Stephen ReaProduct, design & AI strategy
A close view of an onboarding product workflow comparing routes and evidence
Stephen Rea / Paper Design

Understand the problem.
Build the product.
Grow the team.

A design director who still designs.
I’ve grown a design organisation to 84 people, and I still shape the direction, design the screens and build the prototypes.

Design leadership, with a maker’s instinct.
A design workbench with product screens, sketches and journey maps
01 / Work

More product.
Less friction.

Explore the work
Strategy made tangible. Detail that makes a difference.
A product review interface linking an AI recommendation to evidence and a separate human approval decision
02 / Thinking

AI should
improve the call.

Start with the future worth building.
Use AI to explore possibilities and improve decisions.
Keep responsibility with people.

Explore the thinking
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Future Backwards starts with the future a business needs to earn and the progress people need to make. I work back through the product model, service, prototypes and decisions that could make it real. AI can accelerate that exploration and improve the product itself. Human judgement determines which direction deserves to be built.

An interface developing from precise wireframe components into a finished appointment flow
03 / About

Craft makes
ideas tangible.

I’m a senior product designer with experience as a design director. I work hands-on across product direction, user flows, prototypes and interface detail.

About my practice
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My practice grew through graphic design, architectural visualisation, games, mobile and complex digital products. That range helps me recognise the problem and make the right thing tangible. I do the design work myself, while bringing the experience to help the people around me make it better. Craft, structure and shared judgement connect the practice.

A conversation is a good place to start.

Let’s make
something better.

Get in touch