Product Design Manager, HopSkipDrive
$160-185k
+ Equity stock options
More information about location
Safe youth transportation solution
Posted today
Safe youth transportation solution
201-500 employees
Posted today
$160-185k
+ Equity stock options
More information about location
201-500 employees
Company mission
To use technology, operational expertise, and new thinking to help kids reach their full potential by providing a safe, dependable way to get them where they need to be.
Role
Who you are
- We're seeking a visionary design leader to help us elevate our team, guide exceptional design execution, and pioneer new levels of design excellence
- You are a player-coach design leader who balances hands-on excellence with mentorship and strategy
- You enjoy diving into the details within tools like Figma, but your true passion lies in developing others, connecting the dots across complex product ecosystems, and setting a consistently high standard for how design influences cross-functional collaboration
- You are passionate about craft, not for its own sake, but because you know small details make big experiences. You bring a systems-thinking mindset, strong UX instincts, and a passion for translating complexity into clarity — especially in enterprise or B2B environments
- 7+ years of product design experience, with 2+ years leading or managing designers
- A strong portfolio that demonstrates end-to-end product thinking, craft, and impact across mobile and web platforms
- Proven track record of delivering intuitive and elegant user experiences for web and mobile
- Demonstrated success in building, mentoring, and scaling diverse, high-performing design teams, coupled with a genuine growth mindset and a desire to elevate others through constructive feedback, coaching, and shared critique
- Deep expertise in user-centered design processes, usability best practices, and accessibility standards
- A strong ability to leverage data and research—not just for validation, but to uncover hidden user needs, shape strategic direction, and tell compelling stories that drive superior product decisions
- Hands-on experience designing AI-powered features, with a sophisticated understanding of when to embrace automation and when to ensure human oversight
- Exceptional communication and storytelling skills, with the ability to influence and align stakeholders at all levels of the organization
- A collaborative spirit, eager to partner closely with product managers, engineers, and stakeholders to define product strategy and deliver impactful solutions
- Proficiency with modern design and prototyping tools (e.g., Figma), along with a solid understanding and experience with design systems and scalable design practices
- Ability to balance strategic vision with hands-on execution in a fast-paced, growth-oriented environment
What the job involves
- Our Product Design team is at the forefront of crafting intuitive, impactful, and user-centered experiences that power our innovative marketplace and software solutions
- We're passionate about high standards of design craft and accessibility, and we thrive on deep collaboration with our Product, Engineering, and Data teams
- As we evolve, we're keenly focused on how AI integration will reshape user journeys, transparency, control, and trust within our emerging products
- Our work spans high-stakes enterprise tools, dynamic consumer mobile applications, and robust internal systems, all unified by our unwavering commitment to safety, empathy, and intelligent simplicity
- As a Manager of Product Design, you'll be a pivotal leader, combining strategic vision with hands-on excellence
- Lead & Mentor: Inspire, grow, and develop a high-performing team of product designers, fostering a collaborative, supportive, and growth-oriented culture
- Drive Design Excellence: Provide clear guidance and constructive feedback, ensuring the delivery of high-quality, user-centered design solutions across critical product areas
- Balance Leadership & Craft: Oversee day-to-day design execution while balancing hands-on design contributions with strategic team leadership and initiatives
- Drive Cross-Functional Alignment: Collaborate closely with Product Management, Engineering, Data and stakeholders to ensure design efforts are deeply aligned with business objectives and user needs
- Champion User Advocacy: Actively champion user-centered design principles, accessibility standards, and design best practices throughout the organization
- Facilitate & Communicate: Lead design reviews, critiques, and presentations, effectively communicating design rationale and decisions to diverse stakeholders
- Optimize & Innovate: Identify and implement opportunities to continuously improve design processes, tools, and team workflows, driving efficiency and fostering innovation
- Measure Impact: Monitor and report on the impact of design initiatives, ensuring solutions are robustly informed by user research, data analytics, and continuous feedback loops
- Shape AI-Powered Experiences: Guide the design of AI-powered features, demonstrating a strong intuition for leveraging automation while prioritizing human control, transparency, and trust
Our take
HopSkipDrive is an LA-based organization committed to eliminating transportation barriers for children, including those requiring special assistance. The organization was launched by three women who cite their "Mom DNA" as the reason for the success of HopSkipDrive, entwining their innate desire to help their own kids with the goal of making opportunities accessible to all children.
With all CareDrivers requiring a minimum of five years' experience in a caregiving field, HopSkipDrive operates on the principles of empathy, safety, and reliability. This is a smart rule to implement, as not only can they avoid those with inadequate experience, but they also ensure that employees are truly committed to helping children - the very reason the organization was founded. The company makes money by keeping a percentage of the fares it charges (CareDrivers get the rest).
HopSkipDrive collaborates with a number of social agencies and school districts, providing them with effective youth transportation solutions. Although the company is competing with existing transportation providers, such as national services, it continues to grow as a viable and fresh alternative, raising impressive funds and growing its leadership team with new hires. The company's results back up its success as well, saving 160,000 pounds of CO2 emissions in eight months after launching its SmartPooling ride-share product. Results and moves like these will allow it to expand its services and continue the modernization of school transportation.
Freddie
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
23% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (last 2 of 7 rounds)
Sep 2022
$37m
SERIES D
Aug 2021
$25m
SERIES C
Total funding: $107m
Company benefits
- We want you to be an owner in our company and share in executing our vision, so every full-time employee has equity
- In addition, we offer competitive market comp, flexible vacation, FSA, medical, dental, vision and life insurance, 401(k), and an opportunity to work for a uniquely positioned, VC-backed company in a hugely attractive space with significant upside potential
Company HQ
Fashion District, Los Angeles, CA
Leadership
Joanna McFarland
(CEO & Co-founder)Former Board Member at the Marketplace Industry Association and LA Tech.org.
Janelle McGlothlin
(Co-founder)Principal at WriteBand Studio. BA and BSc in International Relations and Strategic Management at University of Pennsylvania.
Carolyn Yashari Becher
(Co-founder)Co-founder & current CEO at Pearline Health. Former Limited Partner at The Fund.
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