H

Product Designer | SimpleStudy

Hirehire

Fully Remote
Remote
South Africa
US hours

Hirezar Summary for South African Applicants

This fully remote full time position at Hirehire explicitly welcomes applicants based in South Africa. As a remote position, you can work from anywhere in South Africa — whether you're based in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban, or a smaller town.

Job Description

Role:Senior Product Designer

Company:SimpleStudy

Location:Remote, Europe (preferably Western / continental); relocation to Lisbon possible

Job Type:Full-time

About SimpleStudy

SimpleStudy is an AI exam prep platform that students find and choose for themselves.

In some numbers:
* 1.5M+ students across the UK, Ireland, Brazil, South Africa, and Australia
1.5M+ students across the UK, Ireland, Brazil, South Africa, and Australia
* 40–50k new students every week
40–50k new students every week
* Web, mobile, and desktop apps
Web, mobile, and desktop apps
* $4M seed round with investors from Strava, OpenAI, and Meta
$4M seed round with investors from Strava, OpenAI, and Meta

The traction came fast. Now the company is refounding: rebuilding the brand, the design language, and the product experience from scratch. The product grew like a Jenga tower, one feature on top of another. The job now is to rebuild it as a pyramid.

The team is ~30 people, remote with a Lisbon office — lean, product-led, and deliberately not a typical edtech company.

You'll report to José, the Founding Designer, and work with him as a partner. José tends to lead early framing and direction. You bring strong craft and take the work to the finish line, in close sync with engineering. You both shape the new design language, and you push back with a better idea when you see one.

What you are expected to do:
* Shape the new design language and brand: design system, rebrand, and the new mobile app.
Shape the new design language and brand: design system, rebrand, and the new mobile app.
* Own the full design process — from an ambiguous problem to a polished, shipped solution.
Own the full design process — from an ambiguous problem to a polished, shipped solution.
* Drive the consumer experience: onboarding, social features, retention, and the learning loop.
Drive the consumer experience: onboarding, social features, retention, and the learning loop.
* Work in close sync with engineers and PM, not as a handoff step - polish the implementation together until it feels right.
Work in close sync with engineers and PM, not as a handoff step - polish the implementation together until it feels right.
* Bring your own initiatives and say "no, but…" when you see a better way.
Bring your own initiatives and say "no, but…" when you see a better way.
* Raise the bar for the whole design team.
Raise the bar for the whole design team.

What you need to succeed:
* High craft— your visual work is polished and intentional; the details reveal your thinking.
High craft— your visual work is polished and intentional; the details reveal your thinking.
* Storytelling over process— you take an ambiguous problem, frame it, and make it simple. Your portfolio shows artifacts, not diagrams; it has a point of view.
Storytelling over process— you take an ambiguous problem, frame it, and make it simple. Your portfolio shows artifacts, not diagrams; it has a point of view.
* Consumer instinct— you've shipped B2C products that people chose to use. You understand product metrics and use them as input, but you lead with feel and craft.
Consumer instinct— you've shipped B2C products that people chose to use. You understand product metrics and use them as input, but you lead with feel and craft.
* Opinions with backbone— you have a design philosophy, can defend it under pushback, and bring your own initiatives. You don't wait to be told what to build.
Opinions with backbone— you have a design philosophy, can defend it under pushback, and bring your own initiatives. You don't wait to be told what to build.
* Energy and curiosity— you're an interesting person with a life outside work, and you leave people energised after a conversation.
Energy and curiosity— you're an interesting person with a life outside work, and you leave people energised after a conversation.
* English— fluent, written and spoken.
English— fluent, written and spoken.

What would be a plus:
* A standout specialty: prototyping, illustration, animation, or motion.
A standout specialty: prototyping, illustration, animation, or motion.
* Experience with social or viral product mechanics.
Experience with social or viral product mechanics.
* Background at consumer companies like Spotify or Strava.
Background at consumer companies like Spotify or Strava.
* Early-stage or founding designer experience.
Early-stage or founding designer experience.
* Comfortable in code: prototyping or polishing the front end.
Comfortable in code: prototyping or polishing the front end.

What you get:
* Build from scratch, at scale— a new design language for a product already used by 1.5M+ students.
Build from scratch, at scale— a new design language for a product already used by 1.5M+ students.
* A strong partner- work closely with José, the Founding Designer (ex-Shopify), with direct access to the founders.
A strong partner- work closely with José, the Founding Designer (ex-Shopify), with direct access to the founders.
* Equity

Tips for South African Applicants

Timezone Advantage

South Africa (SAST, UTC+2) overlaps well with European business hours and has a few hours of overlap with US East Coast. Mention your timezone flexibility in your application.

Salary in Context

Even without a listed salary, international remote roles typically pay 2-3x more than equivalent local positions in South Africa due to the exchange rate advantage.

Application Tips

Tailor your CV to international standards — use a clean format, highlight remote work experience, and include your English proficiency. Many SA applicants succeed by emphasising their strong work ethic and cultural adaptability.

Load Shedding Preparedness

If you're applying for a remote role, having a backup power solution (UPS, inverter, or generator) and mobile data as a backup internet connection shows employers you're prepared for South Africa's infrastructure challenges.

About Hirehire

Hirehire is a company in the Product Design industry that hires remote workers from South Africa. They currently have 2 open positions on Hirezar. View all Hirehire jobs →