Forward Deployed Designer
Embedded with technical counterparts and end-users, shipping production surfaces that redesign the workflow, not just the interface.
An amalgamated composite distilled from real postings and practice documentation. No single description maps one-to-one to a live posting. Use it as a starting template. Calibrate level, travel, and scope to your organization's specific deployment model.
About the role
You will work directly alongside technical counterparts and end-users, embedded in the client's operating environment. This role is for someone who values speed of delivery and real-time iteration over polished handoffs. You will be present where problems happen: the factory floor, the trading room, the hospital ward, the back office, creating production-ready designs, prototyping new workflows, and shipping surfaces that make organizations more capable of achieving their outcomes.
What you'll do
- Collaborate directly with end-users and technical counterparts to understand mission-critical workflows.
- Gather real-time feedback and iterate on designs in the room, not across a vendor wall.
- Execute rapid prototyping cycles by designing and documenting user flows, wireframes, and interactive prototypes, prioritizing speed and iterative improvement.
- Translate complex technical behaviors into clear, intuitive interfaces across web, desktop, and CLI surfaces.
- Own end-to-end design for core product surfaces, from concept through shipped UI.
- Design first-run UX, empty states, and activation events that analytics can measure against.
- Map decision rights, escalation rules, and accountability boundaries, redesigning the workflow rather than the interface alone.
- Document workarounds and shadow IT as diagnostic signal, not debt.
- Share field feedback with product and technical teams to inform the roadmap and generalize solutions.
What we're looking for
- 4+ years of product design experience, preferably in developer tools, infrastructure, AI-powered products, or technical B2B.
- Strong portfolio demonstrating end-to-end product thinking, from problem framing through shipped work.
- Expert in Figma; mastery of design systems and component-driven workflows.
- Strong visual and interaction design skills.
- Ability to work with engineers and understand technical constraints; comfort reading code and working in production environments.
- Experience using AI tools to translate designs into working frontend code.
- Ability to explain design decisions clearly to executive stakeholders.
- Clear, concise documentation for technical and non-technical audiences.
- Ability to build rapport quickly and represent teams professionally with clients.
- Comfort working under ambiguity with high autonomy.
Bonus points
- Experience with CLI or terminal UIs, or AI-powered products.
- Front-end development experience (React, TypeScript, Tailwind).
- Consulting or client-facing experience in fast-paced delivery environments.
- Experience conducting user research and usability testing with enterprise teams.