Senior Design Engineer

Job description

Relay is a digital banking platform that gives self-made business owners the tools and know-how to be great with money—bringing clarity, confidence, and control to every dollar earned, so they can turn hard work into lasting success. We do this by replacing financial guesswork with real visibility, transforming cash flow from a constant source of stress into a clear signal owners can use to run stronger, more resilient businesses. At Relay, we believe that quality and craft are no longer just nice to haves, they’re product requirements. That belief shapes how we build. Design Engineering is a small, deliberate function with a clear mandate: own the front-end across the product, hold a high bar of quality, and raise it over time. The team works directly with product and design, responsible for the UI, the interactions, and the design systems that everything is built on top of. We're expanding the team and hiring two design engineers who will have real ownership across the product. You'll work on the hardest things to get right: the details that make an interface feel intentional, the systems that make quality consistent at scale, and the problems that require someone who thinks in both design and code. This is a formative moment for the Design Engineering function at Relay while it’s still relatively new. You’ll have the chance to make an outsized role in shaping how it grows, how it integrates across product teams, and what it means for how Relay builds product going forward. If you’re curious to learn more about the standard we hold ourselves to, and the kind of work you’d be owning before you apply, check out some of our recent work: - Telegraph design system documentation https://storybook.relayfi.design/: The foundations used by engineers across the company to ship product. The details are intentional, and so is the fact we made it public. - Relay’s new home page https://relayfi.com/: a collaboration with our marketing design team to introduce a new level of expression to our front door. WHAT YOU'LL BE DOING - Set a high bar of quality across the product by owning the front-end. Identify and systematically reduce UI and UX debt, improve implementation patterns, and raise the overall level of craft across the application. - Embed within product teams to lead UI implementation for new features from concept through launch. Partner closely with product managers, designers, and engineers to ensure shipped experiences meet a high standard for quality, usability, and polish. - Own and evolve Telegraph, our design system. Define and maintain component APIs, composition patterns, interaction standards, and documentation that enable teams to build consistent, scalable interfaces efficiently. - Champion accessibility and performance as core product requirements. Ship experiences that are fast, resilient, and accessible by default through semantic implementation, keyboard support, focus management, testing, and ongoing performance optimization. - Partner closely with designers throughout the product development process. Work collaboratively in code and design tooling to iterate on concepts, refine interactions, and reduce the gap between design and implementation. Help evolve a workflow that replaces traditional handoffs with continuous collaboration. - Create leverage for the broader organization by translating intent into scalable implementation: reusable components, guidelines, sandboxes/playgrounds, and “how to use it” documentation that reduces drift. - Build the infrastructure and workflows that support AI-accelerated product development. Some areas we’re currently exploring include: automating QA and code review processes, connecting design and engineering tools, and setting up prototyping templates. WHO YOU ARE - You're well-versed in React, JavaScript (TypeScript), HTML, and modern CSS - You work in a real engineering environment. You’re comfortable using Git, writing PRs, reviewing code, and contributing directly to a shared codebase - You can identify what's wrong (or right) with a design or component, articulate the specific reason why, and know how it could be improved - You have strong opinions about craft, you hold yourself to a high bar, and your portfolio or GitHub shows it. You sweat the details and truly care about the last 10% that makes great software - You prioritize speed, reusability, accessibility, cross-browser support, functional motion as you build, not as an afterthought - You have genuine curiosity about AI tooling and a grounded enough understanding of how these tools work to build with them Bonus points if: - You have experience with motion or animation work (motion/react, GSAP, or vanilla CSS animations) - You've owned or made meaningful contributions to a React component design system (components in code, not just Figma libraries) The Interview Process: - Stage 1: A 30-minute Google Meet call with a member of the People team - Stage 2: A 60-minute Hiring Manager interview (Design Engineering Discussion & Work Showcase - we want to see something cool you've built!) - Stage 3: A 60-minute technical interview (React component critique and improvement session) - Stage 4: A 45-minute live front end coding challenge (working on a React component problem in real-time) - Stage 5: A 45-minute in-person interview with a member of Relay’s executive team At Relay, we believe Relayers should feel valued for the impact they have on our mission and growth. So we pay fairly and transparently. The annual salary range for this role is $130,500 CAD to $159,500 CAD. We pay for impact and aren’t tied to yearly reviews. As your contributions to Relay’s mission scale, so do your rewards. Most new Relayers will join at the impactful level, which for this role is $145,000 CAD per year. The range represents the potential for impact within the role, from developing to having an outsized impact. We encourage you to have a conversation with your recruiter and ask questions about compensation throughout the hiring process. For more information on our compensation philosophy and perks and benefits, visit our Candidate Hub https://www.notion.so/Candidate-Hub-1c7da8b7f88580a893f7d7c7852b064e?pvs=21. Our Commitment To You: - Competitive salary and meaningful equity: Relay employees are Relay owners, complete with equity and a competitive salary. - Comprehensive health benefits: enjoy full health benefits from day one: no probation period required. We offer flexible Health or Wellness Spending Accounts and medical, dental, and vision coverage for you and your dependents. - Flexible vacation and time off: every team member starts with 15 vacation days and 5 flex days to use as needed, plus an extra week of office closure during the end-of-year holidays so you can take time off to recharge and come back better for our customers. - Parental leave with top-up: we offer 12 weeks off with a 100% salary top-up for all full-time employees, regardless of location, and accessible for all parents: birthing, non-birthing, and adoptive. - Hybrid work environment: we value meaningful collaboration and connection at our Toronto office 3 days a week, with lunch, snacks, and beverages on us. - Dog-friendly space: can dogs really make you happy and healthy? We don’t know for sure, but since we don’t want to chance it, our office is 100% floof-friendly. - Personal and professional growth: through ongoing feedback, mentorship, and coaching, work with peers and leaders who are invested in your growth and success. - Top-tier equipment: as a Mac-first company, our Toronto offices have everything you need to produce your best work comfortably, from multiple screens to ergonomic seating. - Social connection: we believe in celebrating our wins with two annual company-wide get-togethers, quarterly team events, happy hours, and special events and networking opportunities with industry leaders. Why Relay Might Be the Perfect Fit For You - You push relentlessly for reinvention: You're always asking "how can this be better?" -- in your work, in your craft, in yourself. Comfort is a signal to push harder, not coast. You'd rather build something better than defend something familiar. - You crave autonomy: We trust our team with big challenges and the freedom to solve them. If you’re someone who takes initiative, is comfortable taking risks, and seeks input when needed, you’ll find the freedom here empowering. - You own your work: You take pride in your work, follow through on commitments, and feel a deep sense of responsibility for outcomes, not just tasks. - You build with AI, not just use it: You're actively embedding AI into how you work, pushing what's possible, and bringing your team along with you. - You care about impact, not noise: You care deeply about the substance of your work. You measure success by results, not recognition, and you let your work speak for itself. - You’re energized by complexity and ambiguity: You enjoy tackling problems that don’t come with a playbook. You’re comfortable building from scratch, iterating as you go, and collaborating to shape the best path forward. - You seek out feedback: You see directness as respect, not criticism. You actively seek input, sit with hard truths, and use feedback as fuel for improvement. - Small businesses are why we're here: Relay exists to help them thrive -- and that mission has to resonate with you. Join Us We're looking for people who are relentless, curious, and care deeply about the work. You're encouraged to apply even if your experience doesn't perfectly match the job description -- your perspective and drive matter more. We welcome diverse backgrounds and people who think critically, challenge the status quo, and want to help small businesses thrive. If you require accommodations at any stage of the hiring process, please reach out to your Talent Partner. Disclaimer: For compliance reasons, all offers of employment at Relay are conditional upon a successful background check and employment verification through Certn.