Leadership
Helping people achieve the best work of their lives.
It’s deeply rewarding to help others reach their full creative potential. My leadership philosophy has always been people-first: I believe that exceptional outcomes are built on the foundation of empowered, supported, and motivated individuals.
At the heart of my approach are what I call the 4 pillars of design leadership: Success for People, Partners, Projects, and Processes. These pillars guide how I lead, support, and create environments where great work can thrive.
This approach isn’t theoretical, it’s been shaped by years of hands-on experience across a variety of industries, organisations, and team structures. From startups to global enterprises, I’ve honed my leadership style to inspire teams, amplify business impact, and champion meaningful design solutions.
People success.
People are the core of every successful team. My role as a leader is to unlock their potential, nurture their growth, and provide the environment they need to do their best work. I achieve success for people by:
Developing high-performing leaders who, in turn, empower others.
Guiding the careers of my direct reports as a co-pilot, not just a manager.
Genuinely caring for my team, peers, and partners on both a personal and professional level.
Recognising and celebrating achievements, both big and small.
Providing timely, constructive feedback delivered with empathy and encouragement.
Building inclusive, diverse teams with complementary skill sets and varied perspectives.
Partner success.
Design doesn’t exist in isolation; it thrives when collaboration is at its best. I focus on building strong, trusted relationships with cross-functional partners to drive shared success. I achieve this by:
Ensuring design has a seat at the table as a core part of product development.
Strengthening collaboration between design, product, and engineering teams.
Amplifying shared business and operational goals through clear communication and alignment.
Cultivating trust, accountability, and open dialogue through regular check-ins and planning sessions.
Identifying and addressing potential challenges early to keep projects moving forward seamlessly.
Project success.
Great design begins with great project execution. I’m passionate about aligning projects with clear goals and fostering an environment where designers can deliver their best. I achieve this by:
Mapping projects to roadmaps and long-term strategic priorities.
Protecting “maker time” for designers, reducing unnecessary meetings and distractions.
Encouraging project retrospectives to spark learning and continuous improvement.
Ensuring a shared sense of ownership across design, product, and engineering.
Aligning designer strengths and archetypes to the right projects for maximum impact.
Elevating the craft and strategic value of design work within each project.
Process success.
Processes should empower teams, not hinder them. I focus on implementing frameworks and workflows that enable great work while staying aligned with business objectives. I ensure process success by:
Embedding user research and customer insights at the centre of product development.
Addressing design debt and maintaining a strong foundation of design principles.
Streamlining workflows and aligning design operations with broader organisational goals.
Advocating for design in leadership forums, strategy meetings, and company-wide communications.
Helping designers manage competing priorities across multiple projects and stakeholders.
Regularly evaluating and evolving processes to eliminate inefficiencies and maximise ROI.
Foundations of design management.
At its core, successful design management is about creating balance and harmony across people, partnerships, projects, and processes. These pillars form the foundation of high-performing teams and enable design to make a meaningful, measurable impact.
Product ownership.
A truly effective product development process thrives on shared ownership among design, product management, and engineering. It’s not about who comes up with the winning idea, it’s about ensuring all three disciplines are actively involved from the concept stage through to product release.
Gone are the days of the traditional, siloed handoff model, where ownership is passed from department to department like a baton. Instead, an inclusive, collaborative approach ensures fewer blind spots, shared accountability, and a greater likelihood of success. By embracing this partnership model, we not only achieve better results across people, partners, projects, and processes but also lay the groundwork for scaling teams and organisations.
Equally important is the development of leaders within this model, leaders who can set a vision, nurture others, and create space for the next generation of talent to thrive. This requires self-awareness of one’s own strengths, the humility to step back, and the courage to let others take the lead when the moment calls for it.
