Director of Product Design - Media & Publishing - Onsite - $150,000 to $175,000

In a world of noise, we find the signal — the pulse of potential. We weave the strands of talent, vision, and purpose into organizations that endure. Blending intelligence with intuition, we honor the human art of connection at the heart of every great company.

About the Job

We are partnered with a fast-growing, multi-brand local media company on the search for its Head of Product Design. The company operates beloved city publications and digital properties across several U.S. markets, along with email newsletters, events listings, ticketing, and podcasts, and is expanding into new markets.

This is a hands-on leadership role. The Head of Product Design will own end-to-end user experience (UX) and visual design direction across the company's digital properties: websites, email/marketing templates, and future mobile app work. This leader sets design vision and standards for a multi-brand, multi-market publisher while staying close enough to the work to design a page template, refine an email system, or prototype a mobile concept personally.

The role partners with editorial, membership, advertising, and product leaders to ensure design serves both readers and the business, works directly with engineering to ship designs, and engages at the C-suite level to establish design as a company-wide priority.

The Mandate

This organization is clear about what it is—and is not—seeking.

They are not looking for a design manager who directs from a distance, or a visual stylist who hands off mockups and moves on.

They are seeking a technical design leader: someone who can build a cohesive design language across multiple brands while preserving each publication's voice, stand up the design system that lets a small team ship consistent work, and partner with engineers through the implementation constraints that get designs into production.

Key Responsibilities

• Define and own the UX/visual design vision for the company's digital properties, building a cohesive design language that flexes across brands while preserving each publication's voice
• Own end-to-end website design, including information architecture, interaction, visual design, and responsive behavior, from concept to shipped experience
• Design and maintain the system for email templates and marketing formats (newsletters, membership, ticketing, promotions), ensuring consistency and deliverability across markets
• Lead early-stage design exploration for future mobile app initiatives, from concept through user testing
• Build and maintain a scalable design system and component library so a small team can ship consistent, on-brand work across properties
• Partner with engineering to translate designs into shipped product, and with product, editorial, membership, and advertising leaders to align design with business goals like growth, conversion, and retention
• Conduct or commission user research and usability testing to validate and iterate on design decisions
• Establish and maintain accessibility, usability, and brand standards across all digital touchpoints
• Build the case for growing a design function over time, then hire, mentor, and manage that team as it is approved

Ideal Profile

• 7+ years of UX/product design experience, including owning end-to-end design for a consumer-facing product at scale
• A strong portfolio spanning web and email/marketing design, ideally with early-stage mobile app work
• Experience building or evolving a design system used across multiple products or brands
• Experience partnering directly with engineers from concept to shipped product, with fluency in implementation constraints
• Strong communication skills, including presenting and defending design decisions to executive leadership
• Experience conducting or commissioning user research to inform design decisions
• Comfort with autonomy in a lean, fast-moving organization, equally strategic and hands-on
• Preferred: experience designing for media, publishing, membership/subscription, or email marketing at scale
• Preferred: experience designing across multiple brands or a multi-tenant design system
• Preferred: people management experience, or a track record of building the case for a team before it exists
• Preferred: experience as a sole/first design hire, standing up process and craft standards from scratch
• Preferred: familiarity with WCAG accessibility standards and email rendering constraints across clients

Location & Work Model

Seattle, WA preferred; open to candidates outside Seattle

Compensation

Base salary: $150,000 - $175,000

Interested?

This search is being conducted with a high degree of discretion.

If this role aligns with your background—or you know a design leader you deeply respect who fits this profile—we welcome a confidential conversation.

Equal Opportunity & Non-Discrimination Statement
Signal and Strand is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We—and our clients—do not discriminate in employment or contracting on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, ancestry, age, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, registered domestic partner status, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected under applicable federal, state, or local laws.

We comply fully with the provisions of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA). All employment decisions are made based on qualifications, merit, and business needs. We are committed to providing a workplace that is inclusive, respectful, and free from discrimination, harassment, and retaliation.