recently went through the Affirm product designer interview for a role on their checkout experience team. my background is mostly consumer product with some fintech work thrown in. here's what i found.
recruiter call: pretty quick. she covered team structure (design is embedded in product squads rather than a centralized studio), tools (Figma, obviously, some internal prototyping tools), and how cross-functional the role is. asked one question about my experience working with compliance constraints. that was a signal for what's coming.
portfolio review (1 hour): this is the core of the loop. the design manager runs it, sometimes a second designer joins. they want to hear you narrate a messy problem, not a polished case study. i had two projects ready and they only asked about one in depth.
what they dug into: the decisions i didn't make and why. how i handled disagreements with PM. what i'd do differently. they're not impressed by pixel-perfect screens if you can't explain the tradeoffs behind them.
fintech-specific: they asked how i'd approach designing a bnpl (buy now pay later) confirmation screen for users who might not fully understand what they're signing up for. this is a real tension at affirm: the business wants conversion, compliance wants clarity. how do you navigate that? have a genuine answer.
design exercise (take-home, 3-4 hours): i was given a prompt about redesigning a moment in the checkout flow. they were clear it should take 3-4 hours, not 3-4 days. they evaluate thinking process, not polish. i submitted a loom walkthrough with my figma file. the feedback session was more of a collaborative discussion than a grilling.
behavioral rounds: two rounds, each 30-45 min. usual product design behavioral questions. they really probed on how i give and receive design critique.
overall: they're looking for someone who can design within constraints, not around them. the fintech regulatory context is real and they want designers who engage with it.