Head of Product Design

At Arbor, we’re on a mission to transform the way schools work for the better. 

We believe in a future of work in schools where being challenged doesn’t mean being burnt out and overworked. Where data guides progress without overwhelming staff. And where everyone working in a school is reminded why they got into education every day. 

Our School Management Suite is already making a difference in over 13,000 schools and trusts. Giving time and power back to staff, turning data into clear, actionable insights, and supporting happier working days. 

At the heart of our brand is a recognition that the challenges schools face today aren’t just about efficiency, outputs and productivity - but about creating happier working lives for the people who drive education everyday: the staff. We want to make schools more joyful places to work, as well as learn. 

Arbor's product design team works in a centralised capacity at the centre of the business: we set the standards, systems and ways of working for design across a growing portfolio of products, and we embed designers into product teams for focused periods to help them do their most ambitious work. We're bringing together different products - both built in-house and via acquisition - into one coherent suite, and our design language is central to how that comes together for schools.

We're looking for a Head of Product Design to lead this team and be the driving force for design across Arbor. You'll set design strategy and direction, and bring a clear point of view on the role design should play as our R&D organisation evolves as you collaborate with your peers to create our strategy and new ways of working. 

You will line-manage the product design team giving them the senior backing and clear direction to focus on building and evolving a design system that can scale across an expanding, increasingly multi-product and multi-company portfolio. In that regard, this is also a role for someone genuinely energised by new ways of working. We are embracing agentic workflows and constructing a model in which anyone can contribute to our product, while the design role evolves into one of stewardship, education, and maintaining high standards of consistency and craft. 

Core responsibilities

• Set and own design strategy, direction and standards for Arbor, acting as the central voice for design across an expanding portfolio of products and, as we grow through acquisition, newly joining teams.
• Be a confident, collaborative advocate for design at leadership level - representing design's perspective in product strategy and roadmap decisions as a core member of the product leadership team.
• Line-manage the product design team, setting priorities across the portfolio and helping to grow and mentor the team.
• Define the standards, systems and ways of working that all design work follows, and embed designers into product teams for set periods to deliver the most important and innovative work.
• Collaborate with the rest of the product leadership team to build long-term product strategy for the suite, and ensure design is integral to that strategy rather than applied after the fact.
• Lead the integration of design practice, standards and systems as new products and acquired companies join the portfolio, ensuring a cohesive experience for users across the whole suite.
• Champion best practice in usability through user research, testing and feedback analysis, embedding this across the wider product and engineering organisation.
• Collaborate with product managers, engineers and other stakeholders to prioritise and implement UX and UI improvements.
• Foster a culture of innovation and close collaboration between product design, product management and engineering.
• Stay current on industry trends and best practice in UX/UI design, including being forward-thinking about AI and genuinely curious about what it can do for the design process and for how design, product and engineering work together.

We're looking for a practical, credible design leader with a strong track record of turning complex requirements into intuitive, elegant solutions that solve real user problems, and who is comfortable setting direction and advocating - collaboratively but confidently - for design at leadership level. Beyond that, we'd love to see:

• Proven experience designing within B2B SaaS products.
• Experience operating as part of a product leadership team, confidently making the case for design's role to senior, non-design stakeholders.
• Experience running a central or agency-style design function - setting standards, systems and ways of working, and embedding designers into other teams for periods of focused work.
• Experience integrating teams, products or ways of working following acquisitions or major organisational change, or a clear appetite to do so.
• Genuine enthusiasm for agentic and AI-augmented ways of working, including supporting product managers to take on more design-adjacent work themselves without compromising on quality or consistency.
• Strong experience of, and empathy for, product management practices.
• Proficiency in tools such as Figma, Storybook, Cursor, Claude, etc.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to effectively present and defend design decisions to stakeholders.
• Experience leading and mentoring a team of designers, with a passion for fostering talent and driving professional growth.
• Deep understanding of user research methodologies, information architecture, and interaction design principles.
• Entrepreneurial mindset with the ability to thrive in a fast-paced, high-growth environment.

The chance to work alongside a team of hard-working, passionate people in a role where you’ll see the impact of your work everyday. We also offer:

• A dedicated wellbeing team who champion initiatives such as mindfulness, lunch n learns, manager training, mental health first aid training and much more!
• 32 days holiday (plus Bank Holidays). This is made up of 25 days annual leave plus 7 extra company wide days given over Easter, Summer & Christmas
• Life Assurance paid out at 3x annual salary
• Comprehensive wellness benefit provided by AIG Smart Health, which provides a 24/7 virtual GP service, Mental health support, Counselling, and personalised Health Checks 
• Private Dental Insurance with Bupa 
• Salary sacrifice Pension provided by Scottish Widows
• Enhanced maternity and adoption leave (20 weeks full pay) and paternity (6 weeks full pay) pay
• 5 free return to work maternity coaching sessions, helping you adapt to this new exciting time of life!
• Access to services such as Calm and Bippit (financial wellbeing coaching) 
• All of our roles champion flexible working and we are happy to discuss what this means to you
• Social committees that plan team, office and company wide events to bring people together and celebrate success
• Dedicated professional development training budget (CPD courses, upskilling resources, professional memberships etc)
• Volunteer with a charity of your choice for a day each year

1. Phone screen
2. 1st stage Interview - 40 minutes
3. 2nd stage interview - 60 minutes
4. Take Home Task - Video Presentation
5. Final interview

We are committed to a fair and comfortable recruitment process, so if you require any reasonable adjustments during your application or interview process, please reach out to a member of the team at [email protected].

Our commitment is also backed by our partnership with Neurodiversity Consultancy, Lexxic who provide us with training, support and advice. 

Our goal is for Arbor to be a workplace which represents, celebrates and supports people from all backgrounds, and which gives them the tools they need to thrive - whatever their ambitions may be so we support and promote diversity and equality, and actively  encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. 

Know someone else who would be good for this role? You can refer a friend, family member or colleague, if they are offered a role with Arbor, we will say thank you with a voucher valued up to £200! Simply email: [email protected] 

Please note: We are unable to provide visa sponsorship at this time.