Full-Time

Product Designer

Promise

Promise

201-500 employees

Public-sector software for aid, rebates, verification

Compensation Overview

$160k - $220k/yr

San Francisco, CA, USA

Hybrid

US residency required; hybrid role with at least four days on-site per week.

Category
UI/UX & Design (1)
Required Skills
Interaction Design
UI/UX Design
Requirements
  • 8+ years designing complex, multi-surface digital products (or equivalent impact), including substantial ownership at a senior IC level
  • A portfolio that demonstrates exceptional UI and interaction design, UX problem-solving, and simplification of gnarly, horizontal problems
  • Systems thinking and experience building/evolving design systems at scale
  • Prototyping and research fluency—from framing hypotheses to running lightweight tests and synthesizing evidence
  • Storytelling and influence—clear writing, crisp visuals, and the ability to move a room from ambiguity to alignment
  • Cross-functional muscle—comfortable partnering with Product Management/Engineering and collaborating with Sales/Success on narratives, demos, and feedback loops
Responsibilities
  • Shape design strategy for key product investments. Bring structure to amorphous, cross-cutting problem areas; define product primitives and patterns others can build on.
  • Design end-to-end experiences. Create flows, interactions, and high-fidelity UIs that simplify complex, real‑world workflows for residents, caseworkers, and operational teams.
  • Prototype to learn. Use rapid prototyping to explore approaches, validate with customers and GTM partners, and derisk big bets before we build.
  • Evolve our design systems. Maintain and extend accessible, scalable components; ensure quality and coherence across surfaces.
  • Partner across the business. Work shoulder‑to‑shoulder with PM/Forward Deployed Engineering to ship; collaborate with Sales to gather field insights, shape narratives, and enable adoption.
  • Raise the bar. Lead critiques, mentor designers, and strengthen our product decision-making through clear storytelling and evidence.
  • Close the loop. Instrument and learn from usage, support tickets, and qualitative research to iterate quickly post‑launch.
Desired Qualifications
  • Nice to have: experience in fintech/govtech, payments or billing flows, accessibility and inclusive design, multilingual interfaces, or data-heavy/AI-assisted workflows

Promise builds software for governments to interact with citizens, helping them distribute aid, manage rebate programs, verify income quickly, and offer affordable debt repayment through the PromisePay platform. The products use data to identify vulnerable residents, speed eligibility, reduce fraud, and streamline administration while maintaining security standards like SOC 1, SOC 2, and PCI-DSS. It differentiates itself by combining dignity-focused, public-sector tools in one platform with targeted data use and a strong security posture, focusing on government clients. Its goal is to improve government services by making benefits easier to access, reducing waste, and providing sustainable, affordable ways for people to meet public obligations with trust and security.

Company Size

201-500

Company Stage

Series B

Total Funding

$48.1M

Headquarters

Oakland, California

Founded

2017

Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Expanding beyond utilities into broader government aid and relief distribution.
  • SOC 1, SOC 2, PCI-DSS compliance attracts risk-averse government agencies.
  • 20,000+ Louisville Water residents retained; 90% debt repayment demonstrates product-market fit.

What critics are saying

  • Brand confusion with Promise AI Film Studio dilutes government tech identity.
  • Colorado PUC mandates free utility payment plans, eroding subscription revenue July 2026.
  • Uzio Munis integrates income verification and payments, stealing core market in 50+ municipalities.

What makes Promise unique

  • 95%+ recovery rate on scheduled payments through zero-interest installment plans.
  • CEO Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins built $520M valuation, featured on Forbes Next Billion-Dollar Startups.
  • Humanized payment experience reduces penalties while maximizing government revenue collection.

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Your Connections

People at Promise who can refer or advise you

Benefits

Hybrid Work Options

Health Insurance

Growth & Insights and Company News

Headcount

6 month growth

0%

1 year growth

0%

2 year growth

-1%
MovieBloc
Jul 8th, 2025
Promise AI Film Studio Attracts Google Investment

Promise, an AI film studio founded by leaders from the YouTube creator ecosystem, is revolutionizing the film industry by democratizing and innovating film production with AI. In May, Promise secured investment from Google's AI Futures Fund, though the amount remains undisclosed.

Yahoo News Malaysia
May 20th, 2025
Promise AI Studio Gains New Investors

Promise AI Studio has secured new investments from Google's AI Futures Fund, Michael Ovitz's Crossbeam Venture Partners, Kivu Ventures, and Saga Ventures. The North Road Company, a previous co-lead investor, increased its investment. The Venice-based studio, founded by Jamie Byrne, George Strompolos, and Dave Clark, is developing its first feature film, "NinjaPunk," combining AI and traditional filmmaking. A strategic partnership with Google will enhance its Muse software.

Sleeping Bear Capital
Oct 10th, 2023
Portfolio | SBC

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