Product & Design Lead

Blackboard

17d•$154,000 - $165,000•Remote

About The Position

We're a small team within Blackboard building a new AI-native product. This is not a feature team, and it's not an enhancement to an existing product — we're building something new. Ideas start in an LLM — clarifying intent, surfacing constraints, drafting requirements. Prototyping happens in code, using tools like Claude Code and Cursor, before it ever reaches high-fidelity design. Figma is for systems and polish, not for exploration. We need a Product & Design Lead who can operate in this model fluently and be the 'founding' product and design leader. You will define the user experience, prototype interactions directly in code with AI tools, and work hand-in-hand with engineering to ship. You will own the full product vision from the user's perspective: how intelligence surfaces in ways that feel clear and motivating, and how design decisions translate directly into behavior change. This is a maker role first. If you're looking to primarily direct others, this isn't the right fit. We need someone who still loves designing and building — and is exceptional at it.

Requirements

You've shipped consumer-facing products that real users actually love — and you have a portfolio that proves it
You can prototype directly in code using AI tools (Cursor, Claude Code, or equivalent) — Figma isn't the starting point for exploration
Strong visual and interaction design craft — you can produce high-fidelity work yourself, not just direct others
Product thinking that goes beyond UI — you understand retention, habit formation, and behavior change
You've worked in deeply integrated cross-functional teams where design and engineering aren't separated by handoffs
You use AI tools actively in your current workflow and can articulate how they've changed how you work
Fluency in written and spoken English

Nice To Haves

Experience designing AI-powered or data-driven consumer products
Background in domains where behavior change and motivation design matter (EdTech, health tech, fitness tech)
Familiarity with learning science principles — spaced repetition, metacognition, cognitive load
Prior experience as a founding or solo designer/PM at an early-stage company

Responsibilities

User-Facing Experience
A proactive, daily user experience that surfaces the right information at the right moment — without cognitive overload
Interfaces that make AI-driven recommendations feel clear, trustworthy, and actionable — not robotic
A design system built for speed and consistency across multiple product surfaces
Engagement & Motivation Layer
Progress and momentum mechanics grounded in learning science — habit formation, not dark patterns
Visual systems that communicate state and trajectory in ways users actually understand and act on
Product Strategy & Roadmap
Own the product roadmap from v1 through v2 in close partnership with the technical and scientific leads
Define success metrics for the user experience and build feedback loops that inform iteration
Translate evidence-based principles into product decisions — not as a constraint, but as a competitive advantage
Design Infrastructure
Build and maintain a component library that enables the engineering team to move fast without breaking consistency
Establish a design culture that is opinionated, user-first, and evidence-informed