Senior Design Engineer

Relay Financial

$110K — $130K *
Consumer Technology
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 5-7 years of experience in front-end development with a strong emphasis on UI/UX
  • Proficiency in React, JavaScript (TypeScript), HTML, and modern CSS
  • Experience in a collaborative engineering environment, using Git for version control
  • Demonstrated ability to critique designs and improve components effectively
  • Commitment to high-quality standards and attention to detail
  • Curiosity and basic understanding of AI tooling and its application in product development

Responsibilities

  • Set a high standard for front-end quality and systematically improve UI and UX debt
  • Lead UI implementation for new features from concept to launch within product teams
  • Manage and evolve the company’s design system for consistency and scalability
  • Promote accessibility and performance as fundamental requirements in product development
  • Collaborate closely with designers to enhance the workflow between design and implementation
  • Create reusable components and maintain documentation to streamline development across teams
  • Develop infrastructure that supports AI-accelerated product development

Benefits

  • Competitive salary and meaningful equity for all employees
  • Comprehensive health benefits from day one without probationary periods
  • 15 vacation days plus 5 flex days and an additional week of office closure for the holidays
  • 12 weeks parental leave with a full salary top-up for all parents
  • Hybrid work environment with in-office collaboration three days a week
  • Access to top-tier equipment for optimal work conditions
  • Opportunities for personal and professional growth through mentorship and feedback
  • Strong emphasis on social connection through company events and networking opportunities
Full Job Description
What You'll Be Doing
  • Set a high bar of quality across the product by owning the front-end. Identify and systematically reduce UI and UX debt, improve implementation patterns, and raise the overall level of craft across the application.
  • Embed within product teams to lead UI implementation for new features from concept through launch. Partner closely with product managers, designers, and engineers to ensure shipped experiences meet a high standard for quality, usability, and polish.
  • Own and evolve Telegraph, our design system. Define and maintain component APIs, composition patterns, interaction standards, and documentation that enable teams to build consistent, scalable interfaces efficiently.
  • Champion accessibility and performance as core product requirements. Ship experiences that are fast, resilient, and accessible by default through semantic implementation, keyboard support, focus management, testing, and ongoing performance optimization.
  • Partner closely with designers throughout the product development process. Work collaboratively in code and design tooling to iterate on concepts, refine interactions, and reduce the gap between design and implementation. Help evolve a workflow that replaces traditional handoffs with continuous collaboration.
  • Create leverage for the broader organization by translating intent into scalable implementation: reusable components, guidelines, sandboxes/playgrounds, and "how to use it" documentation that reduces drift.
  • Build the infrastructure and workflows that support AI-accelerated product development. Some areas we're currently exploring include: automating QA and code review processes, connecting design and engineering tools, and setting up prototyping templates.


Who You Are
  • You're well-versed in React, JavaScript (TypeScript), HTML, and modern CSS
  • You work in a real engineering environment. You're comfortable using Git, writing PRs, reviewing code, and contributing directly to a shared codebase
  • You can identify what's wrong (or right) with a design or component, articulate the specific reason why, and know how it could be improved
  • You have strong opinions about craft, you hold yourself to a high bar, and your portfolio or GitHub shows it. You sweat the details and truly care about the last 10% that makes great software
  • You prioritize speed, reusability, accessibility, cross-browser support, functional motion as you build, not as an afterthought
  • You have genuine curiosity about AI tooling and a grounded enough understanding of how these tools work to build with them

Bonus points if:
  • You have experience with motion or animation work (motion/react, GSAP, or vanilla CSS animations)
  • You've owned or made meaningful contributions to a React component design system (components in code, not just Figma libraries)


The Interview Process:
  • Stage 1: A30-minute Google Meet call with a member of the People team
  • Stage 2: A 60-minute Hiring Manager interview (Design Engineering Discussion & Work Showcase - we want to see something cool you've built!)
  • Stage 3: A 60-minute technical interview (React component critique and improvement session)
  • Stage 4: A 45-minute live front end coding challenge (working on a React component problem in real-time)
  • Stage 5: A 45-minute virtual interview with a member of Relay's executive team


We encourage you to have a conversation with your recruiter and ask questions about compensation throughout the hiring process. For more information on our compensation philosophy and perks and benefits, visit our Candidate Hub.

Our Commitment To You:
  • Competitive salary and meaningful equity: Relay employees are Relay owners, complete with equity and a competitive salary.
  • Comprehensive health benefits: enjoy full health benefits from day one: no probation period required. We offer flexible Health or Wellness Spending Accounts and medical, dental, and vision coverage for you and your dependents.
  • Flexible vacation and time off: every team member starts with 15 vacation days and 5 flex days to use as needed, plus an extra week of office closure during the end-of-year holidays so you can take time off to recharge and come back better for our customers.
  • Parental leave with top-up: we offer 12 weeks off with a 100% salary top-up for all full-time employees, regardless of location, and accessible for all parents: birthing, non-birthing, and adoptive.
  • Hybrid work environment: we value meaningful collaboration and connection at our Boston office 3 days a week, with lunch, snacks, and beverages on us.
  • Personal and professional growth: through ongoing feedback, mentorship, and coaching, work with peers and leaders who are invested in your growth and success.
  • Top-tier equipment: as a Mac-first company, our Toronto offices have everything you need to produce your best work comfortably, from multiple screens to ergonomic seating.
  • Social connection: we believe in celebrating our wins with two annual company-wide get-togethers, quarterly team events, happy hours, and special events and networking opportunities with industry leaders.


Why Relay Might Be the Perfect Fit For You
  • You push relentlessly for reinvention: You're always asking "how can this be better?" -- in your work, in your craft, in yourself. Comfort is a signal to push harder, not coast. You'd rather build something better than defend something familiar.
  • You crave autonomy: We trust our team with big challenges and the freedom to solve them. If you're someone who takes initiative, is comfortable taking risks, and seeks input when needed, you'll find the freedom here empowering.
  • You own your work: You take pride in your work, follow through on commitments, and feel a deep sense of responsibility for outcomes, not just tasks.
  • You build with AI, not just use it: You're actively embedding AI into how you work, pushing what's possible, and bringing your team along with you.
  • You care about impact, not noise: You care deeply about the substance of your work. You measure success by results, not recognition, and you let your work speak for itself.
  • You're energized by complexity and ambiguity: You enjoy tackling problems that don't come with a playbook. You're comfortable building from scratch, iterating as you go, and collaborating to shape the best path forward.
  • You seek out feedback: You see directness as respect, not criticism. You actively seek input, sit with hard truths, and use feedback as fuel for improvement.
  • Small businesses are why we're here: Relay exists to help them thrive -- and that mission has to resonate with you.


Join Us

We're looking for people who are relentless, curious, and care deeply about the work. You're encouraged to apply even if your experience doesn't perfectly match the job description -- your perspective and drive matter more. We welcome diverse backgrounds and people who think critically, challenge the status quo, and want to help small businesses thrive.

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