Sr. Dir, Design Engineering

GitHub, Inc.; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 160,200 - 425,000; Full time

Job summary

GitHub, Inc. is seeking a Senior Design Engineering leader to redefine the future of design in an agent-native world.

You will define the vision for how design, engineering, and AI-powered workflows come together to build world-class developer experiences at scale. You will lead and grow a team of design engineers and technical leaders, aligning design systems, design-to-code ecosystem, and AI-enabled product development practices.

Qualifications

• 12+ years experience in front-end engineering or development.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary teams across design and engineering.

Responsibilities

• Defines a technical roadmap that sets the direction for GitHub-wide front-end architecture.
• Shaping the global landscape of front-end architecture and design systems.
• Leads collaboration with design, product, and engineering leaders to align roadmaps and execution.

Skills

12+ years front-end leadership

Leadership of multidisciplinary teams

Education

Bachelor's Degree in related field with 10+ years frontend

Master's Degree in related field with 8+ years frontend

Doctorate in related field with 6+ years frontend

Job description

Locations

In this role you can work from San Francisco, California United States

Overview

We’re looking for a Senior Design Engineering leader to redefine the future of design in an agent-native world.

This leader will define the technical and organizational vision for how design, engineering, and AI-powered workflows come together to build world‑class developer experiences at scale. As a Senior leader within GitHub Design, you will drive strategy across our design systems, design‑to‑code ecosystem, and agent‑enabled product development practices. You'll partner closely with Design, Product, and Engineering leaders to influence investment decisions, guide long‑term roadmaps, and bring clarity to complex customer experience challenges through compelling, executive‑ready narratives.

You will lead and grow a team of design engineers and technical leaders, helping GitHub evolve its platform, tooling, and practices for an AI‑native future. Success in this role requires the ability to set a clear vision, align diverse stakeholders, elevate technical and design craft, and build the systems, culture, and leadership capability needed to scale across one of the world’s largest developer platforms. This is an opportunity to have a lasting impact on how software is designed, built, and experienced at GitHub, while mentoring the next generation of leaders and raising the bar for quality, innovation, and execution across the organization.

Responsibilities

Design Implementation

• Defines a technical roadmap that sets the direction for GitHub‑wide front‑end architecture, innovating industry‑leading user interface (UI) strategies.
• Functions as GitHub’s thought leader on design engineering, shaping the global landscape of front‑end architecture and design systems.
• Represents GitHub’s point of view (POV) in external forums, advancing and redefining industry standards through proven technical leadership, shaping GitHub's design implement strategy.

Prototyping & Feasibility

• Innovates scalable design‑to‑code frameworks that align engineering and design at the organizational level, establishing technical paradigms.
• Pioneers cutting‑edge approaches (e.g., artificial intelligence [AI]-assisted user experience [UX], motion/rendering systems), proactively identifying and mitigating risk through strategic prototype development methodologies.

Collaboration

• Champions strategic discussions with design engineering leaders to address GitHub's most complex UI and customer experience challenges.
• Develops and defines the long‑term front‑end roadmap, aligning Product Management, Design, and Engineering leadership teams on execution plans to meet overarching customer requirements.

Quality & Craft

• Leads collaboration with Engineering, Product, and Design teams to advance GitHub’s core technical capabilities and elevate user experience.
• Establishes organization‑wide standards, crafting design and code review strategies that improve design consistency and system fidelity.
• Champions industry‑leading methodologies that define customer engagement strategies and establish a new benchmark for GitHub’s interface design.

Curiosity & Initiative

• Directs the development of organizational strategies in partnership with senior leadership, guiding GitHub's most advanced and innovative UI and experience advancements.
• Anticipates future trends and opportunities, ensuring GitHub maintains its leadership position by innovating ahead of market demands.

Team Leadership and Growth

• Empowers high‑performing engineers and designers, promoting a robust community of practice and setting high craft and innovation standards.
• Champions innovative technical demonstrations and proof‑of‑concepts, positioning GitHub as a pioneer in developer experience and AI.
• Fosters excellence across design and code intersections, mentoring design engineers to push the boundaries of UI and design craft at GitHub.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• 12+ years experience in front‑end engineering or development
  • OR Bachelor's Degree in Industrial Design, Industrial Design, Graphic Design, Art, Computer Science, Human Factors Engineering, Human Computer Interaction, Information Architecture, or related field AND 10+ years experience in front‑end engineering or development
  • OR Master's Degree in Industrial Design, Industrial Design, Graphic Design, Art, Computer Science, Human Factors Engineering, Human Computer Interaction, Information Architecture, or related field AND 8+ years experience in front‑end engineering or development
  • OR Doctorate in Industrial Design, Industrial Design, Graphic Design, Art, Computer Science, Human Factors Engineering, Human Computer Interaction, Information Architecture, or related field AND 6+ years experience in front‑end engineering or development
  • OR equivalent experience.
• Experience leading multidisciplinary teams across design and engineering.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience scaling design systems, integrating AI/ML and accessibility, and delivering measurable business outcomes.
• Experience driving cross‑functional alignment across design, engineering, and product.
• Experience building systems that support AI‑assisted or generative UI workflows.
• Experience working on developer tools or technical platforms.
• 5+ years people management experience.
• 8+ years of experience shipping products and/or delivering to customers as a result of an end‑to‑end design process.

Compensation Range

The base salary range for this job is USD $160,200.00 - USD $425,000.00 /Yr.

These pay ranges are intended to cover roles based across the United States. An individual's base pay depends on various factors including geographical location and review of experience, knowledge, skills, abilities of the applicant. At GitHub certain roles are eligible for benefits and additional rewards, including annual bonus and stock. These rewards are allocated based on individual impact in role. In addition, certain roles also have the opportunity to earn sales incentives based on revenue or utilization, depending on the terms of the plan and the employee's role.

EEO Statement

GitHub is made up of people from a wide variety of backgrounds and lifestyles. We embrace diversity and invite applications from people of all walks of life. We don't discriminate against employees or applicants based on gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, race, religion, age, national origin, citizenship, disability, pregnancy status, veteran status, or any other differences. Also, if you have a disability, please let us know if there's any way we can make the interview process better for you; we're happy to accommodate!