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Blink UX

Denver

Lead Design Program Manager at Blink UX

ON-SITE SENIOR
Posted about 24 hours ago
$132,000 - $145,000
Blink UX logo

Company snapshot

Blink UX

Blink UX is a product design consulting firm that partners with ambitious organizations to develop innovative products and user experiences through a combination of strategic planning, user experience research, and design expertise.

Textiles Design B2B B2C
HQ
Seattle, Washington, United States
Team size
51-250
Founded
2000
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Quick Summary

Role Overview

The Principal Design Program Manager serves as the operating backbone for the eComm Design team, managing how work is requested, tracked, and delivered across web and app platforms. This role combines program leadership with systems building to support over 20 designers while partnering closely with Product, Engineering, and Marketing stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

  • Own the Jira operating model including ticket intake, sprint planning, and status definitions
  • Maintain team dashboards to provide leadership with real-time visibility into work in progress
  • Lead major design initiatives from initial kickoff through post-delivery development support
  • Facilitate the Experimentation and Growth sprint cycles and prioritize candidate initiatives
  • Manage stakeholder communication through Studio Reviews and regular status updates for senior leadership
  • Integrate AI tools into workflows to accelerate reporting and administrative tasks

Requirements Snapshot

  • Seven or more years of program management experience in design or technology environments
  • Expert level proficiency in Jira including workflows, dashboards, and reporting automation
  • Proven track record of designing and implementing custom process or operating models
  • Strong understanding of design processes, Figma, and UX terminology
  • Experience using and helping teams adopt AI tools like Claude for workflow efficiency

Expected Impact

The Principal DPM will transform the eComm Design department into a highly efficient, data-driven organization by establishing clear operational structures and visibility. Their leadership will ensure that design resources are optimized, risks are identified early, and the team consistently delivers high-impact experimental and core product work that aligns with business KPIs.

A DesignJobs.World summary of the employer's posting, written to highlight scope, requirements, and fit (AI-assisted, human-reviewed). For full details, see the description below.

Compensation

$132,000 - $145,000

Job Description


Blink UX is the product design firm crafting your next breakthrough. We partner with ambitious companies like Amazon, Google, and NASA to create transformative products and experiences through strategy, research, and design. With headquarters and labs in Seattle and studios in Boston, San Diego, San Francisco, New York City, and Bengaluru, we partner with clients around the world.
 
This opportunity is a part of Blink's Embedded practice which supports long-term opportunities with some of Blink’s largest client partners.
 
Location: Remote- must be located in Denver, CO or Seattle, WA area
Duration: ongoing

What you'll be doing

We are seeking a Principal Design Program Manager (DPM) to be the operating backbone for eComm Design. This person owns how design work gets requested, planned, tracked, reviewed, and delivered across web and app. They are equal parts program leader and systems builder: running high-visibility programs and our Experimentation & Growth sprints, while also building the Jira, reporting, and review structures that keep 20+ designers visible, protected, and shipping. This role will partner daily with Design, Product, Engineering, Research, and Marketing stakeholders - raising their hand when something needs to be called out, not smoothed over. We are also looking for someone who uses AI in their own workflow and helps the team do the same.

Key Responsibilities

  • Design Operations & Systems
    • Own the Jira operating model for eComm Design: ticket intake, kanban board, sprint planning, status definitions, sub-task rules, and how blocked or stalled work gets flagged
    • Help maintain the team dashboard and reporting so leadership can see work in progress without needing a meeting
    • Drive story pointing and due dates on every ticket, and coach designers and Product partners until it sticks
    • Track designer capacity, spot overload and underuse early, and help the manager make resourcing calls with real data
    • Run the ops cadence: check-ins, ticket clean-up, and audits
    • Document ways of working so process survives turnover and new teammates can get up to speed fast
  • Program Ownership & Delivery
    • Lead design program management for major initiatives, from kickoff through post-delivery dev support
    • Run the working rhythm: daily design syncs, UX x PM working sessions, and weekly status updates
    • Translate cross-domain timelines (Product, Dev, Offers, Biller, QE) into design milestones, handoff dates, and clear risks
    • Keep design aligned with finalized requirements and call out early when design is running ahead of them
    • Manage scope by documenting the original ask and making mid-project changes visible and debatable
  • Experimentation & Growth
    • Facilitate the Experimentation & Growth sprint cycle: check-ins, grooming, sprint review and planning, and candidate prioritization
    • Keep experiment tickets tied to KPIs, owners, dependencies, and outcomes so results can be found and reused
    • Help evolve a more outcome-driven experimentation process and how results are shared with leadership
  • Stakeholder Management & Leadership Communication
    • Schedule and manage team Studio Reviews, Director office hour reviews, and Hot Sheet updates
    • Give senior leaders a clear read on status, tradeoffs, and asks, and get decisions unstuck when they are waiting on one person
    • Run kickoffs that bring in Design early, so designers are co-creators and not order-takers
    • Manage inbound requests: push back on side-channel asks, set expectations on priority, and hold the line on intake
    • Navigate disagreements between teammates and partners and surface tension instead of absorbing it
  • AI Enablement & Workflow Innovation
    • Use AI (Claude, Jira and Confluence connectors, Figma) to speed up reporting, status updates, and admin work, and own the accuracy of everything you send
    • Help design teams find real use cases for AI, with a focus on building confidence and saving time
  • Team Contribution & Influence
    • Act as a thought partner to the design manager on team health, capacity, and priorities
    • Partner with peer DPMs on shared practices, and coach new DPMs and project coordinators
    • Champion the value of design visibility, tracking, and shared definitions of done across the team and partner orgs

What we are looking for

Required Skills & Experience

  • 7+ years of program or project management in a design, product, or technology environment, with a record of delivering complex, cross-functional work
  • Deep Jira fluency: workflows, dashboards, JQL, custom fields, and reporting. Automation experience is a plus
  • Proven experience designing and rolling out process or operating models, not just following them
  • Experience with Agile practices (sprints, grooming, story pointing, retros) in a mixed team where not every pod runs the same way
  • Strong working knowledge of design processes, Figma, design systems, and UX terminology
  • Confluence and documentation habits that keep knowledge shared and current
  • Comfort presenting status, risks, and tradeoffs to Directors and VPs, in writing and live
  • Ability to work with ambiguity and juggle several large programs, each with its own stakeholders and pace
  • Working knowledge of AI tools such as Claude, plus curiosity and a track record of helping others adopt them
  • Strong facilitation and conflict skills: direct, friendly, and willing to name the issue
  • Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience. PMP, SAFe, or similar certification is a plus
$132,000 - $145,000 a year
DOE
Blink is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) employer and do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, gender, age, veteran status, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status or disability.
 
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