RentSpree is hiring: Staff Design Technologist / Creative Technologist in Seattl

Staff Design Technologist / Creative Technologist

Seattle, WA (Hybrid) Join the Product Experience Design (PXD) department at RentSpree as a Staff Design Technologist! You will play a pivotal role in transforming how we approach design systems, AI integration, customer-facing experiences, and design productivity tools. This role will be instrumental in delivering department goals through self-serve tools, design and research productivity enhancements, and cutting-edge AI integrations with our front-end.

What You'll Do

• Lead the evolution of our design system from static component libraries to adaptive, AI‑powered experience systems. Transform our design tokens with semantic naming systems that enable LLMs and RAG systems to better understand, assemble, and optimize UI patterns.
• Manage and mentor a focused team of design professionals (1 design technologist, 1 visual designer), fostering innovation while maintaining high standards for design system implementation and tool development.
• Own the design system roadmap, developing component libraries, design tokens, pattern documentation, and self‑serve tools that scale across Marketing, Sales, and Customer Success teams. Make systems "AI‑readable" through metadata, tokens, and semantic tagging.
• Pioneer AI adoption in design workflows, establishing frameworks that provide design inspection, usability audits, friction logs, and automated improvement suggestions.
• Work autonomously on high‑impact projects while collaborating with Product, Engineering, and Data teams where dependencies exist. Bridge technical and creative domains to accelerate product innovation.
• Create self‑serve design tools and templates that enable non‑designers across the organization to maintain brand consistency and design quality.
• Drive research and implementation of behavior‑driven UI that adapts based on user context, personalization layers, and agentic orchestration—moving from fixed variants to dynamic, intelligent experiences.
• Establish design quality metrics, automated testing protocols, and continuous improvement processes that reduce rework and increase design velocity.

Education & Experience

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Design, Computer Science, HCI, or related field
• 6+ years of hands‑on experience in design systems development and maintenance, design operations, or creative technology roles
• Proven track record of leading design technology initiatives and guiding a team

Technical Expertise

• Expert proficiency in Figma (plug‑ins, libraries, tokens, auto‑layout, variables, advanced functionality)
• Strong front‑end development skills (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, React frameworks)
• Experience with design system tools and methodologies (Storybook, design tokens, component libraries)
• Familiarity with AI/ML tools and APIs (OpenAI, Google, Anthropic, or similar)
• Knowledge of modern development workflows (GitHub, CI/CD, automated testing)

AI & Automation Skills

• Experience integrating AI tools into creative workflows and productivity systems
• Understanding of LLM capabilities, limitations, and prompt engineering
• Knowledge of RAG systems, semantic data structures, and metadata frameworks
• Experience with automation tools and workflow optimization

Design Systems Mastery

• Deep understanding of design system principles, scalability challenges, and adoption strategies
• Experience with design token architecture and multi‑platform implementation
• Knowledge of accessibility standards (WCAG) and inclusive design practices
• Track record of successfully rolling out design systems across multiple teams and products

Leadership & Communication

• Strong leadership skills with experience leading creative and technical team members
• Excellent presentation and communication abilities across technical and non‑technical audiences
• Experience influencing stakeholders and driving adoption of new tools and processes
• Demonstrated ability to balance strategic vision with tactical execution

Domain Experience (Plus)

• SaaS or proptech industry experience, particularly in real estate, property management, or rental platforms
• Experience working in fast‑paced startup environments with rapid iteration cycles
• Background in design operations, creative operations, or design system consulting

Qualities You Practice

• Take full ownership and accountability: Drives projects from idea to execution, with pride, urgency, and a "do what it takes" mentality.
• Collaborate with clarity, candor, and respect: Communicate openly and courageously, offer and receive feedback well, and build trust through transparency and reliable partnership.
• Strive for excellence while staying humble: Driven with a bias for action, hold a high bar, think critically, and continuously look to improve.
• Bring a versatile, proactive mindset: Adapt to evolving needs, anticipate challenges, take initiative, be resourceful, and embrace opportunities to achieve high quality results.
• Innovate and learn fast: Experiment, learn from failure, and seek opportunities to introduce new methods or diverse ways of achieving results.
• Engage in healthy debate and commit as a team: Contribute ideas, challenge constructively, and align quickly for decisive action.
• AI is a core skill: Equip yourself to use AI in your daily workflow, boosting productivity, accelerating RentSpree’s growth, and building future‑ready career skills in a world where AI literacy is essential.

Benefits

• Compensation: $180‑210k base
• Equity Options: Share in the value we’re creating—your work makes a real impact.
• Team‑First Culture: Join a group of talented, supportive teammates who inspire each other to do their best work and celebrate every win.
• Learning & Development: Ongoing support for your growth through resources, coaching, and career development opportunities.
• Health Coverage: Comprehensive employee + dependent medical, dental, and vision insurance, as well as HSA/FSA options. Plus, enjoy additional health perks like access to Headspace Care+, gym membership discounts, and much more—because your well‑being matters, inside and out.
• Plan for your future: Life, disability, and Simple IRA retirement plan with company match to support your future.
• Flexible Vacation Policy: We trust you to take the time you need to rest and recharge.
• Holidays: Enjoy 12 holidays throughout the year, as part of our commitment to honoring culture, history, and time to recharge.
• Events: We make time to connect and celebrate through reimbursable weekly team lunches, game nights, events, and more, both in‑person and remotely.
• Recognition Programs: Team members can recognize their peers with Sprees, which are redeemable for gift cards and/or donations to an organization of your choice, or nominate a colleague for a S.P.R.E.E. Award to spotlight above‑and‑beyond contributions, which may be rewarded with a spot bonus. Our Work Anniversary Program also honors employee milestones with personalized tokens of appreciation!
• Business Expense Allowance & Internet Reimbursement: Get the tools and support you need to do your best work.
• Parental Leave & Fertility Support: Inclusive benefits to support you and your family, wherever you are in life.
• Legal & tax benefits: We offer group legal benefits and tax support through RocketLawyer.
• Seattle HQ: If you’ll be working from our Seattle office, you’ll receive a company‑sponsored Orca card to cover the cost of public transportation to and from the office!

EEO Statement

RentSpree is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, genetic information, pregnancy, or any other protected characteristic as outlined by federal, state, or local laws. This policy applies to all employment practices within our organization, including hiring, recruiting, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, leave of absence, compensation, benefits, training, and apprenticeship. RentSpree makes hiring decisions based solely on qualifications, merit, and business needs at the time.