--- title: "standardLayer | Principal product design, fractional" description: "Principal-level product design and design engineering for fast-moving teams whose products shipped faster than their design." url: https://standardlayer.io/ --- # Your product shipped faster than its design It works. It looks finished. It doesn’t feel solid yet. I design what comes next, fix what is already live, and leave a standard the rest of the product can build on. [Send What You Have](https://standardlayer.io/start) What I Do ## Principal-level design ownership without committing to a full-time hire For teams whose product works, but the experience still undersells it. - Design what comes next New features and flows designed clean from the start, on a system that grows with your product. - Fix what is already live Turning fast-built, inconsistent interfaces into something people can navigate without being told how. - Build systems and standards Components, tokens and the rules behind them. The foundation every new feature builds on. - Design engineering Taking design systems through implementation, so design and code stay aligned as the product evolves. Why It Matters ## AI made it easier to create screens It didn’t make it easier to build trust Fast product work creates visible progress. The debt usually shows up later. ### What you see this week ### What it turns into - A feature that needs explanation A product that can’t carry its own story - Onboarding that feels almost right Users leaving before they feel the value - Another “we’ll fix it later” More cleanup, more rework, less confidence - Edge cases left for later A product that breaks one click off the happy path - UI that feels “good enough” A product people take less seriously At first, it doesn’t look broken. It looks like momentum. That’s how good products start feeling harder than they should. Who It’s For ## You are likely in one of two situations Different starting points. The same gap. 01 Your team built something real with AI. It works. People can use it. But it still feels early. 02 Engineering isn’t waiting for design. Features ship faster than design decisions settle. It usually looks like this: Your product is hard to explain The idea is strong. The product needs too much talking. The product undersells the company The ambition is serious. The interface doesn’t show it yet. Your demo needs narration The story is there. The flow doesn’t make it obvious yet. The same issues keep coming back The team moves fast. Unresolved decisions create rework. AI feels powerful but unclear The capability is real. People can’t tell what it can do or when to trust it. [Send What You Have](https://standardlayer.io/start) I read everything myself. No call required, no commitment. Experience ## Who’s behind it I’m Christopher Koziol, a product designer with 20+ years of experience across early products, complex systems, and fast-moving roadmaps. [Portfolio (opens in a new tab)](https://koziol.design/) [LinkedIn (opens in a new tab)](https://www.linkedin.com/in/chriskoziol) I turn that complexity into clear product decisions and design that teams can ship and build on. Earlier in my career, I spent years inside a startup studio in Central Europe. I joined when it was still small and grew with it through product launches, pivots, exits, and failures. Over time, I built a venture within the group and led the team that shipped white-label web products end to end, from product design and development through conversion and ongoing support. That experience shaped standardLayer: keep shipping fast, while making each product decision strengthen what comes next. You work directly with me, from first look onward. - Acquired by Databricks A product that needed explaining. A complex model made clear, on a foundation that held through three shifts without rebuilding. [See What Changed: A product that needed explaining.](https://standardlayer.io/built/schema-first) - Consumer social The team scaled, the product didn’t. Replaced ad-hoc UI with one shared system across iOS, Android, and Web. One decision. Three platforms. [See What Changed: The team scaled, the product didn’t.](https://standardlayer.io/built/one-system) - iF Design Award 2026 Foundations for a calm browser. Design system and token architecture behind Opera Air, an iF Design Award 2026 winner. [See the IF Award: Foundations for a calm browser. (opens in a new tab)](https://ifdesign.com/en/winner-ranking/project/opera-air/757979) Pricing ## Send what you have Continue only if it makes sense - Product Review Free. No commitment No call required. First read back within two business days. I review what you have and tell you honestly whether I can help. Best when You need clarity on what is worth fixing now and what can wait. [Start with a Review](https://standardlayer.io/start) - Product Sprint $2,000 Two weeks from kickoff. Credited toward ongoing work if we continue. I redesign one critical area and set a standard the product can follow. Best when A critical product area needs to be ready for customers or launch. [Book a Sprint](mailto:hello@standardlayer.io?subject=Product%20Sprint) - Design Partner $7,000/mo Month to month. Pause or cancel anytime. I own product design across the roadmap as the product evolves. Best when The product is growing and needs ongoing design ownership. [Discuss a Partnership](mailto:hello@standardlayer.io?subject=Design%20Partner) FAQ ## Questions answered From first look to next steps. What should I send? A live product, MVP, prototype, Figma file, deck, Loom, or a link to screenshots. It doesn’t need to be polished. It just needs to show what exists. What will I get back? A direct read on what is worth fixing now, what can wait, and what the next step would cost. Will this stay private? Yes. I review submissions personally. NDA on request. Does this work if the product is early, or isn’t built yet? Yes, if there’s enough to review: screens, a prototype, a demo, or a clear product direction. Before the first commit, the Product Sprint shifts: I map the product logic, walk the closest competitors as a new user, and design the screen that matters most. If it’s only a loose idea, it may be too early. Do you need to know our industry? Not before taking a first look. You know the domain. I bring product design judgment across patterns that tend to repeat: unclear flows, weak hierarchy, fragile standards, and interfaces that need too much explanation. Can AI tools solve this instead? They can help you move faster. They don’t automatically create a product standard. The risk is that each screen looks fine on its own, while the product starts feeling inconsistent. I define the rules that keep the product coherent, and hand them over in a format that works whether a team builds on it or a model does. Is this just a design system? You’re paying for product progress. Features get designed, flows get fixed, and the rules underneath them get stronger as the work moves. Over time that creates a real product standard inside the roadmap, rather than a separate six-month project beside it. We already have a designer. Does this still work? Yes. Teams usually bring me in above the daily flow: setting direction, resolving patterns, and making the product decisions that keep slipping. Your designer gets firmer ground and a clearer standard to work from. Why choose this over hiring? Hiring takes time, and a new hire still needs direction and room to ramp up. This gives you principal-level product judgment from the first week, plus design execution and design engineering in the same lane. What does a month with the Design Partner look like? I own design for whatever is shipping. The standard holds across the product, so new work inherits it instead of re-deciding the same things. Output lands as the work moves, not as a handoff at the end. Month to month, two weeks’ notice. How do we work across time zones? Async by default. I work European daytime, overlapping with US mornings. You work with me directly on Slack. I usually reply the same day and always within two business days. Progress stays visible in the file, with calls or recaps when needed. --- Product design and design engineering for teams shipping faster than their foundation can support. [hello@standardlayer.io](mailto:hello@standardlayer.io) Remote-first. Europe-based.