Principal Product Designer

Who we are Hi there 👋 We’re Ethena, compliance training that customizes itself to you. Ethena combines top-rated training content with intelligent AI that builds and adapts training to reflect your company’s unique brand, roles, policies, and risks, so it feels like your team, whether that’s hard hats or virtual meetings. From auto-assigning courses based on HRIS data to transforming your policies into interactive training in minutes, Ethena helps People, Legal, and Compliance teams launch in days (not months) and cut learner seat time by up to 60% with adaptive learning paths. Ethena supports 1M+ learners across 2,000+ organizations, with a 93% learner approval rating and 96% customer renewal rate. Over the past several years, we’ve delivered consistent, durable growth, including 120%+ net dollar retention, 95%+ gross dollar retention, and strong enterprise expansion across industries. Ethena has become a go-to compliance partner for modern, global organizations. Beyond training, Ethena unifies core compliance tools, Hotline & Case Management, Policy Bot, and Phishing Simulator, into a single platform, with built-in audit trails and compliance controls teams can trust. Trusted by teams at companies like Genesco, Asana, Pinterest, and Synaptics, it’s a great time to join us. How we work We’re a team that values diversity in all its forms and loves adding new perspectives. We ask thoughtful questions, challenge assumptions, and build with empathy, for customers and for each other. We care about craft, we love feedback, and we take ownership. We also embrace humor (yes, the puns are real), because doing serious work doesn’t have to feel so serious. Our workforce is fully remote, and your personal working hours can be based on your own timezone. All team-wide meetings are scheduled to be inclusive of all North American time zones.

Who we’re looking for

We're looking for a Principal Product Designer to join our design team. At Ethena design is part of our business strategy, not a service function. This role will own the design of new product features while helping shape how we build, using AI-driven development to move fast without sacrificing quality. You'll be a key contributor to Ethena's growing product surface area and the design practice itself.

What you'll do

Report to the VP of Design

Own the end-to-end design process for new product features from early concept through to shipped, collaborating closely with product and engineering throughout

Leverage AI tools throughout your process (we use Cursor and Claude Code to accelerate design iterations and rely on working prototypes to test ideas before shipping)

Communicate and rationalize design decisions to internal and external stakeholders, keeping users' needs centered throughout

Own our qualitative research practice and work directly with users to turn insights into product direction

Shape short- and long-term product planning as the design voice, partnering with product and engineering from discovery through delivery

What makes a great candidate

A track record of shipping product at a high-growth startup; you know what it takes to get things over the line

A genuine fascination with users and a talent for translating messy research into clear product direction

Able to reduce complex problems to the right balance of flexibility, power, and ease of use

AI-first in how you work, with a clear-eyed view of where they add value

An excellent communicator who can manage up and collaborate across functions, making the case for good design without needing to fight for it

A self-starter who thrives in a hands-off management environment, takes ownership with a 'roll up your sleeves mentality', is comfortable with ambiguity, and drives work forward with minimal oversight

We're a startup so we're not just looking for someone to run a playbook. We want you to help build it.

Passion for what we're building here at Ethena and a strong alignment with our core values (which includes an impeccable sense of humor)

At Ethena, we're committed to fair and equitable compensation. We carefully evaluate each candidate's skills and qualifications to provide our best possible offer upfront. Our no-negotiation policy ensures that our first offer is always our best offer, promoting pay equity throughout our organization. Physical Demands This is sedentary work that primarily involves sitting/standing in a home office environment. Location Ethena is a remote-first organization and is currently hiring candidates based in the United States. We are not currently offering employer visa sponsorship for this role. AI Usage in Interviews: We’re big fans of AI and use it heavily in our day-to-day work. That said, to ensure fairness and accurate skill assessment, we do not allow the use of AI tools (including note takers, transcription tools, or recordings) during interviews. If you have questions or need accommodations, we’re happy to chat — just let us know. Benefits The benefits offered for this position can be found here. We provide unlimited PTO. How to Apply Applications for this position will be accepted via our job board. Excited about the opportunity, but worried you don’t meet all the requirements? Apply anyway, and give us both the chance to find out. We welcome you to read more about our approach to job descriptions by our Chief People Officer, Melanie Naranjo. Curious to know what it’s like to interview with us? Read more here. Ethena is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace. We believe that a successful organization is one that celebrates its employees for who they are, who they love, and the unique lens through which they experience the world. Ethena does not discriminate based on race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity, Veteran status, or other legally protected status. We understand that our differences make us better. They empower us to learn from each other, lean on each other, and create a product and community that models the behavior we hope to see in others. Disclaimer: The salary, other compensation, and benefits information are accurate as of the date of this posting. The Company reserves the right to modify this information at any time, subject to applicable law.