Stable Kernel
Stable Kernel is a custom software and technology firm based in Atlanta, GA. Our in-house product teams partner with Fortune 500s to navigate the unknown - that space between an identified problem and a future-focused solution. We strategize, architect, design, develop and commercialize custom software that builds our client’s businesses.
At Stable Kernel, you will have endless opportunities to create processes within a growing team, make decisions that influence the path of a product roadmap, collaborate with product team members, be immersed in an environment of technology and innovation and leverage best practices.
Above all, your work and contribution will help some of the largest companies in the world be more successful.
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Contract Design Engineer
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About the Company:
Stable Kernel is a technology services firm and custom software developer building scalable software solutions for cutting-edge, innovative enterprises to move their business forward. We are headquartered in Atlanta, GA.
We’re a privately held, Great Place to Work Certified Company™ with a multi-award-winning culture and an impressive 10-plus-year trajectory of sustainable growth. At Stable Kernel, we support our employees in ways that help them do some of the best work of their lives.
About the Role:
As a Senior Design Engineer, you'll occupy the space where design systems, front-end architecture, and AI-augmented workflows converge. You bring an engineering background that shapes how you design—not just what you produce—and your decisions account for implementation tradeoffs before a handoff ever happens.
We're looking for someone who thinks in systems first, operates confidently across levels of abstraction, and is already using AI tooling as a real part of how they work. You're not waiting to see where things are headed, you're already there, refining the workflow as you go.
Core Responsibilities Include:
- Technical Impact:
- Designing and engineering component libraries and design systems where token architecture, file structure, and component behavior map directly to what engineering builds and ships.
- Owning the Figma layer of the system: variables, component architecture, auto layout, and documentation structured for real developer handoff — not just visual reference.
- Integrating AI-assisted tooling (Claude Code, Figma MCP, agentic workflows) into design and delivery processes, actively improving how the team works rather than experimenting in isolation.
- Identifying and communicating implementation tradeoffs at the design stage, so engineering receives decisions that have already accounted for feasibility, performance, and maintainability.
- Moving fluidly between product architecture conversations and single-interaction design decisions, keeping both levels coherent within the same engagement.
- Business Alignment:
- Partnering with product design and engineering leadership to align system-level design decisions with long-term product architecture, reducing downstream technical debt.
- Contributing to project estimation and scoping with a realistic model of design-to-engineering effort, including the cost of ambiguity in component specs, handoff gaps, and design system divergence.
- Bringing a clear point of view on what AI tooling means for how design teams are structured, how work is scoped, and how value is delivered to clients.
- Interacting with Others:
- Serving as the connective tissue between design and engineering teams, facilitating shared understanding of constraints, conventions, and system decisions.
- Mentoring product designers on systems thinking, Figma architecture, and engineering-informed design, translating technical depth into accessible guidance.
- Communicating system decisions and tradeoffs clearly to non-technical stakeholders, framing complexity in terms of user and business outcomes.
- Autonomy & Ambiguity:
- Taking ownership of design system strategy and component library decisions, driving toward coherence even when project pressures push toward one-offs.
- Navigating fast-moving AI tooling with a grounded and critical perspective — knowing when to adopt, when to adapt, and when to hold the line on craft.
- Problem-Solving:
- Proactively identifying where design and engineering are drifting apart and proposing structural fixes—in the system, the process, or the handoff—before they become delivery problems.
- Recognizing when a design decision has downstream engineering implications and raising it early, rather than leaving it to be discovered in implementation.
- Leadership:
- Advancing the team's collective understanding of AI's role in design practice, not as a novelty, but as a genuine shift in how designers think, collaborate, and ship.
- Advocating for systems-first design culture, helping the broader design practice build habits and tooling that scale beyond individual projects.
Intimate, Working Familiarity With:
- Figma at an advanced level: variables, component architecture, design tokens, file organization that mirrors engineering structure, and developer handoff tooling.
- Design token systems and their relationship to front-end implementation (CSS custom properties, style dictionaries, multi-platform theming).
- AI-assisted design and development tools in active use: Claude Code, Figma MCP, agentic workflow tooling.
- Front-end development fundamentals: HTML, CSS, and at a minimum a working literacy in a component-based framework (React, React Native, Flutter, or equivalent).
- Collaboration with engineering teams in an agile delivery environment, including experience contributing to or reviewing component libraries in code.
- Accessibility standards as a system-level concern, not a checklist applied at the end.
General Requirements:
- 5+ years of experience spanning product design and front-end engineering, with a portfolio that demonstrates both.
- Demonstrable experience building or maintaining design systems at scale, with evidence of how the system connects to engineering output.
- Degree in design, computer science, or a related field, or equivalent demonstrated experience.
Nice to Haves:
- Experience contributing to open-source design systems or component libraries.
- Familiarity with tokens-as-code tooling: Style Dictionary, Theo, or equivalent.
- Background in retail, e-commerce, loyalty, or other high-complexity consumer product contexts.
- Experience with motion design defined at the system level (easing curves, duration scales, transition tokens).
A Bit More Info:
Minimum Base Rate: $65 per hour
This is a contract position.
Stable Kernel operates a People Before Place Hybrid model, allowing most employees to choose where they can do their best work most days.
Minimal travel is associated with this role.
*Note – We are not sponsoring employment visas at this time. If you are currently in possession of an employment visa, it will need to be effective for at least 3 years from the date of your application for your candidacy for employment to be considered.
Stable Kernel’s culture is inclusive and expansive. We celebrate diversity in its many glorious forms and do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender role orientation, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.
However, we will discriminate against those unwilling to comply with the practice of our company values:
- we work with integrity always
- we respect our work and each other
- we are dedicated to life-long learning and sharing
- we stay hungry for new challenges
If you are like-minded in this regard, we hope you will apply. We look forward to meeting you.
Ready to apply?
Apply to Stable Kernel
Contract Product Designer
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About the Company:
Stable Kernel is a technology services firm and custom software developer building scalable software solutions for cutting-edge, innovative enterprises to move their business forward. We are headquartered in Atlanta, GA.
We’re a privately held, Great Place to Work Certified Company™ with a multi-award-winning culture and an impressive 10-plus-year trajectory of sustainable growth. At Stable Kernel, we support our employees in ways that help them do some of the best work of their lives.
About the Role:
As a Senior Product Designer, you’ll play a key role in shaping the future of digital products across a range of industries. You’ll drive the creation of thoughtful, intuitive, and engaging experiences that not only meet user needs but also align with business goals. Your work will directly influence the success of our clients and the evolution of our design practice.
We’re seeking a Senior designer who brings a rare blend of strategic thinking, creative curiosity, and practical execution. You’re confident without ego, empathetic by nature, and thrive in collaborative, cross-functional environments. You understand how to balance ideal experiences with real-world constraints — and know when to push the boundaries.
Core Responsibilities Include:
- Technical Impact:
- Designing end-to-end mobile and desktop experiences, from discovery and wireframing through high-fidelity mockups and interaction specifications.
- Creating and maintaining a component library and design system that ensures consistency across the application.
- Conducting user research, usability testing, and design validation to inform and iterate on design decisions.
- Collaborating closely with engineers to ensure designs are implemented with high fidelity and optimal performance.
- Designing for accessibility, responsive layout, and platform-specific conventions on iOS,Android, and web.
- Participating in design reviews and providing thoughtful feedback to peers.
- Business Alignment:
- Understanding and aligning with project objectives, effectively balancing leadership and collaboration to shape design approaches that support overall goals.
- Delivering customer value through design, identifying improvement opportunities within their scope and contributing enhancements that elevate the user experience.
- Supporting project estimation and planning, identifying gaps, risks, and assumptions, and working with team members to ensure accurate planning and costing.
- Partnering with sales and business development teams, offering design expertise and support for scoping and client-facing engagements when needed.
- Interacting with Others:
- Fostering strong collaboration across teams, facilitating communication within project teams, and providing support to fellow designers to ensure alignment and momentum.
- Influencing through insight and mentorship, actively sharing knowledge, and collaborating on solutions with other designers.
- Serving as a design expert on project teams, balancing guidance from senior designers with mentorship for junior team members while confidently advising stakeholders and providing clear design direction.
- Communicating project status proactively, escalating unforeseen challenges, and working with leadership to resolve blockers and maintain progress.
- Autonomy & Ambiguity:
- Taking ownership of design initiatives, delivering high-quality work while aligning with the broader project, departmental, and company objectives.
- Navigating ambiguity with support, demonstrating comfort in uncertain situations while collaborating with peers to plan, structure, and execute complex design solutions.
- Contributing to roadmapping and project planning, leading efforts to define phases and timelines with input from cross-functional team members.
- Problem-Solving:
- Driving problem-solving at multiple levels, addressing challenges across project, team, and department contexts with strategic thinking and a solution-oriented mindset.
- Identifying and planning for risks proactively, anticipating potential challenges, and integrating mitigation strategies into project planning.
- Escalating issues proactively to the appropriate team members, including Project Manager or Product Design leadership, to address blockers and maintain project momentum.
- Leadership:
- Contributing to process improvement efforts, actively collaborating with the team to refine workflows and enhance team efficiency.
- Advocating for design best practices, staying current with industry standards and sharing insights to elevate the team’s overall craft.
- Mentoring and collaborating with peers, providing guidance to base-level designers and contributing to the growth and development of fellow senior designers.
- Leading design efforts across projects, typically serving as a project lead unless partnered with a lead designer, and flexibly supporting design work based on project structure and team needs.
Intimate, Working Familiarity With:
- Figma is essential, with working knowledge of additional design and prototyping tools such as Adobe XD, Sketch, and Zeplin.
- Understanding of Apple’s Human Interface Guidelines (HIG) and Android’s Material Design principles, ensuring platform-consistent, accessible, user-centered experiences.
- Design system creation and component library management.
- User research methods: interviews, usability testing, journey mapping.
- Collaboration with engineering teams in an agile delivery environment.
- Accessibility standards and inclusive design practices for mobile.
- Google and Microsoft Office Suite to create compelling client presentations.
General Requirements:
- 5+ years of product design experience, with at least 2 years focused on native or cross-platform mobile apps.
- A portfolio demonstrating strong mobile design work across iOS and Android.
- Degree in a design field or relevant experience.
Nice to Haves:
- Experience designing for retail, e-commerce, or loyalty applications.
- Familiarity with React Native or cross-platform design considerations.
- Experience with motion design and micro-interactions.
- Background working with professional (B2B) and consumer (B2C) user personas alongside consumer flows.
A Bit More Info:
Minimum Base Compensation: $65 per hour
This is a contract position.
Stable Kernel operates a People Before Place Hybrid model, allowing most employees to choose where they can do their best work most days.
Minimal travel is associated with this role.
*Note – We are not sponsoring employment visas at this time. If you are currently in possession of an employment visa, it will need to be effective for at least 3 years from the date of your application for your candidacy for employment to be considered.
Stable Kernel’s culture is inclusive and expansive. We celebrate diversity in its many glorious forms and do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender role orientation, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.
However, we will discriminate against those unwilling to comply with the practice of our company values:
- we work with integrity always
- we respect our work and each other
- we are dedicated to life-long learning and sharing
- we stay hungry for new challenges
If you are like-minded in this regard, we hope you will apply. We look forward to meeting you.
Ready to apply?
Apply to Stable Kernel