Product Design Contractor

Spherical is a transdisciplinary research and design studio focused on regenerating Earth's living systems. They are seeking a mid-level Product Design Contractor to contribute UI design and interaction design for the Living Infrastructure Field Kit, which supports communities in planning living infrastructure projects. The role involves collaborating with the design team to enhance the platform's usability and visual consistency.

Responsibilities:

• Simplify key flows to make the platform easier to navigate and use
• Improve visual consistency and component coverage across the UI kit
• Ground design decisions in validated user needs and technical feasibility
• Deliver clear specs and prototypes that support smooth engineering handoff
• Contribute to accessibility improvements across the platform
• Collaborate with the product team on short discovery cycles to validate user needs, synthesize findings into design requirements, and establish guardrails before high-fidelity work begins
• Partner with engineers throughout implementation to review production builds and ensure design quality
• Support Design leadership in creating presentations and executive-ready visuals for leadership and client reviews, as needed and within allocated hours

Requirements:

• Demonstrated professional experience designing digital products across web and mobile
• A strong portfolio showing product design work; please include your portfolio link with your application
• Strong foundation in visual design fundamentals: typography, color, layout, and composition
• Solid interaction design skills with experience designing complex flows, edge cases, and responsive interfaces
• Experience working with and contributing to design systems
• Familiarity with accessibility standards (WCAG) and inclusive design practices
• Proficiency in Figma
• Healthy balance of comfort, curiosity and discernment in the use of AI-assisted tools and workflows
• Able to manage multiple workstreams simultaneously and keep the Design Director informed of any issues in real time
• High standards of craft with a consistent ability to meet deadlines
• A thorough, exploratory approach to design and a willingness to push ideas before landing on the right solution
• Collaborative, with a calm and solutions-oriented approach under pressure
• Comfortable taking direction and iterating quickly and accurately
• Able to work effectively in a sprint cadence alongside engineers and researchers
• Formal education in graphic design, interaction design, or a related field is a plus, though equivalent professional experience and a strong portfolio are equally valued
• Familiarity with Adobe Creative Suite is a plus