Product Designer
Ruca — US Studio
Contract-to-Hire / Remote (NYC based)
About Ruca
Ruca is a member-owned global creative cooperative with a boutique soul. We partner with companies seeking proven experience, speed, and scale to launch recognizable brands, products, and businesses, bringing strategy-led services, amplified by the latest technologies, to every engagement. Unlike traditional design agencies, we also invest in founders, incubate our own products, and share collective success with our members through equity and profit sharing. We’re building something different, and we want people who want to build with us.
The Role
We're looking for a design-led UI/UX Product Designer to join Ruca's US Studio on a 3-month, full-time contract, with the goal of converting to a permanent member of our product design team. This contract is built to convert: if you're the right fit, full-time employment follows at the 3-month mark. The US Studio is Ruca’s core full-time team, the creative engine behind our client work, internal products, and venture projects. You’ll partner with clients, product managers, and engineers across a diverse range of engagements, designing interfaces, building systems, and solving real user problems alongside a global community of experienced creatives.
This is a role for someone who leads with user thinking, sweats the details of interaction and interface, and has already made AI tools a native part of how they design. The visual design work is real, but product clarity comes first.
While we work remotely, we believe the best creative culture is built in person. US Studio members gather regularly with co-founders in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York. Candidates should be comfortable making their way to one of these cities on a monthly basis.
Core Responsibilities
Two things are equally non-negotiable here: strong foundational design skills and a native AI practice. We expect fluency in both, the craft to design with rigor and intention, and the habits of someone who reaches for AI tools the same way they reach for Figma.
Product & UX Design
- Apply strong UX fundamentals, user research, information architecture, interaction design, and usability principles to every engagement
- Use AI-assisted tools to accelerate research synthesis, ideation, rapid prototyping, and design iteration
- Partner with clients, product managers, and engineers to turn requirements and ideas into clear, usable design solutions
- Design responsive, mobile-first interfaces across platforms, with scalable UI systems and reusable components
- Build smart, flexible design systems in Figma, complete with organized variables, components, and libraries
- Create mockups and prototypes that clearly communicate interaction patterns and design logic
- Maintain visual consistency through well-defined systems for layout, color, typography, and interaction
- Present your work, gather feedback, and iterate quickly based on user and team input
Visual Design
- Bring the same design rigor to visual work: web, mobile, email, social, print, presentations, and pitch decks, all with brand consistency in mind
- Design marketing materials that support business goals and drive engagement
- Ensure a polished, cohesive brand experience across every touchpoint
Qualifications
We are design-led. That means a sharp portfolio and proven, native use of AI tools in your day-to-day practice carry more weight here than years on a resume.
Background & Experience
- 0-7 years of professional or freelance experience in UI/UX or product design
- A strong portfolio that demonstrates product thinking: user flows, interface design, design systems, and interaction patterns
- Fluent, demonstrated use of AI tools as a native part of your design workflow, generative UI, prototyping, research synthesis, or similar. We want to see how you work, not just what you made
- Experience with or exposure to design systems, component libraries, and engineering handoff
- Agency, startup, or in-house product team experience is a plus, and so is a compelling self-initiated project
Skills & Tools
- Deep proficiency in Figma: variables, components, auto-layout, prototyping, and libraries
- Comfortable using AI tools such as Galileo, Uizard, Cursor, ChatGPT, or Claude, and thoughtful about when and how to use them
- Familiarity with Adobe CC (Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign) for visual and marketing work
- Bonus: familiarity with Premiere, After Effects, or motion and micro-interaction design
- Strong grasp of UX principles, typography, color theory, layout, and information hierarchy
- Understanding of responsive design, accessibility standards, and mobile-first thinking
- Clear communicator in English, written and spoken
- Organized, reliable, and able to manage multiple projects and stakeholders simultaneously
- Comfortable presenting work and giving and receiving direct, constructive feedback
What Makes This Role Different
At Ruca, you won’t just execute tasks. You’ll be a full-time member of the US Studio, embedded in a cooperative that shares equity, governance, and success with its people. From day one, you’ll work alongside world-class creatives across time zones on product, brand, and venture projects that actually ship. We grow people who want to grow.
To Apply
Send your portfolio and a brief note on how AI tools show up in your day-to-day design process to hiring@ruca.co. We’re not looking for a cover letter. We’re looking for your work and your thinking.
Please make the subject line of your email “UI/UX Product Designer (NYC)”
Compensation Range
Hourly rate range during contract period is $31.88 per hour - $33.65 per hour.
If converted to full-time, the salary range would be $66,300 to $70,000 plus benefits.
