Staff Product Designer, Aqua (San Jose)

The opportunityAqua is looking for an experienced Staff Product Designer to help shape the future of creative tools and AI-powered experiences for kids and families. You’ll design intuitive, playful experiences that empower children to explore, create, and express themselves.Aqua is building the next generation of creative experiences, combining thoughtful product design with emerging technologies to make creativity more accessible, inspiring, and fun. We believe great products should spark curiosity, invite exploration, and create moments of delight and wonder.As a Staff Designer, you’ll help define the vision and execution of Aqua’s product experiences. You’re a versatile designer who thrives in ambiguity and enjoys moving between strategy, interaction design, visual craft, prototyping, and storytelling. You can take ideas from early exploration through launch and turn complex challenges into simple, joyful experiences.The ideal candidate brings a balance of strategic thinking, strong craft, and technical curiosity. You’re excited by emerging technologies, especially AI-powered workflows, and are passionate about designing tools that amplify creativity, encourage exploration, and inspire a lifelong love of making.What you’ll doPartner with product managers, engineers, and cross-functional teams to rapidly prototype, test, and launch high-quality product experiences.Drive end-to-end design initiatives from early concepts and interactive prototypes through execution, iteration, and release.Explore and communicate ideas through sketches, wireframes, prototypes, and emerging AI-assisted design and development tools.Design intuitive workflows and interactions for complex creative tools while balancing user needs, business goals, and technical constraints.Use research, user insights, and product data to inform decisions and continuously improve experiences.Collaborate closely with engineering to bring ideas to life with speed, quality, and attention to detail.Establish scalable design patterns and systems that enable efficient product development.Share design vision and rationale through compelling storytelling, critique, and cross-functional collaboration.Influence roadmap decisions through design thinking, customer insight, rapid experimentation, and cross-functional leadership.Design cohesive experiences across mobile, web, and emerging surfaces, ensuring consistency and continuity across the Aqua ecosystem.What you need to succeed8+ years of product design experience with a strong portfolio demonstrating strategic thinking, interaction design, and end-to-end product execution across web, iOS, and Android experiences.Experience designing consumer products, creative tools, productivity software, or playful experiences that inspire curiosity, creativity, and exploration.Strong understanding of user-centered design principles, with a passion for creating intuitive, joyful experiences that bring a sense of fun and wonder to people of all ages, especially kids and families.Proficiency with industry-standard design and prototyping tools, including AI-assisted design and development workflows.Ability to rapidly explore ideas, prototype concepts, and communicate product vision through interactive experiences that bring ideas to life.Strong communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills with the ability to partner with cross-functional teams and independently drive projects forward in a fast-paced environment.Experience partnering closely with product and engineering teams to bring ambitious design visions to life, from early exploration through launch.A passion for design, creativity, storytelling, and building technology experiences that spark imagination.Experience operating in ambiguous, early-stage, or 01 product environments.Preferred Accessibility Design Skills:Experience designing accessible and inclusive interfaces for people with disabilities.Familiarity with WCAG standards and testing for accessibility compliance.Certifications such as CPACC, WAS, CPWA, or ADS from IAAP are a plus.About Adobe DesignAdobe Design is the multidisciplinary, global organization behind Adobe experiences. Our full-stack team includes design researchers, design engineers, experience designers, brand designers, content strategists, and program managers dedicated to delivering exceptional experiences for Adobe users.About AdobeAdobe empowers everyone to create through innovative platforms and tools that unleash creativity, productivity and personalized customer experiences. Adobe’s industry-leading offerings including Adobe Acrobat Studio, Adobe Express, Adobe Firefly, Creative Cloud, Adobe Experience Platform, Adobe Experience Manager, and GenStudio enable people and businesses to turn ideas into impact, powered by AI and driven by human ingenuity.Our 30,000+ employees worldwide are creating the future and raising the bar as we drive the next decade of growth. We’re on a mission to hire the very best and believe in creating a company culture where all employees are empowered to make an impact. At Adobe, we believe that great ideas can come from anywhere in the organization. The next big idea could be yours. Let’s Adobe togetherAt Adobe, we believe in creating a company culture where all employees are empowered to make an impact. Learn more about Adobe life, including our values and culture, focus on people, purpose and community, Adobe for All, comprehensive benefits programs, the stories we tell, the customers we serve, and how you can help us advance our mission of empowering everyone to create.Adobe is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on gender, race or color, ethnicity or national origin, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic. Learn more.Adobe aims to make our Careers website and recruiting process accessible to any and all users. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation to navigate our website or complete the application process, email View email address on apply.placed-app.com or call View phone number on apply.placed-app.com. AI Use Guidelines for Interviews:Our interviews are designed to reflect your own skills and thinking. The use of AI or recording tools during live interviews is not permitted unless explicitly invited by the interviewer or approved in advance as part of a reasonable accommodation. If these tools are used inappropriately or in a way that misrepresents your work, your application may not move forward in the process.At Adobe, we empower employees to innovate with AI — and we look for candidates eager to do the same. As part of the hiring experience, we provide clear guidance on where AI is encouraged during the process and where it’s restricted during live interviews. See how we think about AI in the hiring experience.Expected Pay Range:Our compensation reflects the cost of labor across several  U.S. geographic markets, and we pay differently based on those defined markets. The U.S. pay range for this position is $146,300 -- $274,300 annually. Pay within this range varies by work location and may also depend on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for the job location during the hiring process.

In California, the pay range for this position is $189,400 - $274,300
At Adobe, for sales roles starting salaries are expressed as total target compensation (TTC = base + commission), and short-term incentives are in the form of sales commission plans. Non-sales roles starting salaries are expressed as base salary and short-term incentives are in the form of the Annual Incentive Plan (AIP).In addition, certain roles may be eligible for long-term incentives in the form of a new hire equity award.State-Specific Notices:California:Fair Chance OrdinancesAdobe will consider qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records for employment in accordance with state and local laws and “fair chance” ordinances.Colorado:Application Window NoticeIf this role is open to hiring in Colorado (as listed on the job posting), the application window will remain open until at least the date and time stated above in Pacific Time, in compliance with Colorado pay transparency regulations. If this role does not have Colorado listed as a hiring location, no specific application window applies, and the posting may close at any time based on hiring needs.Massachusetts:Massachusetts Legal NoticeIt is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.SummaryLocation: San Francisco; San JoseType: Full time