About me

Personal profile

I studied Writing, Fashion & Culture at university which is essentially magazine journalism with a slant towards fashion.

It featured a number of different modules: reportage, PR, fashion history, cultural studies, fashion photography, web/editorial design – in fact the design portion of the course is what set me on my path to becoming a designer. Prior to that I wanted to write.

First proper job was a content editor for a trend forecasting company; very interesting industry and taught me a lot about how the trend cycle works, not just in fashion but in most consumer goods.

I do have a keen interest in fashion and culture (music/art/food/design), but I’m also a keen photographer. I live in Southampton, which is about 60 miles from London.


My role

As a Product Design Lead, it’s my role to champion good design thinking and advocate for the customer, but also support fellow designers in their workloads and career objectives.

I run the full gamut of product design — I conduct generative and evaluative research, both solo or with a research team; I collaborate closely with Product teams to solve problems, identify customer needs and define their experiences iteratively; I create polished UI that adheres to design systems; and I work closely with engineers from iOS, Android, and web.


My approach to design

My approach to design is usually centred on logic and systems.

Where possible, I like to consider all parts of a solution as objects within a wider system. These objects have attributes, i.e. what they are and what they can do, and they have relationships to each other, which are often affected or defined by those attributes.

By considering the problem in this way first — abstracting it away from all specifics — it’s much easier to provide context and definition for the solution. Solid, defined foundations of logic and remit are much easier to expand and build upon than a more specific approach, which may leave you ‘painted into a corner’.

I’m comfortable with all aspects of the product design process but I feel most at home in the iterative thinking space — I would rather work with a researcher, writer, engineer or product manager collaboratively towards a solution, than do everything myself.

Even in the UI space I am more drawn to thinking about design systems and how they can streamline production, rather than focusing on the specific construction of screens. However, I’m very comfortable with Figma and can use various tools to put screens together quickly and cleanly.


My approach to leadership

I enjoy advising, mentoring and coaching others. A number of influential people have shaped my career journey, and I feel excited (and humbled) by the opportunity to pay it forward.

My default setting is trust — I trust that you are here on your own merits, I trust that you know how to get the job done effectively and I trust that you will be motivated to meet deadlines and work well with others.

I hate the idea of micro-management, both giving and receiving, so I will do everything in my power to not do it as a manager. I find it stifling and it never leads to the change in behaviour that you’re expecting.

I’m happy to be a part of conversations that indirectly involve me but would rather my DRs have that conversation themselves and report back.

I consider myself accountable for the development of my team but they themselves are responsible. I will absolutely prioritise my part of their development in my workload, but I expect my team to gain self-awareness of their strengths and weaknesses, and an idea of how they can improve — with input from me, of course.

I don’t want to only spoon feed objectives to people based on my opinion, or the specific needs of the business — I expect my reports to actively help shape their own path.

I’m happy to provide feedback in whichever way is most appropriate for the context and the audience. If you prefer to have a conversation with me async via Slack, that’s fine, but I’m also happy to have a call. However, if the conversation is quite ‘meaty’ I will always suggest a call rather than back and forth Slack essays.

I cannot be across all projects at all times, so I expect my team to be proactive in keeping me updated with progress where appropriate, and to let me know about issues or where they would like support or advice.


My working style

I don’t really have a preferred time of day to get things done, although usually meetings in the morning mean that you’re bringing your most energised and alert self. Meetings after 3–4pm tend to feel less productive.

I love to collaborate with others in the beginning stages of a project, when we’re still looking to define the problem and ideate on solutions. Once we’re happy with a direction, I’m more of a ‘head down and power through’ kind of guy until it’s time to review and discuss again.

I find that excessive collaboration might feel good but it’s often quite inefficient, especially as the number of people in the room goes up. ‘Design by committee’ is painful and often indicates a lack of proper tools or guidance to do your job properly.

On that note, I feel that strong and comprehensive documentation is invaluable for streamlining the design process. Self-serving the solution to a problem is very empowering and means that you don’t inadvertently distract others with simple questions. You can reserve those conversations for more valuable, generative discussion.

When dealing with uncertainty, I find it more productive to make assumptions rather than ask questions. I find that conversations debating the validity of an assumption tend to lead to resolution much faster, rather than starting with a blank sheet and asking ‘what does everyone think we should do’. If the assumption is correct, then great, we can move on. If not, it’s easy to identify why it’s not and to create an alternative.

I enjoy personal relationships at work — you spend most of your waking hours with your colleagues so it’s important to me that we get on and enjoy spending time together, even at times when we don’t have to (after work socials for example).


Operating principles

As with management, my default position is trust. I will look to you for input based on your subject matter knowledge so please be proactive and confident in bringing this to the table.

Design is not just about pretty screens, there is a great deal of knowledge and expertise that I can bring to the table from the very beginning. I love fielding input and ideas from non-designers, and to be questioned on my ideas, but I expect all those involved in a project to recognise the limits of their knowledge and defer to others accordingly.

Process is very important in any team but there are occasions when it becomes a limitation. Adhering to processes provides clarity, but I’m happy to work around obstacles to ensure progress isn’t impacted for the sake of rituals, and there is justification for doing so.

We learn by doing, and often by failing. This is a good thing, but we should always consider contingencies for approaches that might not work, rather than simply abandoning them and walking away, particularly those which hold significant risk. I also strongly believe that ‘learning from mistakes’ still requires effort — if something has gone wrong, is everyone clear what the problem was and how we can prevent it happening again? Otherwise we are inevitably doomed to repeat it.

Workplace culture is very important but it goes beyond the typical frivolities. Having a beer fridge is not indicative of a good work culture; everyone feeling comfortable being the first to get a drink out, is.


Communication

Most tech companies rarely use email these days but it can feel more appropriate for longer-form communication. I keep an active eye on my inbox so I’m happy for others to do this, but I will rarely send long messages via email.

I’m much happier communicating in Slack, ideally in a public forum where others can see it (if it’s appropriate for a public audience) or scheduling a call.

I try to answer messages as soon as I can — nobody likes being left on read!

However, I know that others don’t necessarily follow this same ethos and prefer to set aside time to respond to messages in bulk, or whatever they find most comfortable. This is fine by me, unless it’s something particularly urgent, so I don’t expect immediate responses.


I hope this gives you a better understanding of who I am as a designer and a leader. I am always eager to learn and grow, and I look forward to the opportunity to work with you!