Head of Design

Overview Product Design | Brand Design | Creative Leadership About SoLo Funds SoLo Funds is a leading FinTech company empowering financial autonomy for underserved communities. Launched in 2018, SoLo is an on-demand marketplace where members can request and fund emergency loans—without predatory interest rates. We are VC-backed, supported by Techstars, and have strategic partnerships with Visa and Kiva. We are looking for our first Head of Design to lead the evolution of the SoLo brand and product experience. As a "Player-Coach," you will be the strategic heartbeat of our design discipline, owning everything from high-level brand vision to the granular UI of our marketplace. You will be responsible for building the foundation of a world-class design organization while shipping impactful work in a fast-paced, high-growth environment. What You’ll Do Creative Direction: Own the end-to-end creative direction across Product, Brand, and Growth marketing. Ensure a cohesive and premium visual language across every touchpoint. Brand & Product Evolution: Elevate and optimize the current SoLo experience while defining the roadmap for the next evolution of our brand and product identity. Strategic Scoping: Lead the scoping for upcoming high-impact projects. You will evaluate resource needs, set realistic timelines, and manage internal stakeholder collaboration to ensure flawless execution. Design Infrastructure: Build and maintain our design systems, workflows, and documentation to ensure design can scale efficiently as the company grows. Strategic Leadership: Act as the primary design partner to Product and Engineering, balancing user needs with business priorities and technical feasibility. Brand Architecture: Be a strategic partner to Growth team and leadership in defining SoLo’ brand architecture and future roadmap to multi-product, multi-channel brand relevancy Team Building: Serve as the foundational hire for the design team, establishing the culture, hiring bar, and long-term vision for the design discipline at SoLo. You’re a Great Fit if You’ve Got 10+ years of experience building, scaling, and shipping successful products and brands in a professional environment. Startup Foundations: Proven experience setting up design infrastructure (design systems, handoff processes, and feedback loops) in high-growth environments. Tooling Excellence: Expert proficiency in Figma and the modern design stack, with a constant curiosity for newer, smarter ways to work. Business-Minded Creativity: You have a strategic mindset and understand how to navigate business trade-offs and priorities without compromising on design quality. Cross-Functional Partnership: Extensive experience working alongside Product and Engineering teams to bring visions to life, with a deep understanding of implementation constraints. Exceptional Portfolio: A portfolio that demonstrates mastery of both UI/UX product thinking and high-level brand storytelling. You’re an All Star Fit if You’ve Got AI-Forward Approach: You actively lean into AI tools and best-in-class practices to automate tedious tasks and optimize creative workflows. Experimentation First: You are proactive, experimentation-forward, and find yourself asking "why not?" much more often than "can I?" Industry Expertise: Direct experience in FinTech, financial services, or two-sided marketplace environments is a significant advantage. Startup Grit: You thrive in high-pace, high-accountability environments and are comfortable "getting your hands dirty" while simultaneously planning for the long term. Leadership Presence: You can articulate the "why" behind design decisions to executive leadership and inspire the broader organization. Our Benefits Remote Workplace Unlimited Vacation Policy Full Healthcare Benefits 401K Offered What You’ll Do (Milestones) Within 3 months Conduct a full audit of the current SoLo brand and product suite, identifying immediate areas for optimization. Establish a standardized design-to-engineering handoff process to increase shipping velocity. Take ownership of the creative direction for at least one major upcoming product feature or brand campaign. Within 6 months Define the visual "North Star" for the next evolution of the SoLo app and brand identity. Formalize the SoLo Design System, ensuring consistency across web, iOS, and Android. Identify hiring needs and begin the process of scaling the design team to support SoLo’s 2026/2027 roadmap. Compensation Range: $180K - $220K #J-18808-Ljbffr