Senior Associate, Senior Creative Technologist

New York Life; New York (NY); On-site; USD 100,000 - 143,000; Full time

Job summary

New York Life Insurance Company in New York is seeking a Senior Front-End Engineer to build and maintain the NYL360 front-end experience, translating design intent into accessible, responsive code and collaborating with designers and partners.

You will define workflows, establish quality gates, and ensure WCAG compliance while partnering with internal engineers and a development partner to deliver polished, scalable components.

Qualifications

• Education in Computer Science or related field; 5+ years in front-end/UX engineering.
• Expert in front-end development with HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and modern frameworks.
• Experience with design tools and handoff processes.
• Familiarity with WCAG accessibility and inclusive design.
• Experience with Git/GitHub in multi-contributor codebases.
• Experience contributing to or working in codebases not owned by you, following external conventions.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain responsive, accessible front-end code for NYL360.
• Define and refine workflows to enable design in NYL360's front-end codebase.
• Establish production-ready code standards and review checklists.
• Work within NYL360's GitHub repository and branching strategy with engineering and partner.
• Collaborate with internal engineers and external development partner to align on implementation.
• Define annotation and documentation for design-authored code (happy paths, edge cases, states, business rules).
• Ensure components meet accessibility standards (WCAG) and are performant across devices.
• Bridge between design, engineering, and partner to balance UX and technical feasibility.
• Stay current on AI-assisted design-to-code tools and best practices.
• Participate in code and design reviews and testing with partner engineers.

Skills

Front-end development

Design handoff

Component-driven design

Accessibility WCAG

GitHub

External partner collaboration

Problem solving

Communication

Education

Computer Science or related field

Tools

GitHub

Design tools

Handoff processes

Job description

It is an exciting time to join New York Life Insurance Company as we continue to innovate our technology and build the next generation digital experience for our customers. We are a Fortune 100 company and the largest mutual life insurance company in the US. We invest in our people and provide support to grow our employees' career.

Key Responsibilities

• Front-End Implementation: Build and maintain responsive, accessible front-end code for the NYL360 experience directly from design intent, composing existing design-system components and patterns to meet usability and design standards.
• Operating Model Execution: Help define and continuously refine the workflow that lets design work directly in NYL360's front-end codebase, including what a dev-ready contribution from design looks like and where design work ends and engineering review begins.
• Code Quality & Review Standards: Help establish what constitutes production-ready code for design-authored contributions, including coding conventions, review checklists, and quality gates, so there's a consistent, auditable bar for what merges into the NYL360 codebase.
• Repository & Workflow Practices: Work within NYL360's GitHub repository structure and branching strategy, following and helping refine the contribution workflow for design-originated commits in partnership with engineering and our development partner.
• Collaboration with Development: Work closely with internal front-end engineers and our development partner's engineering team to ensure component specifications are accurately implemented, troubleshoot discrepancies between design and code, and align on integration patterns as a hands‑on collaborator.
• Documentation & Annotation Standards: Partner with design and engineering to define the annotation and documentation needed for design-authored code, such as happy paths, edge cases, states, and business rules, so contributions can be understood, reviewed, and maintained by any developer.
• Accessibility and Performance: Ensure that all components are built to accessibility standards (e.g., WCAG 2.1) and are optimized for performance across multiple devices and platforms.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Act as a bridge between design, engineering, and our development partner, advocating for the best user experience while balancing technical feasibility and codebase constraints.
• Research and Innovation: Stay current on AI-assisted design-to-code tools (e.g., Claude Code, Claude Design) and design-to-development best practices that could improve how design and engineering work together on NYL360.
• Quality Assurance: Participate in code reviews, design reviews, and testing, including joint reviews with our development partner's engineers, to ensure design-authored code meets NYL360's quality standards.

Requirements

• Education & Experience: Computer Science, or a related field, or equivalent experience. 5+ years of experience in front-end development, or UX engineering role.
• Technical Skills:
  • Expert in front-end development (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and modern frameworks).
  • Experience with design tools and familiarity with handoff processes.
  • Knowledge of component-driven design and development methodologies.
  • Familiarity with accessibility standards (WCAG) and inclusive design practices.
  • Experience with version control and collaborative branching workflows (e.g., Git/GitHub) in multi-contributor codebases.
  • Experience contributing to or working within a codebase you don't own outright, such as an agency, vendor, or open-source repository, following someone else's conventions and review process.
• Soft Skills:
  • Strong problem-solving abilities and a passion for creating polished, efficient user interfaces.
  • Excellent communication skills, with the ability to explain technical details to both technical and non-technical team members.
  • A collaborative mindset with a proactive approach to bridging gaps between design and engineering.
  • Comfortable collaborating directly with external development partners' engineers day-to-day, adapting to their codebase and conventions while upholding NYL's quality bar.

Preferred Qualifications

• Advanced Experience: Prior experience working on or contributing to a design system, preferably in an enterprise environment.
• AI enabled workflows: Hands-on experience building and validating front-end code with AI-assisted tools (e.g., Claude Code, Claude Design, GitHub Copilot) as part of a production workflow.
• Vendor Collaboration: Experience working with or alongside an external development vendor or agency on a shared codebase.
• CMS and Web Performance: Basic understanding of CMS integrations and performance optimization techniques.

Job Level: LEVELPF4

Pay Transparency

Salary Range: $100,000-$143,000

Overtime eligible: Exempt

Discretionary bonus eligible: Yes

Sales bonus eligible: No

Actual base salary will be determined based on several factors but not limited to individual's experience, skills, qualifications, and job location. Additionally, employees are eligible for an annual discretionary bonus. In addition to base salary, employees may also be eligible to participate in an incentive program.

Our Benefits

We provide a full package of benefits for employees - and have unique offerings for a modern workforce, including leave programs, adoption assistance, and student loan repayment programs. Based on feedback from our employees, we continue to refine and add benefits to our offering, so that you can flourish both inside and outside of work. Click here to discover more about our comprehensive benefit options or visit our NYL Benefits Site.

Our Commitment to Inclusion

At New York Life, fostering an inclusive workplace is fundamental to who we are and how we serve our communities. We have a longstanding commitment to creating an environment where individuals can contribute their best and succeed together. This foundation is rooted in our core values of humanity and integrity, ensuring that every employee feels valued and supported. By embracing a broad range of perspectives and experiences, we achieve greater success and fulfill our promise of providing financial security and peace of mind to families across all communities. Click here to learn more about New York Life's leadership in this space.

Recognized as one of Fortune's World's Most Admired Companies

Recognized as one of Fortune's World's Most Admired Companies, New York Life is committed to improving local communities through a culture of employee giving and volunteerism, supported by the Foundation. We're proud that due to our mutuality, we operate in the best interests of our policy owners. To learn more about career opportunities at New York Life, please visit the Careers page of www.NewYorkLife.com.