Product Design Leader · Principal-Level IC
I Design for How Complex Systems Actually Work
Twenty years across consumer, B2B, and enterprise. I stay hands-on in the work and step into team leadership and alignment when the scope calls for it.
Portrait of Derek Darby, UX and product design leader.
Former front-end developer with hands-on prototyping and implementation-level fluency.
Led teams of 3 to 8 across consumer, enterprise, and early-stage products.
MBA. NN/g UX Management certified. HFI CUA and CXA.
AI-assisted commercial lending review prototype showing an application queue, risk details, source documents, and an AI-generated summary.
AI-Enhanced Design Practice
I use AI in the work and to improve the way design gets done.

I use AI to explore directions, synthesize information, compare options, and get to working prototypes faster. I also use it to improve the workflow around the task, with design-system rules and human review points that keep quality and judgment in the loop.

The financial review workflow shows how I use AI to explore and prototype a high-stakes product workflow. A second experiment uses Cursor to test how an AI coding agent behaves inside a Claude-created design system with product rules and automated checks.

AI-Enhanced Design Practice
I use AI in the work and to improve the way design gets done.

I use AI to explore directions, synthesize information, compare options, and get to working prototypes faster. I also use it to improve the workflow around the task, with design-system rules and human review points that keep quality and judgment in the loop.

The financial review workflow shows how I use AI to explore and prototype a high-stakes product workflow. A second experiment uses Cursor to test how an AI coding agent behaves inside a Claude-created design system with product rules and automated checks.

AI-assisted commercial lending review prototype showing an application queue, risk details, source documents, and an AI-generated summary.
AI-Enhanced Design Practice
I apply AI to improve products, business outcomes, and how teams deliver.

I use AI to explore directions, synthesize information, compare options, and get to working prototypes faster. I also use it to improve the workflow around the task, with design-system rules and human review points that keep quality and judgment in the loop.

The financial review workflow shows how I use AI to explore and prototype a high-stakes product workflow. A second experiment uses Cursor to test how an AI coding agent behaves inside a Claude-created design system with product rules and automated checks.

AI-assisted commercial lending review prototype showing an application queue, risk details, source documents, and an AI-generated summary.
Selected Work
ACT Roadmap Builder pathway-planning experience connecting schools, majors, careers, and learner information.
Enterprise Systems · UX Strategy & Leadership · ACT, Inc. · EdTech · 2016–2018

Defined a longitudinal learner experience across 37+ systems and 5+ product lines.

Led UX strategy and cross-product alignment, shifting roadmaps toward a more continuous learner experience.

ACT Roadmap Builder pathway-planning experience connecting schools, majors, careers, and learner information.
Enterprise Systems · UX Strategy & Leadership · ACT, Inc. · EdTech · 2016–2018

Defined a longitudinal learner experience across 37+ systems and 5+ product lines.

Led UX strategy and cross-product alignment, shifting roadmaps toward a more continuous learner experience.

Enterprise Systems · UX Strategy & Leadership · ACT, Inc. · EdTech · 2016–2018
ACT Roadmap Builder pathway-planning experience connecting schools, majors, careers, and learner information.

Defined a longitudinal learner experience across 37+ systems and 5+ product lines.

Led UX strategy and cross-product alignment, shifting roadmaps toward a more continuous learner experience.

Research-Led Product Design · Measurable Growth · Hy-Vee · Consumer Ecommerce · 2020–2022

A 100+ product audit showed the PDP redesign depended on the product model and variation system.

Authored the rules, aligned Hy-Vee with ProdX on two API changes, and helped move Similar Items conversion from 0.82% to 1.49%.

Hy-Vee product detail experience showing product variation and fulfillment choices.
Hy-Vee product detail experience showing product variation and fulfillment choices.

Research-Led Product Design · Measurable Growth · Hy-Vee · Consumer Ecommerce · 2020–2022

A 100+ product audit showed the PDP redesign depended on the product model and variation system.

Authored the rules, aligned Hy-Vee with ProdX on two API changes, and helped move Similar Items conversion from 0.82% to 1.49%.

Research-Led Product Design · Measurable Growth · Hy-Vee · Consumer Ecommerce · 2020–2022

A 100+ product audit showed the PDP redesign depended on the product model and variation system.

Authored the rules, aligned Hy-Vee with ProdX on two API changes, and helped move Similar Items conversion from 0.82% to 1.49%.

Hy-Vee product detail experience showing product variation and fulfillment choices.
Vertex 3D collaboration interface with model review, comments, and collaborative markup.
0→1 Product Design · Technical Collaboration · Vertex · Manufacturing & Engineering SaaS · 2018–2019

As Founding Product Design Lead and the sole designer in year one, I defined the 0→1 collaboration model for complex 3D work.

Designed around CAD, security, performance, and research-access constraints. I also implemented React/CSS changes in the product repository.

Vertex 3D collaboration interface with model review, comments, and collaborative markup.
0→1 Product Design · Technical Collaboration · Vertex · Manufacturing & Engineering SaaS · 2018–2019

As Founding Product Design Lead and the sole designer in year one, I defined the 0→1 collaboration model for complex 3D work.

Designed around CAD, security, performance, and research-access constraints. I also implemented React/CSS changes in the product repository.

0→1 Product Design · Technical Collaboration · Vertex · Manufacturing & Engineering SaaS · 2018–2019
Vertex 3D collaboration interface with model review, comments, and collaborative markup.

As Founding Product Design Lead and the sole designer in year one, I defined the 0→1 collaboration model for complex 3D work.

Designed around CAD, security, performance, and research-access constraints. I also implemented React/CSS changes in the product repository.

Complex Work Requires Trust
Colleague feedback
“He is great at creating processes where none exist to ensure alignment across teams and to drive transparency with leadership.”
Jason Engelbart

Product Design Leader | Ex-Amazon
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View on LinkedIn
How I Work

I do my best work on products with complex rules, competing constraints, and decisions that need careful judgment.I work closely with product, engineering, and leadership to get the goal and tradeoffs clear and help the team move.

Leadership

I help teams get aligned on how the product needs to work. That usually means making constraints and tradeoffs clear early so the team can move with fewer surprises later.

Design

I focus on the interaction model underneath the screens: states, rules, flows, and what happens when the happy path breaks.

Research

I’m strongest at making sense of research, analytics, and stakeholder input that point in different directions, then helping the team decide what to do next.

About

I’ve spent most of my career working on complex products across design, research, and leadership. I care about clear thinking, useful outcomes, and work teams can maintain.

How I Built This Portfolio

Designed in Figma and built in Webflow. I used Claude, v0, and ChatGPT for exploration, synthesis, drafting, and testing; I made the design, content, and product decisions.

Explore the Full Scope of My Work
For a broader view of the systems, leadership, and products I’ve led, explore the case studies and leadership work, or download my resume.
Let’s Connect
The easiest way to reach me is on LinkedIn. For more detailed inquiries, you can also use the contact form.