I don't lead from a distance. I get into the product, the team dynamics, the stakeholder pressures, while keeping one eye on where the business needs to go. The kind of design leader who can run a critique in the morning and present to the board in the afternoon.
From a two-person startup figuring out its first design process to a global enterprise with millions of users. I've built first design functions, restructured underperforming teams, and led design transformation at scale. The context changes. The standard doesn't.
I've spent 15 years making sure design has genuine influence on the decisions that shape the product. Not just a seat at the table, but a voice that changes what gets built. That means working closely with product and engineering from day one, not after the decisions are already made.
Both. Knowing when to be which is the job. I move between craft and strategy depending on what the team needs. Some weeks that's running crits and reviewing prototypes. Others it's shaping roadmap direction or presenting to leadership. The range is the point.
From a two-person team with no process to twelve designers across two global enterprise products. Startups, scale-ups and enterprise. Remote, hybrid and on-site. Every setup, every stage.
As partners. I involve them early, in discovery, in decisions, in the work. Design that's built in isolation rarely works. Design that's built with engineering and product from the start usually does.
I've worked across SaaS, fintech, enterprise software and digital products at every stage. I don't need to be a domain expert. I need to understand your users, your constraints and your business goals. That happens fast regardless of vertical.
Yes. Many companies made that call in 2025–2026 and are now feeling the gap. I'll help you assess what's missing, rebuild the right team structure, and integrate AI where it actually moves the needle. Not as a replacement for thinking, but as a force multiplier for the people doing it.
"Richard has a rare ability to translate design thinking into business outcomes. He doesn't just lead designers, he builds the systems that make design work."
"Richard understands the business side of design in a way most design leaders simply don't. He built the structure that finally made design visible in the decisions that mattered. He fixed something I didn't even know how to name."
"Working with Richard shifted how I think about my role. He helped me see the bigger picture and gave me the tools to actually influence decisions at a leadership level."
