With Me

01—Guiding Principles

Great design is a team sport

The best teams I’ve ever been part of felt like families. Not the kind where everyone agrees all the time, but the kind where you are in the trenches together, celebrating wins, carrying each other through the losses, and raising the standard for everyone around you. The truth is, a rising tide really does lift all boats.

I care deeply about design that works – for the user, for the business – and I believe progress is a promise. Perfection is an illusion. Ship early, learn together, and keep refining until the work sings.

Design is how we show users they matter

Design is one of the clearest signals we send to people. A button that anticipates intent, a word of microcopy that removes confusion, a flow that feels effortless: these are small acts of care that remind users they matter. My mother taught me the power of words of affirmation and thoughtful gestures, while my father showed me the value of acts of service. Those lessons shaped how I work: lead with encouragement, show appreciation, and do the work alongside others.

Great work doesn’t always shout

Some of the proudest moments of my career didn’t come with fireworks. They were the quiet ones, ideas that seemed small at the time but years later had become the things people couldn’t live without. Impact often reveals itself in hindsight.

Value mindsets, not methods

The best teams aren’t the ones with the flashiest process; they’re the ones with the healthiest mindset. Honesty. Curiosity. Generosity. It’s okay not to know the answer; what matters is how you lean in, ask questions, and stay open to what something could be.

The little things are the big things

Big visions inspire, but trust comes from the details that quietly reassure. A name spelled correctly, a system that works the same way every time, a meeting that ends when promised. Consistency shows respect, and respect builds confidence.

Good tension is a skill

Every decision in design involves trade-offs: speed versus craft, innovation versus reliability. Tension is not a problem; it is a skill. The magic lies in knowing when to push and when to move. My shorthand is simple: cut your cloth accordingly. Context matters. Good designers don’t lower the bar; they exercise judgement about which bar matters most.

Moments that matter

Beyond the work itself, it’s the acknowledgements and small celebrations that people carry with them. A thank-you, a note of encouragement, or a quiet recognition at the right time often means more than the big milestones. People may forget what you said, but they’ll never forget how you made them feel.

Creating delight

Trust is essential, but delight is what people talk about. The difference between good and unforgettable is often a flourish: a playful message in the right place, a small surprise in the interface, or an experience that feels warmer than expected. Delight is the spark that creates loyalty.

Spotlighting others

Leadership is about shining the spotlight on others. When the people around me rise, the whole team rises.

02—Feedback & Communication

Say what you mean, and mean it kindly

Feedback is an act of generosity. Clarity is kindness, and the best way to help someone grow is to be honest without being harsh. I try to cultivate the mantra of "assume good intent."

When a new teammate joins, I ask them a few simple questions: What worked for you in your last role? What didn’t? What does success look like here? It’s not about the survey; it’s about seeing the person in front of me, understanding how they tick, and creating the conditions where they can thrive.

Listening is design

Listening is design. It’s more than gathering information; it is about making someone feel heard, understood, and valued. Whether it is a user interview, a passing comment from an engineer, or a teammate’s hesitation in a meeting, listening gives you the chance to respond with intention.

I also believe good ideas deserve a record. That’s why I lean on writing, structured documentation, or the occasional voice note. Not for bureaucracy’s sake, but because the best thinking shouldn’t disappear into thin air.

03—Decision Making

Make the call, own the outcome

Day to day, I expect the team to own their calls. Move quickly, use judgement, don’t get stuck waiting for perfect information. If something drifts a little, that’s okay; it is all part of the process. A good decision will leave something better than you found it.

When giving input, I’ll be clear whether it is a suggestion or a directive. If it is unclear, we pause, regroup, and weigh the trade-offs. I use data when it is helpful, but I also trust my gut. Not everything worth doing can be justified by numbers.

In high-stakes moments, I see myself playing three roles:

• Protecting the experience our users will feel in their hands
• Helping shape the bigger strategy and making sure design drives impact
• Guarding the culture of the team, the trust, the inclusion, the joy

I’ve changed my mind plenty of times when new information surfaced. Our first idea is rarely the best one and paths can change even if we’ve walked them before.

04—Working Style

Find your rhythm, protect your focus

I’m not a morning person. I’ve made peace with it. My best ideas come after noon, and I can happily work into the night. That’s my rhythm.

These days, I work more deliberately than I used to. I block time for deep work. I defend focus for myself and others. That respect for time is one of the most generous things we can offer in a world of endless meetings.

When I need to reset, you’ll see me grab a tea (breakfast), go for a quick walk around the block, or jot down half-formed thoughts in a document. Small rituals like that keep me centred.

What energises me most is watching people flourish when you give them freedom and trust. What drains me is bureaucracy and stalemates. When that happens, I don’t stew; I aim for the fastest path to clarity. Alignment is not failure; it is often the most caring thing you can do for the work.

05—Team Rituals

A little structure, a lot of care

When someone new joins the team, we kick off with a Pecha-Kucha session: 20 slides, 20 seconds each. It is quick, funny, and human. You don’t need to connect on everything, just one thing. I've found that that's normally enough to start building trust.

On Fridays, we close the week with a ritual borrowed from a mentor: sometimes a design exercise, sometimes a simple moment to acknowledge one another. The format matters less than the intent.

Add delight without losing clarity

I try to find small ways to surprise and delight—a personal note, a shared playlist, a silly icebreaker. These are not distractions; they are reminders that work can be human, even joyful.

Care inside the team

I believe the principles of good design don’t stop with the product. They extend to how we treat one another. Taking the time to welcome, support, and celebrate colleagues is as important as the design itself. A team that feels cared for will always create better work.

I believe in the little touches: humour, curiosity and showing up for someone else’s obsessions. Care isn’t about grand gestures; it is about the thousand small ways you tell someone, I see you.

06—Strengths & Growth Areas

Showing up, sleeves rolled up

I’m a work in progress. I used to wrestle with time management; I still do. I’ve learnt to treat time as a resource, not an infinite well.

What people can count on is this: I’ll always be there, I’ll be open, I'll be dependable, and my sleeves will be rolled up to dive in alongside you.

One of my favourite things is joining a project that is close, but not quite there, and finding the spark that makes it sing. That moment when someone says, "That’s it!" and letting the person run with it.

Leadership is spotlighting

Leadership is about shining the spotlight on others. When the people around me rise, the whole team rises.

Lets get to work.