Head of Brand Design

Special; New York (NY); On-site; USD 180,000 - 300,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage

Access to a 401(k)

Disability insurance

Life insurance

Job summary

Special is seeking a lead designer to drive design across various platforms, including Special's brand and SpecialOS. This role involves close collaboration with founders and engineers to create seamless user experiences.

The ideal candidate will have a strong portfolio, experience in brand design, and the ability to thrive in fast-paced environments. Compensation ranges from $180,000 to $300,000 USD, with additional benefits including equity and comprehensive health coverage.

Qualifications

• Experience in brand design and product features on web/mobile.
• Ability to collaborate across disciplines, especially with non-technical operators.
• Comfortable in fast-moving, ambiguous environments.

Responsibilities

• Design end-to-end experiences across Special's brand and products.
• Understand the operators using the OS through field visits.
• Prototype using both traditional and AI-assisted design tools.

Skills

Brand design work

User experience

Front-end development

AI-assisted design tools

Video editing

Tools

Design and prototyping tools

Job description

About Special

Special is a new kind of holding company. Our mission is to maximize the efficiency of American taxpayer dollars by transforming its critical industries with AI. We acquire and operate businesses that form the backbone of the American economy and deploy SpecialOS, our proprietary operating system, to make them run more efficiently.

Special is backed by leading investors, including Andreessen Horowitz, Human Capital and former members of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) team. Our team is small, technical, and systems-oriented. Everyone is an individual contributor. We expect strong work ethic and clear communication.

About The Role

You’ll be the lead designer across the entire holding company, from Special’s own brand surfaces (special.co, marketing materials, announcements), SpecialOS (our operating system that runs our companies), and Figure Health (our first vertical). You’ll work directly with founders, engineers, and operators in the field to turn messy operational processes into beautiful experiences.

Design is a top priority at Special. This role is for a designer who wants range: one week you’re refining a clinician workflow, the next you’re designing a brand system for a new vertical launch.

Responsibilities

• Design end-to-end experiences across Special's brand, SpecialOS and Figure Health brand surfaces
• Deeply understand the operators who use our OS every day — including time in the field at our vertical companies
• Rapidly explore and prototype using both traditional and AI-assisted design tools
• Partner closely with engineering to ship polished, production‑quality experiences
• Build and maintain the design system that scales across the holding company and every vertical we enter
• Shape Special’s external brand and visual identity as the company grows

Basic Qualifications

• Have shipped meaningful brand design work and/or product features on web/mobile
• Care deeply about craft, clarity, and user experience
• Are comfortable working in fast-moving, ambiguous environments where the org and the product are both being built in real time
• Are interested in real‑world industries — healthcare, services, the physical economy — not just consumer software
• Embrace new design and engineering workflows, including AI‑assisted tooling
• Communicate clearly and collaborate well across disciplines, including with non‑technical operators

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Front‑end development skills; ability to turn your designs into production
• Strong portfolio demonstrating product thinking, execution, and range across product and brand
• Experience translating design requirements from non‑technical users
• Familiarity with modern design and prototyping tools, including AI‑native ones
• Brand and visual identity work alongside product design
• Experience working closely with engineers and founders in early‑stage environments
• Video editing experience

Location

In‑person in NYC.

Compensation and Benefits

$180,000–$300,000 USD

Base salary is one part of our total rewards package at Special, which also includes meaningful equity, comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage, access to a 401(k), short and long‑term disability insurance, life insurance, and additional benefits.

Special is an equal opportunity employer.