Ludus is a SaaS company that builds digital tools trusted by thousands of organizations of all sizes to power their event ticketing, marketing, fundraising, retail and registration needs.

We are seeking a Product and Design Manager who combines strong people leadership with hands-on product and design experience. In this role, you’ll lead the daily work of our product team, coach Product Owners and Designers, and make sure the work entering development is clear, thoughtful, and ready to build.

Product stakeholders own roadmap direction and priorities. You’ll partner with those stakeholders to understand the intended outcomes, lead the product team in defining the work, and coordinate execution with Engineering Management.

You’ll be involved in the details: reviewing designs, refining requirements, asking questions, and helping the team make decisions that improve the experience for our customers and patrons. You’ll also build the habits and accountability that help the team work independently, communicate proactively, and consistently follow through.

This role requires three days per week in our Ada, Michigan office: Monday, Wednesday, and a third day based on team schedules and business needs.

If you enjoy developing people, simplifying complex problems, and turning plans into shipped improvements, we want to hear from you.

Learn more about Ludus here

Things you should know before applying

At Ludus, our mission is to bring people together through shared experiences. It’s a big goal that allows for limitless expansion to make a difference in the world.

We get shit done, move fast, and are constantly learning and adapting. We embrace low process and high trust to navigate change and figure out what works.

We believe success is never final and when you think it is, that is when you fail. For us, success is a sum of small efforts, including trial and error, so we move at an unrelenting weekly pace.

In order to grow as a company and individually, discomfort is necessary so we can continue exploring new ideas and push ourselves to build quality tools to offer the best solutions for our customers.

If you prefer a hand-holding environment where everything is black and white, that’s not us. If you’re a self-starter and can thrive in controlled chaos, Ludus is the place for you. It’s time to find your role ⬇️

What you'll be doing

• Manage and coach Product Owners and Product Designers through regular 1:1s, clear feedback, performance expectations, and growth planning.

• Create accountability for quality, ownership, communication, and follow-through across the product team.

• Partner with product stakeholders to understand roadmap priorities, intended outcomes, and customer needs.

• Lead the product team in translating roadmap initiatives into actionable requirements, thoughtful designs, and clear acceptance criteria.

• Lead design reviews and help the team create intuitive, accessible, and consistent experiences across Ludus.

• Maintain and improve design standards and UX patterns as the platform grows.

• Work with Product Owners to keep backlogs organized and ready for development, reflecting priorities established by product stakeholders.

• Partner with Engineering Management to coordinate development readiness, sequencing, dependencies, and delivery expectations.

• Resolve open questions and reduce rework caused by incomplete requirements or designs.

• Track initiatives from discovery through release, address blockers early, and communicate progress, risks, and timeline changes without waiting to be asked.

• Manage product team capacity and surface resource constraints early.

• Bring decisions that affect roadmap scope or priorities to product stakeholders, with clear context and recommendations.

• Use customer feedback, product analytics, and Pendo to guide research, validate solutions, and understand adoption after launch.

• Keep Sales, Marketing, Support, and other internal teams informed and prepared for product changes.

• Improve workflows in ways that help the team move faster while maintaining quality.

• Support hiring, onboarding, and development as the product team grows.

Traits we're looking for

• (In no certain order)

  • Product and SaaS Experience: Experience taking software features from discovery through release, with a clear understanding of what makes work ready for development.

  • People Leadership: Experience directly managing and developing product or design professionals, setting expectations, and addressing performance challenges.

  • AI-First Mindset: Experience using AI in everyday product and design work, from research and requirements to prototyping and validating ideas.

  • Strong Design Judgment: The ability to evaluate user flows, challenge unnecessary complexity, and give specific, actionable feedback on usability and visual consistency.

  • Hands-On Ownership: Willingness to review a requirement, work through an edge case, or help resolve a design problem when the team needs support.

  • Execution and Follow-Through: A track record of turning an established roadmap into well-defined work, keeping initiatives moving, and delivering on commitments.

  • Cross-Functional Partnership: The ability to work closely with product stakeholders and Engineering Management, with clear responsibilities and shared accountability for execution.

  • Customer Curiosity: An interest in understanding how people use a product and the problems behind their requests.

  • Clear Communication: The ability to explain decisions, surface risks early, and keep people aligned across teams.

  • Organization and Judgment: The ability to manage competing demands, organize team capacity, and bring scope or priority decisions to the appropriate stakeholders.

  • Adaptability: Comfort working in a growing company where priorities evolve and you help create clarity.

  • Continuous Improvement: A habit of identifying what is slowing the team down and making useful changes without adding unnecessary process.

BONUS Qualifications:

• Experience managing both Product Owners and Product Designers.

• Experience using AI tools to improve product discovery, documentation, or design workflows. Preferably tools such as Claude, Grok, and ChatGPT.

• Experience with Figma, Jira, Notion, and Pendo.

• Experience using product analytics and customer research to measure and improve adoption.

• Experience maintaining design systems and applying accessibility best practices.

Perks

💪 Health Insurance (Medical, Vision, Dental) — Ludus offers medical coverage through Blue Cross Blue Shield, with vision and dental coverage through Guardian. For the base medical plan, Ludus pays 90% of the employee premium and 50% of dependent premiums.

💵 401(k) matching — Full match on the first 5% contribution and 50% match on the next 5% of contribution (7.5% contribution match by Ludus if you contribute 10%).

📈 Profit Sharing and Stock Options — We believe in sharing our success and offer annual profit-sharing bonuses during profitable years, along with stock options that give employees a stake in our long-term growth and success.

👓 Personal Wellness — $50 monthly reimbursement that can be used on anything personal wellness related.

🎫 Experience Credit — $100 yearly reimbursement toward concert tickets, theatre tickets, etc. to encourage shared experiences.

⛱ Flexible PTO — Take the time you need for vacation or personal days - simply work with your team to ensure everything runs smooth while you are away.

😷 Sick Days — If you're under the weather, we expect you to take the time needed to recover within reason. 

Role Details

• Location: Three days per week in our Ada, MI office are required: Monday, Wednesday, and a third day based on team schedules and business needs.

• Employment Type: Full-time.

• Salary Range: $120,000–$130,000 annually.

• Team: Directly manages Product Owners and Product Designers.