Principal Design Systems Designer - 6 months contract in Tallinn at Malwarebytes Inc.

Here at Malwarebytes, we believe that when you’re free from threats, you’re free to thrive. It all started in 2008 with one person who needed help with a malware infection, and a community coming together to find solutions. In that moment in time a product was born for all people, with a mission to rid the world of malware. Our product has since grown and evolved, from removing malware, to protecting devices, to ever-changing prevention.

About Malwarebytes Inc.

Malwarebytes began after our founder, Marcin Kleczynski, accidentally infected his parents’ computer while downloading a video game as a teenager. At the time, there was no product that could fully solve the problem, so he set out to build one. That early experience shaped our mission: to create protection that works when people need it most.
Since then, the digital threat landscape has only grown more complex. Attackers are faster, stealthier, and more sophisticated, while traditional solutions often overwhelm people with complicated tools and settings. At Malwarebytes, we believe protection should be both powerful and refreshingly simple because if security feels too hard to use, people will not use it. That is why our aspiration is always to stay one step ahead: cutting through the noise, stopping threats others miss, and delivering peace of mind in an unpredictable digital world.

Malwarebytes is looking for..

We're looking for a Principal Design Systems Designer to lead the ground-up rebuild of our design ecosystem across our full product suite - mobile app, desktop client, and web services. In this role, you'll serve as the strategic and executional owner of our design system, driving key architectural decisions and establishing the standards, component library, and design language that will unify our products at scale. You'll collaborate closely with product designers, product managers, and engineers, with the authority to shape foundational decisions that define how Malwarebytes builds and scales its user experience. This is a rare opportunity to build something impactful from the ground up and leave a lasting mark on our design culture.

CONTRACT ROLE — 6 MONTHS

What You Will Do:

• Lead the end-to-end rebuild of Malwarebytes' design ecosystem, establishing a unified design system across mobile app, desktop client, and web services.
• Own the architecture and strategic direction of the design system, making key decisions on component structure, design tokens, and system governance.
• Define and drive the visual design language and principles across desktop, web, iOS, and Android platforms.
• Build and maintain a standardized, scalable component library in Figma - from first principles - ensuring it meets the needs of both designers and engineers.
• Establish and oversee the Design System change management process, including contribution models, versioning, and deprecation workflows.
• Create and own comprehensive Design System documentation that enables designers and engineers to build consistently and independently.
• Serve as the internal authority and champion for design systems, setting standards and guiding cross-functional teams on adoption and best practices.
• Partner with engineering to develop robust, well-documented components that translate directly into production-ready code.
• Define UI visual quality standards and conduct QA to ensure consistency and polish across all products.
• Champion accessibility best practices and ensure they are embedded into every layer of the design system.
• Proactively identify gaps, inconsistencies, and opportunities for improvement across the ecosystem.
• Develop comprehensive design guidelines that embody the Malwarebytes brand and raise the bar for product quality.

Skills You'll Need to Have:

• 8+ years of experience in UX/product design, with significant focus on complex B2C and B2B systems and platforms.
• 5+ years of hands-on experience building and leading design systems at a product-focused company.
• Proven track record of building or rebuilding a design system from scratch - ideally spanning multiple platforms (mobile, desktop, web).
• Experience with Figma component libraries, including advanced capabilities such as variables, auto-layout, and tokenization.
• Experience making and owning architectural decisions for design systems — not just contributing to them.
• Deep expertise in design tokens, component governance, versioning, and system documentation.
• Strong cross-functional collaboration skills, particularly with engineering and product leadership.
• Demonstrated ability to influence and drive alignment across teams without direct authority.
• Passionate about design systems and their strategic impact on product quality and team velocity.
• Ability to work autonomously, adapt, and thrive in a fast-paced, ambiguous environment.
• Pragmatic, organized, and able to prioritize effectively and meet deadlines.
• High level of proficiency in both written and spoken English.