Staff Designer

What You'll Do

• Build and continually refine Cornerstone's core building blocks, components, patterns, and tokens designed for complex, workflow-heavy, AI-enabled experiences, with a strong eye for brand cohesion and polish.
• Set a multi-year direction for the design system and turn it into a roadmap that design, engineering, and product leadership can develop in concert.
• Design, prototype, and ship production-ready components hand in hand with frontend and platform engineering leadership.
• Define how contribution, governance, and deprecation work in an AI-native working environment; balance shipping speed against system integrity; and adjust the model as the org grows.
• Bake accessibility, responsiveness, and performance into every part of the system from day one.
• Create the documentation, onboarding materials, and reference resources that make Cornerstone the quickest route to shipping well.
• Advocate for the system & guild in planning, design reviews, and roadmap conversations, and hold firm when speed and integrity are in tension.
• Mentor others in design systems craft as the practice grows, shaping what that craft looks like at PermitFlow for years ahead.
• Build real expertise in construction permitting, licensing, and inspections, leading with curiosity even if pre-construction is new territory for you.

What We're Looking For

• A portfolio with real point of view, not just system diagrams: craft, quality, accessibility, and visual cohesion are all a must.
• 10+ years in product design, with meaningful ownership of a design system across a multi-product environment; brand or visual design background is a plus.
• Strong command of component architecture, design tokens, and what it takes for a system to total adoption across teams and surfaces.
• A history of working shoulder to shoulder with frontend engineers to ship production-grade systems, not just handing off specs and moving on.
• A track record of setting & reinforcing accessibility standards.
• Clear communication about system tradeoffs, whether you're talking to designers, engineers, or executives.
• Mastery of Figma, Notion, and Linear; actively experimenting with the next best tool to add to our stack.

What We Offer

• Competitive salary and meaningful equity in a high-growth company
• 100% company-paid base medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees + healthcare FSA
• 401(k) savings plan
• Unlimited PTO and paid family leave
• Home office & equipment stipend
• Daily in-office lunch and dinner provided
• Commuter benefits (pre-tax transit and parking)