We’re excited to welcome Denny McFadden as Counsel’s new Director of Design. Denny brings a unique background spanning nonprofit, political, and healthcare design, with experience leading teams at organizations like charity: water, Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, and, most recently, Galileo. Across industries, his work has been guided by a single principle: design is most powerful when it serves something larger. At Counsel, Denny is focused on shaping intuitive, human-centered experiences that bring together the best of clinical-grade AI and physician-led care.

1. Your career has taken you through different industries, most recently leading design at Galileo. Can you share your journey and the principles that guide your approach to design?

I’ve always been motivated by impact, using design as a tool to accomplish a larger goal.

Early in my career at charity: water, that meant building software to fund and implement clean drinking water projects around the world. Later, on Hillary Clinton’s campaign, it was about helping elect the first female president. Most recently at Galileo, it was reimagining healthcare delivery and bringing care to some of the most complex, hardest-to-reach patients in the country.

Across these experiences, the industries shifted, but the principle stayed the same: design is most powerful when it serves something larger.

2. Healthcare design comes with unique challenges, balancing clinical accuracy, user trust, and accessibility. What excites you most about designing for healthcare specifically, compared to other industries?

You hit the nail on the head. Healthcare design is complex, and that’s exactly what excites me about it. I’ve always been drawn to problem spaces where the stakes are high and the challenges are layered. At Counsel, one of the things I value most is working directly with clinicians. They bring a deep, personal understanding of patients’ experiences, and collaborating with them adds a richness you don’t often find elsewhere.

What inspires me is drawing from in-person care: the hospitality mindset, the attention to detail, and translating that into the digital experience. When we get it right, with unrushed visits, clinicians who have all your data, intentional follow-up, virtual care doesn’t just feel convenient. It can feel more human and less transactional.

3. What drew you to Counsel, and how do you think about designing experiences that bring together technology and human connection?

I was drawn to Counsel because I was already seeing enormous value from AI as a consumer. Both personally and professionally, AI has reshaped how I interact with information and get things done, and I wanted to be on the creator side of that transformation. In healthcare, the opportunity feels massive, so many painful patient and clinician experiences stem from fragmented, disconnected information. AI has the potential to bring those pieces together in a way that makes care simpler and more connected.

Of course, trust is the hurdle. People naturally wonder: Can I rely on this? Who’s behind it? What’s powerful about Counsel’s model is that it brings the best of both worlds: AI built with clinical rigor, and physicians in the loop for oversight and the human touch. The two complement each other; AI makes things faster and more efficient, while the human side brings empathy and reassurance. The design challenge, and what excites me most, is creating experiences that highlight both so people feel not only cared for, but also confident in the system.

What really sealed it for me was Muthu’s vision and the caliber of the team. It was immediately clear that Counsel is positioned to shape the future of care delivery.

4. As the Design Director, where do you see the biggest opportunities to shape how people experience Counsel? What’s most exciting to you about building and shaping the next stage of growth?

One of the most exciting opportunities is reshaping how people think about engaging with their health. Right now, we’re in what I’d call the “early adopter” phase. Our users are curious, motivated, and open to trying something new. As Counsel grows into the general market, design will be critical in helping people acclimate to a new way of engaging with their health.

For me, that means creating experiences that feel intuitive and trustworthy, balancing familiarity with novelty. The way people first encounter and build confidence in Counsel will set the tone for our long-term relationship, and that’s an incredibly exciting challenge.

5. Design leaders often think not just about pixels, but about people. How do you personally recharge and find inspiration outside of work, and how does that influence your design perspective?

For me, recharging usually means stepping away from screens. Rest is essential for creative work.

Lately, I’ve been taking a weekly studio drawing class at MICA (Maryland Institute College of Art), and I love the parallels with design. When you’re drawing, you work within arm’s length of the canvas, but you have to step back and evaluate from the viewer’s perspective. The same is true in software design: distance is key.

That practice of stepping back, literally in art, figuratively in design, helps me reset and make better judgments about the work. I’m also a father of two very active young boys, so there’s plenty of opportunity to recharge outdoors, on bikes, skis, in the woods, or on the water, which makes a huge difference.

If Denny’s vision resonates with you, and you want to join a driven team shaping the future of healthcare, explore our open roles.