Job Description

Senior Director of Product Design

We are looking for a Senior Director of Product Design, who is meticulous and excited about beautiful design and loves to see products ship. As an ideal candidate, you will have an elegant and modern design aesthetic, and are able to distill complex problems and propose clear, efficient, and consistent solutions. Your work will include digital strategy and interaction design across any touchpoint – web, mobile web and app. You follow the latest trends, download the newest apps, experiment with the latest devices. You have the ability to identify consumer insights and needs and look at platforms, communications, and experiences through the lens of the customer in order to make strategic recommendations on how to improve. You have excellent communication skills, energy, and thoughtfulness to design, build and deliver the best in the world for our customers.

What’s the job?

• Work closely with Product Management, and Engineering leaders to create and align on a bold, inspiring vision that supports our user’s needs and delivers on the value of the brand and business goals.
• Manage and develop a team of talented designers, and aid in the recruitment and retention of best-in-class talent.
• Implement efficient UX/UI processes that help the Design team achieve their best possible work as they partner with Product Managers and Engineers.
• Establish and socialize agreed-upon design specifications and standards to ensure that designs are completed on time and adhere to that standard.
• Be a major advocate for both qualitative and quantitative data research and leverage it to create designs that optimize for conversion as well as create new experiences.
• Articulate user experience design issues and solutions effectively across multiple channels. Present and justify design thinking and rationale through key deliverables to peers and stakeholders.
• Ensure smooth, collaborative partnerships between Design, Product, and Engineering at all levels.
• Ensure that the Design team output maintains the highest standard of quality, thoughtfulness and creative production.
• Translate conceptual ideas into compelling experiences and dynamic visual presentations, turning usability findings into design improvements. Be hands-on and lead by example.
• Reinforce a design-thinking culture founded on empathy – understanding how and why an experience or feature succeeds or fails for the customer.

What is expected of me?

• Minimum of 12 years of experience creating truly impressive interfaces, large scale websites and applications.
• 10+ years of experience in interaction and visual design.
• 7+ years of leadership/management experience.
• A strong portfolio across multiple devices and platforms that highlight your approach to problem solving, as well as the solutions themselves. Case studies should demonstrate your skills in research, user experience, visual design, and interaction design.
• Proven ability with both design oversight and hands-on creation of carefully crafted user experiences and visual design deliverables, including user flows, wireframes, typography, color, and information design.
• Proficiency with design software, e.g. Adobe Creative Suite, Sketch, Figma, InVision, Zeplin.
• Excellent communication in speaking and writing, an engaging presentation style, and strong visual storytelling. You have a strong understanding of the HCD process; how to lead it and teach others.
• Entrepreneurial mindset with the ability to build strong data-driven arguments, prioritized with business strategy in mind.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to understand the constraints of a design problem and identify the tradeoffs.
• Ability to think long-term and short-term to meet the constraints of a continuous release process while iterating toward a future vision.
• Power to influence others and build consensus, while dealing with ambiguity.
• Experience building a design system collaboratively from the ground up.
• Experience with CRM or enterprise software.
• Design experience within an ecommerce or marketplace is preferred with a mobile first mentality.

Sponsorship tag select one!

Employment eligibility to work with Rakuten and it's brands in the U.S. is required as the company will not pursue visa sponsorship for these positions.

Rakuten may choose to consider applicants that require some form of company sponsorship to work in the United States at its sole discretion, based on business needs.

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Rakuten is an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on race, color, ethnicity, ancestry, national origin, religion, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, marital status or any legally protected status.

Women, minorities, individuals with disabilities and protected veterans are encouraged to apply.