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Ard Blok
I'm a designer who loves to code. I enjoy working on foundational problems that shape how individuals and teams work together. I'm a systems thinker who thrives in zero-to-one work, turning rough ideas into scalable solutions. I feel most at home at the intersection of design, product, research and engineering. Having a broad understanding across these disciplines allows me to connect the dots and see the bigger picture.
I care about the details—whether it's visual design, interaction design, or code—but I'm also a big believer in pragmatism and know that compromise is part of the process. Especially in the fragile early stages of new projects.
At the moment I'm particulary interested in AI. Working on computer vision and personalisation in the past, seeing the evolution from early machine learning to modern LLMs has been fascinating. I'm currently a Staff Product Designer at Miro in Amsterdam.
Experience
I've been fortunate to work on a wide range of projects, from refining well-established global products used by millions to starting new initiatives from scratch, taking them from zero to one and beyond.
Here are some of my favorite projects I've worked on.
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AI Experience · Staff Product Designer
My current work involves designing an AI strategy and experience that enables radical shifts in how product teams innovate and iterate with AI. This involves exploring areas like iteration, chat, tone of voice, agent orchestration, enterprise readiness, and more.
Docs · Staff Product Designer
Miro Docs was a big step in expanding Miro beyond the whiteboard, giving teams new ways to create and collaborate. I helped shape the vision and build the Docs team, working through key milestones that led to a successful GA launch. Along the way, I worked closely with other core teams to ensure Docs fit seamlessly into the larger Miro ecosystem.
A big focus was making Docs feel like a natural part of the canvas, allowing users to move easily between board and doc views and making it easy to convert board content into structured documents. I designed key features like the block-based text editor, real-time collaboration tools, and AI-powered document creation. I also collaborated with Sales and go-to-market teams to support adoption and was involved in several research projects to better understand user needs. Throughout the process, I contributed to accessibility improvements and helped shape the long-term vision for Docs as an essential part of Miro's future.
Multi-year strategy · Staff Product Designer
During the pandemic, Miro became the go-to digital whiteboard for remote teams. To build on this momentum, we launched a project to define Miro's 3-year vision, and I led the design efforts alongside product leadership. We explored ways to expand beyond the whiteboard, introducing new formats like documents, data tables, and diagrams, as well as innovative features to help teams organize and track their work.
A key part of this vision was shaping Miro into an AI-powered innovation workplace, focusing on smarter workflows and deeper team collaboration. This project not only defined the product's evolution but also inspired the company and set a clear direction for Miro's future.
Forbes wrote an article about our shift in strategy.
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Flights · Senior UX Designer
I was part of a small team responsible for launching Booking's new Flights product across both web and app platforms. Our primary focus was achieving product-market fit and later integrating Flights into Booking's main platform, which serves millions of users daily.
Setting up a new data science centre · Senior UX Designer
In 2017, I relocated to Tel Aviv, Israel to help establish a new machine learning center for Booking.com. My role was to establish the design practice there and work with several teams on computer vision and personalisation.
As the team grew to over 45 people and additional designers joined, I took on a larger role in shaping design processes, running regular design critiques, and supporting career development for the growing design team.
Onboarding Lead
Booking.com went through an exciting time with rapid growth. I helped to build processes and training curriculums to scale our design team to over 200 designers.
As an Onboarding lead, I was the first manager for new designers and engineers and guided people through their first three months at the company. During this critical time, I tried to establish a culture of feedback and optimism, with a clear definition of success and a support system to help them achieve it.