AI-Native Design Workflow

Overview

Role: AI-Native Product Designer (personal practice)
Period: 2025–Present
Tools: Claude Code, Cursor, Figma, Claude API, MCP Servers
Certifications: Anthropic Framework & Foundations, Claude Code in Action, AI Foundations & Design Thinking, Vibe-Coding for Designers, IIBA Entry Certificate in Business Analysis

The Shift

After 19 years of product design, I asked myself: what if AI wasn’t just a feature I designed around, but a tool I designed with?

In early 2026, I rebuilt my entire workflow around AI — not as a novelty, but as a fundamental capability multiplier. The result: I now operate at the output level of a small design team, with greater consistency and faster iteration.

My AI Design Stack

1. Claude Code as Design Partner

I use Claude Code (Anthropic’s CLI agent) with a deeply customized configuration:

• Design Taste Profile — A curated document defining my aesthetic principles: typography rules, animation philosophy, card treatments, color theory. Claude references this before any frontend decision.
• Custom Rules — Animation guidelines, card design principles, accessibility baselines — all codified so AI output matches my standards from the first attempt.
• Workflow Orchestration — A plan-first approach, subagent strategy for parallel research, and self-verification loops. Every change is tracked, committed atomically, and tested.

2. From Figma to Working Code

My workflow closes the gap between design intent and shipped product:

1. Research & Strategy — AI-assisted competitive analysis, user research synthesis, information architecture
2. Design in Figma — Component-based design with a three-layer variable architecture
3. Prototype with AI — Claude Code translates design decisions into production-quality code
4. Iterate in real time — Visual verification, accessibility checks, animation tuning — all AI-assisted

3. MCP Server Integration

I connect Claude to external tools through MCP (Model Context Protocol) servers:

• Figma integration for direct design-to-code translation
• Browser preview for visual verification of every change
• Calendar, project management, and documentation tools — all in the same loop

What This Means in Practice

Speed

Tasks that previously took days now take hours. A complete landing page — designed, coded, animated, accessible — ships in a single session.

Consistency

Design rules are codified, not memorized. Every output follows the same accessibility baseline (WCAG AA), animation timing system, and component architecture.

Quality

AI handles the mechanical work: spacing, responsive breakpoints, boilerplate. I focus on what actually matters — user needs, information hierarchy, emotional impact, and the details that create delight.

Real Applications

Design Systems at Scale

Built and maintained three-layer Figma design systems (primitives, semantic tokens, component tokens) with AI-assisted documentation and code mapping.

Cybersecurity Product Design

Designed complex threat intelligence platforms where AI helped synthesize research, surface edge-case scenarios, and prototype data-heavy interfaces at speed.

Business Analysis

Combined IIBA-certified business analysis skills with AI to accelerate requirements gathering, process mapping, and stakeholder documentation.

The Philosophy

AI doesn’t replace design thinking — it amplifies it.

The hardest parts of design — understanding users, making strategic trade-offs, creating emotional resonance — remain deeply human. AI removes the friction between having an idea and seeing it realized.

Nineteen years of experience aren’t diminished by AI. They’re the reason my AI output is good. The tool is only as sharp as the judgment guiding it.

Certifications & Continuous Learning

Available For

I work with teams and individuals who want to move faster without sacrificing craft. If any of the following fits what you need, let’s talk.

• AI Design Workflow Consulting — Audit your team’s process and implement AI-powered workflows that actually stick
• AI-Native Product Design — End-to-end product design with AI-augmented speed and quality
• Design Systems Architecture — Scalable Figma systems with AI-assisted documentation and governance
• Workshops & Training — Hands-on “AI for Design Teams” sessions tailored to your context