Head of Product Design

🎯 Role Definition

The Head of Product Design is a senior leadership role responsible for the entire user experience and design function within the organization. This individual is both a visionary leader and a dedicated mentor, tasked with shaping the design strategy, growing a world-class team, and fostering a culture of creative excellence. They act as the primary advocate for the user, ensuring that every product decision is grounded in deep customer understanding and empathy. By collaborating closely with executive, product, and engineering counterparts, the Head of Product Design translates business goals into intuitive, engaging, and beautiful product experiences that drive customer satisfaction and market success.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Principal Product Designer
Design Director
Product Design Manager
Lead UX/UI Designer

Advancement To:

VP of Design
Chief Experience Officer (CXO)
Chief Product Officer (CPO)

Lateral Moves:

Head of User Research
Head of Product Management (with relevant experience)

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Define and articulate a clear, compelling design vision and strategy that aligns with overall company objectives and product roadmaps.
Lead, mentor, and scale a high-performing team of product designers, UX researchers, and other design specialists, fostering their professional growth and development.
Establish and govern the company's design system, ensuring consistency, quality, and efficiency across all product interfaces and platforms.
Act as the chief advocate for the user within the organization, embedding a deep understanding of customer needs, behaviors, and motivations into the product development process.
Drive the end-to-end design process for multiple product streams, from initial concept and user research through to high-fidelity prototyping and final implementation.
Collaborate intimately with leadership in Product Management and Engineering to form a cohesive product leadership triad, ensuring design feasibility and strategic alignment.
Present and communicate design strategy, concepts, and key decisions persuasively to executive leadership, stakeholders, and the broader company.
Champion a culture of data-informed design, integrating qualitative user research and quantitative analytics to validate hypotheses and measure impact.
Oversee the allocation of design resources, manage project timelines, and ensure the design team operates effectively to meet ambitious goals.
Conduct regular design reviews and critique sessions to provide actionable feedback, uphold a high bar for quality, and ensure brand consistency.
Stay at the forefront of design trends, emerging technologies, and industry best practices, inspiring the team to innovate and push creative boundaries.
Develop and manage the design department's budget, including tooling, training, and headcount planning.
Recruit, hire, and onboard top-tier design talent, building a diverse and inclusive team that reflects the user base it serves.
Refine and optimize design workflows and operational processes to improve team velocity, collaboration, and the overall quality of design output.
Partner with Marketing and Brand teams to ensure a unified and seamless customer journey across all touchpoints, from first contact to in-product experience.
Facilitate strategic workshops and ideation sessions with cross-functional teams to tackle complex user problems and explore new product opportunities.
Own the user experience for the entire product portfolio, taking ultimate responsibility for usability, accessibility, and overall user satisfaction.
Establish key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics to measure the success and business impact of design initiatives.
Cultivate strong relationships with external partners, agencies, and the broader design community to elevate the company's brand and design reputation.
Navigate ambiguity and provide clear direction to the team during periods of rapid growth, shifting priorities, or strategic pivots.

Secondary Functions

Champion and interpret user research and data analytics to inform strategic design decisions and uncover new opportunities.
Contribute to the overarching product and company strategy, providing a critical design and user-centric perspective to executive planning.
Partner closely with leaders in Product Management, Engineering, and Marketing to ensure a cohesive and effective product development lifecycle.
Oversee and refine the design team's integration into agile ceremonies, ensuring design is a proactive and strategic partner, not a reactive service.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Expertise in UX/UI Design Principles
Design Systems Management & Governance
Advanced Prototyping (Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD)
User Research Methodologies (Qualitative & Quantitative)
Product Strategy & Vision Setting
Information Architecture & Content Strategy
Data-Informed Decision Making & Analytics
Interaction & Motion Design
Accessibility (WCAG) Standards & Best Practices
Agile & Lean Product Development Methodologies

Soft Skills

Visionary & Strategic Leadership
Team Building, Mentorship & Development
Executive-Level Communication & Storytelling
Cross-Functional Influence & Collaboration
Empathetic & User-Centric Mindset
Complex Problem-Solving
Stakeholder Management & Persuasion
High Degree of Emotional Intelligence
Change Management & Organizational Agility
Decisiveness & Accountability

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Bachelor's Degree or equivalent practical experience.

Preferred Education:

Master's Degree in a related field.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Human-Computer Interaction (HCI)
Graphic Design
Cognitive Psychology
Interaction Design

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range: 10-15+ years in product design or user experience.

Preferred: At least 5 years of direct experience in a design leadership capacity, responsible for managing and growing a team of product designers within a technology-driven organization.