[ Story ]

About me

José Carlos Martínez

PositionsProduct Designer, UI/UX Designer,
Design Systems Manager

Experience20+ years of experience

AvailabilityAvailable for remote work

LocationMálaga, Spain

LanguagesSpanish (Native), English (Professional)

SkillsUI/UX Design, AI-assisted design,
User Research, Design Thinking

ToolsFigma, Claude, Cursor, Gemini,
Github, Notion, Adobe CC

My name is José Carlos Martínez and I'm a Product Designer specializing in Design Systems, UX/UI design, and AI-assisted product development.

With a background in graphic design and over 20 years of experience designing digital products, I have worked across different environments and industries including SaaS platforms, mobile applications, e-commerce products, and video games.

More than once I have been the first product designer in a company. In my last two roles I joined as the first hire in product design, building the interface from the ground up, shaping UI/UX culture and processes, and helping design grow alongside the product.

My approach balances systems thinking with user-centered design, helping organizations scale products without sacrificing usability or craftsmanship.

Design is about solving real problems in context. Therefore, I highly value and excel at creating scalable design systems, component libraries, and visual languages and user-centered experiences that help teams ship consistent, high-quality digital products.

Today, my areas of expertise combine AI tools with design system solutions, governance, and technical knowledge to prototype, document and build solutions to modern day design problems.

I am based in Malaga, Spain, and open to projects locally and remote worldwide.

Outside of work, I enjoy reading, painting miniatures, and playing Dungeons & Dragons.

AI-oriented designer

I'm always looking for new ways to use AI to improve my design process and create more efficient and effective designs.

20+ years of experience

I've been working in the design industry for over 20 years and have a wealth of experience in designing digital products and experiences.

Team player

I'm a team player and I'm always looking for new ways to collaborate with other designers and developers to create more efficient and effective designs.

[ Evolution ]

How my roles evolved

Over two decades I moved from web and UI design into product leadership, and later deepening how design and development ship together.

  1. Web Designer

    Started designing digital interfaces for websites and early product surfaces, building a foundation in visual design and layout.

  2. UI Designer

    Focused on interface craft, interaction patterns, and high-fidelity UI—growing into product design for complex digital tools.

  3. UI Manager

    Led product design with growing responsibilities, including one designer on the team. Owned end-to-end product work while scaling design practice.

  4. Design System Manager

    Moved into a role focused 100% on design systems—rebuilding the design language into a modern, tokenized, AI-ready system.

[ Experience ]

Products I've worked on

Business models

  • B2CConsumer-facing products and apps
  • B2BEnterprise platforms and SaaS

Industries

  • FinanceBanking, fintech, and regulated products
  • E-commerceRetail and online shopping experiences
  • Video gamesGame UI for mobile and desktop
  • AgenciesMulti-client work across sectors

Product surfaces

  • Mobile appsiOS and Android app interfaces
  • WebDesktop and mobile web interfaces
  • BackofficeInternal tools, dashboards, and admin panels

[ AI in my day-to-day work ]

AI-driven design and design systems

I integrate AI into my design workflow as a collaborative tool that accelerates processes and deliveries.

Whether exploring design systems solutions or using AI-assisted tools to ship faster, I focus on clearer information architecture, more consistent UI, and better handoffs between design and development.

I use AI in my daily life for ideas generation, personal projects, and learning.
Specifically, I use Cursor and Gemini as my main AI tools.

[ About this portfolio ]

Built as a product, not just a showcase

This site is another product in my portfolio. I designed and built it end-to-end.

Case studies are authored in Markdown and rendered through Astro Content Collections. Styling uses a token-based SCSS architecture (primitives → semantics) with light and dark themes—mirroring the same systematic approach I apply to design systems at work.

Let's talk

Open to remote roles and collaborations in product design and design systems.

Book a Call