UI Design System Lead

About Us 

SharkNinja is a global product design and technology company, with a diversified portfolio of 5-star rated lifestyle solutions that positively impact people’s lives in homes around the world.Powered by two trusted, global brands, Shark and Ninja, the company has a proven track record of bringing disruptive innovation to market and developing one consumer product after another has allowed SharkNinja to enter multiple product categories, driving significant growth and market share gains. Headquartered in Needham, Massachusetts with more than 4,100 associates, the company’s products are sold at key retailers, online and offline, and through distributors around the world. 

AI at SharkNinja

At SharkNinja, we’re building an AI-native culture. We’re not waiting for the future; we’re creating it. Our people are expected to experiment boldly, adopt new tools, and continuously raise what’s possible to create meaningful impact for our consumers. If you believe the best way to do your job hasn’t been invented yet, you’ll fit right in.

UI Design System Lead, DTC 

Leeds or London (3 days/week in office) 

About the role 

SharkNinja is a seeking a highly skilled UX Design System Lead that will be responsible for building, maintaining and evolving SharkNinja's design system across the DTC and ecommerce digital estate. This role sits at the intersection of design, technology and product, ensuring a consistent, scalable and high-quality user interface across all digital touchpoints. The ideal candidate is a hands-on design leader who combines deep UI craft with a systems thinking mindset and the ability to collaborate effectively across engineering, product and marketing teams. 

This is an opportunity to help set the UX standard for a growing global ecommerce business while remaining close to the craft and measurable customer experience. 

Ultimately, you will empower our designers and engineers with a high-leverage single source of truth that multiplies output and streamlines the entire development lifecycle. You are the keeper of shared standards, the person who makes it easier for every designer and engineer to ship better work. 

RESPONSIBILITIES 

Design System Ownership 

• Own and evolveSharkNinja'sUI design system, ensuring it is scalable, well-documented and adopted consistently across DTC digital properties. 
• Define andmaintaindesign tokens, component libraries, patterns and guidelines that enable teams to build with speed and consistency. 
• Continuously audit and improve the design system based on product needs, accessibilitystandardsand emerging best practices. 
• Balance consistency with flexibility,establishingclear standards while leaving appropriate room for product and market judgment. 

Component & Pattern Development 

• Design, build andmaintaina comprehensive library of reusable UI components that can be deployed across web and digital touchpoints. 
• Use Figma variables,componentarchitecture and token structures to create scalable, reusable design foundations that map effectively to coded components. 
• Collaborate closely with front-end engineering teams to ensure design system components are accurately implemented in code and practical tomaintain.
• Establishclear versioning, contribution and governance processes to manage the design system at scale. 

Cross-Functional Enablement 

• Act as the primary point of contact and subject matter expert for the design system across design,engineeringand product teams. 
• Develop documentation, guidelines and training resources that enable teams to adopt and contribute to the system effectively.
• Champion design system usage and consistency across all DTC digital projects and workstreams.
• Build alignment across designers, engineers and product managers through clear communication and influence without relying on formal authority.

Quality & Accessibility 

• Ensure all UI components and patterns meet WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility standards and deliver an inclusive digital experience.
• Apply accessibility requirements tocomponentbehavior, interaction patterns, visual design and documentation. 
• Define and uphold UI quality standards across the DTC digital estate, working with teams toidentifyand resolve inconsistencies. 
•  Stay ahead of UI trends,toolingand accessibility requirements to keep the design system current and effective. 

Collaboration & Influence 

• Work closely with UX, Product, Engineering and Marketing teams to ensure the design system supports the needs of the broader digitalorganisation.
• Partner with Engineering on design tokens,componentlibraries, design-to-code handoff and development workflows. 
• Influence design and engineering decisions to drive consistency,efficiencyand quality across digital delivery. 
• Present design system updates,roadmapand impact to senior stakeholders. 

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE 

• A mature, well-adopted design system that enables teams to build consistently and efficiently acrossSharkNinja'sDTC digital estate. 
• Measurable improvements in design and development speed through reusable components, clearguidelinesand efficient workflows. 
• High levelsof accessibility compliance and UI consistency across all digital touchpoints. 
• A design systemrecognisedinternally as a strategic enabler of digital delivery and a trusted single source of truth. 

ATTRIBUTES & SKILLS 

• 5+ years of experience in UX or Product Design, with at least3 years focused on building, maintaining or scaling design systems. 
• Demonstratedexperience building and scaling a design system, ideally within a product-led organisation supporting multiple products, teams or markets. 
• Expertproficiencyin Figma, with deep knowledge of variables, component architecture, auto layout and scalable library structures. 
• Provenexpertisein how Figma variables and design tokens map to coded token structures and production component libraries. 
• Strong systems thinking, with the ability toidentifypatterns, spot inconsistencies and design solutions for scale, consistency and reuse. 
• Experience defining andmaintainingdesign tokens, reusable components, patterns, documentation and contribution models. 
• Working knowledge of front-end fundamentals, including HTML and CSS, and an understanding of how UI components are implemented in code.
• Strong understanding of WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility standards and how accessibility requirements informcomponentdesign, interaction patterns and documentation. 
• Ability to balance consistency with flexibility, knowing when the system shouldestablisha standard and when product teams need room for judgment. 
• Comfortable partnering closely with Engineering, with practical understanding of design tokens, codedcomponentlibraries and design-to-development handoff workflows. 
• A clear communicator and strong cross-functional influencer, able to build alignment across Design, Engineering and Product without relying on formal authority.
• Comfortable operating in a governance role, setting standards, running reviews, managingcontributionsand making decisions that protect the integrity and scalability of the system. 
• Detail-oriented and reliable,recognisingthat designers and engineers depend on the system being accurate, current and well-documented. 
• Excellent communication and stakeholder-management skills, with the ability to advocate for design-system quality and communicate its value to senior stakeholders.
• Experience within ecommerce, DTC or another complex digital product environment is strongly preferred.
• Bachelor's degree in Design, Interaction Design or equivalent experience.

Additional nice to have: 

• Hands-on experience with design-token pipelines and associated tooling.
• IAAP/WAS accessibility certification or equivalent accessibility credentials would be a distinct advantage.
• Experience withcomponent-librarytooling, including writing or reviewing component documentation at the code layer. 
• Familiarity with Git and how design-system changes move through development, review,releaseand versioning workflows. 
• Experience working with Engineering toestablishor evolve design-to-code workflows and shared component governance. 

#LI-HYBRID

Our Culture

At SharkNinja, we don’t just raise the bar—we push past it every single day.  Our Outrageously Extraordinary mindset drives us to tackle the impossible, push boundaries, and deliver results that others only dream of. If you thrive on breaking out of your swim lane, you’ll be right at home.

What We Offer

We offer competitive health insurance, retirement plans, paid time off, employee stock purchase options, wellness programs, SharkNinja product discounts, and more. We empower your personal and professional growthwith high impact Learning Programs featuring bold voices redefining what’s possible.When you join, you’re not just part of a company—you’re part of an outrageously extraordinary community.Together, we won’t just launch products—we’ll disrupt entire markets.  

At SharkNinja, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are vital to our global success. Valuing each unique voice and blending all of our diverse skills strengthens SharkNinja’s innovation every day. We support ALL associates in bringing their authentic selves to work, making an impact, and having the opportunity for career acceleration. With help from our leadership, associates, and our community, we aim to have equity be a key component of the SharkNinja DNA. 

Learn more about us:  
Life At SharkNinja  
Outrageously Extraordinary 

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We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability, or any other class protected by legislation, and local law. SharkNinja will consider reasonable accommodations consistent with legislation, and local law. If you require a reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, please contact SharkNinja People & Culture at accommodations@sharkninja.com