Transit · Product direction
A clearer morning for the people who keep a city moving.
Reframed route planning for a regional bus network, giving dispatchers confidence during service changes.
- Research
- Strategy
- Interface
Chase Baker · Designer / builder
I make calm tools for busy people.
I’m Chase, an independent product designer in Portland, Oregon. I work with thoughtful teams to turn complicated services into clear, humane experiences.
Selected work · 2022–26
Useful by design
Recent projects with teams making everyday systems easier to understand and use.
Climate · Data storytelling
Turning a year of rainfall into a plan people can act on.
A seasonal dashboard helped community growers decide when to plant, water, and share resources.
- Field study
- Prototype
- System
Education · Content design
Making a technical library feel inviting from the first page.
Created an approachable catalog and search experience for a two-campus engineering school.
- Taxonomy
- Content
- Build
Off the screen
Now / uses / reading
A current, imperfect inventory of what is shaping the work.
MakingA tiny archive of neighborhood repair shops
LearningLetterpress registration and patient gardening
NoticingHow people explain a route with their hands
WritingPlain text, a mechanical pencil, and one index card
PlanningWeekly walks before weekly roadmaps
CarryingA blue canvas tote with too many useful cables
EssaysMaintenance, access, and the dignity of ordinary work
FictionShort stories where weather changes the plot
ReferenceField guides to moss, bridges, and public noticeboards
Notebook · recent entries
A few things I’m thinking about
The interface is not the whole service
Sometimes the most important screen is the person standing beside it.
Leave room for the unexpected
Good systems have a place for the thing nobody predicted.
A better question than “is it intuitive?”
Ask what someone knew, expected, and feared before they arrived.
Have a useful problem?
Let’s make the next step clearer.
I’m available for focused product strategy, design direction, and early-stage team support. Tell me what is stuck, who it affects, and what needs to move.
hello@chasebaker.example