Staff UX/UI Designer

CHAOS Industries•San Francisco, CA

2d•$160,000 - $220,000•Hybrid

About The Position

CHAOS Industries is seeking an experienced Staff UX Designer to establish and lead the UX function from the ground up. This senior individual-contributor role carries significant autonomy and influence: the designer will set the direction for UX practices across the company, rather than work within an established function. The role applies research, interaction design, information architecture, and usability practices to company products and internal tools, working closely with engineering and building scalable processes, standards, and research practices. As the UX function matures, the designer will also develop user research capabilities. The successful candidate will lead end-to-end UX work, translate complex technical workflows into intuitive experiences, shape interfaces in partnership with engineering, and advocate for user needs in cross-functional and leadership decisions. The position is hybrid, requiring three days per week in the office at either the El Segundo or San Francisco office.

Requirements

10+ years of UX design experience, with a demonstrated track record operating at a staff or principal level on complex products.
Experience conducting or overseeing user research, such as usability testing or interviews, and using findings to inform design decisions.
Strong portfolio demonstrating senior-level end-to-end UX work, including research, interaction design, and polished execution.
Experience working effectively with engineering teams, including translating technical constraints into good design solutions.
Proficiency in Figma and standard UX and prototyping tools.
Exceptional communication, stakeholder-management, and influence skills, including the ability to set direction and build buy-in in an organization where the function is new.
Ability to work independently with a high degree of ownership amid ambiguity, particularly when building a function.
Ability to work hybrid, three days per week in-office, at either the El Segundo or San Francisco office.

Nice To Haves

Experience designing for technical, engineering-heavy, or hardware-adjacent products.
Experience designing map-based, geospatial, or location-based interfaces.
Experience in defense or government, especially with command and control (C2) systems.
Experience establishing design systems from scratch.
Bachelor's degree in design, HCI, psychology, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
U.S. citizenship.

Responsibilities

Lead UX design for key products and internal tools, from early concept through shipped experience, as the senior-most UX voice.
Partner closely with engineering to design and refine interfaces, workflows, and interactions while balancing user needs with technical constraints.
Introduce and establish user research practices, including usability testing, user interviews, and other methods to inform design decisions.
Define and advocate for UX best practices, standards, and processes across the company, setting direction for the function.
Build scalable processes, standards, and practices as the foundation for a growing UX function.
Translate complex, technical, or novel workflows into intuitive user experiences.
Partner with engineering, product, and leadership stakeholders to align priorities and represent the user's perspective in high-level decisions.
Create and maintain design systems and UX standards that scale across products.
Communicate design rationale and research findings clearly and persuasively to technical and non-technical audiences, including leadership.