Your experience deserves a bigger stage.
Work with ambitious founders and teams who value what you bring. Advise on critical decisions, help shape product direction, or get hands-on building what's next. You choose how you contribute.
- Curated network
- Set your own rate
- Choose your engagements
Work the way you want to work.
From a focused conversation to a hands-on engagement, choose the opportunities that match your expertise, interests, and availability.
Advise
Help founders make better product decisions. Share your perspective, challenge assumptions, and guide teams through critical moments, one session or an ongoing relationship at a time.
One-off sessions · Ongoing advisory
Build
Get hands-on with ambitious teams, as a design leader who can shape the direction and do the work. Design experiences, prototype ideas, lead initiatives, or embed with a startup to bring products to life.
Project-based work · Embedded engagements
Your expertise. Your terms.
Set your rate.
Your experience has value. You decide what to charge, and keep your full rate.
Choose your work.
Take on the challenges that interest you, with the teams you want to work with. One session or a deeper engagement. It's your call.
Make meaningful impact.
Bring your expertise to products at pivotal stages, where your contribution can shape what gets built and how.
Work on problems worth solving.
Founders come to Design Sensei at critical moments in their product journey. Bring the experience to help them make the right moves.
Shape product direction
Turn ambitious ideas into focused product strategies, MVPs, and roadmaps.
Design better experiences
Untangle complex journeys, improve usability, and create experiences people love.
Unlock growth
Identify friction, improve onboarding and conversion, and uncover opportunities to scale.
Lead through complexity
Navigate product tradeoffs, align teams, and establish the foundations for great design.
How it works
- 01
Apply
Tell us about your experience, expertise, and the work you're interested in.
- 02
Join the network
We review every application and invite designers whose experience aligns with the network.
- 03
Create your profile
Showcase your experience, set your rates, and define your availability and preferred engagements.
- 04
Connect and collaborate
Get discovered by founders as booking opens, for advisory sessions or hands-on work.
Clear terms. No surprises.
From the draft advisor agreement for the private beta.
- Your rate. Your earnings.
- You set your rate and keep 100% of it. Design Sensei charges clients a separate platform fee: 25% for one-off advisory sessions and 15% for ongoing engagements.
- Your profile
- You control when your profile is published, what it says, and when you're available.
- Confidentiality
- Client information stays within the engagement. Additional confidentiality agreements can be arranged when needed.
- Cancellations
- Cancel more than 24 hours ahead at no charge. Late cancellations may be subject to a fee under the booking terms.
Questions
Who can become an advisor?
Design Sensei is for experienced designers and design leaders who've built and scaled products and want to put that experience to work. We look for strong product judgment, deep expertise, and the ability to help teams make meaningful progress.
What kind of work can I take on?
You can advise founders through one-off sessions or ongoing relationships, take on hands-on design projects, or embed with a team. You decide which opportunities align with your expertise and availability.
Do I need to be available full-time?
No. Some advisors contribute a few hours a month, while others take on substantial projects or embedded engagements. You choose your availability and the level of commitment that works for you.
How do I get paid?
You set your rates and keep them in full. Design Sensei handles payments and charges clients its platform fee on top, with payouts to your bank account through Stripe. Your earnings and engagement terms are made clear before you commit.
How much time does it take to get started?
Setting up your profile takes approximately 20 minutes. Once your application is approved, you can complete your profile, set your availability, and publish when you're ready.
When will my profile become visible?
Your profile becomes visible when you choose to publish it. You can update your details, availability, or publication status as your circumstances change.
Put your experience to work.
Join a curated network of design leaders helping ambitious teams build what's next.