Design Director

About UsRare Days partners with category-defining companies to design, build, and launch new products, breathe new life into existing ones, or embed with internal teams to help them scale. We excel at brand and product strategy, and we have a high bar for execution. We take the time to deeply understand our partner’s goals and end-user needs, which allows us to build incredibly intentional experiences.
We've been doing it since 2020. Today we work with companies like Airbnb, Notion, and beehiiv, alongside creators and content-led businesses like Dr. Becky, Esther Perel, and Colin & Samir. Design and engineering sit in the same team, so the thinking and the making happen together.
We're a distributed team based in Canada, and we're open to candidates located within four hours of PST. Preference will be given to Canadian applicants.
About the RoleWe're hiring a Design Director to lead the work across a few engagements at once.
You'd come in early, get to know the client's world and their audience deeply, and figure out what the product should actually be. Then lead the team in setting a direction, get them rallied around it, and guide them to an outcome. Hands-on where it counts, stepping back once the team has it.
The work varies a lot. One engagement might be zero-to-one with a founder who's never built a product before and needs guiding through the process. Another might be an established company trying to level up something already in market. Both need someone who can hold the quality bar and keep clients confident along the way. Typically you'd be across three projects at a time, with a small group of designers reporting to you.
Core ResponsibilitiesDiscovery & Product Definition

• Run discovery and turn what you learn into a clear point of view on what to build
• Bring lightweight generative research into engagements where it will change the outcome
• Know which validation method fits which stage, from early concept tests through prototypes to signals from real usage
• Articulate a clear and compelling vision to clients, being as clear about what not to build as what to build

Direction & Project Team Leadership

• Set the design direction and get the team behind it
• Push the team toward better work. Bring references, spark ideas, challenge assumptions and status quos
• Guide the work at every stage, from early concepts through to final polish
• Stay hands-on where your involvement raises the bar, and step back once it doesn't

Design Team Co-Leadership

• Manage a small group of designers and help them grow, with feedback that's specific and timely
• Partner with our VP of Design on the process, standards, and culture of the wider team
• Share your work, thinking, and process openly, including with designers who don't report to you

Client Leadership

• Earn client trust and sell the work in well
• Facilitate workshops, discussions, and reviews that keep momentum and buy-in high
• Turn loosely defined needs into clear plans, and know when to push back
• Work closely with product and engineering leads. You should know the product deeply enough to help a PM weigh trade-offs
• Keep scope and budget in view alongside quality, and raise it early when something's drifting

What We're Looking For

• 12+ years in product design, with at least a few of those leading teams. This shouldn't be your first director role
• A real zero-to-one track record. Products you took from nothing to shipped, not only large platforms you inherited
• Experience in an agency, studio, or consultancy, where product strategy and UX were central to the work
• Strong instincts for discovery and product direction, with the validation chops to know when you're onto something
• A portfolio that shows systems-level thinking alongside excellent execution
• Comfortable working where product and brand meet. You don't need to be a brand designer, but a lot of our work spans both, so real chops on the visual side is a huge bonus
• Calm when things are ambiguous or shifting. You can step back mid-project, reshape the plan, and bring people with you
• Confidence presenting, storytelling, and guiding decisions in high-stakes rooms
• A leadership style that sets a high bar and builds trust while doing it
• Curiosity about where AI fits into design work. We're running our own experiments and still forming a view. We'd like someone who keeps poking at it with us
• Bonus: experience with enterprise platforms, creator tools, or community products. Our work spans both companies and creators.

Compensation and Benefits

• $200,000 – $250,000 CAD
• Generous paid time off for vacation, sick days, and personal time as needed. We actively encourage team members to make use of this time-off policy
• Flexible working hours and remote-friendly culture
• Extended health care benefits for Canadian employees