✨New: Ongoing Advisory✨

Helping Design Thrive As Startups Scale

I Partner With Design Leaders and Founders To Make Design Shine, Teams Flourish, and Leaders Grow.

Helping Design Thrive
As Startups Scale

I Partner With Design Leaders and Founders To Make Design Shine, Teams Flourish, and Leaders Grow.

I believe thoughtfully designed products are better for everyone. For the customers who use them, the teams who craft them, and the world they shape around us.

I know. Those are some big words. But I also deeply believe them! Hi, I’m Tom. I’ve spent the last twenty years in product design and leadership, including the last five as Director of Product Design at Monzo. After managing over 100 individuals and scaling multiple design teams from 10 → 60+, for companies like BuzzFeed in New York and Babylon Health in London, I’ve seen first-hand how the right leadership makes all the difference. It raises the quality bar, helps teams thrive, and turns good products into ones that truly matter.

Right now is one of the most exciting times in history to be building. AI is changing what’s possible, almost daily. But if you’re leading through that, you’ll know how tough it can feel too: so many priorities, constant pressure to deliver, and the risks that creep in as teams grow faster than the systems around them.

I aim to be the partner you rely on when things feel complex or high-stakes. Whether as a fractional leader or long-term advisor, I’ll support you directly and help keep quality high, your team thriving, and your product moving in the right direction.

Where I Can Help

Where I Can Help

Where I Can Help

I usually find my biggest impact comes in four areas:

1

Team Growth

Grow the Right Team, Not Just a Bigger One

Hiring and shaping a team is tough. Whether you’re making your first design hire or growing from a handful to many, it’s not always clear what ‘great’ looks like for your stage, or how to bring in the right people to get there. I help you reduce the risks of those decisions, from the shape of your org to the people you hire, so your team grows with strong foundations, set up to succeed.

1

Team Growth

Grow the Right Team, Not Just a Bigger One

Hiring and shaping a team is tough. Whether you’re making your first design hire or growing from a handful to many, it’s not always clear what ‘great’ looks like for your stage, or how to bring in the right people to get there. I help you reduce the risks of those decisions, from the shape of your org to the people you hire, so your team grows with strong foundations, set up to succeed.

1

Team Growth

Grow the Right Team, Not Just a Bigger One

Hiring and shaping a team is tough. Whether you’re making your first design hire or growing from a handful to many, it’s not always clear what ‘great’ looks like for your stage, or how to bring in the right people to get there. I help you reduce the risks of those decisions, from the shape of your org to the people you hire, so your team grows with strong foundations, set up to succeed.

2

Design Quality & Pace

Enable Consistent, High-Quality Craft at Pace

As teams scale, it takes real effort to keep the bar high. Without it, the customer experience can start to feel uneven, and pride in the work starts to fade. I help you hold that bar, making sure quality, pace, and consistency stay in balance, and what reaches customers feels polished and thoughtfully considered.

2

Design Quality & Pace

Enable Consistent, High-Quality Craft at Pace

As teams scale, it takes real effort to keep the bar high. Without it, the customer experience can start to feel uneven, and pride in the work starts to fade. I help you hold that bar, making sure quality, pace, and consistency stay in balance, and what reaches customers feels polished and thoughtfully considered.

2

Design Quality & Pace

Enable Consistent, High-Quality Craft at Pace

As teams scale, it takes real effort to keep the bar high. Without it, the customer experience can start to feel uneven, and pride in the work starts to fade. I help you hold that bar, making sure quality, pace, and consistency stay in balance, and what reaches customers feels polished and thoughtfully considered.

3

Leadership Development

Help Your People Step Into Bigger Roles

Growing companies thrive when more people are ready to step up. Not just managers, but ICs who can influence direction and shape strategy. I coach and mentor designers to grow into those bigger roles with confidence, giving them a stronger voice in setting company-wide direction.

3

Leadership Development

Help Your People Step Into Bigger Roles

Growing companies thrive when more people are ready to step up. Not just managers, but ICs who can influence direction and shape strategy. I coach and mentor designers to grow into those bigger roles with confidence, giving them a stronger voice in setting company-wide direction.

3

Leadership Development

Help Your People Step Into Bigger Roles

Growing companies thrive when more people are ready to step up. Not just managers, but ICs who can influence direction and shape strategy. I coach and mentor designers to grow into those bigger roles with confidence, giving them a stronger voice in setting company-wide direction.

4

Ways Of Working

Build Rhythms That Keep Teams Aligned & Collaborating Well

The more people you add, the more effort it takes to keep everyone pulling in the same direction. Product, engineering, and design can drift apart, collaboration gets harder, and feedback doesn’t land at the right time or in the right way. I help you strengthen the rhythms of collaboration—inside design and across disciplines—so teams stay aligned, and high-quality work makes it out the door.

4

Ways Of Working

Build Rhythms That Keep Teams Aligned & Collaborating Well

The more people you add, the more effort it takes to keep everyone pulling in the same direction. Product, engineering, and design can drift apart, collaboration gets harder, and feedback doesn’t land at the right time or in the right way. I help you strengthen the rhythms of collaboration—inside design and across disciplines—so teams stay aligned, and high-quality work makes it out the door.

4

Ways Of Working

Build Rhythms That Keep Teams Aligned & Collaborating Well

The more people you add, the more effort it takes to keep everyone pulling in the same direction. Product, engineering, and design can drift apart, collaboration gets harder, and feedback doesn’t land at the right time or in the right way. I help you strengthen the rhythms of collaboration—inside design and across disciplines—so teams stay aligned, and high-quality work makes it out the door.

How We Can Work Together

How We Can Work Together

How We Can Work Together

✨

✨

Ongoing Advisory 🆕

90 minutes/month plus async support

A long-term partner in your corner. I blend coaching, advising and mentorship so the format flexes to what you need most. Each month we’ll spend 90 minutes on your top priorities: unpicking challenges, reviewing work, or shaping strategy together. Between sessions, I’m there for quick feedback or input when things come up. And as I build more context on you and your team, the value compounds month after month.

👉 Book a call to explore whether there’s a fit.

🟡

🟡

Fractional Leadership

Embedded 1 day/week

One day a week, I embed with your company, bringing senior design leadership without the need for a full-time hire. Some weeks that means stepping into leadership discussions. Other weeks it’s driving forward the design priorities that matter most, from supporting product direction and guiding the team to raising design standards and getting hands-on where it matters most.

✋ Fully booked until 2026. Email to explore future opportunities.

If you want support enabling your team to use AI more effectively, I partner with Jonny on Hack Weeks to do exactly that. It’s separate to Intentional Partners, but runs alongside it.

What People Have Said

What People Have Said

What People Have Said

“

Tom has been an instrumental partner to me in scaling Monzo’s Design org. I’ve learned so much and levelled up as a leader throughout our time working together. Among other things he overhauled our hiring process, career framework and design reviews to strengthen product design at Monzo. His leadership working with product teams across the business has influenced and improved both our customer-facing experience and our complex internal tooling. A loved leader and trusted coach to those he manages, his leadership approach consistently brings the best out in others and sets an inclusive tone for our thriving design community.”

— Vuokko Aro, Chief Design Officer at Monzo

“

Tom has been an instrumental partner to me in scaling Monzo’s Design org. I’ve learned so much and levelled up as a leader throughout our time working together. Among other things he overhauled our hiring process, career framework and design reviews to strengthen product design at Monzo. His leadership working with product teams across the business has influenced and improved both our customer-facing experience and our complex internal tooling. A loved leader and trusted coach to those he manages, his leadership approach consistently brings the best out in others and sets an inclusive tone for our thriving design community.”

— Vuokko Aro, Chief Design Officer at Monzo

“

Tom has been an instrumental partner to me in scaling Monzo’s Design org. I’ve learned so much and levelled up as a leader throughout our time working together. Among other things he overhauled our hiring process, career framework and design reviews to strengthen product design at Monzo. His leadership working with product teams across the business has influenced and improved both our customer-facing experience and our complex internal tooling. A loved leader and trusted coach to those he manages, his leadership approach consistently brings the best out in others and sets an inclusive tone for our thriving design community.”

— Vuokko Aro, Chief Design Officer at Monzo

“

Tom’s superpower is using his deep empathy to build relationships quickly and help others around him thrive. During my time working with him, I witnessed first-hand how Tom’s thoughtfulness and craft expertise leveled up the designers around him. But even more than that, the example Tom set for his team and peers — for how to work through challenges together, how to accept critical feedback and action on it, and how to approach complex, messy product and org problems — had a lasting impact on his teams and on those he managed.”

— Cap Watkins, VP of Product Design at Lattice

“

Tom’s superpower is using his deep empathy to build relationships quickly and help others around him thrive. During my time working with him, I witnessed first-hand how Tom’s thoughtfulness and craft expertise leveled up the designers around him. But even more than that, the example Tom set for his team and peers — for how to work through challenges together, how to accept critical feedback and action on it, and how to approach complex, messy product and org problems — had a lasting impact on his teams and on those he managed.”

— Cap Watkins, VP of Product Design at Lattice

“

Tom’s superpower is using his deep empathy to build relationships quickly and help others around him thrive. During my time working with him, I witnessed first-hand how Tom’s thoughtfulness and craft expertise leveled up the designers around him. But even more than that, the example Tom set for his team and peers — for how to work through challenges together, how to accept critical feedback and action on it, and how to approach complex, messy product and org problems — had a lasting impact on his teams and on those he managed.”

— Cap Watkins, VP of Product Design at Lattice

“

Tom is one of those rare leaders who doesn’t just help people succeed—he inspires them to believe in their own potential. A visionary coach, he unlocks possibilities and empowers people to achieve more than they ever thought possible. At Monzo, I saw the profound impact he had—not only on his team but also on his peers, myself included. Tom’s approach is rooted in trust, respect, and an unwavering belief in others' success. He’s positive, thoughtful, and transformative. If you’re lucky enough to work with him, you’ll find his guidance to be a game-changer. I can’t recommend him highly enough.”

— Hayley Camille Morgan, Board Member at FutureMoney

“

Tom is one of those rare leaders who doesn’t just help people succeed—he inspires them to believe in their own potential. A visionary coach, he unlocks possibilities and empowers people to achieve more than they ever thought possible. At Monzo, I saw the profound impact he had—not only on his team but also on his peers, myself included. Tom’s approach is rooted in trust, respect, and an unwavering belief in others' success. He’s positive, thoughtful, and transformative. If you’re lucky enough to work with him, you’ll find his guidance to be a game-changer. I can’t recommend him highly enough.”

— Hayley Camille Morgan, Board Member at FutureMoney

“

Tom is one of those rare leaders who doesn’t just help people succeed—he inspires them to believe in their own potential. A visionary coach, he unlocks possibilities and empowers people to achieve more than they ever thought possible. At Monzo, I saw the profound impact he had—not only on his team but also on his peers, myself included. Tom’s approach is rooted in trust, respect, and an unwavering belief in others' success. He’s positive, thoughtful, and transformative. If you’re lucky enough to work with him, you’ll find his guidance to be a game-changer. I can’t recommend him highly enough.”

— Hayley Camille Morgan, Board Member at FutureMoney

“

Tom had a bigger impact on me during the time he managed me than anyone else in my career. Whether through his soft-spoken questions, clever wit, or honest reflections, he always had my best interests at heart. One of many examples is when before meeting him, I was ashamed of my poor visual design skills. He helped me work through this with support from my peers in gamified workshops. He built me up in a way that I now recognise as masterful leadership. I went on to do the same for my reports when I became a manager and built more great relationships as a result. Tom set my standard for exceptional leadership and now you have the opportunity to discover the same.”

— Liam Carter-Hawkins, Head of Design at Kry Livi

“

Tom had a bigger impact on me during the time he managed me than anyone else in my career. Whether through his soft-spoken questions, clever wit, or honest reflections, he always had my best interests at heart. One of many examples is when before meeting him, I was ashamed of my poor visual design skills. He helped me work through this with support from my peers in gamified workshops. He built me up in a way that I now recognise as masterful leadership. I went on to do the same for my reports when I became a manager and built more great relationships as a result. Tom set my standard for exceptional leadership and now you have the opportunity to discover the same.”

— Liam Carter-Hawkins, Head of Design at Kry Livi

“

Tom had a bigger impact on me during the time he managed me than anyone else in my career. Whether through his soft-spoken questions, clever wit, or honest reflections, he always had my best interests at heart. One of many examples is when before meeting him, I was ashamed of my poor visual design skills. He helped me work through this with support from my peers in gamified workshops. He built me up in a way that I now recognise as masterful leadership. I went on to do the same for my reports when I became a manager and built more great relationships as a result. Tom set my standard for exceptional leadership and now you have the opportunity to discover the same.”

— Liam Carter-Hawkins, Head of Design at Kry Livi

About Me

About Me

About Me

A photo of Tom Harman stood in front of a colourful wall
A photo of Tom Harman stood in front of a colourful wall

Hi, I’m Tom—nice to meet you. I’m based in Walthamstow, London, with my wife and two young boys. Among other things, my world view has been informed by making music, long train rides and nine years lived in New York City.

For me, joy at work comes from two things; empowering people and making things. Intentional Partners emerged as a long-term way for me to orient my life around these core values. Partnering with great leaders, wherever they are. If that sounds like something you’re looking for, I’d love to chat.

Notes Along the Way

Notes Along the Way

Notes Along the Way

I like to share what I’m learning as I go, in the hope it helps other design leaders on their own journeys. You’ll find short, tactical tips on LinkedIn (also collected below), and the occasional longer reflection on Substack.


Sep 26, 2025

Four Lessons on the Future of AI-Enabled Product Teams

Sep 22, 2025

The Hidden Stress of Living on a Visa

Sep 9, 2025

A Tool for Better Promotion Conversations

Aug 28, 2025

When Everything Looks Like A Design Problem

Aug 21, 2025

Try Swapping “Why” for “What” to Improve Design Critique Quality

Aug 18, 2025

Turning Gut Feel Into Real Signal in Hiring

Aug 18, 2025

Turning Gut Feel Into Real Signal in Hiring

Aug 21, 2025

Try Swapping “Why” for “What” to Improve Design Critique Quality

Aug 28, 2025

When Everything Looks Like A Design Problem

Sep 9, 2025

A Tool for Better Promotion Conversations

Sep 22, 2025

The Hidden Stress of Living on a Visa

Sep 26, 2025

Four Lessons on the Future of AI-Enabled Product Teams

Intentional Partners is Tom Harman
A fractional design leader and advisor based in London, working globally
hi@intentional.partners