Shoji Ushiyama — Product Designer

_INTROHERO

Hello! My name is Shoji Ushiyama.

I’m a force‑multiplying product designer with 10 years of experience.

I help teams and professionals tackle complex problems by creating clear systems and processes while delivering end-to-end design.

What I Do

I tackle complex problems and architect practical systems that professional teams can execute on.

_verticalpitch

I figure out product direction when you're stuck or starting from scratch.

I concentrate big-picture ideas into actual design solutions.

I create systems that help us tackle complicated problems repeatedly.

_Examplesimpact

I revitalised a B2B2C platform project stalled for 2 years by executing a systematic 0-1 design plan from user research through to prototyping.

I identified critical user pain points that had remained invisible in the entire history of the 40-year-old community and provided the engineering lead the breakthrough he needed.

I translated a startup's market positioning into a comprehensive visual design & heuristic system for their surgical robot.

I gave their CEO & CTO the first coherent vision of their product, accelerating development towards their Series A funding round.

I develop documentation that elevates my team’s creative output and professional skills, and enabling them to independently produce work that strengthens the brand narrative of a $17.4M convention.

I established design principles for technical communities, creating new approaches to replace guesswork, and developing tools that reduced multi-day processes to minutes.

_Recs

Testimonials

what others say

_Rec1

Christopher Miller

Principal UX Designer

Christopher Miller

Shoji has this beautiful way of understanding problems at their core, creating this perfect dance between teamwork and innovation. Teams just get better when he's around.

_Rec2

Marvin Olukayode Hassan

Design Director & Coach

Marvin Hassan

Looking for someone who can think through systemic challenges and lead the charge toward finding solutions that go beyond the obvious to solve real underlying issues? Shoji is the right designer.

_Rec3

Founding UX Designer

Tamar Levy

Shoji brought great energy to the class, actively participated in discussions, and asked thoughtful questions that kept everyone engaged in the learning process. His curiosity and willingness to share his own knowledge made him a valuable presence in the classroom.

_Rec4

Product Designer

Mariana Mejía

Shoji was always a standout in any design discussion. He speaks with knowledge and is able to lead projects to reliably amazing solutions. I could always count on him to have a great brainstorming session and to deliver a great presentation together.

_CaseStudies

Featured work

See how I think

ArtDash

C1

ArtDash

Rescuing a B2B2C freelance platform serving a $100M+ art market after 2 years of stalled development.

Despite 40 years of evolution, the furry fandom's multi-million dollar freelance art market remained a graveyard of failed platforms. Through comprehensive user research, I discovered why: they were all building for the wrong business model entirely.

This insight unlocked a complete strategic pivot from social platform to process automation tool, and culminated in a comprehensive prototype that unstuck 2 years of stalled development.

Outcomes

Revealed an invisible process that explained why all past platforms failed in this space.
Used new insight to develop a blue ocean market strategy and revitalise the project.
Validated the new direction with both artists and clients while balancing scalability and viability needs.

C2

Revolve Surgical

Transforming complex regulatory and stakeholder requirements into coherent product vision for a surgical robotics startup.

Revolve Surgical's device reduces surgeon fatigue, but bringing new medtech to market requires integrating user needs with a complex web of requirements. Success required navigating the intersection of surgical workflows, medical regulations, hospital procurement, and business viability.

My role: translate strategic market positioning and regulatory constraints into a unified product vision, enabling the team to move confidently toward regulatory approval and public launch.

Outcomes

Delivered a clear product vision that aligned all cross-functional partners, including the CEO & CTO.
Created a design system that built regulatory compliance into visual cues, ensuring safe device operation.
Developed scalable information architecture enabling multi-device deployment across complex OR environments.
Positioned the company for a confident public launch, key investor update, and industry trade show exhibitions.

Thanks for checking out my stories.

Let's do excellent work together.