Product Designer - Kobo Japan Technology Department (KJT)

The Product Designer will be responsible for delivering exceptional product design capabilities and features, ensuring that products are crafted to meet the needs of readers globally. This role involves collaboration with cross-functional teams and leading design initiatives to enhance user experience.

Responsibilities

• Facilitate stakeholder workshops to drive opportunity understanding and gap analysis
• Conduct user opportunity mapping and how it provides business value
• Participate in product design discovery and definition initiatives
• Work alongside various practices such as architects, developers, researchers, analysts, product owners, and product management
• Work on multiple platforms such as the eReader, Apps, and Responsive Web
• Work and align across three different geos and time zones
• Establish a culture of respect and transparency
• Lead design vision of product roadmap
• Integrate customer centric research findings into product design decisions
• Ensure the product teams’ understanding of the WHY and building of the WHAT
• Translate business requirements, end user needs, and input from cross-functional Business units into differentiated design solutions
• Create design stories and design acceptance criteria
• Measure product design release outcomes
• Contribute to a design centric culture by focusing on user intent, user needs, and shareholder value
• Actively participate in building and implementing a best-in-class design system and component library

Requirements

• Minimum 5 years of experience as a product designer, UX designer, information architect, or interaction designer
• High proficiency with Figma for design delivery and FigJam for collaboration
• A portfolio demonstrating artifacts such as taxonomies, flowcharts, wireframes, interaction design specs, visual design, journey maps, personas, and prototypes
• Ability to articulate and rationalize concepts or process through white-boarding
• Ability to facilitate stakeholder workshops and enable collaboration
• Strong experience in user testing methodologies
• Extensive experience designing for multiple form factors and platforms such as iOS, Android, and responsive web
• Fluent in both Japanese and English

Key Skills

• Strong ability to demonstrate design thinking, process, and solutions
• Strong design aesthetic
• Solid understanding of accessibility principles
• Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills
• Strong ownership and collaborative mindset
• Great leadership in collaboration, design strategy, planning, and creativity
• Proficient in UX/UI design tools in creating wireframes and prototyping
• Experience with Storybook, Adobe Creative Suite, Sketch, Zeplin, or InVision (desired)
• Previous experience working in eReading, ecommerce, entertainment, and software environments (desired)
• Experience working in an Agile environment (desired)
• Awareness of the capabilities of React.js, HTML, and CSS (desired)

Benefits

• Competitive salaries
• Performance based annual bonuses
• Stock options
• Training opportunities