I’m an outcome-focused designer
& big-picture thinker
with user research superpowers.

I’m an outcome-focused designer
& big-picture thinker
with user research superpowers.

I’m an outcome-focused designer
& big-picture thinker
with user research superpowers.

I’m an outcome-focused designer
& big-picture thinker
with user research superpowers.

I’m an outcome-focused designer
& big-picture thinker
with user research superpowers.

I’m an outcome-focused designer
& big-picture thinker
with user research superpowers.

For over 10 years, I’ve taken ideas from concept to completion for Fortune 500s (Marriott, Discovery), startups, and SaaS companies in healthcare, finance, hospitality, broadcast media, and automotive.

Currently based in the NYC Metro Area.

For over 10 years, I’ve taken ideas from concept to completion for Fortune 500 (Marriott, Discovery), startup, and SaaS companies in healthcare, finance, hospitality, broadcast media, and automotive.

Currently based in the NYC Metro Area.

For over 10 years, I’ve taken ideas from concept to completion for Fortune 500s (Marriott, Discovery), startups, and SaaS companies in healthcare, finance, hospitality, broadcast media, and automotive.

Currently based in the NYC Metro Area.

For over 10 years, I’ve taken ideas from concept to completion for Fortune 500 (Marriott, Discovery), startup, and SaaS companies in healthcare, finance, hospitality, broadcast media, and automotive.

Currently based in the NYC Metro Area.

Select Work

Startup

Finding the right car, at the right place, at the right price.

Finding the right car, at the right dealer, at the right price.

Launching a new search and filter feature for 12k daily visitors.

CarEdge (formerly YAA)

Consumer Automotive

Responsive Web App + API Integration

Desktop version of car search results with a trio of mobile screens showing filters.
Desktop version of car search results with a trio of mobile screens showing filters.
Three mobile screens: calendar, spending analysis, and home screen with Financial Coach
Three mobile screens: calendar, spending analysis, and home screen with Financial Coach
Three mobile screens: calendar, spending analysis, and home screen with Financial Coach

Entrepreneurship

Applying the power of human connection to personal finance.

Pivoting an early-stage product from a solo-use app to a MVP coaching platform.

Clasp

Consumer Personal Finance

iOS App + Web App + API Integration

Startup

Making car-buying decisions easier with data.

Delivering a data-driven report feature with multiple data sources.

Overview

Problem

In preparation for a site redesign, the internal team (including an external creative agency) needed to fully understand the pet adoption journey from the perspective of potential pet owners.

Solution

An experience map based on qualitative interviews captured the complexity of the process.

It visually represents the stages of pet adoption, including key tasks, user behaviors, and motivations.

Additionally, the map aligns site content and features with users' thought processes.

Impact

The resulting map got the team up to speed quickly, informed our decisions, and served as a springboard for future features.

View full experience map (Figjam)

Petfinder Logo

Petfinder is an online, searchable database of adoptable animals from over 14,000 shelters and adoption organizations across North America.

Originally part of Discovery Networks, Petfinder was later acquired by Nestlé Purina in 2013.

Petfinder is an online, searchable database of adoptable animals from over 14,000 shelters and adoption organizations across North America.

Originally part of Discovery Networks, Petfinder was later acquired by Nestlé Purina in 2013.

Role & Responsibilities

As Senior User Interface Designer, my primary responsibility was UX/UI, along with the external agency.

I introduced the experience mapping process as an independent initiative in addition to design work.

I was a team of one: initiating, leading, planning, executing, and communicating all research.

Project Team

  • Business Owner

  • Head of Design

  • UX/UI Designer (me)

  • Visual Designer

  • External Agency

Timeline

One month

Analyze

Break down tasks

I transcribed all the interviews and broke each one down into individual tasks (almost 600 lines!)

View full task spreadsheet (Google Sheet)

Create task groups

Next, I searched for patterns in the interviews, and grouped individual tasks into task groups. 

Task groups were then organized further into mental spaces.

A research habit

To build cadence, a third week was added to the sprint for to accommodate research. I coordinated with product managers and designers to identify in advance what they needed to learn.

A product manager and researcher sitting at a desk, watching a remote session on a computer monitor.

A product manager observing a session.

I promoted upcoming research sessions to the entire organization, sent out calendar invites and day-of reminders, and participation increased.

Planning was team-based and transparent. When I heard “you don’t talk to the right users,” I asked who the right users were.

Recruiting and testing was tightened to 5-day cycles, based on Google Ventures' research sprint process.

To speed up the process and maintain quality, we synthesized learnings during each session. I distributed sticky notepads to the team and encouraged them to capture observations and ideas during the session. This kept observers focused on the interview, and allowed upvoting and building on other ideas. Immediately after a day of sessions, the team would regroup and discuss.