Design for Humans.Results for Business.(Plot Twist: Both Are Happy.)
I help big teams untangle the messy stuff—making digital tools that people actually want to use (instead of cursing at). From airlines to pharma, I turn complex challenges into simple, satisfying experiences (and yes, the numbers back it up).
What I Actually Do
I help companies solve complex business problems with user-centered design, clear strategy, and scalable digital solutions. My work bridges the gap between business goals and real user needs—delivering results that matter.
Product Strategy
Aligning business objectives with user needs through research, feature prioritization, and actionable roadmaps that drive measurable impact.
UX Research & Design
Uncovering insights and designing intuitive, accessible experiences—using interviews, prototyping, and usability testing to ensure real-world results.
Design Systems
Building scalable UI libraries and pattern guides for consistent, efficient product development—ensuring every detail supports your brand and users.
Tools & Methods
Leveraging Figma, agile workflows, and cross-functional facilitation to turn ideas into polished, production-ready solutions—fast.
Featured Work
Enterprise UX projects that delivered measurable business results—solving complex problems for world-class clients through user-centered design.
About Me
I'm a systems-thinking designer who transforms regulatory constraints into competitive advantages. Over 6+ years at IBM, I've helped Fortune 500 companies save millions while making their products more human—and currently exploring opportunities where complex problems meet meaningful impact.
Stephen Bowman
Senior UX Designer
The Designer Behind the Pixels
My path to UX wasn't linear. It started with a Political Science degree at Miami University and a fascination with why people abandon shopping carts. That curiosity led me to IBM, where I discovered my calling: untangling the complex systems that frustrate both users and businesses.
I've spent the last six years in the trenches of enterprise UX—the unglamorous, constraint-heavy world where a button change requires FDA approval and a typo can cost millions. It's where I learned that great design isn't about making things pretty. It's about making the impossible feel inevitable.
My approach is simple: Every pixel should earn its place. Every interaction should respect the user's time. Every design decision should drive measurable business value. I believe in "calm technology"—interfaces that disappear into the background, letting humans focus on human things.
Recent Impact
Saved Annually
Janssen loved the unified system so much, they sent flowers (seriously)
Faster Processing
California's healthcare workers can finally take lunch breaks
Resolution Rate
United Airlines agents went from 2 to 7 fixes per hour (they sent cake)
My Design Philosophy
Constraints are features, not bugs
FDA regulations? Legacy systems? Budget limitations? These aren't obstacles—they're design materials. My best work happens within the tightest boundaries.
Systems beat screens
One ugly component that works everywhere beats ten beautiful one-offs. I build for scale, maintenance, and the poor developer who has to implement it at 2 AM.
Everyone is a designer
The best solutions come from making legal teams, developers, and stakeholders true partners in the design process. When everyone owns the outcome, magic happens.
Impact over aesthetics
I'd rather ship something that saves a nurse 10 minutes per patient than win a design award. (Though doing both is nice.)
The Toolkit
Here's what happens when user needs collide with business requirements, technical limitations, and regulatory frameworks. My sweet spot? The messy middle.
Design & Strategy
- • Design Systems (Component libraries, design tokens)
- • Enterprise UX (Complex workflows, data viz)
- • Regulatory Design (FDA compliance, accessibility)
- • Service Design (Journey mapping, process optimization)
Research & Validation
- • Contextual inquiry in high-stakes environments
- • Usability testing within regulatory constraints
- • Data-driven decision making
- • Stakeholder interviews across all levels
Technical Fluency
- • Figma (Advanced: plugins, libraries, automation)
- • Front-end awareness (HTML/CSS/JS understanding)
- • Accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1 AA+)
- • Agile methodologies (Scrum, Lean UX)
The Soft Stuff That Matters
- • Translating between legal, technical, and business languages
- • Building consensus among competing stakeholders
- • Presenting to C-suite executives
- • Mentoring junior designers through complex projects
Beyond the Pixels
When I'm not designing enterprise systems, you'll find me exploring the intersection of AI and everyday life. I'm fascinated by tools like Claude Code and spend weekends experimenting with AI workflows—partly for fun, partly because I believe understanding these tools makes me a better designer in our AI-driven future.
Current Obsessions:
🏎️ Sim Racing Enthusiast
My home rig is my happy place. There's something beautifully ironic about optimizing milliseconds on Spa-Francorchamps after spending the day optimizing user flows. Current setup: Fanatec CSL DD with a custom button box I definitely over-engineered.
⛳ Weekend Golfer
Nothing clears the mind like 18 holes and the eternal pursuit of breaking 80. My approach to golf mirrors my design philosophy: it's all about consistency, not perfection. (Current handicap: 12, but trending down!)
🤖 AI Explorer
I'm that person who gets genuinely excited about new AI tools. Whether it's experimenting with Claude Code for automation or exploring how AI can enhance UX workflows, I'm always tinkering. My GitHub is full of half-finished experiments that seemed like good ideas at 11 PM.
👶 New Dad Mode
Recently became a father, which has given me a whole new perspective on intuitive design. Turns out, if you can't operate something while sleep-deprived and holding a baby, it's not user-friendly enough. My daughter is already showing signs of being a harsh design critic.
🐻 Chicago Sports Optimist
Bears, Bulls, Cubs, Hawks—I bleed Chicago sports. Yes, I still believe this is our year. Every year. There's a beautiful parallel between being a Chicago sports fan and working in enterprise UX: eternal optimism despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.
The Perfect Weekend:
Saturday morning on the golf course, afternoon sim racing session while the baby naps, evening experimenting with a new AI tool, and Sunday watching the Bears (probably) lose while sketching wireframes during commercial breaks.
I live in Lake Bluff, IL, where the proximity to both Chicago and some decent golf courses makes it the perfect home base. My wife has graciously accepted that our garage is now 40% sim racing rig, 30% golf clubs, and 30% baby gear.
Currently exploring: Senior/Lead UX roles where complex problems meet meaningful impact—and where constraint-heavy projects are seen as opportunities, not obstacles.
Notable Projects
Here's where theory met reality—and why enterprise UX became my obsession.
Senior UX Designer
Feb 2018 - Mar 2024IBM
Six years in the trenches of enterprise UX—where I learned that the most beautiful design is useless if it can't survive a legal review, budget cuts, and stakeholder politics. Specialized in turning "impossible" requirements into elegant solutions for Fortune 500 companies.
Key Projects & Achievements:
- •40% reduction in design task time
- •25% increase in claims submission accuracy
- •State award for process optimization
- •50% reduction in agent context switching
- •Secured multi-year contract extension
- •Unified 18 pharmaceutical brands
- •80% reduction in UI inconsistencies
- •20% faster FDA approval processes
- •20% increase in customer retention
- •600-page strategic research deck
- •Secured multimillion-dollar contracts for IBM
- •Delivered fully interactive MVP prototypes
- •15% increase in mobile bookings
- •Strategic UX 2020 roadmap for international expansion
- •250% improvement in complaint resolution efficiency
- •Increased productivity from 2 to 7 resolutions per hour
Associate Account Executive
Feb 2016 - Aug 2016Yelp Inc.
My crash course in understanding user pain points—except the users were small business owners, and the pain point was their empty restaurant on a Tuesday night. Learned that good design starts with genuine empathy for real problems.
Digital Marketing Intern
May 2013 - Aug 2014Grainger
Where I first fell in love with data storytelling and learned that behind every spreadsheet is a human trying to make sense of their world. Also where I discovered my superpower: making boring things interesting.
Vibe Coding & Personal Projects
Where design thinking meets code reality. I experiment with calm technology, creative coding, and the intersection of UX and frontend development—always learning, always building.
Asphalt Affirmations
AI-Lyric AnalyzerA web app that turns song lyrics into AI-generated reflections and insights.
Curiosity-driven projects and nostalgia + AI = compelling UX.
Notes on Being
UX Meditation ToolA mobile-first app for when you're overthinking—no feeds, no navigation, just calm interaction.
The most innovative UX is often about what you remove, not what you add.
Portfolio Rebuild
From Squarespace to Custom CodeThis website—rebuilt from scratch using modern dev tools.
Building your own portfolio lets you experiment with the same design thinking you bring to client work.
Builder's Notes
Behind the ScenesVideo documentation of my design and dev process—raw, not polished demos.
Recent focus: Onboarding flows that fade instead of instruct, components that feel alive, and AI integrations that add meaning.Portfolio Impact
Cumulative business value delivered across enterprise clients through strategic UX design and system optimization