Let’s fix your design.
(You probably already know something’s broken)
Maybe your team is moving fast but building inconsistently. Maybe you've got designers but no design system. Maybe every new feature reinvents the wheel, and nobody can quite explain why things look the way they look. Maybe a well-meaning CEO keeps weighing in on button colors.
You don't need more opinions. You need a foundation.
That's where I come in.
Hi, I’m Grahame.
I'm a product designer with 19 years of experience and a simple philosophy: complexity is unavoidable; it’s where you put it that makes the ultimate difference.
Like energy, according to Newton’s First Law of Thermodynamics, complexity can’t be created or destroyed; it can only either change forms, or be shifted between a system and its surroundings.
I've spent my career turning tangled, sprawling, "how did it get this bad" design problems into systems that work: for the people using them, the people building them, and the people paying for them.
I've done it for companies serving millions of users.
I can do it for yours.
I work fractionally, which means you get veteran senior design leadership—the real thing, not a junior designer with a fancy title—without the full-time overhead.
Think of it as hiring a very experienced, slightly philosophical, occasionally irreverent design partner. One who will tell you when something doesn't work, explain exactly why, and help you fix it.
All you have to do is ask.*
*And, of course, pay. You didn’t think it was that easy, did you? More on that in the next section…
What I Do
UX Audits & Health Checks
An honest look at what's working, what isn't, and what's quietly costing you.
Sometimes you need a fresh set of experienced eyes. I'll walk through your product the way a thoughtful, slightly ruthless user would — identifying friction points, inconsistencies, accessibility gaps, and opportunities you've stopped seeing because you're too close to it. Then I'll give you a clear, prioritized roadmap for what to fix and why.
What you get: A thorough audit with findings, priorities, and actionable next steps.
Timeline: 2 weeks
Investment: From $3,500
Design System Builds
The foundation everything else stands on.
If your team is making the same decisions over and over, or your product looks subtly different everywhere you look, you don't have a design problem — you have a systems problem. I'll build you a design system that becomes the shared language between your designers and developers: tokens, components, patterns, documentation, and the contribution model that keeps it alive after I'm gone.
What you get: A scalable, documented design system your team will actually use.
Timeline: 6–8 weeks
Investment: From $8,000
Design Consulting
Senior design thinking, without the full-time commitment.
Need someone in your corner on an ongoing basis? I work with a small number of clients as a fractional design partner, attending key meetings, reviewing work, guiding decisions, and helping your team level up over time. This is for companies that need a Head of Design but aren't ready to hire one full-time.
What you get: Ongoing senior design leadership, typically 10–20 hours per week.
Investment: From $8,000/month
Design Practice Setup
For teams that are figuring out how design works around here.
If you're scaling and design is still a free-for-all (i.e., no process, no documentation, no clear handoff between design and dev), I can help you build the infrastructure that lets design work properly. That means process, documentation, design-to-dev workflows, and a contribution model that scales with your team.
I can even help train your team on new technologies to make sure they’re all up to speed.
What you get: A functioning design practice with the foundations to grow.
Timeline: 8–10 weeks
Investment: From $10,000
Designer Recruiting Support
Finding the right designer is harder than it looks.
Many hiring managers don't know what good design looks like at the senior level, and candidates know it.
I'll help you define what you actually need, review portfolios with a practiced eye, and make sure you're getting the best person for the job.
What you get: Role definition, portfolio review, interview support, and a hire you can trust.
Investment: Let's talk.
How I Work
I believe that good design doesn't announce itself.
It just works; quietly, efficiently, with the occasional moment of delight.
I approach every engagement the same way I approach every design problem: understand the system, find where the friction lives, and remove it.
I'm influenced by Zen Buddhism and Daoism, specifically the concept of wu wei, or “effortless action.” The idea that the best solution isn't always the most complicated one. That sometimes the most powerful thing you can do is just get out of the way.
I'll bring that same philosophy to your design practice. Not because it sounds nice, but because it works.
I'm also direct. If something isn't working, I'll tell you. I'll tell you why, and what to do about it. I won't dress it up in corporate language or tell you what you want to hear. But I'll do it kindly, because there's no reason not to.
Let’s Talk.
If any of this sounds like what you need, I'd love to hear about your situation. No pitch, no pressure. Just a conversation about where your design practice is and where you want it to go.
Brands I’ve elevated
Testimonials
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Devan, Product Analyst, Beauceron Security
Grahame is an amazingly talented designer who brings an impressive depth of knowledge on intuitive and elegant UX design to any team. Always curious to understand the customer and the problem, he imbues that knowledge into every design decision. I had the pleasure of seeing him transform mundane requirements-gathering meetings into energetic working sessions and, in doing so, uncover a richer understanding of the stakeholders’ needs and expectations.
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Courtney, Product Owner, Yelloh.com
Grahame helped (and truly led) us through moving from Photoshop to Figma for content design creation. This was a change management feat and involved training and advising other freelance designers, content marketers, and e-comm marketers. Without him, that internal transition would not have been nearly as successful.
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Honovi, UX/UI Designer, Bold Orange
Grahame is always willing to share his knowledge, creating a culture of learning and development. He has been an excellent mentor who helped me improve my skills. He even explained some coding principles and best practices to me, which improved my collaboration with the dev team.
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Ashley, Lead Product Designer, US Bank
Collaboration comes so naturally to Grahame. His open-mindedness secures relationships across teams in a way that provides immense value to his co-workers and the company for which he works. Hiring Grahame for any project is a no-brainer. He is an authentic, problem solving, versatile colleague and any organization would be lucky to have him as a part of their team.
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Jay, Corporate Communications, Allianz Life
“Grahame has been an amazing partner as we build out the Supplier Diversity portal and web-pages. He is a very thoughtful collaborator and took our vision and created web-pages that are far, far beyond our expectations. The web-pages are really impressive and even garnered special notice from our external vendor, who stated 'this is the best page experience we've seen, very clean and great use of white spaces'.”
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Molly, Lead Copywriter, SixSpeed
“Grahame, you're a standout teammate. I owe you my deepest thanks for lending your voice to our series of IVA suite web videos. Yet, for this project and all the others we've logged this year, what I truly value is *how* you help: With graciousness and enthusiasm, quality and pride. I'm so grateful to have your expertise with each digital tactic we create. Thank you for being a source of positivity and authenticity. I appreciate you!"
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Christina, Interaction Designer, US Bank
I’ve been fortunate to have worked alongside Grahame for two years at Allianz Life. He’s an excellent team player and has a high standard for quality and consistency. Grahame is also multi-talented. He has amazing UX, graphic, technical, and leadership skills. He was a positive mentor and leader as well. He has guided me throughout different projects and gave constructive feedback. Any UX team would be lucky to have him.
