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Aqua · 2 months ago

Founding Design Engineer

Philadelphia, PA

Full-time

Onsite

Mid, Senior Level

$100K/yr - $180K/yr

3+ years exp

Aqua is the operating system for wealth channel alternatives, building a platform for independent broker-dealers and financial advisors to invest in alternative assets. The Founding Design Engineer will own design across product, brand, and marketing, creating intuitive interfaces and establishing a cohesive visual identity for the company.

Asset ManagementFinanceFinancial Services

Responsibilities

Own product design and implementation — Drive the complete design process from concept to production code, translating complex investment workflows into intuitive interfaces built with React, TypeScript, and Tailwind

Shape Aqua's visual identity — Establish our brand guidelines and design system, creating a cohesive visual language that signals trust, sophistication, and ease of use

Create high-impact brand and marketing assets — Design sales decks, one-pagers, conference materials, and digital content that close deals and maintain consistency across all touchpoints

Be the voice of design — Champion design thinking across the organization while establishing the foundations (processes, tools, culture) for the future design team

Partner with leadership — Work directly with founders and executives to scale the design function as the company grows

Qualification

Product designReactTypeScriptFigmaTailwind/CSSAdobe Creative SuiteDesign systemsCommunicatorComfortable with ambiguityOwnership

Required

3-5+ years designing and building in startups, with experience as a product designer, design engineer, or frontend engineer with strong design sensibility

Fluent in both design and code — You're as comfortable in Figma as you are writing React components and can move seamlessly between designing interfaces and implementing them

Your portfolio shows end-to-end work: polished product interfaces you've coded and brand assets you've designed

Comfortable with ambiguity — You thrive in early-stage environments, know when to prioritize speed vs. polish, and don't need detailed specs to produce great work

Strong communicator — You can articulate design decisions to both technical and business stakeholders and build consensus across teams

Excited about ownership — You want to be the founding design engineer, setting the standard for everything from iconography to interaction patterns to brand voice

Proficiency in modern design tools (Figma, Adobe Creative Suite) and frontend technologies (React, TypeScript, Tailwind/CSS)