My design philosophy

My approach to design didn’t arrive all at once—it evolved through late-night prototypes, failed assumptions, surprising user insights, and projects that pushed me to think bigger than screens and interactions. Over the years, I started noticing patterns in how I solved problems and what I valued most in the craft.

After reflecting on those experiences, I distilled them into 4 core tenets. They’re not meant to be final or exhaustive; like any good design system, they’ll continue to grow and adapt. But right now, these principles capture how I think, how I create, and how I show up as a designer.

Here are the ideas that guide my work—and the foundation I build from every day.

Design is Purposeful

Design exists to solve problems. Everything else is art. The distinction matters.

Art is expressive, emotional, and subjective—it isn’t tied to outcomes or constraints.
Design is grounded in clarity, evidence, and measurable impact. It works within constraints, guided by user needs and validated through iteration.

Both rely on creativity, but for different reasons:
Art uses creativity to express ideas.
Design uses creativity to create purpose-driven solutions.

Design thrives on shared voices

I believe great design happens when every voice has space and every perspective is valued.

Inclusion ensures we’re not designing from a single lens but building with empathy, context, and respect for diverse needs. Whether I’m working with engineers, PMs, researchers, or stakeholders, I focus on creating an environment where ideas can be shared openly and decisions are made transparently.

When teams feel heard and aligned, the product becomes stronger—and so does the trust behind it.

Effective design isn’t just about solving today’s problems—it’s about anticipating tomorrow’s.

Scalable design means thinking in patterns, planning for edge cases, and building frameworks that empower teams to move faster, not reinvent the wheel. It allows features to evolve without breaking coherence and keeps the user experience consistent as products expand.

My approach focuses on creating flexible, modular solutions that adapt to new requirements while maintaining clarity and usability.

Design Should Scale, Not Stall

Evidence Over Assumptions

Great design is built on truth, not guesswork. I believe in grounding decisions in real user behavior, measurable data, and validated insights.

Assumptions can spark ideas, but evidence shapes direction, reduces risk, and aligns teams around what actually matters. My approach combines qualitative insight with quantitative signals to guide design with confidence.

When evidence leads the way, solutions become more intentional, outcomes more predictable, and products aligned with user needs.

Recommendations

Ritesh Kumari

Principal Product Manager OCI Console

I had the pleasure of working with Sameer Khan while he served as Principal UX Designer on Oracle Identity Cloud Services (IDCS), Oracle’s enterprise IDaaS platform. He led the design of user-centric, secure workflows across critical identity features such as SSO, MFA, access governance, and user lifecycle management. Sameer took a thoughtful, research-driven approach to improving workflows that are foundational to modern identity platforms, including adaptive MFA policies, delegated administration, and Just-In-Time (JIT) provisioning.

His work directly enhanced product usability and adoption, reducing onboarding friction and increasing task completion rates. Sameer Khan has an ability to balance technical complexity with intuitive design, making him an invaluable asset to any product team. I highly recommend him for any leadership UX role—particularly in enterprise or security-focused environments.

Jess Alspaugh

Director of Product Management and Design for OCI Console

I had the pleasure of working with Sameer on several features, and I was consistently impressed by his ability to quickly grasp product details and translate them into thoughtful designs. We went through multiple iterations on a couple of complex problems, and when prompted, Sammer always came back with a range of strong options - along with clear recommendations on which direction would serve users best.

He is easy to communicate with, reliable in his commitments, and delivers on time. I especially appreciate his focus on simplifying designs, which makes them not only more elegant but also more usable in practice. Sammer’s combination of product sense, design craft, and collaboration skills make him a strong partner on any project.

Basia Chudak

UX Design and Release, Oralce

I had the pleasure of working closely with Sameer over the past three and a half years, in OCI Cloud. I can confidently say he is one of the most talented and reliable UX designers I’ve worked with.

What sets Sameer apart is his exceptional ability to take ambiguous, often loosely defined problems and transform them into clear, intuitive design solutions. Sameer consistently demonstrated a sharp problem-solving mindset—breaking down complex challenges, identifying user needs, and creating thoughtful wireframes that served as the foundation for polished, effective prototypes.

Collaboration. Sameer brought stakeholders into the design process with ease, listening carefully and iterating quickly based on feedback. His soft skills—clear communication, empathy, and a calm, professional demeanor—made him a trusted partner in cross-functional teams.

His work was always of high quality, and his approach always user-centered. I would highly recommend Sameer to any team looking for a skilled, thoughtful, and collaborative designer.

Larissa Starikova

Senior Manager, User Experience. Oracle: AI & Cloud

I had the pleasure of working with Sameer at Oracle on the Central User Experience team, which supported a wide range of products across the company.

Sameer is a seasoned UX designer with experience in complex technical applications and platforms, including mobile apps and AI products. He’s highly efficient and capable of managing multiple projects simultaneously.

He’s a thoughtful, process-oriented, and hard-working designer who can successfully lead design projects from start to finish and conduct user research effectively. Thanks to his previous experience as a manager, Sameer also supported our UX organization with administrative and project management tasks, helping ensure everything ran smoothly and efficiently. He led numerous design reviews with customers to maintain consistency and deliver the best possible user experience.

Sameer is always eager to learn and grow professionally. Most recently, he completed a UX-related AI course at Stanford University. He’s a great teammate and a pleasure to work with!

Recommendations

Sheeba Dhanasingh

Senior Manager, User Experience. OCI Oracle

I ’ve had the pleasure of working with Sameer, and he is an outstanding designer and product thinker. He has a deep understanding of core UX principles and knows how to apply them in ways that create simple, elegant, and highly usable experiences.

One of his most impactful contributions was leading the migration of Identity Services in Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) to the Redwood Design System. This was a strategic shift toward a more modern, cohesive, and user-centered experience. Sameer drove a comprehensive rework of the Information Architecture (IA), streamlining complex identity and access management tasks, such as user provisioning, policies, federation, and authentication into a clearer, more intuitive structure.

He also played a key role in the newly redesigned Oracle Mobile Authenticator, built using the Redwood Design System. The result is a modern, intuitive, and secure experience for users managing multi-factor authentication (MFA) across Oracle Cloud services. The redesign introduced a cleaner visual hierarchy, streamlined user flows, and accessible components that significantly enhance usability across both iOS and Android platforms.

He’s also a fantastic collaborator, thoughtful with stakeholders, open to feedback, and able to bring cross-functional teams together around a shared vision. His mix of design excellence, product thinking, and collaboration makes him a real asset to any team.

I’d highly recommend Sameer to any organization looking for a talented UX leader who can elevate both the product and the team.

Manoj Japher

Technical Project Manager, OCI Oracle

I worked with Sameer on a variety of projects, he was the lead designer and I was the TPM. Sameer constantly amazed me with keen eye for detail and how much he cared about the User Experience.

His presentation skills when sharing with the stakeholders was excellent, he was patient and took time to listen to the feedback and incorporate without giving up quality. He is humble and very approachable.

He is an excellent product thinker and the Product Managers loved him. His wireframes helped explain the vision so much better and he always liked to get involved at the Strategy level,

His designs were clean and always well received. He has presented to very Senior Leadership at the company and has always received good feedback.
He made my life easy as he could also handle stakeholders very well and he is very reliable.

Sameer would be an asset to any team he joins. He has ton of experience and can be a great mentor to younger designers. His track record proves he is someone a team or group can rely upon with the least oversight needed. I am happy to recommend him.