At Handshake, our mission is to help Gen Z students build the careers of their dreams. As two leaders who guide the direction of our product and design teams, we’re passionate about creating a platform that feels both authentic and valuable to this next generation of professionals.
👋 I’m Molly, Director of Product Design, and I’ve been with Handshake for almost five years. I’ve seen how our platform has evolved to meet the unique needs of Gen Z, and it’s been an incredible journey designing for such an engaged audience.
👋 And I’m B, Senior Director of Product. I’ve been with Handshake for over a year now, and in that time, I’ve worked closely with Molly and the rest of the team to scale our consumer experience and make Handshake the go-to career platform for millions of young professionals.
Together, our teams drive the core consumer side of Handshake, ensuring the app aligns with our mission to connect students with meaningful opportunities. Whether it’s through innovative design or impactful product decisions, we’re here to deliver an experience that helps Gen Z thrive in the job market. Here’s why we think Handshake is a great place to grow your career, and how you can join us on this journey.
Why join the product and design teams at Handshake?
Growth potential
Our platform is at the heart of how Gen Z starts their careers, and we’re in a key growth phase with endless opportunities for impact. We serve the majority of US colleges and universities, with nearly 1 million employers using Handshake to recruit. This is an exciting time to join Handshake—we are outpacing competitors in reaching college students and recent alumni.
At Handshake, you’ll have the opportunity to make a significant impact on a product that millions of users rely on. And as we continue to expand, you’ll have a front-row seat to this growth—and a hand in shaping it.
Innovation and creativity
Our teams are always experimenting with new ways to engage students. We’ve built features like comments, hashtags, and mentions to bring more social interaction to the platform. We’re also diving deep into content understanding and collaborative filtering to better personalize the experience for our users.
Building a platform for Gen Z requires innovation not just in technology, but also in our experience. We’re constantly learning from our users, experimenting with new features, and iterating quickly to keep up with the fast-paced needs of this generation.
Autonomy and ownership
At Handshake, we believe in empowering our team members to act independently. Whether you’re a product manager or a designer, you’ll have the autonomy to lead your own projects and make decisions that directly impact the business.
Our product and design teams work closely together, collaborating on decisions and ensuring that we’re aligned every step of the way. We’re still early on in our journey, so there’s plenty of opportunity for you to help shape the future of our platform.
What we’re looking for
Product team
Our product team is looking for people who are ambitious, action-oriented, and ready to take on big challenges. You’ll need to be a strategic thinker who knows how to prioritize and solve problems, while using data to inform your decisions. Experience in building large-scale consumer products, particularly for Gen Z, is a huge plus.
Design team
On the design side, we need someone who’s excited to build a social platform for Gen Z that strikes the perfect balance between authenticity and professionalism. Our design leaders are innovators who want to push the boundaries of what a career platform can be. We’re looking for people who have a deep empathy for our users and can adapt quickly based on feedback.
Above all, we’re a close-knit team that’s deeply invested in creating something special for the next generation of career starters.
Challenges and opportunities
Building a platform for Gen Z comes with its own set of challenges. One of the biggest is finding the balance between being real while also being professional. Gen Z craves raw, unpolished self-expression online, and we want to create a space where they feel comfortable being themselves, while also building a professional identity that helps them land jobs.
Another challenge is scalability. We’re already serving a huge audience, but we have ambitious plans to grow even more. Our goal is to move from being a platform students use a few times a year to one they interact with daily.
Experimentation is key to our success. We’re always learning from our failures, analyzing data, and iterating based on feedback. That’s why we run two-weeks sprints, quickly testing and refining ideas with our engineering partners to ensure we’re building what Gen Z truly needs.
A day in the life on our team
As a product manager at Handshake, you’ll be co-leading a squad alongside your engineering and design partners. You’ll work in two-weeks sprint cycles using Linear, collaborating to prioritize tasks and make decisions. Most of your projects will go through rounds of testing and iteration, and you’ll have the opportunity to present your ideas directly to the leadership team.
As a product designer at Handshake, you’ll be co-leading a squad alongside your engineering and product partners. You’ll help define roadmaps, conduct user research, and help the team focus on solving problems. Design is expected to collaborate with engineers during the implementation phase to ensure a high standard of quality. Additionally, you’ll act as a partner with leadership, regularly presenting design ideas and updates to help guide strategic decisions and ensure alignment with business goals.
Recent projects, including those to increase the social interaction on Handshake, are already driving up engagement. We’re also working on improving content understanding and collaborative filtering to ensure that students see the most relevant opportunities for them.
Join us
At Handshake, we’re on a mission to help Gen Z build meaningful careers. If you’re passionate about innovation, collaboration, and making an impact on millions of users, we’d love to have you on the team.