Staff Software Engineer (Design Systems)

Quick Facts

• Title: Staff Software Engineer (Design Systems)

Description

As a Staff Software Engineer on the Design System team, you will build and evolve the engineering surface of the design system: the theme system, design tokens, and tooling that helps engineers, designers, and product teams apply it correctly. You will partner closely with design and product, ensuring decisions account for accessibility, downstream impact, and migration/versioning across internal teams and external customers.

Responsibilities

• Evolve the theme system and design token architecture, including taxonomy, platform transforms, theming APIs, and accessibility guardrails.

• Build adoption tooling: theme builders, linting and audit rules, codemods, Figma-to-code workflows, and local development aids.

• Develop AI skills and tooling so prototypes and production code generate on-system by default.

• Collaborate with design and product to weigh design intent, customer needs, and engineering cost.

• Trace downstream impact of changes and manage versioning, deprecation, and breaking-change communication.

• Ensure the system meets WCAG 2.2 Level AA and implement automated regression checks (contrast, forced colors, focus visibility, reflow).

• Partner with component authors and the component engine team on API contracts, token consumption, and release sequencing.

• Maintain enablement materials: API documentation, usage guidance, and migration paths.

• Support adopters by triaging issues, unblocking teams, and feeding recurring friction into the roadmap.

• Raise the bar through technical design review, code review, and mentorship.

Requirements

• 8+ years of professional front-end engineering experience, including significant time building or operating a design system used by multiple teams.

• Advanced TypeScript and modern JavaScript; deep command of the browser platform (DOM, events, Custom Elements, Shadow DOM).

• Hands-on design tokens experience: schema design, transform pipelines such as Style Dictionary, and multi-platform/multi-brand distribution.

• Expert CSS, especially theming at scale with custom properties, cascade layers, modern layout, container queries, and forced colors mode.

• Working knowledge of WCAG 2.2 Level AA with hands-on screen reader and keyboard testing; ability to apply it to tokens, themes, and components.

• Ability to apply AI tooling in engineering practice, including agentic coding tools, with sound judgment about what needs human review.

• Strong front-end build, release, and versioning skills using Vite, Rollup, or Webpack, plus semantic versioning in a monorepo.

• Demonstrated systems thinking and migration planning.

• Proven collaboration with designers and product managers; can influence technical direction without direct authority.

• Clear technical writing and experience documenting APIs and guiding adoption.

Benefits

• Base pay guideline: $149,800 - $262,200 (plus equity when applicable, variable/incentive compensation, and benefits).

• Health plans, including flexible spending accounts.

• 401(k) with company match.

• ESPP, matching donations.

• Flexible time away plan and family leave programs.

• Compensation based on geographic location and may change with work location.