Senior Design Systems Engineer/UI Component Specialist

Senior Design Systems Engineer/UI Component Specialist

3 months Initially
Inside IR35
Hybrid/Remote

About the Role

We are looking for an experienced Design Systems Engineer to help shape and scale a modern component library used across multiple digital products and brands. This role sits at the intersection of design and engineering, combining hands-on Front End development with design system strategy, accessibility, and component governance.

You will play a key role in designing, building, documenting, and maintaining production-ready UI components that enable teams to deliver consistent, accessible, and scalable user experiences. Working closely with product designers, engineers, and design system stakeholders, you'll help drive component adoption and establish best practices across the organisation.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and develop production-ready UI components to the highest standards of quality, accessibility, and scalability.
• Apply existing design tokens, foundational patterns, and multi-brand design principles across component development.
• Identify gaps within the component ecosystem and propose solutions to address evolving product needs.
• Partner closely with engineering teams to ensure components are technically robust, responsive, and accessible by default.
• Collaborate with product designers to prioritise component requirements and user interface enhancements.
• Create and maintain comprehensive documentation, including usage guidelines, accessibility considerations, best practices, and examples.
• Leverage AI-assisted design and development tools where appropriate to accelerate delivery while maintaining quality and consistency.
• Participate in design system governance activities, representing product requirements and contributing to component reviews.
• Actively contribute to design and code reviews, providing constructive feedback and promoting best practices.
• Support the ongoing evolution of the design system through continuous improvement and stakeholder engagement.

Required Skills & Experience

Design Systems Expertise

• 5+ years' experience designing, building, and maintaining enterprise-scale design systems or component libraries.
• Experience supporting multiple brands, products, or large-scale digital ecosystems.

Frontend Development

• Strong hands-on experience with HTML, CSS, and modern component-based frameworks, particularly React.
• Ability to develop, test, and deliver production-ready component code rather than solely creating designs.

Design Tooling

• Advanced proficiency with Figma, including component libraries, variables, design tokens, and Auto Layout.
• Experience using Storybook or similar documentation and component management tools.

Accessibility

• Strong understanding of WCAG 2.2 AA standards and accessibility-first design and development practices.
• Proven ability to build accessibility into components from the outset.

Commercial & Strategic Thinking

• Understanding of how design systems improve development efficiency, consistency, and scalability.
• Ability to articulate the value of design system investments to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Collaboration & Communication

• Experience working within governance frameworks and receiving and incorporating feedback.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to explain design and technical decisions clearly.
• Comfortable collaborating with designers, engineers, product teams, and senior stakeholders.

Agile Delivery

• Experience working within agile environments and delivering iterative improvements through sprint-based development.

Desirable Experience

• Practical experience with AI-assisted design-to-code, component generation, or development tools.
• Strong understanding of the opportunities and risks associated with AI-generated design and code.
• Experience working across multi-brand, multi-platform product ecosystems.
• Interest in scalable component architecture beyond web applications, including cross-platform design considerations.

What You'll Bring

• A passion for creating exceptional user experiences through well-crafted design systems.
• A strong focus on accessibility, quality, and maintainability.
• A collaborative mindset and enthusiasm for working across design and engineering disciplines.
• The ability to balance strategic thinking with hands-on delivery.

Guidant, Carbon60, Lorien & SRG - The Impellam Group Portfolio are acting as an Employment Business in relation to this vacancy.