Product Designer

Swarm Aero is at the forefront of redefining air power, developing the largest swarming UAV and the most versatile swarming aircraft network globally. We are rapidly progressing towards launching the first aircraft designed specifically for swarming, along with the advanced Command & Control software to mobilize swarms of thousands of diverse autonomous assets, enabling human operators to achieve unprecedented results.

Our team boasts experience in building and exiting multiple startups, negotiating defense deals worth billions, and designing and constructing over 30 innovative aircraft. Our expertise spans top aerospace companies such as Scaled Composites, Airbus, Archer Aviation, Blue Origin, and Boom Supersonic.

We're building software that operators depend on in high-stakes, real-time environments where ambiguity is the norm and the cost of getting it wrong is high. We need a Product Manager who has been in the room when things go sideways and knows how to build systems that don't. This is not a role for someone learning the craft. It's a role for someone who's already done it under pressure.

What You’ll Do

Design System & Visual Consistency

• Develop and maintain a scalable design system
• Elevate visual and interaction consistency across the platform
• Refactor complex UI panels for clarity and consistency

Operator Discovery & Usability

• Travel on-site to work with operators and capture feedback
• Conduct structured usability testing with operators and incorporate findings design improvements
• Translate field observations and operator behavior into design improvements

Interaction Design & Prototyping

• Design intuitive workflows across a variety of mission profiles and user roles
• Prototype new interaction patterns for multi-domain, heterogeneous control
• Improve information hierarchy in dense, data-rich environments

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work with the Product Manager and the Director of Product to prioritize work
• Collaborate closely with engineering to ensure implementation matches the design
• Articulate design decisions clearly with stakeholders

What You’ve Done

Core Strengths:

• 8+ years designing complex software applications
• Experience designing real-time control software
• Led end-to-end design from discovery through implementation
• On-site usability testing with operators
• Powerhouse Figma user
• Phenomenal communication skills

Preferred Experience

• Exposure to command-and-control systems
• Familiarity with defense or government program environments
• Experience designing for hardware-integrated software

What Sets You Apart

The best candidate for this role thinks in systems and operates with a bias toward clarity under constraint. Specifically:

• You simplify complexity without reducing capability
• You think in flows and systems, not just screens
• You understand how users operate under time pressure
• You care deeply about information hierarchy and clarity
• You can defend design decisions rationally without ego
• You balance elegance with practicality
• You design for real-world constraints, not ideal conditions
• You maintain high standards without slowing down momentum