Design Program Manager, Context Platform

Jackalope Digital LLC; San Francisco, Northern (CA, KY); Hybrid; USD 169,000 - 303,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Retirement plan

Paid time off

Paid sick leave

Holidays

flexible PTO

Job summary

Figma is growing its Context Platform with a senior Design Program Manager who will own end-to-end design program management for a new pillar. You’ll align design intent with engineering execution, stand up operating models, and drive cross-pillar collaboration across deeply interconnected teams.

You’ll operate with high agency in ambiguity, standing up processes quickly and iterating as needed while partnering with DesignOps and engineering to streamline workflows.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in Design Program Management, DesignOps, or a related discipline.
• Track record of leading complex, fast-moving programs across design, product, and engineering.
• Deep understanding of design systems and how context is consumed by agents.
• Experience working on AI-powered products or AI enablement workflows.
• Technical curiosity to partner with engineering and design engineers.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end design program management for Context Platform initiatives, including planning, prioritization, coordination, risk management, and communication across design & XFN partners.
• Partner with design leadership and engineering to align design intent with technical execution in a highly technical space.
• Define operating model for a new pillar — crits, design reviews, rhythms, decision paths for nascent teams.
• Orchestrate cross-pillar collaboration, ensuring Context Platform work is well sequenced and clearly owned.
• Define, pilot, and scale frameworks and rituals to ease cross-team collaboration for designers.
• Contribute to internal AI enablement for designers with DesignOps and developer experience teams.
• Identify opportunities to streamline or reduce operational overhead.
• Communicate progress, risks, tradeoffs, and dependencies to design leadership and executives.

Skills

Design Program Management

DesignOps

Cross-functional leadership

AI enablement

Technical curiosity

Job description

Figma is growing our team of passionate creatives and builders on a mission to make design accessible to all. Figma’s platform helps teams bring ideas to life—whether you're brainstorming, creating a prototype, translating designs into code, or iterating with AI. From idea to product, Figma empowers teams to streamline workflows, move faster, and work together in real time from anywhere in the world. If you're excited to shape the future of design and collaboration, join us!

As AI reshapes how products get designed and built, the systems that supply context - design systems, content, the relationships between design and code - are becoming some of the most consequential surfaces we work on. We're looking for an experienced Design Program Manager to be the operational backbone of our new Context Platform pillar, helping Figma determine the future of leveraging organizational design context to go from idea to production. You'll own end-to-end design program management for the pillar and help define how a brand-new set of teams operate.

You'll be a right-hand partner to the pillar's Senior Design Director, working alongside design managers, ICs, TPMs, and XFN leaders across a set of deeply interconnected teams. As Context Platform underpins so much of the product, much of the work is cross-pillar: you'll be the person making sure dependencies surface early, decisions have clear owners, and designers across Figma know how to plug in.

This is a senior IC role suited to someone with high agency who is comfortable building in ambiguity - standing up processes quickly, seeing what sticks, and removing what doesn't.

This is a full time role that can be held from one of our US hubs or remotely in the United States.

What you’ll do at Figma:

• Own end-to-end design program management for Context Platform initiatives, including planning, prioritization, coordination, risk management, and communication across design & XFN partners
• Partner closely with design leadership and engineering counterparts to keep design intent and technical execution aligned in a highly technical problem space
• Define the operating model for a new pillar - the crits, design reviews, rhythms, and decision-making paths that help a nascent set of teams work well from the start
• Orchestrate cross-pillar collaboration, making sure Context Platform work that touches other product surfaces is well sequenced and clearly owned
• Define, pilot, and scale frameworks and rituals that make cross-team collaboration easier for designers - and evolve or retire them as needs change
• Contribute to internal AI enablement for designers, partnering with DesignOps and developer experience teams on tooling, workflows, templates, and learning forums
• Identify opportunities to streamline, automate, or remove operational overhead
• Communicate progress, risks, tradeoffs, and dependencies clearly to design leadership and executive stakeholders

We’d love to hear from you if you have:

• 5+ years of experience in Design Program Management, DesignOps, or a related discipline
• A track record of leading complex, fast-moving programs across design, product, and engineering
• Deep understanding of design systems, how agents will consume design system context, and how to support designers' craft
• Experience working on AI-powered products, internal AI enablement, or adjacent workflows
• Technical curiosity and aptitude to partner fluently with engineering and design engineers

While it’s not required, it’s an added plus if you also have:

• Hands‑on experience with automation, scripting, or AI orchestration tools to reduce operational overhead
• Prior experience as a product designer or in a design‑adjacent role

Pay Transparency Disclosure

Job level and actual compensation will be decided based on factors including, but not limited to, individual qualifications objectively assessed during the interview process (including skills and prior relevant experience, potential impact, and scope of role), market demands, and specific work location.

• Figma offers equity to employees, as well as a competitive package of additional benefits, including health, dental, and vision coverage
• retirement benefits with company contributions
• parental leave and reproductive or family planning support
• mental health and wellness benefits
• paid time off
• Figma provides paid sick leave, holidays, and other leave benefits in compliance with applicable federal, state, and local laws, including the requirements of the Washington Minimum Wage Act and related regulations.
• Exempt employees are eligible for employer‑provided paid flexible PTO in addition to flexible paid sick leave.
• PTO is subject to manager approval.
• Additional benefits may include company recharge days, cell phone and home internet reimbursements, and a number of lifestyle spending accounts.
• Figma also offers sales incentive compensation for most sales roles and an annual bonus plan for eligible non-sales roles.
• All compensation and benefits are subject to applicable plan terms and may be modified by Figma at any time, consistent with applicable law.

Annual Base Salary Range: $169,000—$303,000 USD

At Figma we celebrate and support our differences.

We know employing a team rich in diverse thoughts, experiences, and opinions allows our employees, our product and our community to flourish.

Figma is an equal opportunity workplace - we are dedicated to equal employment opportunities regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity/expression, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements.

We will work to ensure individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to apply for a role, participate in the interview process, perform essential job functions, and receive other benefits and privileges of employment.

If you require accommodation, please reach out to [e-mail].

These modifications enable an individual with a disability to have an equal opportunity not only to get a job, but successfully perform their job tasks to the same extent as people without disabilities.

• Holding interviews in an accessible location
• Enabling closed captioning on video conferencing
• Ensuring all written communication be compatible with screen readers
• Changing the mode or format of interviews

To ensure the integrity of our hiring process and facilitate a more personal connection, we require all candidates keep their cameras on during video interviews. Additionally, if hired you will be required to attend in person onboarding.

By applying for this job, the candidate acknowledges and agrees that any personal data contained in their application or supporting materials will be processed in accordance with Figma's Candidate Privacy Notice.