We are a collective group of fearless people with a clear purpose: to empower professionals around the world through intelligent workflow automation software. Currently, more than 500 people work with us across 7 countries, remotely or in a hybrid model, to make life easier for over 3,000 companies using Pipefy in more than 180 countries. Since our founding in 2015, we have put people at the center of everything we do. Therefore, we invite you to learn more about this position and apply to be part of our team.
JOB DESCRIPTION
As a Senior Design Manager at Pipefy, your mission will be to lead the design practice during a pivotal moment in the product's strategic evolution: transitioning from workflow automation to the orchestration of intent-based AI agents. This position serves as a trusted point of contact for Product and Engineering teams and acts as the guardian of UX/UI excellence. You will be responsible for building and maintaining a library of reusable design patterns (consumed by both designers and AI agents), governing the quality of AI-generated interfaces prior to production, and fostering talent by strengthening two senior career tracks (deep technical individual contribution and people management).
MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES
- Lead Design Teams & Leadership: Guide design teams and managers, ensuring alignment across squads and acting as the primary interface for Product and Engineering teams.
- Build & Maintain Design Systems: Develop and sustain Pipefy's design pattern library, structuring reusable components that can be consumed by both designers and AI agents to ensure visual and functional consistency.
- Interface & AI Governance: Govern the quality of AI-generated user interfaces (UI) before deployment to production, establishing rigorous standards for brand alignment, accessibility, and usability.
- Process Evolution: Redesign design processes, workflows, and rituals to match the speed required by the transition to an agentic product, accelerating the cycle from prototyping to delivery.
- Strategic Vision: Define and communicate the long-term Design vision, connecting multi-squad strategies to Pipefy's evolution as an AI agent orchestrator.
- Dual Career Path Development: Formulate and formalize a dual-track career path framework (deep technical individual contribution vs. people leadership) to drive retention and growth within the team.
- Generative AI Adoption: Drive the adoption of Generative AI in internal design workflows (research, prototyping, and design systems), leading the creation of custom automations or applied technical tools.
- Strategic Partnerships: Build strategic alliances with Product, Engineering, and Business leaders, amplifying Design’s influence on executive decisions and AI investments.
- Mentorship & Talent Development: Mentor senior design professionals and specialists across both career paths, shaping the next generation of leaders and technical makers.
- Outcome-Oriented Delivery: Track and steer deliverables based on measurable outcomes and KPIs, such as pattern reuse rate, prototyping velocity, residual usability friction, and AI agent performance.
REQUIREMENTS
- Leadership Experience: Solid experience leading and managing product design teams and design managers, with a proven track record in coaching and talent development.
- Design Methodologies & AI: Deep understanding of design methodologies (UX Research, Design Systems, Design Thinking) applied to SaaS products with embedded Generative AI and autonomous agents.
- Organizational Design: Experience structuring processes, rituals, and team models for cross-functional squads, including implementing dual-track career frameworks (IC + Management).
- Autonomy & Cross-Functional Collaboration: Proven ability to operate autonomously in highly interdependent environments, collaborating directly with Product and Engineering leadership without escalation dependency.
- Data & Business Acumen: Ability to leverage product and business metrics (pattern reuse, time-to-prototype, usability friction) to back strategic decisions and roadmap prioritization.
- AI Governance & Operations: Experience in establishing design governance frameworks for AI-generated content and interfaces, as well as managing budgets and evaluating AI tools.
- Executive Communication: Strategic communication and storytelling skills to align and influence C-level and senior executive stakeholders.
- Systems Thinking: Strong systems thinking skills to navigate ambiguity and connect local squad decisions to the company’s broader AI strategy.
- Language Proficiency: Advanced or fluent English for daily collaboration with global teams and keeping up with industry trends.
- Hands-on GenAI Usage: Practical experience utilizing Generative AI tools (LLMs, agents) within daily design workflows to enhance research, prototyping, or documentation.
- SaaS & Scale-up Background: Previous experience working in B2B SaaS or high-growth tech companies with complex products.