ethena - Principal Product Designer

• Report to the VP of Design • Own the end-to-end design process for new product features from early concept through to shipped, collaborating closely with product and engineering throughout • Leverage AI tools throughout your process (we use Cursor and Claude Code to accelerate design iterations and rely on working prototypes to test ideas before shipping) • Communicate and rationalize design decisions to internal and external stakeholders, keeping users' needs centered throughout • Own our qualitative research practice and work directly with users to turn insights into product direction • Shape short- and long-term product planning as the design voice, partnering with product and engineering from discovery through delivery • ## What makes a great candidate • A track record of shipping product at a high-growth startup; you know what it takes to get things over the line • A genuine fascination with users and a talent for translating messy research into clear product direction • Able to reduce complex problems to the right balance of flexibility, power, and ease of use • AI-first in how you work, with a clear-eyed view of where they add value • An excellent communicator who can manage up and collaborate across functions, making the case for good design without needing to fight for it • A self-starter who thrives in a hands-off management environment, takes ownership with a 'roll up your sleeves mentality', is comfortable with ambiguity, and drives work forward with minimal oversight • We're a startup so we're not just looking for someone to run a playbook. We want you to help build it. • Passion for what we're building here at Ethena and a strong alignment with our core values (which includes an impeccable sense of humor) • At Ethena, we're committed to fair and equitable compensation. We carefully evaluate each candidate's skills and qualifications to provide our best possible offer upfront. Our no-negotiation policy ensures that our first offer is always our best offer, promoting pay equity throughout our organization. • Physical Demands • This is sedentary work that primarily involves sitting/standing in a home office environment. • Ethena is a remote-first organization and is currently hiring candidates based in the United States. • We are not currently offering employer visa sponsorship for this role. • AI Usage in Interviews: • We’re big fans of AI and use it heavily in our day-to-day work. That said, to ensure fairness and accurate skill assessment, we do not allow the use of AI tools (including note takers, transcription tools, or recordings) during interviews. If you have questions or need accommodations, we’re happy to chat — just let us know.