CASE STUDY . PRODUCT DESIGN
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Unsigned
Hired for the work.
Not the name.
A hiring platform for Amsterdam’s creatives that hides who you are until an employer has already chosen your work, and measures what happens when they find out.
PROJECT FACTS
ROLE
Solo product designer (strategy, service design, UX/UI, brand identity), shaped with input from ~20 creatives
TYPE
Self-initiated concept, taken to a working prototype
TIMELINE
3 months and counting
SCOPE
Product requirements, end-to-end service flow, brand identity, 5 core screens, responsive prototype
TOOLS
Figma (prototyping), Claude Code (working prototype), Framer
PLATFORM
Responsive web, desktop and mobile
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02 THE PROBLEM
Creative hiring runs on who you know, not what you make.
In creative work, opportunities move through personal networks. That quietly filters out strong people who don’t have one: internationals, career changers, and talented creatives who are less comfortable marketing themselves. Even when the work gets seen, decisions get shaped by names, faces, accents, age or visa status before anyone looks closely at the work itself.
Existing platforms don’t solve this. Portfolio sites put the person front and centre. Job boards rank on CVs and connections. Diversity certifications let companies show inclusion without proving it in how they actually hire.
The need is real.
I spoke with around 20 creatives working in the Netherlands before designing anything: mostly internationals, plus long-time residents and Dutch nationals who have a Dutch passport but not the right network.
~73%
struggled with limited reach in the Netherlands, or felt less favoured because of it
64%+
are in favour of fully blind selection
From conversations with ~20 creatives in the Netherlands.
How might we let employers judge creatives on their work first, and make bias visible when it still happens?
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03 WHY THIS MATTERS TO ME
As an international designer in Amsterdam, I’ve seen strong portfolios lose out to stronger networks, mine included. I was once dropped from a role when the company realised they would need to sponsor my visa, even though they were already a registered sponsor. The work had been good enough. The person, on paper, wasn’t convenient.
Unsigned started from a simple idea: what if the work could introduce you before your name does?
“I’ve been here for years, but I was in corporate roles before, and I was cut. I have a Dutch passport, and I do get support, but I need to work again and I don’t have the right network for freelancing.”
UI designer, Amsterdam
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04 WHO IT’S FOR
Three people meet in one system, and each needs something different from it.
The creative
WHO
Designers, photographers, illustrators, painters based in Amsterdam
NEEDS
To be judged on the work; fair access to freelance, part-time and full-time roles
PAIN TODAY
Overlooked without a network; often no feedback after rejection
The employer
WHO
Anyone hiring creative talent, from startups to global brands
NEEDS
Strong, relevant candidates fast, and a credible way to show inclusive hiring
PAIN TODAY
Shortlists shaped by referrals; diversity claims hard to back up
The expert reviewer
WHO
Working professionals in each creative field, on a rotating panel
NEEDS
A clear, quick way to judge quality without being swayed by identity
PAIN TODAY
Portfolios full of names, faces and context that bias the first look
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05 DESIGN PRINCIPLES
Four rules shaped every screen.
01
Work first, person second.
Nothing that reveals identity appears until the employer has ranked their choices. Names, faces, age, gender and nationality are hidden by design, not by setting.
02
The platform stays quiet.
Unsigned’s own interface is calm and neutral so each creative’s style is the loudest thing on the page.
03
Fair by default.
Free to apply, no fee until the first paycheck, and every rejection after the reveal comes with written feedback.
04
AI assists, humans decide.
AI drafts shortlists and shows its reasoning; an expert in the field makes every cut.
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06 THE SOLUTION
Rank first, reveal second.
Unsigned is a curated network where employers choose on the work alone, and identity is revealed only after they’ve committed to a ranking.
The reveal is the core idea. It does more than hide identity: it measures bias. If an employer ranks someone #1 on their work, then drops them once they see who it is, that pattern becomes data. Over time, that data powers an inclusion badge and annual accreditation employers earn through how they actually hire, not by buying a certificate.
CREATIVE LANE
01 Apply for free
02 Expert review
03 Build anonymous profile
EMPLOYER LANE
01 Post a brief
02 AI suggests 10
03 Expert picks 5
04 Pick & rank 3
05 REVEAL
06 Interview or paid assignment
07 Hire + written feedback
The creative journey
01
Apply for free with 3 to 8 pieces of work. Photo metadata is stripped automatically.
02
A rotating expert panel reviews the work only and sends written feedback.
03
Approved creatives build an anonymous profile in their own style.
The employer journey
01
Post a brief and state the visa sponsorship position up front.
02
AI suggests 10 matches and explains why. An expert cuts them to 5.
03
The employer picks 3 on the work alone and ranks them.
04
Identities are revealed. The platform records whether the #1 stays #1.
05
Interview and paid trial, or a paid assignment where the employer commits to hiring the winner.
06
Hire, and give every rejected candidate written feedback with a reason.
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07 KEY SCREENS
Five screens cover the creative side end to end.
01
Applying without a name
A three-step application asks for the work, a short statement and skills. Name and email sit on a separate, clearly private step. Uploaded images are redrawn in the browser so hidden data like location and camera owner never leaves the device.
02
Review by peers, not profiles
Experts see the work and nothing else. They can’t approve or decline until they’ve scored craft and professionalism, completed an identity-leak check, and written feedback the creative will read.
03
Feedback, whatever the answer
Creatives track their application and always get the panel’s written feedback, approved or not.
04
A profile that’s yours, without being about you
The profile builder lets creatives choose a layout, typeface and palette, order their work, and decide which details employers see. A live preview shows exactly what an employer will see. The things that would identify them are locked away until after the reveal.
What the employer sees
Same platform. Every profile its own.
The same platform frame, four completely different profiles. Each creative’s style leads; the Unsigned chrome stays slim and states the rule: identity hidden until you rank your top 3.
On mobile
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08 VISUAL IDENTITY
The brand is an empty signature line: the space where a name would go, left blank on purpose.
× Unsigned ___
WORDMARK
“Unsigned” in Instrument Serif, framed by a small × and a blank signature line, the way you’d sign the bottom of a painting. The × ____ motif repeats through the product: on the landing page (“your name, later”) and at the foot of every profile.
TYPE
Instrument Serif for display, Geist for interface text, Geist Mono for labels and numbers. Creatives are identified by a mono number, like № 0427.
TEXTURE
a fine paper grain and soft watercolour-like colour fields, so the product feels like an art space, not a job board.
RESTRAINT
the platform’s own UI stays neutral so creatives’ profiles carry the colour.
Paper #F4F1EA
Background
Ink #1A1630
Text, primary buttons
Deep violet #6A4BC4
Accent, links, emphasis
Violet #9E74CE
Washes and gradients
Lilac #B89FE6
Washes and gradients
Sky #7FE0FF
Washes and gradients
Pale sky #C3F3FF
Washes and gradients
Aa
Geist
GEIST MONO · № 0427
Accessibility decision — the light blues and lilac never carry text or buttons; they’re too light on paper. Anything people read or click uses deep violet or ink.
Profile system — creatives choose from 3 layouts (grid, editorial, stack), 3 typefaces (grotesk, serif, mono) and 6 curated palettes: enough freedom to feel personal, enough constraint to keep every profile looking premium.
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09 BUSINESS MODEL AND THE MOVEMENT
Employers pay per hire; creatives never pay before they earn.
WHO PAYS
WHAT
WHEN
Creative
Small one-time fee (about €25–50)
Taken from the first paycheck through Unsigned
Employer, freelance or part-time
10–15% booking fee
Per booking
Employer, full-time
10–15% of first-year salary
Per placement, below typical recruiter fees of 15–25%
Employer, accreditation
Annual inclusion accreditation
Later
Companies already work hard to show they’re sustainable. Unsigned gives them a way to prove they’re inclusive.
The accreditation is earned through anonymous hiring and measured by the reveal. The long-term goal is for the city of Amsterdam to recognise it.
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10 DESIGNING WITHIN REAL CONSTRAINTS
A platform that handles identity and uses AI in hiring has to be designed around the law from day one.
GDPR
Demographic data is voluntary, stored apart from profiles, and only ever shown to employers in aggregate.
EU AI Act
AI used in hiring is classed as high-risk, so the AI only assists. It explains its reasoning, and a human expert makes every decision.
Visa sponsorship
Employers declare their sponsorship position before seeing anyone. A planned check against the IND’s public register of recognised sponsors flags companies that can sponsor but refuse.
Dutch freelance law (Wet DBA)
Contracts are handled on the platform to meet rules against false self-employment.
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11 OUTCOME AND WHAT’S NEXT
From a personal frustration to a working product in three months, and counting.
Product requirements
29 prioritised requirements across creatives, employers, matching, anonymity, bias data, payments and accreditation
Service design
End-to-end flows for creatives, employers and expert reviewers
Brand identity
Name, wordmark, signature-line motif, palette, type system, profile theming system
Working prototype
5 responsive screens: landing, application, expert review, profile builder, employer view
See the prototype.
The working prototype isn’t public yet, but I’m happy to walk you through it. I’d especially like to hear from the City of Amsterdam, creative hubs and partners interested in helping Unsigned grow.
Let’s talk
Next steps
01
Turn early interest into sign-ups: share the prototype with the creatives who backed blind selection and measure how many apply.
02
Usability-test the profile builder: do creatives feel it’s theirs?
03
Design the employer side: briefs, ranking, the reveal moment and the feedback flow.
04
Partner with the municipality and a creative hub to pilot the accreditation.
Reflection
Anonymity is a design constraint that sharpens everything. With no names or faces to lean on, the work has to carry the hierarchy, and every profile decision became a question of what helps someone judge the work.
The most interesting moment is the one I haven’t designed yet. The reveal, where an employer sees who they chose, is where bias shows up. Designing it with care, without shaming and without hiding the data, is the next big challenge.
Designing beyond the screen. Taking the concept to a functioning prototype meant decisions about data, privacy and law that a static mock-up would let me skip, and the product is better for it.
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