Lead Product Designer, New Verticals

Job Description: Rakuten International is a division of Rakuten Group, Inc., a Japanese global technology leader in services that empower individuals, communities, businesses and society. Headquartered in San Mateo, California with more than 4,000 employees worldwide, the Rakuten International business portfolio includes market leaders in e-commerce, digital marketing, advertising, communications and entertainment. We create products and services that provide exceptional value by aligning members and the businesses that want to engage them in a shared community. Rakuten is the most rewarding way to shop, giving millions of members Cash Back when they buy from their favorite brands. As a leading shopping platform, Rakuten partners with thousands of top brands across apparel, beauty and wellness, grocery, travel, on-demand services, subscriptions, and dining, helping members save on everyday purchases. Since 1999, Rakuten members have earned more than $4.6 billion in Cash Back, making it the largest Cash Back platform of its kind. Learn more at Job Summary: We're looking for a Lead Product Designer to join the Vertical Squad — a team focused on product experiences that expand how and where members earn Cash Back, beyond the core online shopping flow. You'll set the design direction for the squad's portfolio of surfaces — gift card redemption, dining, and in-store shopping — experiences that bring Rakuten's value proposition into new contexts, integrate with third-party systems, and require translating operational complexity into something that feels simple and rewarding for members. You'll define what good looks like across all of these experiences. This role is well suited for a designer who goes broad when exploring a new problem space — drawing from analogous experiences across industries, synthesizing quickly, and bringing a considered point of view back to the work. You pick up new domains fast and can context-switch fluidly between the squad's different surfaces — gift cards, dining, in-store — without losing craft or care in any of them. As a design team, we operate at the intersection of high craft and high impact. We rely on research to de-risk solutions, experimentation to measure what works, and AI to enhance creativity and amplify the impact of our work. We encourage designers to use AI freely in their process and to help shape new ways of working with this emergent technology. This role reports to the Director of Product Design and works directly with a product manager, researcher, UX writer, and engineers embedded in your squad. Key Responsibilities: 1. Design Ownership: Own end-to-end design for your product areas — from problem framing through shipped product. You set the design direction, not just execute on it — and you're a voice in shaping what the squad works on and why. 2. Squad Vision: Develop and communicate a design vision for the squad's product areas — one that gives your cross-functional partners a clear sense of where things are heading and why it matters. 3. Problem Definition: Know how to frame and scope work before applying UI. With a portfolio that spans distinct surfaces, the ability to ask the right questions upfront — and identify what actually needs to be solved — matters as much as the design itself. 4. Systems Thinking: Design with awareness of how the vertical surfaces connect to Rakuten's core shopping experience — building on established design patterns so the work feels cohesive and expected. 5. Research & Validation: Partner with your embedded researcher or drive research yourself to validate direction early, identify friction, and de-risk before development. Job Description: Lead Product Designer, Vertical 2 6. Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with your PM and engineering partners to define what's being built, why, and how. Navigate stakeholder dynamics across teams and communicate design decisions confidently up to senior leadership. 7. Design Culture: Contribute to the broader design team's culture — participate in critiques, share learnings, and help raise the quality of work across squads. 8. AI-Assisted Workflows: Leverage AI tools as part of your design process — for research synthesis, rapid prototyping, ideation, or wherever they help you move faster and think more clearly. Minimum Qualifications & Minimum Requirements: 6+ years of professional design experience with significant experience working with complex systems Bachelor’s or Master’s degree (or equivalent) in design, Human- Computer Interaction (HCI), Industrial Design, Computer Science, or related field Portfolio demonstrating end-to-end product design with clear evidence of process, decision-making, and measurable outcomes Proficiency with design and prototyping tools, e.g., Figma, Claude Code A strong sense of visual and interaction design, with a track record of raising the bar Preferred Qualifications: Experience working in e-commerce, marketplaces, or consumer-scale products Active use of AI tools as part of a design workflow, ideally including AI coding tools for rapid prototyping Track record of influencing design quality and culture beyond your immediate squad — through critiques, mentorship, or team-level initiatives. #LI-EP1 Five Principles for Success Our worldwide practices describe specific behaviors that make Rakuten unique and united across the world. We expect Rakuten employees to model these 5 Shugi Principles of Success. Always improve, Always Advance - Only be satisfied with complete success - Kaizen Passionately Professional - Take an uncompromising approach to your work and be determined to be the best Hypothesize - Practice - Validate – Shikumika - Use the Rakuten Cycle to succeed in unknown territory Maximize Customer Satisfaction - The greatest satisfaction for our teams is seeing their customers smile Speed!! Speed!! Speed!! - Always be conscious of time - take charge, set clear goals, and engage your team Rakuten provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type. Rakuten considers applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetic information, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, provincial or local laws. At the time of posting, Rakuten expects the base compensation for this role to be within the range shown below. Individual compensation will vary based on job-related factors, including the skills, qualifications, and experience of the successful candidate as well as business need and geographic location. The successful applicant for this role will be eligible for discretionary bonus, health, vision, dental insurance, 401k matching, PTO, Volunteer Time Off (VTO), and other employee benefits as the company implements. USD $132,082.50 - $226,820.00 annually