Lead Product Designer
First seen by Alion on Aug 18, 2026. Salt scores A on the Alion truth index.
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Lead Product Designer
Ref: JD02982l
Defence and Military
250 - 999 Employees
£110,000.00 per annum
Environment:
Remote
Contract Type:
Permanent
Lead Product Designer | Remote, UK | £110k + 15% bonus + equity | Occasional London travel
We are partnering with a fast-growing technology business operating at the forefront of a genuinely new market. They run a scaled platform connecting a large global user base with the organisations that rely on them, and the quality of that user experience sits at the heart of their product strategy. They are growing their design function and looking for a Lead Designer to help define what comes next.
The role
This is a player-coach position in the truest sense. You will take design ownership of a core product area, shaping the experience for a large and varied global audience, while building and developing a small team of designers around you.
You will start with 2 to 3 direct reports, with the team set to grow to 5 or 6. You will report to the VP of Product and work day-to-day alongside engineers, researchers, and data specialists.
This is not a role for someone who has left hands-on design behind. If you still open Figma every week, care about the quality of what ships, and want to grow a team around your craft, read on.
What you will do
- Own end-to-end design across a core product area serving a large, diverse, global audience
- Design for both consumer-facing products and internal tooling
- Manage and develop a team of 2 to 3 designers, with room to grow
- Lead your own user research and use data and insight to drive design decisions
- Co-own shared design standards, the Design System, and accessibility with other senior designers
- Partner closely with product, engineering, and data teams
What we are looking for
- A strong in-house product design background with a clear record of shipping work alongside PMs and engineers. Purely agency backgrounds are unlikely to be a fit.
- Genuine player-coach experience: you have managed or mentored other designers and kept designing throughout
- Comfort with modern prototyping and AI-assisted design tools
- Experience designing for large or diverse audiences, with a feel for where trust, clarity, and transparency matter most
- The ability to bring structure and simplicity to complex systems
Bonus points
- You have worked through a period of rapid growth at a startup and want that again
- Background or strong interest in data, research, or emerging technology
- You have run your own user research, formally or informally
- You contribute to the wider design or product community
Interested? Get in touch with a CV and portfolio link.
*Rates depend on experience and client requirements