DESIGN LEADERSHIP
PRODUCT STRATEGY
ADVISORY
I help organizations align product, design, and innovation. Advisory, full-time, or fractional. I engage in the way that works best.
Design Leadership & Team Culture
Building the conditions where designers do their best work. From talent development to creative operations, creating environments that attract, retain, and grow high-performing design teams.
Conceptual Strategy & High-Level Direction
Shaping the strategic vision before pixels are pushed. Helping leadership teams articulate what matters, why it matters, and how design becomes the bridge between business intent and human experience.
Innovation & Emerging Technology
Exploring how AI, new interaction models, and creative technologies reshape what design can achieve. Positioning teams to lead from curiosity, not react from fear.
The Designer's Interior
Cultivating the creative mindset behind the work. From creative confidence to personal practice, helping designers and leaders reconnect with the source of their best thinking.
C-Level Communication & Strategic Sparring
Creating shared language between design and executive leadership. Translating design thinking into boardroom clarity, and strategic intent into design action.
My WORKING PRINCIPLES
Fractional Advisory
1–2 days/weekEmbedded strategic presence for leadership teams navigating product and design complexity. Think of it as a senior design leader on retainer, without the full-time overhead.
Project-Based Leadership
3–6 month engagementsFocused leadership on specific product launches, design system builds, or UX transformation initiatives. Delivered outcomes, not just advice.
Strategic Workshops
Half-day to full-dayHigh-intensity sessions that align leadership teams, define product direction, and establish design strategy frameworks. Designed for immediate, actionable clarity.
Creative Leadership Sessions
On-demand sessionsA thinking partner for design leaders and creative directors navigating team culture, creative direction, or the personal challenge of leading creative work at scale.
Executive Sparring
On-demand sessionsA thinking partner for senior leaders facing complex product, design, or organizational decisions. Independent perspective, strategic rigor, and fluency in C-level language.
Embedded Full-Time Leadership
32–40 hrs/weekWhen you need senior design leadership embedded in the organization. Full-time or 32-hour engagements that operate as a core leadership role, bringing strategic direction and team culture at scale.
€2.6bn+ financial services. Leading design strategy across brand, UX, and product ecosystems in a regulated enterprise context
Enterprise design transformation. Moving multi-functional teams from fragmented execution to integrated design operations
Cross-cultural leadership. 20 years across Europe and South America, fluent in Dutch, English, and Portuguese
C-suite advisory. Translating design thinking into boardroom language, and strategic intent into creative action
Creative leadership at scale. Building team cultures and creative environments that attract, retain, and grow high-performing designers
QUESTIONS, ANSWERED
What is fractional design leadership?
Fractional design leadership means a senior design leader joins your organization for one or two days a week instead of a full-time hire. You get strategic direction, team coaching and an executive sparring partner without the overhead of a permanent Head of Design.
How long does an engagement last?
It depends on the format. Fractional advisory runs one to two days a week and is ongoing. Project-based leadership runs three to six months. Strategic workshops take half a day to a full day. Executive sparring and creative leadership sessions are booked on demand.
Who is design leadership advisory for?
It fits leadership teams that need clearer product, design and innovation direction, and design leaders who want a senior thinking partner. Most of Niek's work is in regulated enterprise contexts such as financial services.
Can you work full-time or embedded in a team?
Yes. When an organization needs senior design leadership inside the team, Niek works embedded at 32 to 40 hours a week and operates as part of the core leadership team.
Which languages do you work in?
Dutch, English and Portuguese. Niek lived in Brazil for 8.5 years and has led teams across Europe and South America.
How do we start?
Send a short message through the contact page describing your challenge and the format you have in mind. Niek replies to explore whether there is a fit before anything is agreed.