Senior Staff Design Program Manager, Buyer Experience

Company Description
Etsy is the global marketplace for unique and creative goods. We build, power, and evolve the tools and technologies that connect millions of entrepreneurs with millions of buyers around the world. As an Etsy employee, you will tackle unique, meaningful, and large-scale problems alongside passionate coworkers, all the while making a rewarding impact and Keeping Commerce Human.

We believe exceptional companies are built by exceptional teams, and we're intentional about it. That means hiring great people, setting them up for success from day one, and giving them real reasons to grow their careers here. We invest in development that goes beyond promotions, and we foster the trust and relationships that help people do their best work together.

What’s the role?

We’re hiring a Sr. Staff Design Program Manager to lead the operations powering Etsy’s Buyer Experience. This is a senior individual contributor role with org-wide scope: you will own the most complex, high-stakes programs across the end-to-end buyer side of the marketplace, shape how the team plans and operates, and serve as a strategic thought partner to Design leadership across multiple groups within the organization.

At this level, you are highly independent - you identify where operational leverage is needed, build the initiatives to get there, and influence at the Director and VP level to make it happen. You bring clarity to novel, complex problem spaces and help the organization make sharper bets about where to focus.

This is a full-time position reporting to the Senior Director of Design Operations.

What’s this team like at Etsy?

Buyer Experience spans multiple groups that share a mission: making it easier for buyers to discover, trust, and return to Etsy. These teams work across the full buyer journey – from the signals that make Etsy feel differentiated, to retention and frequency, to discovery and matching – and your role is to help them operate with shared clarity and momentum.

The Design Operations team is the operational backbone of this work. As the Sr. Staff DPM for Buyer Experience, you will embed deeply with design leadership across these groups, understand where the org is losing momentum, and build the systems and programs that help the team move faster and with more clarity.

What does the day-to-day look like?

• Own the highest-complexity programs: Lead the most long-term, cross-functional, and high-risk programs for the Buyer Experience design org. This includes initiatives that span multiple squads - from planning rhythm resets to cross-team alignment on shared buyer strategy.
• Propose new ops-led initiatives: You do not wait to be assigned work. You identify gaps in how the org operates, build the case for addressing them, and own the solution end-to-end, even where the problem space is novel and the path forward is undefined.
• Shape the operational model: Partner with the Director of Design Operations and Buyer Experience design leadership to define how this group plans, prioritizes, and reviews work across platforms (desktop, mobile web, and native app).
• Influence at the Director level: You bring data-informed strategy to Design directors and senior cross-functional leaders to drive organizational alignment. You are a credible, trusted voice in rooms where strategic trade offs are being made.
• Unify across teams: Buyer Experience spans several distinct teams with different rhythms and priorities. You will build the connective tissue - shared rituals, communication cadences, planning frameworks - that help these teams operate as a coherent group rather than in silos.
• Make impact visible: Develop audience-appropriate reporting and communications - dashboards, leadership summaries, team newsletters - that make the Buyer Experience design org’s work and progress legible to partners and leadership.
• Invent novel operational models: At this level, you are not refining existing systems - you are building new ones. You will design scalable frameworks that address the specific challenges of a multi-platform, multi-squad buyer experience organization.
• Drive adoption: You lead the organization through significant process and strategy shifts, with clear communication and empathy for the human element of change. You do not just document new ways of working - you ensure teams actually adopt them.
• Tool and vendor stewardship: Partner with the Director of Design Operations on the long-term tool stack strategy for the Buyer Experience org, including evaluating new tools and managing key vendor relationships.
• Of course, this is just a sample of the kinds of work this role will require! You should assume that your role will encompass other tasks, too, and that your job duties and responsibilities may change from time to time at Etsy's discretion, or otherwise applicable with local law.

Qualities that will help you thrive in this role are:

• 10+ years in program management, design operations, or a related field, with a significant portion leading operations for a large design or product organization.
• A track record of independently identifying and building new operational programs - not just running established ones - in environments where the problem space was genuinely novel.
• Experience operating at a multi-team or org-wide scope, with demonstrated ability to influence VP and senior director-level stakeholders without formal authority.
• Deep familiarity with consumer product development, ideally including experience with multi-platform experiences (web and native app) or two-sided marketplace products.
• Strong command of how design teams plan and ship work, including how design intersects with product management, engineering, and research across the product development lifecycle.
• Experience building and scaling operational systems - planning rhythms, intake and prioritization frameworks, capacity models - for large (20+ person) design organizations.
• Exceptional communication and storytelling skills, including a history of translating operational strategy into language that resonates with both creative and business audiences.
• Fluency with Figma, Jira, Notion, Claude, and Google Workspace.

Compensation & Benefits

In addition to salary, you'll be eligible for an equity package, an annual performance bonus, and our competitive benefits that support you and your family. Base salary is determined by your location, skills, and experience.

Etsy uses two geographic pay zones to reflect the labor markets where we compete for talent: one called Geo-1, covering the New York City metropolitan area, San Francisco Bay Area, and Seattle metropolitan area, and one called Geo-2, covering all other U.S. locations. Salary ranges for this role vary by zone and are listed below.

Location

We prioritize candidates based within commutable distance of Etsy’s Brooklyn Office. Depending on proximity, we ask team members to come in once or twice per week. Remote candidates outside commutable distance may be considered on a case-by-case basis, with the expectation of occasional travel to the office. Learn more details about our work modes and workplace safety policies here.

Salary Range:

• Geo-1: 204,000.00 - 276,000.00 USD Annual
• Geo-2: 184,000.00 - 248,000.00 USD Annual



What's Next

If you're interested in joining the team at Etsy, please share your resume with us and feel free to include a cover letter if you'd like. As we hope you've seen already, Etsy is a place that values individuality and variety. We don't want you to be like everyone else -- we want you to be like you! So tell us what you're all about.

Our Promise

At Etsy, we believe that a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace furthers relevance, resilience, and longevity. We encourage people from all backgrounds, ages, abilities, and experiences to apply. Etsy is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ethnicity, ancestry, national origin, religion or creed, sex, pregnancy (including childbirth and related medical conditions), gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, citizenship or immigration status, marital or familial status, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, military or veteran status**, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law**. If, due to a disability, you need an accommodation during any part of the interview or hiring process, please let your recruiter know and we will work with you to meet your needs. While Etsy supports visa sponsorship, sponsorship opportunities may be limited to certain roles and skills.