Shaping High-Impact Design Teams Across Organizations
Throughout my career, I have had the privilege of building and leading design teams across startups, large organizations, and matrixed environments. At each company, I encountered unique challenges from establishing design practices in nascent teams to optimizing well-established workflows for scalability. My approach to leadership has been rooted in fostering collaboration, cultivating creativity, and aligning design strategy with business objectives. Whether it was scaling a design system to support growth, mentoring emerging design talent, or integrating UX and product strategies for customer-centric outcomes, I have consistently driven impact by tailoring my leadership style to the needs of the team and organization.
Impact
Across my leadership roles, I elevated design as a strategic partner alongside engineering and product management. By implementing key practices such as design systems governance, user-centered research processes, and collaborative workshops, I fostered a culture of innovation and measurable outcomes. My teams delivered high-impact designs, redesigns and optimizations that drove customer satisfaction and engagement, evidenced by improvements in core metrics like activation rates, retention, and conversion rates. For example, I championed the adoption of user research and feedback loops, integrating customer insights into the design lifecycle, which resulted in consistently enhanced user experiences that exceeded industry benchmarks. This approach not only enhanced product and marketing outcomes but also established a scalable foundation for long-term success.
My approach to leadership and culture centers on four key principles:
1. Transparency and Accountability
I believe in fostering a culture of open communication where expectations are clear, decisions are transparent, and accountability is shared. This builds trust and empowers team members to contribute their best work.
2. Empowering Growth
I focus on creating opportunities for team members to shine, tailoring projects and responsibilities to their strengths while addressing skill gaps through upskilling and training. I’m committed to helping individuals become the best versions of themselves in their roles.
3. Flexible and Adaptive Processes
I champion flexible work processes that adapt to the team’s evolving challenges. Processes should serve as tools to enable efficiency and creativity, not rigid frameworks that hinder innovation.
4. Vision and Opportunity
Inspiring teams requires a shared, ambitious vision. I strive to provide clear goals that align with broader organizational objectives, supported by a culture that values leadership, creativity, and continuous growth.
Cultivating Clarity
Fostering Transparency and Accountability
In my roles at Perch and McAfee, I fostered a culture of transparency and accountability through consistent communication practices, including weekly one-on-one sessions with team members. These sessions were designed to provide organizational updates, recognize achievements, discuss areas for growth, and identify upcoming opportunities tailored to each team member. By creating a safe space for open dialogue, I encouraged honest feedback and built trust across the team. Additionally, I created comprehensive documentation on Notion/Sharepoint to allow visibility across teams, ensuring everyone had access to vital information and updates.
I provide each team member with a private 1-on-1 document that serves as a shared space for collaboration between us. View and duplicate template
Empowering Potential
Nurturing Growth and Skill Development
At McAfee, I recognized a unique opportunity to elevate my team’s UX capabilities. Although primarily from a marketing background, my team expressed interest in UX methodologies. To empower their growth, I organized and facilitated hands-on Design Thinking and brainstorming workshops. These workshops introduced innovative problem-solving frameworks, enabling the team to contribute meaningfully to UX and product design projects. As a result, team members gained confidence and advanced their skills, ultimately enhancing cross-functional collaboration and delivering higher-quality outcomes.
I designed an immersive 6-hour Design Thinking workshop, spread over two days. View the structure of this workshop
One of my favorite brainstorming tools: the Six Hats technique for diverse perspectives and creative thinking! View and copy template
Adapting for Success
Implementing Flexible and Agile Processes
In my role at Boardwalk Rental Communities, I championed flexible work processes to adapt to the team’s evolving challenges. I introduced iterative design and usability testing to ensure the team could respond to feedback and make data-driven improvements. Additionally, I implemented regular design demos, providing internal stakeholders with a platform to review work-in-progress designs and offer constructive feedback. This approach not only improved the quality of our deliverables but also increased stakeholder engagement and alignment.
An introduction to iterative testing. Share this doc with your team
Usability Testing: A Guide to Better User Experiences. View and duplicate document (includes test plan and report templates)
Driving Alignment
Inspiring Vision and Creating Opportunities
At Boardwalk Rental Communities and McAfee, I prioritized clear goal-setting and seamless project alignment with organizational objectives. Leveraging tools like Asana, Monday, Jira, and Microsoft Teams boards, I provided visibility into project progress and dependencies. To maintain momentum, I established bi-weekly stand-up sessions where the team could address roadblocks, share updates, and align on priorities. I also established design jams and design reviews with PMs and internal stakeholders, which positioned design to have a direct impact on the product and on the business. These practices ensured the team remained on track, empowered to achieve ambitious goals, and equipped to handle challenges proactively.
