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Principal Content Designer

BetterUp · Arlington, VA, USA ·

Pay:
$250,000-$320,000/yr
Job type:
Full Time

Overview

Let’s face it, a company whose mission is human transformation better have some fresh thinking about the employer/employee relationship. We do. You’ll start noticing it from the first interview. Our candidate experience is different, and when you receive an offer, you get more than a paycheck: a personal BetterUp Coach, a development plan, a trained and coached manager, an amazing team (each with their own Coach), and work that matters. This creates a focused and fulfilling work experience. It’s not for everyone, but for people with fire in their belly, it’s a game-changing move.

Join us and we promise you intense and fulfilling years of life-changing work in a fun, inventive, soulful culture.

If that sounds exciting—and the job description below feels like a fit—we should start talking.

About The Team & Your Impact

BetterUp is pioneering human transformation at scale, and design plays a central role in that mission. We’re evolving from a suite of products to an intelligent, adaptive platform that powers transformative experiences for individuals and organizations worldwide. BetterUp is looking for a Principal Content Designer to join our Design team and shape the future of human transformation at scale. In this role, you will define the content strategy and voice standards that shape how humans experience our platform—from onboarding flows to coaching interfaces to AI-powered product surfaces. You will operate at the intersection of craft, systems thinking, and cross-functional influence, helping BetterUp set the standard for what world-class content design looks like in the age of AI.

What You'll Do

  • Define and evolve BetterUp’s content design systems, voice principles, and UX writing standards across the product portfolio
  • Lead end-to-end content design for high-complexity, high-visibility product initiatives—from discovery through launch—partnering closely with Product, Engineering, and Research
  • Anticipate platform-level content challenges before they become problems, bringing forward proposals that reimagine how language, tone, and structure serve users
  • Establish scalable content patterns and governance frameworks that can be adopted across multiple design squads
  • Champion accessible, inclusive language practices across all product surfaces and coach other designers and writers on best practices
  • Mentor and raise the bar for product designers and cross-functional partners, helping them build content craft and strategic thinking
  • Drive adoption of AI-assisted content design workflows, experimenting with new tools and documenting learnings that advance team practice
  • Serve as a thought leader internally and externally on content design, UX writing, and AI-augmented creative work
  • Collaborate with cross-functional brand, marketing, and customer support teams to bridge content gaps and ensure we’re all speaking like one brand
  • Partner with our Legal and Behavioral Science teams to ensure we’re speaking responsibly and ethically with our users

What You'll Bring

  • 10+ years of experience in content design, UX writing, or a closely related field, with significant time spent in a product-led environment
  • A portfolio that demonstrates systems-level content thinking, voice and tone development, and measurable impact on product outcomes
  • Proven ability to operate autonomously—setting your own priorities, navigating ambiguity, and driving decisions across senior stakeholders
  • Deep experience collaborating with Product, Design, Engineering, and Research teams on complex, multi-surface initiatives
  • Strong command of accessibility and inclusive design principles as they apply to written language
  • Experience building or significantly contributing to content design systems, pattern libraries, or editorial standards

You'll Thrive Here If You Have

  • Experience designing content for AI-powered or conversational product experiences
  • Background in coaching, wellness, HR tech, or consumer behavior change products
  • Familiarity with design tools such as Figma, alongside content tools and AI writing assistants
  • Experience mentoring or managing other content designers or UX writers
  • External presence as a speaker, writer, or contributor to the content design community

AI at BetterUp

Our team thrives at the intersection of human expertise and AI capability. As an AI-forward company, adaptation and continuous learning are part of our daily work. We’re looking for teammates who are excited to evolve alongside technology—people who experiment boldly, share their discoveries openly, and help define best practices for AI-augmented work. During our interview process, you’ll have opportunities to showcase how you harness AI to learn, iterate, and amplify your impact.

As a Principal Content Designer, You’ll

  • Shape company-wide AI strategy in partnership with executive leadership, ensuring design’s voice is central to how BetterUp’s AI capabilities are built and experienced
  • Remove institutional barriers to AI adoption and drive cultural change that embraces continuous reinvention across the Design org
  • Serve as BetterUp’s foremost design expert in AI-powered product experiences, with recognized internal and external influence
  • Directly contribute to competitive differentiation through breakthrough design applications that define market leadership

During our interview process, you’ll have opportunities to showcase how you harness AI to learn, iterate, and amplify your impact. We encourage all candidates to share examples of how they’ve used AI tools in their work—whether Figma plugins, generative design tools, or AI-powered user research analysis.

Benefits

At BetterUp, we are committed to living out our mission every day and that starts with providing benefits that allow our employees to care for themselves, support their families, and give back to their community.

  • Access to BetterUp coaching; one for you and one for a friend or family member
  • A competitive compensation plan with opportunity for advancement
  • Medical, dental, and vision insurance
  • Flexible paid time off
  • Per year:
    • All federal/statutory holidays observed
    • 4 BetterUp Inner Workdays (
    • 5 Volunteer Days to give back
    • Learning and Development stipend
    • Company wide Summer & Winter breaks
  • Year-round charitable contribution of your choice on behalf of BetterUp
  • 401(k) self contribution

We are dedicated to building diverse teams that foster an authentic workplace and sense of belonging. BetterUp Inc. provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, genetics, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status. We comply with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment where the company operates. This policy covers all terms and conditions of employment.

At BetterUp, compensation is determined by job-related experience, education/training, residence location, and market indicators. The base salary range for this role is:

New York City and San Francisco: $250,000 - $320,000

Austin and Arlington: $230,000 - $285,000

Protecting your privacy and treating your personal information with care is important. By submitting your application, you acknowledge that your personal information will be processed in accordance with our Applicant Privacy Notice. If you have questions about privacy, contact

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