Product Designer & Implementation Specialist

Company Description Thrive Creative Inc. operates as an on-demand engineering department, providing forward-deployed engineers who embed directly with client teams as their technical function for as long as needed. The company offers flexible engagement models, ranging from a single developer in standups to multi-disciplinary teams across product, design, development, data and AI, DevOps, and QA, with no minimums or lock-in and access to 50+ specialists. Clients fully own everything Thrive builds from the moment the code is written, and the company uses a single hourly rate across disciplines, billing only hands-on keyboard time so meetings and strategy work are not charged. Thrive also supports clients with funding applications at no fee and works without rigid statements of work, allowing rapid iteration on features from first design through to shipping with a dedicated engineer holding project context throughout.
Role Description The Product Designer & Implementation Specialist is a full-time, hybrid role based in Calgary, AB, with flexibility for some work from home. This role is responsible for translating product requirements into intuitive, visually compelling designs and user experiences, and then supporting the implementation of those designs alongside engineering teams. Day-to-day activities include conducting user and stakeholder research, applying design thinking to define product flows and interactions, creating wireframes, mockups, and prototypes, and refining visual design elements across web and application interfaces. The specialist collaborates closely with product managers, developers, and clients to align design solutions with business goals, validate concepts through user testing, and ensure smooth handoff and implementation of design specifications. The role also involves iterating on shipped features based on feedback and data, maintaining design documentation, and contributing to continuous improvement of design processes and standards.
Qualifications

• Strong Product Design skills, including experience designing end-to-end user journeys and translating requirements into practical product solutions.
• Proficiency in Design Thinking and UX Research to frame problems, generate hypotheses, and validate solutions with users and stakeholders.
• Solid User Research and Visual Design abilities to create interfaces that are both usable and aesthetically consistent with brand guidelines.
• Experience applying UX Research methods (e.g., interviews, usability testing, surveys) to inform design decisions and measure impact.
• Ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams (product, engineering, data) and communicate design rationale clearly.
• Comfort working in a hybrid environment in Calgary, AB, with the ability to manage time and responsibilities across on-site and remote work.
• Proficiency with modern design and prototyping tools (e.g., Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD) and familiarity with implementation constraints in web and mobile development.
• Relevant post-secondary education in design, human–computer interaction, or a related field, or equivalent