This is a leadership role, empowering a team of Product Designers. And, as the first Design Leader for Gusto's Banking team, you'll lead design across two products at different stages of maturity: Wallet, a long-running, established product already helping workers manage their pay, and SMB Banking, a newer banking product for small businesses
You're bringing together an established Consumer Banking design practice with a newer Business Banking effort for the first time, building the shared rituals and practices that will connect them, while staying close enough to the craft to help both products grow
This is a player-coach role, for now - but as Banking grows, this role's balance of hands-on craft versus people leadership will shift over time. That's why we're looking for an experienced, hands-on manager: someone who's managed before and is comfortable working as player-coach, using craft to set the bar high for the team they're growing
Manage an initial team of 3 designers, and hire to build your team
Build the rituals, hiring pipeline, and planning cadence that span both Consumer Banking and Business Banking for the first time, formalizing what already exists on Wallet and building from zero for Business Banking
Coach designers working at two different stages at once: one optimizing and scaling something live (Wallet), and one defining something that doesn't exist yet (SMB Banking)
Co-create goals and success metrics with product and engineering partners for the team, translating strategy into transparent scopes, sequences, and milestones
Raise the bar on Wallet's existing quality standard through critique and review, while defining a new standard from scratch for Business Banking
Stay hands-on: review and sometimes do design work directly on the highest-stakes decisions, especially on SMB Banking's path to beta, while coaching your team toward greater independence over time




Partner as an equal in the EPD trio with Banking's PM and engineering leads on each side, and partner regularly with Risk, Compliance, Legal, Data, and Ops given both products are regulated financial products
Ensure Banking's products fit cohesively into Gusto's broader financial ecosystem, coordinating with design and product counterparts on adjacent pods (like Accounting and Payments) so the customer experience feels connected across surfaces rather than fragmented by internal team boundaries
Build individualized career development plans with each direct report, and adapt your leadership style to the person and the moment
Represent Banking's design needs (headcount, quality investment, tooling) to senior design leadership

Benefits
Gender-affirming care and support
Family care and support, including family planning and fertility benefits
A variety of mental health resources
Medical, dental, and vision insurance for employees and dependents
Free meals and refreshments at the office (conversation and community is an added bonus!)
Paid vacation, sick time, bereavement, and holidays, paid leaves, sabbatical, and more

Your portfolio and management track record show high-quality work in consumer or business financial products - fintech, banking, or financial platforms strongly preferredYou have experience incorporating AI tools and practices into how a whole design team works10+ years of product design experience, including 4+ years of people management experience, ideally with senior designers or higherYou're an established manager who has worked as a player-coach before. Ideally you've managed designers across products at different stages, for example an established, metrics-driven product alongside a true 0-1 effortExperience partnering with Risk, Compliance, or Legal on regulated financial products (KYC/KYB, identity verification, money movement rails, partner bank relationships) is a strong plus

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📌 Senior Product Design Manager (Banking) (Ontario)
🏢 Gusto
📍 Ontario