Level Overview
| Level | Title | Years | Scope |
|---|---|---|---|
| L1 | Junior Designer | 0-2 | Component and feature design |
| L2 | Product Designer | 2-5 | Product area design ownership |
| L3 | Senior Product Designer | 5-8 | Complex products or design systems |
| L4 | Principal/Staff Designer | 8-12 | Design strategy and innovation |
| L5A | Associate Director (IC) | 10-15 | Design excellence and thought leadership |
| L5B | Associate Director (People) | 10-15 | Design team leadership |
| L6 | Design Director | 12-18 | Design organization leadership |
| L7 | VP Design/CDO | 15+ | Company design vision and culture |
KRA Weightage Distribution
| KRA | Junior | Designer | Senior | Principal | AD (IC) | AD (People) | Director | VP/CDO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Craft & Execution | 50% | 40% | 30% | 20% | 15% | 10% | 5% | 0% |
| Strategy & Systems | 5% | 10% | 20% | 30% | 35% | 25% | 30% | 35% |
| Research & Insights | 20% | 20% | 15% | 15% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 5% |
| Collaboration | 15% | 15% | 20% | 20% | 15% | 20% | 20% | 20% |
| Innovation | 5% | 10% | 10% | 10% | 20% | 15% | 15% | 20% |
| Leadership & Culture | 5% | 5% | 5% | 5% | 5% | 20% | 20% | 20% |
Detailed Competencies by Level
L1: Junior Designer
Craft & Execution (50%)
- Visual design fundamentals
- Typography and color theory
- Component design in design systems
- High-fidelity mockups and prototypes
- Design tool mastery (Figma, Sketch)
- Asset creation and optimization
- Responsive design basics
Research & Insights (20%)
- Usability testing participation
- User interview note-taking
- Competitive analysis
- Heuristic evaluation basics
- Analytics interpretation
- Persona understanding
Collaboration (15%)
- Design critique participation
- Engineer handoff specs
- PM requirement clarification
- Team standup participation
- Feedback incorporation
- Version control discipline
Innovation (5%)
- Trend awareness
- New tool exploration
- Design community participation
- Side project experimentation
Leadership & Culture (5%)
- Design system contribution
- Knowledge sharing
- Team culture participation
- Learning mindset
Strategy & Systems (5%)
- Design system usage
- Pattern recognition
- Basic accessibility
- Platform guidelines adherence
L2: Product Designer
Craft & Execution (40%)
- End-to-end product design
- Interaction design expertise
- Motion and micro-interactions
- Complex user flows
- Rapid prototyping
- Design QA ownership
- Cross-platform consistency
Research & Insights (20%)
- User research planning
- Interview conducting
- Synthesis and insights
- Journey mapping
- Usability test moderation
- Data-informed decisions
- Research democratization
Collaboration (15%)
- Cross-functional partnership
- Design-dev collaboration
- Stakeholder presentations
- Design rationale articulation
- Workshop facilitation basics
- Sprint participation
Strategy & Systems (10%)
- Design system contribution
- Pattern library development
- Accessibility standards
- Design ops participation
- Metrics definition
Innovation (10%)
- New pattern exploration
- Concept development
- Experimentation culture
- Tool/process innovation
- External inspiration
Leadership & Culture (5%)
- Junior designer mentoring
- Design culture building
- Best practice sharing
- Team rituals participation
L3: Senior Product Designer
Craft & Execution (30%)
- Systems thinking in design
- Complex problem solving
- Platform-agnostic design
- Design language evolution
- Quality bar setting
- Craft mentorship
- Executive presentations
Strategy & Systems (20%)
- Design strategy development
- System architecture
- Cross-product coherence
- Design principles creation
- Success metrics framework
- ROI articulation
Collaboration (20%)
- Strategic stakeholder management
- Cross-team influence
- Workshop leadership
- Design sprint facilitation
- Conflict resolution
- Coalition building
Research & Insights (15%)
- Research strategy
- Mixed methods approach
- Insight synthesis
- Strategic recommendations
- Research ops setup
- Democratization programs
Innovation (10%)
- Innovation frameworks
- Future vision artifacts
- Experimental projects
- Patent contributions
- Industry trend application
Leadership & Culture (5%)
- Team culture influence
- External speaking (1-2/year)
- Design community building
- Hiring participation
- Knowledge management
L4: Principal/Staff Designer
Strategy & Systems (30%)
- Company design strategy
- Multi-product vision
- Design language ownership
- Platform thinking
- Business model design
- Strategic narratives
Craft & Execution (20%)
- Breakthrough design
- Quality standards
- Signature projects
- Design excellence
- Technical innovation
- Craft leadership
Collaboration (20%)
- Executive influence
- Cross-org leadership
- Strategic partnerships
- Design evangelism
- Org-wide initiatives
- Culture change
Research & Insights (15%)
- Strategic research programs
- Organizational insights
- Market understanding
- Competitive intelligence
- Future user needs
- Industry foresight
Innovation (10%)
- Innovation pipeline
- Emerging tech application
- Design futures
- IP development
- Academic partnerships
- Lab initiatives
Leadership & Culture (5%)
- Design org influence
- Thought leadership
- External visibility (3-4/year)
- Industry relationships
- Mentorship programs
L5A: Associate Director (IC - Design Excellence)
Strategy & Systems (35%)
- Design transformation
- Enterprise design systems
- Global design language
- Strategic differentiation
- Design-driven innovation
- Business impact design
Innovation (20%)
- Innovation lab leadership
- Future experience vision
- Emerging tech integration
- Design research programs
- IP portfolio development
- University partnerships
Craft & Execution (15%)
- Excellence standards
- Breakthrough projects
- Industry recognition
- Award-winning work
- Signature initiatives
- Legacy projects
Collaboration (15%)
- C-suite advisory
- Board presentations
- External partnerships
- Industry leadership
- Media representation
- Conference keynotes
Research & Insights (10%)
- Strategic foresight
- Market-making insights
- Cultural understanding
- Global perspectives
- Trend forecasting
- Industry analysis
Leadership & Culture (5%)
- Industry mentorship
- Design education
- Published thought leadership
- Community building
- Awards judging
- Standard setting
L5B: Associate Director (People Management)
Strategy & Systems (25%)
- Team design strategy
- Operational excellence
- Design ops leadership
- Process optimization
- Tool standardization
- Efficiency metrics
Leadership & Culture (20%)
- Team leadership (5-15)
- Performance management
- Career development
- Team culture
- Diversity initiatives
- Retention strategies
Collaboration (20%)
- Cross-functional leadership
- Stakeholder management
- Resource allocation
- Vendor management
- Partnership development
- Executive alignment
Innovation (15%)
- Team innovation culture
- Skill development
- Capability building
- Methods evolution
- Tool adoption
- Best practice sharing
Craft & Execution (10%)
- Quality oversight
- Design reviews
- Standard maintenance
- Output excellence
- Team showcase
- Client presentations
Research & Insights (10%)
- Research capability
- Insight platforms
- Knowledge management
- Learning programs
- External perspectives
- Team upskilling
L6: Design Director
Strategy & Systems (30%)
- Organization design strategy
- Design transformation
- Business alignment
- Multi-year roadmaps
- Investment cases
- P&L impact
Leadership & Culture (20%)
- Large team leadership (20-50)
- Org design
- Culture transformation
- Executive presence
- Succession planning
- Industry influence
Collaboration (20%)
- C-suite partnership
- Board readiness
- Cross-BU alignment
- External ecosystems
- Strategic vendors
- Industry partnerships
Innovation (15%)
- Innovation strategy
- Capability building
- Future readiness
- Disruption planning
- Investment priorities
- Portfolio management
Research & Insights (10%)
- Strategic insights
- Market intelligence
- Customer strategy
- Business metrics
- Competitive analysis
- Industry benchmarking
Craft & Execution (5%)
- Vision artifacts
- Flagship projects
- Quality governance
- Excellence culture
- Award strategy
- Legacy work
L7: VP Design/Chief Design Officer
Strategy & Systems (35%)
- Company design vision
- Business strategy input
- Market differentiation
- Design-led transformation
- Innovation agenda
- Ecosystem strategy
Leadership & Culture (20%)
- Company culture impact
- Design organization
- Industry leadership
- Talent ecosystem
- Board engagement
- Succession legacy
Collaboration (20%)
- CEO partnership
- Board participation
- Investor relations
- Customer advisory
- Partner ecosystem
- Industry influence
Innovation (20%)
- Future vision
- Disruption strategy
- New business models
- Venture design
- Academic partnerships
- Industry transformation
Research & Insights (5%)
- Strategic foresight
- Market making
- Cultural influence
- Global trends
- Industry shaping
- Thought leadership
Key Transitions
Designer to Senior (L2 → L3)
New Skills Required:
- Systems thinking
- Strategic design
- Stakeholder management
- Team influence
- Business understanding
Common Pitfalls:
- Craft over strategy
- Limited business view
- Perfectionism
- Scaling challenges
Senior to Principal (L3 → L4)
New Skills Required:
- Organizational influence
- Strategic narrative
- Innovation leadership
- Executive communication
- Industry perspective
Common Pitfalls:
- Tactical focus
- Limited external view
- Influence struggles
- Vision articulation
IC to Manager (L4 → L5B)
New Skills Required:
- People management
- Operational excellence
- Resource management
- Performance coaching
- Team building
Common Pitfalls:
- Doing vs leading
- Avoiding conflict
- Craft attachment
- Time management
Director to VP/CDO (L6 → L7)
New Skills Required:
- Business leadership
- Board management
- Industry influence
- CEO partnership
- Cultural impact
Common Pitfalls:
- Design-only view
- Limited business acumen
- Internal focus
- Change resistance
Design-Specific Competencies
Craft Evolution
L1-L2: Visual design, interaction design, prototyping L3-L4: Systems design, service design, strategic design L5-L6: Organizational design, business design, culture design L7: Industry design, ecosystem design, future design
Tool & Method Progression
L1-L2: Design tools, basic research methods, agile/sprint L3-L4: Advanced prototyping, mixed methods, design ops L5-L6: Innovation methods, transformation tools, measurement L7: Strategic foresight, systems thinking, industry methods
Business Integration
L1-L2: Feature metrics, user satisfaction, design KPIs L3-L4: Product metrics, business impact, ROI L5-L6: P&L impact, market differentiation, brand value L7: Company valuation, industry transformation, cultural impact
Assessment Criteria
Output Quality
- L1-L2: Craft excellence, delivery speed, design consistency
- L3-L4: Solution innovation, system coherence, business impact
- L5-L6: Team output, organizational capability, market recognition
- L7: Industry influence, company transformation, design legacy
Impact Metrics
- L1-L2: Design quality scores, user satisfaction, delivery metrics
- L3-L4: Product success, design system adoption, team efficiency
- L5-L6: Business metrics, team performance, industry recognition
- L7: Company differentiation, market leadership, cultural impact
Behavioral Indicators
- L1-L2: Craft passion, collaboration, learning agility
- L3-L4: Strategic thinking, influence, innovation drive
- L5-L6: Leadership presence, vision articulation, change agency
- L7: Industry statesmanship, cultural influence, legacy mindset