VP, Product Design
Who We Are:
Cardinal Financial is a nationwide direct mortgage lender that focuses on creating solutions for our borrowers, partners, and employees—to provide the very best experience. We are genuine and hard-working individuals who are not scared to improve and intentionally push beyond what is considered “good enough.” Looking to join a company that values its people, innovates and expands on its proprietary technology, and is growing at a ridiculous rate?! Apply below!
Who We Need:
The VP, Product Design plays a pivotal role in shaping the future of our software interfaces and experiences. The VP, Product Design will lead and inspire a growing team of Product Designers and UI/UX Designers, working closely with the Chief Product Officer to conceptualize, design, and implement user-centric solutions that solve mortgage business challenges. The ideal candidate will possess strong management skills, a proven ability to coach and mentor, and a robust portfolio showcasing their design acumen.
What You Will Do:
Manage and inspire a distributed team of Product Designers and UI/UX Designers, fostering a collaborative and creative work environment.
Provide guidance, set clear objectives, and ensure the design team's success in delivering high-quality software design solutions for the mortgage industry.
Coach and mentor the product design and UI/UX design teams, elevating their skills and fostering a culture of continuous improvement. Actively contributes to the professional development of team members.
Collaborate with the Chief Product Officer to develop and implement innovative UI/UX strategies for a complex mortgage technology software system with a large and functionally diverse user base.
Lead the creation of design concepts and solutions based on input from key stakeholders, including the Chief Product Officer and business users.
Balance business objectives, user needs, and design principles while proactively seeking approvals from the product team and stakeholders to keep projects moving forward.
Oversee the development of interactive prototypes and actively participate in the iteration process based on feedback from product owners, analysts, and stakeholders.
Stay informed about industry design trends, emerging technologies, and UI best practices to ensure our software remains at the forefront of design excellence.
Work closely with cross-functional teams, including stakeholders, product managers, engineers, and quality assurance, to ensure seamless integration of design solutions into the development process.
Lead and participate in collaborative whiteboard sessions with Chief Product Officer and stakeholders. Must be prepared to jump in and assist with design solutions when necessary.
Collaborate with UX Engineering teams to maintain and extend a robust, token-based design system that ensures consistency across all interfaces and facilitates efficient collaboration within the frontend teams.
Collaborate with our brand design team to ensure UI designs add value to or are compliant with Cardinal’s brand strategy.
Implement and enforce design standards, ensuring the delivery of high-quality, user-friendly products that meet or exceed customer expectations.
Create and maintain design documentation, ensuring that design decisions are well-documented and easily accessible to the engineering teams.
What You Need:
10+ years of experience in UI/UX design, service design, design strategy, or human-centered design required.
7+ years of experience managing a team of designers is required.
7+ years of experience working directly with business leaders and stakeholders to design user interfaces for complex software applications required.
Demonstrated exceptional design acumen through a robust portfolio showcasing design expertise for complex software products.
Very strong UI skillset, including expertise in typography, color theory, spacing, and visual hierarchy.
Expertise in Design Systems and a strong understanding of design system workflows.
Demonstrated leadership experience, including managing remote design teams.
Project management and time management skills are a must. Knowledge of Asana is a plus.
Extensive experience with Figma, including advanced features such as components, variables, and prototyping.
What We Offer:
Strength, Stability, and Vision
Great compensation package
Opportunity for career growth
A commitment to be a relevant market leader - we are aiming for the top!
Octane, our engineered proprietary technology that is transforming the mortgage industry
An empowered culture where your ideas are important and your voice matters
Full Benefits, beginning the first day of the month following your start date, including – Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Disability Insurance, and much more
Generous paid time off package that also includes all major holidays
401K w/ 50% match - Beginning the 1st of the month following 30 days of employment
Cardinal Financial is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We respect and aim to empower individuals and support the diverse cultures, perspectives, skills, and experiences within our workforce. California residents click here to review Cardinal's California Employee Privacy Policy & Notice at Collection. The expected base salary for this position ranges from one hundred seventy five thousand dollars to two hundred eighty thousand dollars, determined based on the applicant's experience, skillset, education, training, certificates, and licenses.
