# Matthias Fritsch > Hi, I'm Matthias. I turn ideas into products and products into systems. Product Design & Design Systems Lead at Unblu, based in Basel, CH. This is the plain-text version of https://matthiasfritsch.de/. The design system of the site is described in [design.md](https://matthiasfritsch.de/design.md). ## What I do At Unblu I lead product design and the design system. Before that, design systems and DesignOps at Celonis (2022 – 2026) and MAN Truck & Bus (2018 – 2022). Before design systems were a job title: more than a decade of product and interaction design. ## About I grew up in the 90s with SNES and pixel graphics, where my passion for design and technology began. My first real step into digital design happened at 15, when I started customizing MySpace profiles with rudimentary HTML and CSS. What began as curiosity quickly turned into a lasting fascination, not just with how things look, but with how they work and evolve. Today, I work on complex design systems and design operations, helping teams build coherent, scalable product experiences. I care deeply about clarity, consistency, and the often invisible structures that allow creativity to happen at scale. I enjoy working at the intersection of strategy and craft, translating abstract problems into systems, patterns, and processes that empower both users and the people building the product. Outside of work, I spend most of my time with my family. I also enjoy hands-on making, experimenting with 3D printing and running a small side business focused on high-quality embroidery, where digital design becomes something tangible. Always open to new challenges, whether it's business, design, or exploring a side project, let's start a conversation. ## Cases Case studies from the day job. Real problems, real politics, a few scars. - [Three weeks of tokens, four years of design system](https://matthiasfritsch.de/work/design-system/) (2022 – 2026, [markdown](https://matthiasfritsch.de/work/design-system.md)): We built the token architecture in three weeks. Everything after that took four years and was mostly about people. - [A contribution model people actually use](https://matthiasfritsch.de/work/designops-governance/) (2023 – 2026, [markdown](https://matthiasfritsch.de/work/designops-governance.md)): There is no secret recipe for contribution. There’s iteration, one hard rule, and a lot of 30-minute conversations. - [Before design systems had a name, 2007 – 2018](https://matthiasfritsch.de/work/earlier-work/) (2007 – 2018, [markdown](https://matthiasfritsch.de/work/earlier-work.md)): Shops, Smart TVs, a lot of banners and one award. The design system mindset was always there, it just kept changing its name. - GroupUI: one design system, many Volkswagen brands (soon) ## Opinions Opinions nobody asked for. Written anyway. - [Why I don’t love designer portfolios (says the guy with a portfolio)](https://matthiasfritsch.de/writing/designer-portfolios/) (2026, [markdown](https://matthiasfritsch.de/writing/designer-portfolios.md)): A portfolio shows how well you package work. A day with the team shows how you actually do it. - Unpopular opinions, part 2: Your Claude-coded token file is not a design system (soon) ## Lab Side projects. Over-engineered on purpose, documented for you. - [Wandplaner: planning a salon wall to the centimetre](https://matthiasfritsch.de/lab/wandplaner/) (2026, [markdown](https://matthiasfritsch.de/lab/wandplaner.md)): Instagram made me want a salon wall. An hour of prompting made me a planner for it. - Automate my life, part 1: An outfit configurator, because mornings are hard (soon) ## Conversations - What’s new in Dev Mode (Figma Office Hours, 2024) - [Back to basics: design system foundations at Celonis](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgLgdUZJymM) (Figma · In The File, 2023) - Panel discussion (Figma Design Leaders Meetup, 2023) - Masterclass: WTF?! How do tokens work?! (SparksCon, 2023) - Design systems: from buzzword to real value (SparksCon, 2022) - A collaboration matrix for design systems (Into Design Systems, 2022) - [GroupUI, the Volkswagen multi-brand design system](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNbSlmCrozg) (ionic Enterprise App Summit, 2021) - Multi-brand design systems within the VW Group (Into Design Systems, 2021) - UX in commercial vehicles (World Usability Day, 2019) - Mentor for UX students (LMU Munich, 2017 – now) ## Experience - Product & Design Systems, Unblu (Aug 2026 – now) - DesignOps | Design Systems Lead, Celonis (Feb 2023 – Aug 2026) - Design Lead (Design System), Celonis (Apr 2022 – Feb 2023) - DesignOps & Design System Lead, MAN Truck & Bus (Aug 2020 – Apr 2022) - Senior UI/UX Designer, MAN Truck & Bus (Aug 2018 – Aug 2020) - Senior UI/UX Designer, Dr. Grandel (Nov 2014 – Aug 2018) - Screen Designer & Frontend Developer, .NFQ Digital Creatives (Mar 2012 – Oct 2014) - Screen Designer & Frontend Developer, Neuland Software (Sep 2007 – Mar 2012) - Founder, Shokunin LAB (Feb 2024 – now), on the side - Product design & design system consulting, Freelance (2007 – now), on the side ## Contact - Email: hello@matthiasfritsch.de - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fritschmatthias - GitHub: https://github.com/matthiasfritsch ## Plain text - All posts in full: [posts.md](https://matthiasfritsch.de/posts.md) - The design system of this site: [design.md](https://matthiasfritsch.de/design.md)