bio picture craig maherbio picture craig maher

About Me:

Based in New Jersey, I define myself as a Lead UX Product Designer—one part detective, one part architect, and one part strategist. I connect the dots between business goals and end-user needs, aligning current challenges with a clear vision of where organizations want to be in both the short and long term. My approach blends strategic foresight with design outcomes: driving value to products and features for quick wins that move the needle, while keeping the big picture in focus and measuring success through UX metrics, KPIs, and business ROI.

Driven by a passion for UX, I thrive in cross-functional teams, partnering with key stakeholders to translate insights and feedback into innovative “blue ocean” solutions—identifying untapped opportunities and creating unique value beyond existing market boundaries. Whether leading design thinking workshops, shaping product strategy, or refining design systems, I bring a problem-solving mindset that creates measurable impact.

To me, great design goes beyond aesthetics—yes, the UI must maximize clarity and be free of errors, but it’s really about functionality, value, and outcomes. Does it work? Does it drive business ROI? Is it usable, useful, and delightful? In this ever-evolving world of technology, my mission is clear: to empower users, elevate products, and demonstrate the transformative power of UX strategy and design in driving business success. ~ Craig

[unex_ce_button id="content_vbu98i2hu" button_text_color="#f2f2f2" button_font="semibold" button_font_size="16px" button_width="auto" button_alignment="left" button_text_spacing="1px" button_bg_color="#006b9e" button_padding="10px 40px 10px 40px" button_border_width="0px" button_border_color="#000000" button_border_radius="80px" button_text_hover_color="#e6e6e6" button_text_spacing_hover="1px" button_bg_hover_color="#024e73" button_border_hover_color="#a6a6a6" button_link="https://craigmaherportfolio.com/bio-resume/" button_link_type="url" button_link_target="_self" has_container="1" in_column=""]Read my full Bio & Résumé[/ce_button]

UX / Product Design:

Contributing left- or right-brain processes, I can be involved in UX projects by either 1) helping shape products from inception to completion or 2) just taking prior collected research from interviews / quantitative data, completive feature analysis, personas and user flows. From there, I’m crafting a problem statement and outputting prioritized solutions into clickable interactive wireframe prototypes for collaboration with developers and user testing. Whatever the process, it is this culling through materials to identify and apply core key features that center around business / tech requirements, user needs and goals that I offer.

[unex_ce_button id="content_hzxf8sq22" button_text_color="#f2f2f2" button_font="semibold" button_font_size="16px" button_width="auto" button_alignment="left" button_text_spacing="1px" button_bg_color="#006b9e" button_padding="10px 40px 10px 40px" button_border_width="0px" button_border_color="#000000" button_border_radius="80px" button_text_hover_color="#e6e6e6" button_text_spacing_hover="1px" button_bg_hover_color="#024e73" button_border_hover_color="#808080" button_link="https://craigmaherportfolio.com/ux/" button_link_type="url" button_link_target="_self" has_container="1" in_column=""]View UX & Product Designs[/ce_button]

Visual Design:

Visual design sits between UX / User Experience and Branding. In today’s digital world, I believe not only do products need to be able to be usable and function well, but they need to stimulate the consumers' and users' eyes. By adhering to both product users and brands, I create visual guidelines that communicate design systems that implement typography, mood boards, imagery, white space, color, graphics, iconography and layout for any device or environment. Being able to structure these elements with pixel-perfect perfection is not only a “must have,” but a passion of mine. Seeing product come to final fruition and establishing that sense of “delight” evokes me with joy.

[unex_ce_button id="content_00abx91jh" button_text_color="#f2f2f2" button_font="semibold" button_font_size="16px" button_width="auto" button_alignment="left" button_text_spacing="1px" button_bg_color="#006b9e" button_padding="10px 40px 10px 40px" button_border_width="0px" button_border_color="#000000" button_border_radius="80px" button_text_hover_color="#e6e6e6" button_text_spacing_hover="1px" button_bg_hover_color="#024e73" button_border_hover_color="#a6a6a6" button_link="https://craigmaherportfolio.com/visual-design/" button_link_type="url" button_link_target="_self" has_container="1" in_column=""]View my Visual Designs[/ce_button]

Branding:

I think branding plays an important role in the development of products. It's more than just a logo. It's about a promise and communicating and telling a story. It's about how does the world see, hear, smell and feel your brand? What is at the core essence of "who" you really are, both visually and emotionally? Much like UX, understanding your target audience is vital. To create a successful brand, I believe one needs to fully grasp both the goals of the organization and see the opportunities in omnichannel. Also, knowing what differentiates you from the competition and the value proposition you're offering. I like deep-diving into companies' products to help strategize and position brands. I love cultivating a unique "visual voice" for clients that grows organically over time.

[unex_ce_button id="content_vkj2wftss" button_text_color="#f2f2f2" button_font="semibold" button_font_size="16px" button_width="auto" button_alignment="left" button_text_spacing="1px" button_bg_color="#006b9e" button_padding="10px 40px 10px 40px" button_border_width="0px" button_border_color="#000000" button_border_radius="80px" button_text_hover_color="#e6e6e6" button_text_spacing_hover="1px" button_bg_hover_color="#024e73" button_border_hover_color="#808080" button_link="https://craigmaherportfolio.com/branding/" button_link_type="url" button_link_target="_self" has_container="1" in_column=""]View my Branding Projects[/ce_button]