(Creative / Senior / Lead) Exterior Designer

Description

Work Arrangement

This role is categorized as on-site. Successful candidates are expected to work full time from the GM China Advanced Technical Center in Shanghai, China.

About GM China Design Studio

GM China Design Studio is both a production design studio and an advanced design studio. We shape meaningful vehicle experiences for GM brands serving customers in China and global markets, connecting near-term production programs with forward-looking exploration.

We are committed to creating an exceptional design environment where creativity, beauty, craftsmanship, and storytelling can thrive. Our designers work across disciplines and cultures to translate customer understanding, brand identity, emerging technologies, and new forms of mobility into compelling exterior design proposals.

About This Evergreen Requisition

This evergreen requisition is established for talent pipelining purposes. GM China Design Studio is building a long-term pipeline of exceptional Exterior Designers across multiple levels, including Creative Designer, Senior Exterior Designer, and Lead Exterior Designer, in support of current and anticipated business needs.

We welcome applications from outstanding designers around the world who are interested in contributing to exciting production programs and advanced design work in our China studio. Depending on business needs and the candidate’s experience, future opportunities may involve different levels of responsibility, program scope, and creative leadership.

When submitting your application, please include:

• An updated resume or CV.
• An updated portfolio that clearly demonstrates your design thinking, creative process, visual communication, and relevant exterior design capabilities.
• Please ensure that your portfolio does not contain undisclosed, confidential, proprietary, or otherwise sensitive information, projects, or materials belonging to current or previous employers or clients.

After your application is submitted, our recruiting and design teams will review your materials. If there is alignment with a current or future opportunity, a recruiter will contact you to discuss potential next steps. Because this is an evergreen requisition, the timing of contact may vary according to business needs and the fit between your experience and upcoming opportunities.

If you do not meet every element listed below but are interested in exploring an opportunity with GM China Design Studio, we still encourage you to apply. We value distinctive creative perspectives, strong design potential, and the ability to contribute to a collaborative studio environment.

The Role -

Exterior Designers in GM China Design Studio help define the visual identity, proportion, stance, and emotional character of future vehicles and mobility products for China and global markets. Depending on level and experience, you may contribute to or lead exterior themes and component design from early advanced exploration through production execution, creating proposals that are distinctive, customer-relevant, brand-expressive, and technically achievable.

You will collaborate with designers and partners across exterior design, sculpting, engineering, fabrication, modeling, product planning, customer research, and global design studios. The scope of your contribution may range from developing sketches and digital or physical design proposals to directing programs, presenting to senior leadership, and mentoring other designers.

What You May Do

Your responsibilities may include the following, depending on your level, experience, and assigned program:

Creative Designer-level contribution

• Develop exterior design concepts, component ideas, sketches, renderings, and visual narratives under the guidance of more experienced designers.
• Explore alternative design themes, proportions, surfaces, details, and graphic treatments that respond to brand direction, customer needs, technology opportunities, and program objectives.
• Communicate exterior design intent through traditional sketching, digital 2D visualization, digital 3D tools, scale models, physical mock-ups, and other appropriate design media.
• Support the development of exterior proposals from early ideation toward digital models, scale models, clay, full-size representations, or other design deliverables.
• Participate in design reviews and cross-functional discussions; incorporate feedback into refined design solutions while continuing to develop a clear and distinctive point of view.
• Build understanding of design feasibility, proportions, surface development, aerodynamics, lighting, manufacturing processes, craftsmanship, and quality expectations.

Senior Designer-level contribution

• Independently develop and advance exterior themes and component proposals for assigned advanced or production programs, from initial sketches through refined digital, scale, or full-size design representations.
• Translate brand strategy, customer understanding, competitive references, future mobility trends, and technology opportunities into distinctive exterior concepts and cohesive vehicle design proposals.
• Create and communicate high-quality sketches, renderings, digital 3D models, physical mock-ups, and presentations that clearly explain design intent, proportion, stance, surface language, details, and overall vehicle character.
• Collaborate closely with the design team, sculpting organization, engineering, fabrication, modeling, and other cross-functional partners to develop designs that balance creative ambition with technical and manufacturing realities.
• Provide design insight and recommendations, respond constructively to general direction, and make clear design decisions within a deadline-driven environment.
• Present design ideas and proposals in studio reviews and leadership forums, explaining the thinking behind the work and incorporating feedback into stronger solutions.
• Contribute to advanced and exploratory projects by taking a broad view of customer needs, future transportation, emerging technologies, and new forms of mobility.
• Share knowledge and provide informal guidance to less experienced designers when appropriate, contributing to a positive and collaborative studio culture.

Lead Designer-level contribution

• Define and drive the creative direction of assigned exterior programs across advanced and production design phases, from early exploration through final model development and release.
• Create new and distinctive exterior designs for complete vehicles, mobility products, and key exterior components, demonstrating a strong point of view across proportion, stance, surface, graphics, and detail.
• Independently lead the development of design proposals using traditional sketching, digital 2D and 3D technology, digital modeling, physical scale models, and full-size clay or other physical representations.
• Establish design strategies that express GM brand DNA while responding to China-specific customer needs, market dynamics, future transportation, and innovation opportunities.
• Lead design alignment with the design team, sculpting, engineering, fabrication, modeling, product planning, customer research, and global design studios to deliver solutions that are compelling, feasible, and program-ready.
• Represent GM China Design in key studio reviews and leadership forums, presenting creative ideas and design recommendations clearly to management and senior leadership.
• Provide creative direction, review work, offer constructive feedback, and mentor designers across different experience levels.
• Drive design deliverables and decision-making according to program timing and applicable design processes, maintaining alignment on quality, craftsmanship, feasibility, and leadership expectations.
• Demonstrate design courage by challenging assumptions, exploring provocative opportunities, and raising the creative ambition of the work while remaining responsive to program objectives.

Contributions shared across levels

• Follow the design process from initial ideation and sketches through digital development, physical modeling, design refinement, and, where applicable, final model release.
• Maintain awareness of current and emerging exterior design trends, automotive technology, materials, manufacturing processes, customer preferences, and developments in future transportation.
• Apply sound design perception, taste, judgment, creativity, skill, and accuracy to develop clear and compelling design solutions.
• Consider the complete vehicle and customer experience, including proportion, stance, package, aerodynamics, lighting, graphics, interaction points, craftsmanship, and perceived quality.
• Work effectively with design, sculpting, engineering, fabrication, modeling, and other cross-functional partners to communicate design intent and negotiate design criteria.
• Manage priorities and deliverables in a deadline-driven environment, adapting to changing program needs while maintaining design quality.
• Engage constructively in a diverse, collaborative, and internationally connected studio environment.
• Demonstrate discretion and respect for intellectual property and confidential information throughout the design process.

What You May Bring

We welcome designers with different career paths, backgrounds, and levels of experience. The following qualifications are intended to describe the capabilities that may be relevant to these opportunities rather than serve as a checklist that every applicant must fully satisfy.

• A degree in Transportation Design, Automotive Design, Industrial Design, or a related discipline; equivalent professional experience and a compelling portfolio may also be considered.
• Experience in automotive, transportation, mobility, industrial, product, or another closely related design field. The depth of experience expected will vary by level, from emerging design talent to experienced program and team leaders.
• The ability to develop relevant, distinctive, and visually compelling exterior design concepts, themes, proposals, and component ideas.
• Strong 2D visual communication skills, including sketching, rendering, storytelling, presentation, and the ability to communicate design thinking clearly.
• Experience with digital design tools, digital 3D modeling, 3D visualization, CAS, physical scale models, full-size clay, physical mock-ups, or other methods used to develop and communicate exterior design concepts. The specific toolset is less important than the quality of the design thinking and the ability to learn and adapt.
• A clear understanding of proportion, stance, surface development, form, detail, graphics, craftsmanship, and the relationship between design intent and physical execution.
• The ability to approach projects from both a creative and strategic point of view, exploring multiple solutions while making clear design decisions.
• An understanding of how exterior design interacts with sculpting, engineering, fabrication, modeling, packaging, aerodynamics, manufacturing, quality, safety, regulation, and customer expectations.
• A genuine interest in contributing to a holistic design process, from early concept development through later-stage design refinement and execution.
• Strong collaboration and communication skills, including the ability to present ideas, respond to feedback, and work effectively in a multicultural and cross-functional environment.
• For more experienced opportunities: the ability to independently drive design development, lead program direction, influence stakeholders, present to senior audiences, mentor designers, and connect creative ambition with business and technical realities.
• For emerging opportunities: demonstrated design potential, curiosity, willingness to learn, and the ability to develop ideas through a thoughtful and visually compelling process.
• Experience with production programs may be beneficial for some opportunities, but it is not required for every position in this talent pipeline.

Why Join GM China Design Studio

You will have the opportunity to work in a studio that connects advanced design exploration with real production impact. You will collaborate with colleagues across China and the global GM Design network, contribute to vehicles and mobility products for diverse customers, and help shape the next generation of exterior design through creativity, beauty, technology, and storytelling.

We are interested in meeting exceptional designers at different stages of their careers. Your portfolio, perspective, and potential may align with an opportunity even if your experience does not map perfectly to every item in this description.

About GM

Our vision is a world with Zero Crashes, Zero Emissions and Zero Congestion and we embrace the responsibility to lead the change that will make our world better, safer and more equitable for all.

Why Join Us 

We believe we all must make a choice every day – individually and collectively – to drive meaningful change through our words, our deeds and our culture. Every day, we want every employee to feel they belong to one General Motors team.

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Non-Discrimination and Equal Employment Opportunities (U.S.)

General Motors is committed to being a workplace that is not only free of unlawful discrimination, but one that genuinely fosters inclusion and belonging. We strongly believe that providing an inclusive workplace creates an environment in which our employees can thrive and develop better products for our customers.

All employment decisions are made on a non-discriminatory basis without regard to sex, race, color, national origin, citizenship status, religion, age, disability, pregnancy or maternity status, sexual orientation, gender identity, status as a veteran or protected veteran, or any other similarly protected status in accordance with federal, state and local laws. 

We encourage interested candidates to review the key responsibilities and qualifications for each role and apply for any positions that match their skills and capabilities. Applicants in the recruitment process may be required, where applicable, to successfully complete a role-related assessment(s) and/or a pre-employment screening prior to beginning employment. To learn more, visit How we Hire.

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