Role OverviewWe are looking for an experienced and hands-on Head of Design to build and lead PermitFlow's design function.
In this role, you will define how our product looks, feels, and works. You will evolve our design capabilities from a small team into a well-staffed, strategic organization that partners closely with Product, Engineering, and the founding team to ship work that directly moves the business.
You'll be responsible for hiring and developing a team of product and brand designers, defining the company's design strategy and quality standards, and building the systems and processes that enable great design at scale.
This is a player-coach leadership role that requires exceptional craft, strong product judgment, and the ability to operate both strategically and hands-on in a fast-paced startup environment.
What You'll Do- Build and lead PermitFlow's design organization, evolving it into a strategic partner embedded across the business.
- Hire and develop a team of product and brand designers to support stakeholders across Product, Engineering, GTM, Customer Success, Operations, and more.
- Define PermitFlow's design strategy, including design system architecture, quality standards, critique processes, and cross-functional collaboration models.
- Do hands-on design work yourself, particularly on the workflows and product areas that set the quality bar for the rest of the team.
- Own and evolve the design system to ensure consistency, scalability, and coherence across the product as the company grows.
- Establish consistent quality standards and review processes across the organization, ensuring what ships to production matches design intent.
- Partner closely with leadership to drive design quality that directly impacts business metrics, including activation, retention, and customer satisfaction.
- Set the vision for how AI transforms the design function, driving adoption of AI tools and evolving workflows across the team.
What We're Looking For- 8+ years of product design experience, with deep expertise in B2B SaaS. Experience designing complex workflow products with data-dense interfaces and domain-expert users.
- 3+ years of experience leading and managing design teams, ideally in a high-growth startup or technology company.
- Proven experience building design teams and functions from early-stage to scale.
- Exceptional craft across typography, layout, spacing, hierarchy, color, interaction, and polish. Systems thinking, not just good-looking screens.
- Player-coach mentality with the ability to do hands-on design work while simultaneously building and scaling a team.
- Active AI fluency, with AI tools integrated into your daily design workflow. Strong opinions on how AI is changing the way designers work and a track record of evolving your own process accordingly.
- Strong experience standing up design processes, including critique rituals, quality gates, design-eng collaboration, and design system governance.
- Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to partner closely with Product and Engineering leadership and hold your own in strategic and technical conversations.
- Ability to balance strategic thinking with hands-on execution in a fast-moving environment.
What We Offer- Competitive salary and meaningful equity in a high-growth company
- 100% company-paid base medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees + healthcare FSA
- 401(k) savings plan
- Unlimited PTO and paid family leave
- Home office & equipment stipend
- Daily in-office lunch and dinner provided
- Commuter benefits (pre-tax transit and parking)
