Leading UX Strategy for Product Innovation
Hello, I’m Chris Karls. A UX leader focused on innovation, strategy, and human-centered design.
Delivering results
With over 20 years of UX and product design leadership, I specialize in translating complex challenges into intuitive, scalable solutions. I partner closely with executives, stakeholders, and end users to align product strategy with real-world needs. By combining deep UX expertise with technical fluency, I bridge the gap between user experience and business goals—delivering design solutions that drive both customer satisfaction and measurable outcomes.
EXPLORE CASE STUDIES BELOW ▾
Experience matters
The mission to transform TN Marketing’s streaming platform into a modern, user-centric platform designed to drive growth through improved retention and acquisition. This meant developing a future-forward UX strategy grounded in personalization—leveraging member behavior, video interactions, and instructional engagement to deliver tailored content experiences.
Reimagined Streaming Platform with Personalization
Creating a better CMS
A fresh look on an entirely new level. At Insite Software, I led the redesign of their CMS experience, integrating advanced technologies like React and Redux. This empowered customers and partners to seamlessly manage and expand our B2B e-commerce storefronts, all while minimizing front-end disruptions during software upgrades.
Driving product alignment
At Insite Software, I spearheaded the development of the Mobius Design System, creating a shared library of reusable components and guidelines. This initiative ensured platform consistency and significantly boosted efficiency, enabling faster product development.
Boveda’s revolutionary humidity management system and mobile app
A mobile app designed to safeguard your cigars from anywhere in the world—no need to lift the lid of your humidor. Seamlessly integrated with the Boveda digital hygrometer sensor, it monitors your humidor and sends real-time humidity, temperature, and impact alerts straight to your mobile device.
Unprecedented engagement
At Jingit, I led the UX and creative department in designing and developing an omni-channel payment and engagement platform. This platform enabled consumer engagements through product and retail check-ins, as well as real-time token-based online payments, achieving an impressive 94% engagement completion rate.
I developed FishMobi, an app designed to help anglers journal their fishing adventures, document key hotspots, and capture outdoor memories. The app was featured on Minnesota Bound, a television series that showcases the great outdoors and recreational activities in Minnesota.
The essential gear for every angler's tackle box
Here what clients and colleagues are saying
Don’t take my word for it
“Chris is one of the most talented professionals I’ve ever had the privilege to work with. As a UX expert, he brings a rare blend of strategic thinking, user empathy, and creative innovation to every project. He doesn’t just solve problems—he transforms them into opportunities to elevate the entire experience. What sets Chris apart is his ability to take even the smallest challenge and approach it with a holistic, big-picture mindset. He listens deeply, considers every angle, and then designs solutions that go above and beyond what was asked—solutions that not only address the issue but also make the product, team, and business stronger.”
Ania Nadybska
SVP Content, Engagement, Talent Relations
“Chris is the best consumer experience designer I've ever worked with on multiple startup companies that I've built over the years. His intuitive ability to create "Apple quality" design with amazing speed is awesome. He truly understands your business and what you're trying to communicate and delivers the mix of infographics, design styles, flows and navigation to make sure that every stakeholders interface to your brand, story, website, presentations or application is seamless, inspiring and high impact. If you get a chance to work with Chris - do it.”
Doug Berg
Tech Entrepreneur and Investor
“I've had the pleasure of working with Chris Karls on two separate occasions. First, at LogicBay where he was a great designer on staff and most recently as the Creative Director at Jingit. What can I say about Chris? A lot. He makes every day incredibly fun! He is a get-it-done guy. He is an awesome coworker, leader and developer of his staff. He has strong strategic vision and knows when to push and when to back off and wait for the next opportunity. It's rare to find this combination of character, creative talent and business acumen in one person.”
Shannon Davis
Managing Director North America, Resource Management & People Planning at VMLY&R
Make your next project unforgettable
Whether you’re thinking about an enterprise app, mobile app, website, or just need product design guidance, let’s collaborate on how we can bring it to life together.