In the age of AI, design is more important than ever. Building brands, websites, and products for customers requires taste and emotions to create experiences that enable people to accomplish tasks in work and play.
Oi, I'm Kermit Auel, a seasoned designer, with skills and experience building business and solving problems for people. From logos, brand, websites to products, code, and beyond.
CaseMark
An agentic workflow where specialized agents process entire document sets and produce structured insights.
CaseMark
A transcription experience for legal content from raw audio/video to editable legal-accurate documents.
CaseMark
A redesigned summary creation flow that progressively reveals options without overwhelming users.
CD Baby
A redesigned onboarding experience focused on guiding new users to their first release.
I am an expert at using AI in the design process for rapid product prototyping, going beyond Figma mockups to build working product experiences in hours instead of weeks.
I start by getting clear on the problem, the user, and the business goal. Good design should reduce friction, make choices obvious, and support the rest of the team. I move between structured systems thinking and visual intuition.
I collect enough context to move fast without guessing. That usually means talking with PM, engineering, and people closest to the user; reviewing data, support tickets, and past work; and mapping the problem and spotting gaps. The goal is shared understanding. Everyone should know the problem, constraints, and what success looks like.
After gathering context, I write a simple problem statement and outline the core scenarios. I define principles or requirements that should guide the solution. This keeps the team aligned when we start exploring.
I sketch multiple directions quickly. Some are rough flows, some are structural ideas. The point is to open up options and expose assumptions, not polish. I share early to build alignment and avoid surprises later.
I map user flows to keep each step focused, minimize unnecessary choices, and reveal complexity only when needed. From there I define layouts, hierarchy, and interaction patterns, then move into high-fidelity screens that stay consistent with the system while giving the right visual weight to what matters most.
Once we commit to a direction, I create higher-fidelity prototypes to test flow, clarity, and hierarchy. I stay consistent with the design system but flexible enough to explore. This is where structure and intuition work together.
I get feedback from the team and users as soon as the prototype is usable. I look for friction, confusion, and mismatches between intent and behavior. I iterate fast and stay close to engineering so solutions stay feasible.
Handoff isn't a one-time drop. I provide clear specs, edge cases, and rationale so decisions are transparent. I stay available during build and adjust when constraints shift.
After launch, I check how the design performs. I review metrics, support signals, and unexpected behavior. Design is only "done" when it works in the real world. What I learn feeds the next iteration or the design system.
I make my work visible, communicate early, and remove ambiguity. I ask direct questions, surface risks, and tie decisions back to goals. I see my role as helping the team move with clarity and confidence.
