Lead Product Designer

Kernel; Auckland; Hybrid; NZD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Parental leave top-up

Professional development support

Flexible hybrid work model

Job summary

Kernel in Auckland, New Zealand is seeking a Lead Product Designer to lead our design practice while remaining hands-on solving complex product challenges. This player-coach role combines leadership of a small design team with ownership of high-impact product work across web and mobile experiences.

Reporting to the Chief Product Officer, you'll drive design quality, evolve our design system, coach designers, and partner with Product and Engineering from discovery to delivery, while exploring how

Qualifications

• Experience designing customer-facing digital products.
• Experience leading or mentoring designers.
• Expertise with design systems.
• Strong product and design judgement.
• Proficiency in Figma and prototyping.
• Collaborative mindset and cross-team influence.
• Comfort using AI tools in workflow.

Responsibilities

• Lead, coach and develop a small team of Product Designers.
• Stay hands on, designing key product experiences.
• Drive consistency and quality across web and mobile.
• Own and evolve the design system.
• Partner with Product and Engineering from discovery to delivery.
• Use customer insight and data to inform decisions.
• Help establish AI-enabled design practices.

Job description

About Kernel

Kernel is one of New Zealand's fastest growing fintechs, helping Kiwis build long term wealth through KiwiSaver, managed funds, savings products and investing. We're looking for a Lead Product Designer to lead our design practice while remaining hands on in solving complex product challenges. This is a true player-coach role, combining leadership of a small design team with ownership of high impact product work.

The Opportunity

Reporting to the Chief Product Officer, you'll lead a team of 2-3 Product Designers and work closely with Product, Engineering and Marketing. You'll drive design quality across our web and mobile experiences, evolve our design system, coach designers, and help shape how design contributes to product strategy and customer outcomes. You'll also help us explore how AI can improve both our design process and the products we build.

What You'll Do

• Lead, coach and develop a small team of Product Designers.


• Stay hands on, designing some of Kernel's most important product experiences.


• Drive consistency and quality across web and mobile.


• Own and evolve our design system.


• Partner closely with Product and Engineering from discovery through to delivery.


• Use customer insight, data and product thinking to inform decisions.


• Help establish AI-enabled design practices across the team.

What You'll Bring

• Strong experience designing customer facing digital products.


• Experience leading or mentoring designers.


• Expertise working with design systems.


• Excellent product and design judgement.


• Strong Figma and prototyping skills.


• A collaborative approach and ability to influence across teams.


• Confidence using AI tools within your workflow.

Nice to Have

• Fintech, financial services or other regulated industry experience.


• Strong visual design capability.


• Brand, marketing or accessibility design experience.


• Experience designing AI-powered products.

Why Join Kernel?

• Lead design in a growing fintech where design has genuine influence.


• Shape a team and design practice as the business scales.


• Build products that help Kiwis grow their wealth.


• Flexible hybrid working (minimum three days in the office).


• Health insurance, parental leave top-up and professional development support.