Design Director, Core Experience

Block; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 304,500 - 456,700; Full time

Job summary

Block is seeking a Design Lead for Core Experience to shape the future of Cash App. You will lead a team of over 10 designers, defining long-term vision and strategy while ensuring high craft standards are upheld.

The ideal candidate will have 12+ years in product design and a track record of leading design teams. You'll work closely with senior leadership to create user-centered experiences that redefine financial products.

The role requires excellent communication skills and experience developing strong design talent.

Qualifications

• 12+ years of experience in product design with a portfolio demonstrating exceptional craft.
• Experience leading design teams as a player-coach.
• Expertise in designing consumer financial products.

Responsibilities

• Define and uphold craft excellence for Core Experience.
• Drive long-term vision, strategy, and roadmaps.
• Lead and grow the design team while getting hands-on with complex challenges.

Skills

Product design

Team leadership

Customer-focused strategy

Communication skills

Design tools and AI adoption

Job description

Block is one company built from many blocks, all united by the same purpose of economic empowerment. The blocks that form our foundational teams — People, Finance, Counsel, Hardware, Information Security, Platform Infrastructure Engineering, and more — provide support and guidance at the corporate level. They work across business groups and around the globe, spanning time zones and disciplines to develop inclusive People policies, forecast finances, give legal counsel, safeguard systems, nurture new initiatives, and more. Every challenge creates possibilities, and we need different perspectives to see them all. Bring yours to Block.

The Role

The Core Experience design team shapes the future of Cash App by defining the fundamental flows, frameworks, and surfaces that tens of millions of customers rely on every day. We are a team that drives the strategic step-changes pushing our product forward.

As the Design Lead for Core Experience, you will report to Cam Worboys (Head of Product Design, Cash App and Afterpay) and lead a team of 10+ designers. This is a hybrid player‑coach and DRI role: you will set an exceptionally high craft bar while staying hands‑on with the most critical work. You will partner with senior leadership across product, engineering, and research to define long‑term vision, drive roadmaps, and ship experiences that redefine what a financial product can feel like.

You Will

• Define and uphold craft excellence for Core Experience — staying close to the details, leading critique, and ensuring every shipped experience meets the highest quality bar
• Drive long-term vision, strategy, and roadmaps in partnership with senior product and engineering leadership
• Lead and grow your team — mentoring designers, fostering accountability, and developing people across career stages and disciplines
• Get hands‑on with the most complex, ambiguous design challenges while empowering your team to deliver exceptional work independently
• Build trusted partnerships with senior cross‑functional peers, championing Design as a critical driver of business strategy
• Drive adoption of emerging tools and AI‑driven approaches that accelerate your team's craft and velocity

You Have

• 12+ years of experience in product design with a portfolio demonstrating exceptional craft, taste, and ability to make complex systems feel simple
• Track record leading design teams, including experience as a player‑coach — directing strategy while personally driving critical projects
• Demonstrated ability to craft long‑term vision and customer‑focused strategies for products at scale
• Deep expertise in designing consumer financial products or similarly complex, trust‑dependent systems
• Outstanding partnership and communication skills that inspire alignment across senior leadership, product, engineering, and research
• Experience attracting, developing, and retaining strong design talent

Portfolio

Please submit a link to your portfolio as part of your application. Be sure to include the password, if necessary.

Block is an equal opportunity employer evaluating all employees and job applicants without regard to identity or any legally protected class. We will consider qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records for employment in accordance with state and local laws and “fair chance” ordinances.

We believe in being fair, and are committed to an inclusive interview experience, including providing reasonable accommodations to disabled applicants throughout the recruitment process. We encourage applicants to share any needed accommodations with their recruiter, who will treat these requests as confidentially as possible.

Pay ranges (Zone A‑D):

• Zone A: $304,500 — $456,700 USD
• Zone B: $304,500 — $456,700 USD
• Zone C: $304,500 — $456,700 USD
• Zone D: $304,500 — $456,700 USD