ABOUT ME

I've been designing for the last 8 years in product and UX, mostly in financial services. Banking apps, card experiences, authenticated web. The stuff people log into to check their money.

The big one was U.S. Bank's credit card app. It was sitting at 1.6 stars when I picked it up and 4.8 when I left, across 200,000+ reviews. I shipped 37+ native and responsive features on a white-label design system that had to work across several partner card programs.

AI is in my day-to-day now. Figma Make and Claude for wireframes, research synthesis, and working through flows faster than I can on my own. On a recent SaaS build, I put both into the wireframing process, and we were getting concepts in front of engineers in a fraction of the usual time.

I can take something from discovery to handoff. Research, IA, user flows, high-fidelity design, prototypes, then staying with engineering so it ships the way it was drawn. I test things instead of arguing about them: A/B click tests, moderated and unmoderated sessions, design sprints. Accessibility (WCAG 2.1 AA) goes in at the start.

Visual craft still matters to me. A screen that's structurally correct and still ugly is a screen people avoid. I care about type scale, spacing, hierarchy, contrast, and the small motion details that tell someone their tap registered. That comes out of a BFA in graphic design and years of agency art direction before I ever touched a product spec, and it's the part of the job I still enjoy most.

I've worked at U.S. Bank, Thrivent, Ameriprise, Xcel Energy, and Optum, with agency art direction before that. BFA in Graphic Design from UW-Stout, NN/g UX Certificate. I’ve also mentored designers through Springboard and the University of Minnesota.

  • “Because of Chris' attention to detail, his passion for UX, and his thoughtfulness of the end user, the effort he put in created real value as evident by 4.8/5 stars on both iOS and Android platforms with ~100,000 new customer reviews.”

    Marc S., former Product Manager

  • “Chris was the first hire I made after taking over the Experience Design team last year, and in that year he has brought a sense of maturity, discipline, and design expertise that the team desperately needed.”

    Scott C., former Manager

  • “From my perspective as a front-end developer, I always appreciated Chris's technical expertise. He provided design documents in a form that made my job as a developer as easy as possible--well organized, detailed, and using up-to-date design technologies.”

    Kasia F., former colleague

  • “I was Chris' supervisor in a previous role and wholeheartedly stand by the quality of Chris' work, his unwavering integrity, dedication to customer satisfaction, and expertise in design, production, consultation, and delivery of digital and traditional assets.”

    Matt K., former Manager

  • “Chris beautifully brings abstract ideas to life while applying his audience knowledge and intuition. He appropriately and creatively pushed brand guideline limits to keep fresh ideas on-brand. Despite revisions and last-minute changes, Chris patiently delivered and flexed to meet our needs.”

    Melissa P., former colleague

  • “Chris is not content to settle with "good enough" and he tries to push the creative and conceptual limits of any project he's working on. He's also a really good guy, very honest and friendly.”

    Ryan K., former creative vendor

  • “I think my favorite trait is his constant willingness to give and receive feedback; collaboration is the name of the game with Chris, and this attitude encourages others around him to participate as well. He fosters a sense of trust and respect amongst his peers.”

    Scott C., former Manager

  • “Chris is respected by his team as a thoughtful and encouraging leader, giving others the opportunity to excel and showcase their skills by giving them projects to demonstrate their talents and ability to deliver.”

    Matt K., former Manager

Get in touch

Looking for an experienced designer who blends creativity with functionality? Let’s connect. I craft intuitive, user-friendly experiences that drive engagement and results. Reach out to discuss how I can elevate your product’s design.