Lead Product Designer

Interested in working on cutting-edge blockchain technology and creating equitable access to the global financial system? Since 2014, the mission-driven team at the Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) has helped fuel the tremendous growth of the Stellar blockchain network, an open-source platform that operates at high-scale today. Developers and companies around the world build on it, and the SDF team is expanding to support the rapidly growing and changing Stellar ecosystem.

We are looking for a Lead Product Designer to lead design across SDF’s products and to raise the bar on craft for the whole team. This is a player-coach role: you will manage and mentor another designer while remaining a world-class individual contributor on our most important and visible work. You will set the design vision, uphold an exceptional standard of craft, and you are excited to leverage AI tools to multiply what a small design team can deliver — moving faster from concept to high-fidelity, shippable design.

In this role, you will:

In your first 30 days: ramp on our products, design system, and roadmap; partner with PMs and engineers; and start contributing directly to active design work.

Within 90 days: own the design vision for key product areas, establish how the team works (including AI-assisted workflows), and support the growth of the designer you manage.

Set and champion a clear product design vision aligned with company goals and brand values.

Lead by example as our most senior designer — contributing directly to our most important projects with exceptional visual and interaction craft.

Manage, mentor, and grow another product designer; provide thoughtful feedback and career development.

Maintain and scale our design system to ensure consistency and speed across products.

Leverage AI design and prototyping tools to increase the team’s leverage and the quality and velocity of what you ship.

Partner closely with Product and Engineering to ship pixel-perfect, user-centered experiences.

Conduct user research and usability testing to validate decisions, and champion user-centered design across the organization.

You have:

7+ years of product design experience with a strong portfolio of shipped, end-to-end work.

Exceptional visual and interaction design skills and a critical eye for detail.

Experience managing or mentoring other designers (formal management a plus).

Demonstrated use of AI tools to accelerate and elevate design work.

Expert knowledge of modern design tools (Figma, Framer, etc.) and experience building and scaling design systems.

Strong communication; you can present, influence, and align stakeholders at all levels.

A strong understanding of user-centered design, with experience in research and usability testing.

Bonus Points if:

On-chain / crypto / fintech design experience.

You have built or scaled a design team.

You prototype with code or AI tools (Framer, v0, and similar).

Founder or 0→1 experience.

We offer competitive pay with a base salary range for this position of $170,000 - $235,000 depending on job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and location. In addition, we offer lumen-denominated grants along with the following perks and benefits:

USA Benefits/Perks:

Competitive health, dental & vision coverage with most plans covered at 100% for the employee + any dependents

Flexible time off + 15 company holidays including a company-wide holiday break

Generous paid parental leave for all parents, plus paid pregnancy disability leave for birthing parents

Gym reimbursement ($80 per month)

Life & ADD (up to $50K)

Short & Long term disability

401K with 4% match

Health & Dependent Care FSA Accounts

Commuter benefits with $250/month employer contribution

Health Savings Account (HSA) with monthly employer contribution

Family building benefits through Kindbody

Wellbeing benefits (One Medical, Rightway, Headspace)

L&D budget of $1,500/year

Daily lunch and snacks in office

Company retreats

#LI-Hybrid

About Stellar

Stellar is more than a blockchain. Powered by a decentralized, fast, scalable, and uniquely sustainable network made for financial products and services and a thriving and passionate ecosystem that includes a non-profit organization driven by a mission, Stellar is paving the path to unlock the world’s economic potential through blockchain technology. Built with speed and low costs in mind, the Stellar network provides builders and financial institutions worldwide a platform to issue assets, and to send and convert currencies in real time creating real world utility. Founded in 2014, the Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) supports the continued development and growth of the Stellar network and also serves the ecosystem of NGOs, corporations, universities, small businesses, governments, and solo entrepreneurs building on the Stellar network through tooling, funding and strategic collaborations. Together, Stellar is where blockchain meets the real world.

About the Stellar Development Foundation

The Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) is a non-profit organization focused on working with and supporting change-makers to create equitable access to the global financial system through blockchain technology. SDF provides grants, investments, funding, and other awards to builders and organizations. SDF also develops resources and tooling on the Stellar network to help unlock real world utility. As a nonprofit foundation, SDF puts the health of the Stellar network and the Stellar ecosystem and its mission above all else.

We look forward to hearing from you!

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Fair Chance Ordinance

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance , we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

SDF is committed to diversity in its workforce and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. SDF does not make hiring or employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, gender, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, marital status, pregnancy, sex, gender expression or identity, sexual orientation, citizenship, or any other basis protected by applicable local, state or federal law.