by reimagining how people find careers and connect with each other. We’re a remote-first startup, seeking an experienced Design Lead located in India.

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Role Description

50% Individual Contributor | 15% People Management | 15% Project Management | 10% Strategy | 10% Research

You will work with a team of product managers, engineers, and a data analyst, and collaborate with leadership, customer success, and marketing to create a delightful product experience.

In this role, you’ll be driving impactful platform enhancements and creative new feature development. You’ll leverage your bias toward action, design expertise, and passion for creating best-in-class products to transform complex problems into engaging designs.

This role encompasses leading a team of four designers, guiding design research and strategy, and acting as an individual contributor. You must be willing to roll up your sleeves and take on the day-to-day design projects required to deliver on your vision.

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3 Reasons You'll Love This Job

• You’ll design creative solutions to complex problems.
• You’ll have a voice and a seat at the table.
• You’ll have a huge impact on the product, and have the potential to change the lives of future leaders across the world.

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Responsibilities

INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTOR: LEAD BY DOING

• Take on and execute design projects alongside your team, working with writers, engineers, and product managers to test, iterate, and bring amazing designs to life. Identify and implement strategic design projects. Be proactive in identifying projects, getting buy in, and driving those projects forward, both on your own and with your team.
• Get your hands dirty and pick up slack on your team’s design projects when needed. Do the work so the project can move forward.
• Model how to do the work when someone is struggling (first me, then we, then you).

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PROJECT MANAGEMENT

• Implement a simple and transparent design process that is consistently utilized to produce high-quality results in collaboration with the broader product and engineering teams.
• Help the design team with project prioritization and planning.
• Communicate design work to product management, other teams, and product leads.
• Encourage and train individual team members to manage their own time.
• Be responsive to change and execute quickly. Proactively communicate when plans change. If something is delayed or blocked, speak up right away.

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PEOPLE MANAGEMENT

• Ensure team members are working on high impact tasks and delivering quality work on time.
• Help team members function independently while still being accountable for deliverables.
• Foster a collaborative, supportive team culture with reasonable work/life balance, where people are able to work on projects that excite them and help them develop their skills.
• Provide feedback and guide team members toward achieving their professional goals and producing world-class product designs.

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STRATEGY

• Craft a vision and roadmap for the design team. Where do we want design at PeopleGrove to be in 6 months? In a year? What larger goals are we working toward? In what unique ways can design help us deliver on our product vision and strategy?
• Monitor new trends and research in design / UX, and assess how we might utilize them.
• Propose solutions to gaps in our current design practices.
• Understand how other functions impact design.

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RESEARCH

• Understand users and clients, their pain-points and goals.
• Dig into data, conduct user surveys and interviews.
• Share out research findings.

BE THE VOICE OF DESIGN

• Share design perspectives and advocate for design.
• Showcase your team’s work to excite the product team.
• Encourage team participation in discussions.

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Skills and Experience

• 1+ years of management experience
• 5+ years of professional experience in human-computer interaction design
• Experience working with software engineering and PM teams
• Enthusiastic quick learner
• Exceptional wireframing and design abilities
• Ability to use metrics and testing to evaluate design solutions
• Strategic thinking
• Mission-oriented
• Adaptability in fast-paced environments
• Proficiency in Figma
• Comfortable with remote work
• Supportive of team growth
• Bachelor's Degree

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Closing

At PeopleGrove, we don’t just accept differences — we celebrate it, we support it, and we thrive on it for the benefit of our employees, our products, and our community. PeopleGrove is proud to be an equal-opportunity workplace.