UI/UX Product Designer - UK SaaS (Long Term, Remote, GBP)

Zealous is a UK-based submissions management platform used by 500+ arts organisations and 180,000+ creators worldwide.

Our clients include the Saatchi Gallery, the British Library, and Cass Arts.

We handle the end-to-end process for awards, open calls, grants, residencies, and art fairs - all in one place.

We've been building for 15 years and we're a team of fourteen.

This is not a short-term project - if successful you will be a core member of our team.

We're hiring our first dedicated Product Designer.

Until now, design at Zealous has meant UI execution - implementing specs, building components, keeping things consistent.

What we haven't had is someone who takes a brief, shapes the flow, prototypes how it should work, and partners with engineering to ship it well.

That's this role.

You'll work directly with our UK-based Founder and PM, who continue shaping product direction and writing briefs.

You'll turn those briefs into the designs we build, and work closely with our frontend lead on handoff.

Over time - as you build context - we'd like you to grow into user research, building out our design system, and shaping product thinking earlier.

You'll be the only designer in the room - your decisions ship directly, without hundreds of layers of review.

That's a growth path, not a day-one expectation.

How we workFully remote, Sunday–Thursday.

Core hours are 9–5 Egypt time but we're genuinely flexible - several of us work around young kids, and we care about the work getting done well, not clock-watching.

Day to day responsibilitiesTake briefs from the PM and Founder and turn them into well-structured user flows, wireframes, and interactive Figma prototypesWork closely with our frontend lead on handoff - communicate design intent clearly, answer questions during build, and review what ships against what was designedKeep our Figma workspace organised and maintainable as it grows - consistent components, sensible naming, files others can find their way aroundSit in design review alongside our frontend lead, flagging feasibility issues and edge cases before things are committedRaise questions early when a brief is unclear or something doesn't add up - we'd rather hear it upfront than discover it in engineering Growth path over 12–18 months:Run user research and testing sessions directly with organisers, artists, and judgesBuild out a lightweight design system our UI developers can work from without askingShape product thinking earlier - helping us decide what to build, not just how it should look The Offer£1,300–£1,400/month paid in GBP - stable against local currency fluctuationHealth insurance contribution21 days paid holiday plus Egyptian public holidaysWork within an Egypt-based team but to the standards of a UK product companyDirect access to the Founder, the PM, and the product roadmapA clear growth path as you take on more ownershipWork that reaches 500+ arts organisations and 180,000 creators worldwide Practical details:Direct contractor engagement.

You'll handle your own tax and social insurance - salary accounts for it, and the team can share their experiencesUse your own laptop to start; we'll provide a company machine after three monthsApplication to offer within one month

Must-haves:3+ years of Product Design or UI/UX Design experience - ideally some time on a SaaS product with more than one type of userA portfolio showing clean, thoughtful Figma work and shipped product - we care more about clarity of thinking than polish of pixelsStrong Figma craft - components, auto-layout, interactive prototypes, tidy filesClear written and verbal English - you'll be reporting to a UK-based Founder and most of our collaboration happens async in writingComfort working directly with engineers and understanding when a design decision creates a build problemSelf-management - you can run your own time and priorities without being chasedDesign for how things work, not just how they lookWilling to raise problems early rather than solve around them quietly Bonus points:Experience running user research or testing (Maze, Useberry, Lookback or similar)Familiarity with accessibility standards (WCAG)Exposure to complex form-heavy or multi-role workflows - where getting the logic right matters as much as the layoutA view on where AI tooling is changing design practice, and where it isn'tCare about the creative sector we serve

Must-haves:3+ years of Product Design or UI/UX Design experience - ideally some time on a SaaS product with more than one type of userA portfolio showing clean, thoughtful Figma work and shipped product - we care more about clarity of thinking than polish of pixelsStrong Figma craft - components, auto-layout, interactive prototypes, tidy filesClear written and verbal English - you'll be reporting to a UK-based Founder and most of our collaboration happens async in writingComfort working directly with engineers and understanding when a design decision creates a build problemSelf-management - you can run your own time and priorities without being chasedDesign for how things work, not just how they lookWilling to raise problems early rather than solve around them quietly Bonus points:Experience running user research or testing (Maze, Useberry, Lookback or similar)Familiarity with accessibility standards (WCAG)Exposure to complex form-heavy or multi-role workflows - where getting the logic right matters as much as the layoutA view on where AI tooling is changing design practice, and where it isn'tCare about the creative sector we serve