About me, Ben Gifford.

I’m an experienced product designer with a strong history in the digital industry, working with companies like T-Mobile, Amazon, Microsoft, and Classmates.com.

I’m known for my innovative, strategic, and collaborative design practice, and I’m particularly good at helping teams navigate ambiguous, complex spaces to find traction.

About me

I’ve been designing for over a decade, having gotten my start in the good (bad?) ol’ days of advertising and marketing, where Microsoft collateral made up 70% of every Seattle agency’s book. There, I got my first experience with digital experiences, and it was off to the races.

I studied industrial design. My grandfather was a civil engineer who built his own tools, and it’s from this cloth that I’m cut: an antenna always up for optimization, build a tool, test it, tweak it, integrate it, and see the world bettered.

What I do when I’m not designing

Outside my design practice, you’ll find me in a rowing shell seeking the perfect stroke, tinkering around in a garage fixing and building things, baking things to connect with memories and places far away, running, exploring architecture and food, and above all, spending time with my young family.

I’m a sworn wayfarer/ambler/flanuer. That means I spend a lot of time on foot, in the world. This is where life is, where I get my best ideas, and have my most rich discussions. You can expect me to convert others to this gospel, as well.

Ben, ambling along an ancient wall, thinking about design

Ben in search of excellent espresso, circa 2018

Notable Domain Experience

eCommerce

Healthcare

Industrial Automation

Telecom

Native Apps

IoT / Connected
Devices

Subscription Businesses

Social Media

What it’s like to work with me

That’s why I hire you for—for the way you think, and for the way you help me think about the customer’s context, not just how it works and looks.
— CTO, Fran's Chocolates
You’re able to jam on ideas, while staying strategic and also true to the impact on customers and numbers. IMHO, you run circles around some of the folks on the team.
— Senior Product Manager partner at T-Mobile