Home - The Work of Jonathan Brazeau

Jonathan Brazeau

Full • Stack • Designer

I’m a strong product thinker and design strategist. My favorite words are ‘context’ and also "let's get it done".

With 14 years of experience across user research, usability testing, design systems, and UI design, I’ve been the first product design hire at three companies.

I build design foundations. I’m a firm believer in Deiter Rams’ 10 Principles for Good Design, Jobs to be Done, and the mysterious design sprint process.

Work

Chownow →

Serving up Online Ordering and Delivery

Houdini →

A GraphQL Framework of the Future

DataScience Inc. →

Launching Models in the Cloud

Zuub →

Automated Insurance Verification

NeoGov →

Building a Design System For Everyone

Writings

Revisiting Dieter Rams' 1976 Speech

For probably 80% of the US population 1976 was a time so long ago now that it feels like a forgotten realm (D&D joke).

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On Remote Work

Here are a few insights into my experience working remotely for a few years. I'm trying to add something new to the narrative besides the usual talking points.

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What Dungeons & Dragons Taught Me About Teamwork

There I was lying facedown in a swamp. My magic fire dagger 🔥 🗡️ ( named Azrael) was within reach...

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8 Traits of a Good Designer

What makes a good designer? With the rise of ‘flat’ organizations and designers being able to make a career through individual contributor roles, let's define what makes a good designer IC.

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Are You the Hero?

You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain.

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About

Hello! Nice to meet you. A couple things about me. I was born and raised in Southern California. My roots are Mexican and French. I have a passion for TTRPGs, guitars, and vintage cars. I'm based in the Los Angeles area.

Email Me

I’m searching for spiritual warriors. I always fight for the underdog. Tell me you like RoundTable Pizza and you’ll be my best friend.

Over the years I’ve worked in data, health-tech, online food delivery, SaaS and energy. From early-stage startups, to publicy held tech companies.

I design for utility first. Utility is the state of being useful. Useful things are understandable, their purpose is clear in the moment you use them. Good design is clear. It gives clarity of purpose: what actions are possible, what is happening, what is about to happen.

Lastly, I used to be a musician. I still am but I used to too…

Skills

User Interface Design

My process is anchored in Figma for prototyping, collaboration, and handoff, ensuring a seamless transition from concept to code. I believe motion is a critical component of modern UI. I utilize After Effects and Linearity Move to design and communicate pivotal micro-interactions and transitions that help clarify the user experience. At DataScience.com, I was the architect of complex data visualization tools that we built natively in React. For Houdini, I created many stylized animations used on the homepage and across their online presence.

Design Systems

My goal is to create scalable, documented systems that serve as the single source of truth for entire organizations. At NEOGOV, I successfully led the design team in developing a robust and 100% accessible design system for their large-scale enterprise applications. My systems-thinking approach ensures design and our eternal 😏 engineering partners can build higher-quality products, faster, with fewer inconsistencies and reduced design debt.

UX Research

At ChowNow, I built the UX research function from the ground up, identifying key user tasks and leading studies that directly informed a redesign, resulting in a measurable increase in conversion rates. With 15 years of experience, I aim to uncover the foundational insights that will help define product strategy. I establish and lead research practices refined by yers of actual real world testing. Most of the time I will employ tools like RITE to quickly refine concepts, alongside usability testing, contextual inquiry, and stakeholder interviews.

Illustration

With many years under my belt using Procreate and Photoshop, I possess strong foundational illustration skills that enhance my product design work. This expertise allows me to create custom icons, illustrative elements, and compelling visual assets. At Zuub, I've used illustration to add a layer of personality that you can't get with off-the-shelf icons and assets.

AI Tools

I am fluent in using Claude, Agents and Figma Make for rapid AI-assisted prototyping and concept development. I like to integrate DeepSeek, ChatGPT, and Claude/Fable for research synthesis, copywriting assistance, and building a UX voice. Image generation tools (Midjourney, NanoBanana, ,Seeddream, Flux) are excellent for creating mood boards, conceptual imagery, and stimulating creative ideation sessions.