Staff Design Program Manager

Our Company

Changing the world through digital experiences is what Adobe’s all about. We give everyone—from emerging artists to global brands—everything they need to design and deliver exceptional digital experiences! We’re passionate about empowering people to create beautiful and powerful images, videos, and apps, and transform how companies interact with customers across every screen. 

We’re on a mission to hire the very best and are committed to creating exceptional employee experiences where everyone is respected and has access to equal opportunity. We realize that new ideas can come from everywhere in the organization, and we know the next big idea could be yours!

The opportunity

We are looking for a Staff Design Program Manager to join our team and provide immediate impact to the Document Cloud design team within the broader Adobe Design team. In this role, your primary responsibilities include leading complex, multi-disciplinary programs and operationalizing design processes, including owning management tools, building alignment, and prioritizing work to ensure timelines and business objectives are met. Success in this role requires the ability to establish relationships and build rapport across teams, as well as to negotiate and influence cross-functional teams and leadership effectively. A successful Staff Design Program Manager demonstrates deep application/platform and design knowledge in combination with business and project management domain expertise to drive successful programs. 

What you’ll do 

• Lead. Foster cross-functional partnerships with product managers, engineering leads, and design leadership to ensure alignment and effective collaboration. Advocate for design excellence, streamline priorities, and drive consensus across teams. 

• Strategize. Break down complex initiatives into manageable phases and align team members on priorities. Translate high-level goals into actionable, structured plans that advance initiatives in a dynamic environment. 

• Communicate Thoughtfully. Confidently convey program plans and design strategies using strong written, verbal, and presentation skills. Share standards to improve program execution and foster alignment across the design organization. 

• Drive Operational Excellence. Launch and manage initiatives to improve design operations, including creative workflows, schedules, and task assignments. Implement operational changes to optimize efficiency for designers. 

• Build Relationships. Cultivate strong connections with design managers, designers, program managers, researchers, and cross-functional partners to promote collaboration. 

• Collaborate on Project Decisions. Partner with design leadership on key project decisions, including requirements gathering, scheduling, resource allocation, and approvals. 

• Integrate Products and Manage Risks. Support partners in integrating Adobe products more closely. Manage program risks, communicate progress and dependencies, and provide updates to executives and business partners. 

• Adapt and Evolve Tactics. Understand and address the needs of partner organizations (PM, PMM, Engineering PgM, and Engineering) and adjust design operational tactics as needed to ensure positive, collaborative relationships. 

• Maintain Shared Resources. Contribute to shared design resources and manage team documentation, including team sites, status updates, and centralized resources. 

• Monitor Team Morale. Keep a pulse on team morale, raise risks to leadership, and find opportunities for improvement. 

What you need to succeed 

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience.

• 10+ years of applicable experience in a design and technology environment. 

• Demonstrated delivery of large-scale programs and projects. 

• Strong verbal, presentation, and written communication skills. 

• Strong conflict resolution and negotiation skills with the ability to lead in an environment of ambiguity with a diverse range of partners. 

• Experience working with a large internal design team, including product design, user research, content design, design operations, and the overall product design process. 

• Ability to help plan design resourcing needs and map out quarterly priorities in partnership with design leadership. 

• Ability to establish relationships, build rapport, and influence cross-functional teams and leadership. 

• A passion to have an influential role with the product team as a driver for design process and product strategy, communicating design ideas persuasively and concisely to all functions of the organization, including executives. 

• Ability to distinguish critical from non-critical issues and set teams focus and priorities accordingly. 

• The ability to break down issues to key fundamentals and drive the team toward action. 

• Ability to partner with design leadership to brainstorm ideas for team collaboration and relationship building events. 

• An ability to organize cross-functional activities into a complete plan, recognizing interdependence, and establishing a framework for the team to build out the plan and mentoring the execution of that plan. 

• Ability to coach others and champion member value. 

• Ability to handle ambiguity, set goals and effectively deliver to them if project plans shift and need to adapt. 

• A love for fun while getting things done! We have a strong culture of collaboration that embraces sharing opinions but always underscored by kindness. 

How to apply 

To be considered for this role, please submit your resume and a cover letter. 
 

Our compensation reflects the cost of labor across several  U.S. geographic markets, and we pay differently based on those defined markets. The U.S. pay range for this position is $143,200 -- $269,900 annually. Pay within this range varies by work location and may also depend on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for the job location during the hiring process.

At Adobe, for sales roles starting salaries are expressed as total target compensation (TTC = base + commission), and short-term incentives are in the form of sales commission plans.  Non-sales roles starting salaries are expressed as base salary and short-term incentives are in the form of the Annual Incentive Plan (AIP).

In addition, certain roles may be eligible for long-term incentives in the form of a new hire equity award.

State-Specific Notices:

California:

Fair Chance Ordinances

Adobe will consider qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records for employment in accordance with state and local laws and “fair chance” ordinances.

Colorado:

Application Window Notice

If this role is open to hiring in Colorado (as listed on the job posting), the application window will remain open until at least the date and time stated above in Pacific Time, in compliance with Colorado pay transparency regulations. If this role does not have Colorado listed as a hiring location, no specific application window applies, and the posting may close at any time based on hiring needs.

Massachusetts:

Massachusetts Legal Notice

It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Adobe is proud to be anEqual Employment Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on gender, race or color, ethnicity or national origin, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other applicable characteristics protected by law.Learn more.

Adobe aims to make Adobe.com accessible to any and all users. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation to navigate our website or complete the application process, email[email protected] or call (408) 536-3015.