At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead a team of designers to create innovative B2C financial products.
- Company: Join a fast-growing UK challenger bank with a dynamic culture.
- Benefits: Competitive salary up to £105k, bonuses, and hybrid work options.
- Other info: Collaborative environment with strong investment in design and career growth.
- Why this job: Shape the future of finance while leading a passionate design team.
- Qualifications: Proven experience in managing product designers and deep mobile design expertise.
The predicted salary is between 105000 - 105000 £ per year.
Leading UK Challenger Bank · London (Hybrid, 2 days onsite) · Permanent
The opportunity
This is a senior leadership role at one of the UK's most recognised challenger banks; a business that has grown from a lending startup into a full-service consumer bank, and is still moving fast. You'll lead product design for a core area of the product suite: a B2C experience used by hundreds of thousands of active customers to manage their finances in one place. The product is native mobile (iOS/Android), data-rich, and sits at the intersection of financial services and everyday consumer behaviour. This isn't a management role that used to be a design role. You'll still be hands-on — setting the design direction, shaping the discovery process, influencing the roadmap — while leading a team of three product designers and being a visible voice for design across the business.
What you'll be doing
- Leading a team of three product designers — setting direction, running regular 1:1s, supporting growth, and creating the conditions for great work.
- Owning the end-to-end design of a core product area — from discovery and problem framing through to delivery and iteration.
- Driving the design strategy for your product area, working closely with your PM and engineering lead to shape what gets built and why.
- Running research and insight programmes — planning and facilitating your own studies, synthesising findings, and using them to validate ideas and inform the roadmap.
- Influencing beyond your squad — facilitating workshops, aligning stakeholders across product, data, marketing, and leadership, and embedding better ways of working across the design team.
- Contributing to the wider design community — helping shape the culture, standards, and practice of a 20+ person design function.
What we're looking for
Essential
- Proven experience line managing product designers — you've held direct reports, run appraisals, managed performance, and actively developed people. This isn't a first step into management.
- A career rooted in in-house B2C product teams — you understand what it means to own a problem space over time, not just deliver a project.
- Deep experience with native mobile (iOS/Android) at meaningful consumer.
- A discovery-first working style — you're most at home shaping problem spaces, not executing against defined briefs.
- Strong stakeholder influence — you're comfortable challenging direction, facilitating alignment across seniority levels, and embedding new ways of working.
- Confident running your own user research — moderated and unmoderated studies, synthesis, and connecting insight to product decisions.
Strong differentiators
- Background in fintech, consumer finance, or other complex regulated B2C products.
- Experience working within or contributing to a mature design system.
- Track record of introducing or improving design processes across a team.
The environment
- ~20-person design team with strong design leadership and genuine cultural investment in the discipline.
- Cross-functional squads: PM, engineering, data, marketing, and analytics.
- A defined north star vision already in place — this is about building toward it, not starting from scratch.
- Up to £105k base + bonus + benefits.
- Hybrid: London-based, 2 days per week onsite (Tuesday squad day, Wednesday design day).
The hiring process
We've kept this straightforward and focused on the things that actually matter for the role: Initial screen — a 30–45 minute conversation with our recruitment partner to explore your background, motivations, and fit against the brief.
Lead Product Designer employer: Wave Group
As a Lead Product Designer at one of the UK's most recognised challenger banks, you'll thrive in a dynamic and innovative environment that values design excellence and employee growth. With a strong emphasis on collaboration within cross-functional teams and a commitment to nurturing talent, this role offers you the chance to shape impactful consumer experiences while enjoying a hybrid work model in vibrant London. The company fosters a culture of creativity and inclusivity, ensuring that your contributions are not only recognised but celebrated.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Lead Product Designer
✨Tip Number 1
Get your portfolio in tip-top shape! Make sure it showcases your best work, especially projects that highlight your experience with B2C products and mobile design. We want to see how you've tackled real problems and driven design strategies.
✨Tip Number 2
Network like a pro! Reach out to current or former employees of the bank on LinkedIn. A friendly chat can give you insider info and might even lead to a referral. We all know that connections can make a big difference!
✨Tip Number 3
Prepare for those interviews by practising your storytelling skills. Be ready to discuss your design process, how you’ve led teams, and how you’ve influenced stakeholders. We want to hear about your journey and how you can contribute to the team.
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen by the right people. Plus, it shows you’re genuinely interested in joining our awesome team!
We think you need these skills to ace Lead Product Designer
Some tips for your application 🫡
Showcase Your Experience:Make sure to highlight your proven experience in managing product designers. We want to see how you've developed people and led teams, so don’t hold back on those details!
Tailor Your Portfolio:Your portfolio should reflect your deep experience with native mobile products. We’re looking for examples that showcase your design direction and problem-solving skills, so pick your best work!
Be Authentic:When writing your application, let your personality shine through. We value authenticity, so share your motivations and what excites you about this role and our company.
Apply Through Our Website:We encourage you to apply directly through our website. It’s the best way for us to receive your application and ensures you don’t miss any important updates from our team!
How to prepare for a job interview at Wave Group
✨Showcase Your Leadership Skills
As a Lead Product Designer, you'll need to demonstrate your experience in managing and developing product designers. Prepare specific examples of how you've led teams, run appraisals, and supported growth. This will show that you're not just a designer but a leader who can inspire and guide others.
✨Highlight Your Discovery-First Approach
Since the role requires a discovery-first working style, be ready to discuss your methods for shaping problem spaces. Share insights from past projects where you’ve successfully framed problems and driven design strategies based on user research. This will illustrate your ability to think critically and strategically.
✨Demonstrate Stakeholder Influence
You’ll need to influence beyond your squad, so prepare to talk about times when you've facilitated alignment across different teams or challenged direction effectively. Use examples that showcase your communication skills and ability to embed new ways of working within a team.
✨Connect Insights to Product Decisions
Be ready to discuss your experience with user research, both moderated and unmoderated. Prepare to explain how you've synthesised findings and connected insights to product decisions. This will highlight your analytical skills and your understanding of how research informs design.
