LocationsIn this role you can work from San Francisco, California United States
OverviewWe're looking for a Senior Design Engineering leader to redefine the future of design in an agent-native world.
This leader will define the technical and organizational vision for how design, engineering, and AI-powered workflows come together to build world-class developer experiences at scale. As a Senior leader within GitHub Design, you will drive strategy across our design systems, design-to-code ecosystem, and agent-enabled product development practices. You'll partner closely with Design, Product, and Engineering leaders to influence investment decisions, guide long-term roadmaps, and bring clarity to complex customer experience challenges through compelling, executive-ready narratives.
You will lead and grow a team of design engineers and technical leaders, helping GitHub evolve its platform, tooling, and practices for an AI-native future. Success in this role requires the ability to set a clear vision, align diverse stakeholders, elevate technical and design craft, and build the systems, culture, and leadership capability needed to scale across one of the world's largest developer platforms. This is an opportunity to have a lasting impact on how software is designed, built, and experienced at GitHub, while mentoring the next generation of leaders and raising the bar for quality, innovation, and execution across the organization.
ResponsibilitiesDesign Implementation- Defines a technical roadmap that sets the direction for GitHub-wide front-end architecture, innovating industry-leading user interface (UI) strategies.
- Functions as GitHub's thought leader on design engineering, shaping the global landscape of front-end architecture and design systems.
- Represents GitHub's point of view (POV) in external forums, advancing and redefining industry standards through proven technical leadership, shaping GitHub's design implement strategy.
Prototyping & Feasibility- Innovates scalable design-to-code frameworks that align engineering and design at the organizational level, establishing technical paradigms.
- Pioneers cutting-edge approaches (e.g., artificial intelligence [AI]-assisted user experience [UX], motion/rendering systems), proactively identifying and mitigating risk through strategic prototype development methodologies.
Collaboration- Champions strategic discussions with design engineering leaders to address GitHub's most complex UI and customer experience challenges.
- Develops and defines the long-term front-end roadmap, aligning Product Management, Design, and Engineering leadership teams on execution plans to meet overarching customer requirements.
Quality & Craft- Leads collaboration with Engineering, Product, and Design teams to advance GitHub's core technical capabilities and elevate user experience.
- Establishes organization-wide standards, crafting design and code review strategies that improve design consistency and system fidelity.
- Champions industry-leading methodologies that define customer engagement strategies and establish a new benchmark for GitHub's interface design.
Curiosity & Initiative- Directs the development of organizational strategies in partnership with senior leadership, guiding GitHub's most advanced and innovative UI and experience advancements.
- Anticipates future trends and opportunities, ensuring GitHub maintains its leadership position by innovating ahead of market demands.
Team Leadership and Growth- Empowers high-performing engineers and designers, promoting a robust community of practice and setting high craft and innovation standards.
- Champions innovative technical demonstrations and proof-of-concepts, positioning GitHub as a pioneer in developer experience and AI.
- Fosters excellence across design and code intersections, mentoring design engineers to push the boundaries of UI and design craft at GitHub.
QualificationsRequired Qualifications- 12+ years experience in front-end engineering or development
- OR Bachelor's Degree in Industrial Design, Industrial Design, Graphic Design, Art, Computer Science, Human Factors Engineering, Human Computer Interaction, Information Architecture, or related field AND 10+ years experience in front-end engineering or development
- OR Master's Degree in Industrial Design, Industrial Design, Graphic Design, Art, Computer Science, Human Factors Engineering, Human Computer Interaction, Information Architecture, or related field AND 8+ years experience in front-end engineering or development
- OR Doctorate in Industrial Design, Industrial Design, Graphic Design, Art, Computer Science, Human Factors Engineering, Human Computer Interaction, Information Architecture, or related field AND 6+ years experience in front-end engineering or development
- OR equivalent experience.
- Experience leading multidisciplinary teams across design and engineering.
Preferred Qualifications- Experience scaling design systems, integrating AI/ML and accessibility, and delivering measurable business outcomes.
- Experience driving cross-functional alignment across design, engineering, and product.
- Experience building systems that support AI-assisted or generative UI workflows.
- Experience working on developer tools or technical platforms.
- 5+ years people management experience.
- 8+ years of experience shipping products and/or delivering to customers as a result of an end-to-end design process.
Compensation RangeThe base salary range for this job is USD $160,200.00 - USD $425,000.00 /Yr.
These pay ranges are intended to cover roles based across the United States. An individual's base pay depends on various factors including geographical location and review of experience, knowledge, skills, abilities of the applicant. At GitHub certain roles are eligible for benefits and additional rewards, including annual bonus and stock. These rewards are allocated based on individual impact in role. In addition, certain roles also have the opportunity to earn sales incentives based on revenue or utilization, depending on the terms of the plan and the employee's role.
This position will be open for a minimum of 3 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.
