Product Designer, Contract (Senior - Design Director)

Instrument is a digitally native design and technology company that creates digital experiences across brand, marketing, and product offerings. The company is seeking experienced freelance Product Designers, from Senior Designer through Design Director level, to design digital product experiences, develop scalable design systems, collaborate with cross-functional teams, and provide hands-on design leadership as needed.

Responsibilities:

• Design polished, thoughtful digital product experiences across desktop and mobile
• Translate user journeys, product requirements, and creative direction into clear flows, interfaces, and prototypes
• Create, evolve, and document component-based design systems, including patterns, specifications, and reusable assets
• Apply design systems consistently across templates and surfaces while identifying gaps, inconsistencies, and opportunities to improve them
• Partner with cross-functional teams to balance user needs, brand expression, technical feasibility, accessibility, and delivery constraints
• Present work and articulate design decisions clearly in internal and client reviews
• Support quality through implementation, collaborating with engineering partners to ensure the intended experience carries through to build
• For Design Director-level engagements, guide design quality and direction across a workstream; mentor designers and build confidence with senior client partners

Requirements:

• Significant experience designing digital products, services, or complex responsive web experiences
• A portfolio that demonstrates strong visual craft alongside sound UX and systems thinking
• Deep fluency in Figma, including components, variables, libraries, prototyping, and clear documentation practices
• Experience building or scaling design systems that are practical for teams to use—not simply beautiful libraries
• Comfort working from foundational strategy, information architecture, or an established creative direction and bringing it to life across interconnected experiences
• Strong understanding of accessibility and how to design inclusive, usable experiences across devices
• Ability to work independently, manage a scoped workstream, and communicate proactively in a fast-moving engagement
• Clear, constructive collaboration with other designers, strategists, technologists, producers, and clients