Design Operations & Programs Lead

Mastercard; Malahide; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Mastercard is seeking a Product Design Program Manager to scale the Global SME CX&D design operations. You will establish processes, planning frameworks, and cross‑functional alignment to deliver high‑quality experiences at scale, partnering with product design, content design, user research, product management, engineering, and business stakeholders.

You will serve as connective tissue across CX&D, improving collaboration, enabling designers and researchers, and driving strategic priorities on

Qualifications

• 6+ years of experience in Design Program Management, Design Operations, Product Operations, Program Management, or a related field.
• Experience supporting Product Design, UX, User Research, Content Design, or Design Systems teams within a product organization.
• Proven ability to lead complex, cross‑functional initiatives involving Design, Product Management, Engineering, and business stakeholders.
• Demonstrated success building scalable operating models, processes, and frameworks that improve team effectiveness and delivery.
• Exceptional stakeholder management, facilitation, and communication skills, with the ability to influence outcomes without direct authority.
• Strong program management expertise, including planning, prioritization, risk management, dependency tracking, and execution within Agile product development environments.
• Proficiency with collaboration and planning tools such as Jira, Figma, Confluence, Miro, Airtable, Smartsheet, Asana, or similar platforms.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to synthesize complex information and communicate effectively with leadership teams.
• Demonstrated ability to act as a force multiplier for design organizations by improving operational excellence, enabling collaboration, and helping teams focus on high‑impact customer work.

Responsibilities

• Drive planning, execution, and operational excellence across the CX&D organization.
• Partner with Design, Product, Engineering, and business stakeholders to align priorities and deliver strategic initiatives.
• Build scalable processes, tools, and governance models that enable efficient, high‑quality design delivery.
• Manage timelines, dependencies, risks, and communications across complex programs.
• Support design system adoption, accessibility initiatives, and design operations best practices.
• Identify opportunities to improve team effectiveness through better workflows, tooling, and AI‑powered ways of working.
• Foster an inclusive, collaborative, and high‑performing culture through effective team rituals, communication, knowledge sharing, and cross‑functional partnerships that amplify the impact of the design organization.
• Establish reporting, metrics, and operational insights that provide visibility into team health, delivery progress, and organizational effectiveness.
• Support capacity planning, prioritization, and resource management across the design organization.

Skills

Design Program Management

Design Operations

Product Operations

Program Management

Stakeholder management

Cross-functional collaboration

Agile / Scrum experience

Communication skills

Tools

Jira

Figma

Confluence

Miro

Airtable

Smartsheet

Asana

Job description

Mastercard is seeking a Product Design Program Manager to scale the Global SME CX&D design operations. You will establish processes, planning frameworks, and cross‑functional alignment to deliver high‑quality experiences at scale, partnering with product design, content design, user research, product management, engineering, and business stakeholders.

You will serve as connective tissue across CX&D, improving collaboration, enabling designers and researchers, and driving strategic priorities on