Over 10 Years Designing Products Used by Millions

I'm a UX and product design lead based in Manchester, with over 10 years' experience designing digital products across automotive, e-commerce, fintech and online gaming, including roles at Aston Martin Lagonda and Bentley Motors.

For the past three years I've led UX at Debenhams Group, setting up the UX function after the Debenhams acquisition and scaling it across all 21 brands in the group, designing industry-leading experiences while optimising for technical synergies and high-velocity delivery.

I lead teams and I stay hands-on. That means setting design direction, building the processes, systems and standards a team works to, and running its workflow day to day. It also means being in the file, in the research session and, increasingly, in the code.

What I enjoy most is raising UX maturity and working across an organisation, using UX as the glue that aligns stakeholders and leadership around the same goals.

Positive Culture, Outstanding Outcomes

I believe a positive, trusting and respectful culture shapes how a design team works, and the products and experiences it creates.

I always aim to build that culture and a strong team mentality, and to listen to, mentor and support others.

Keep It Simple, Make It Happen

The best UX is invisible. It's simple, intuitive and just works.

I like to help create tangible experiences that are innovative, reduce complexity and meet the needs of both users and the business, while staying simple and easy to use.

Research, Design, Innovate and Validate

UX, UI and product design cover a wide range of disciplines, skills and processes: from discovery research, customer journey mapping and information architecture to pixel-perfect UI, high-fidelity prototyping, motion design and much more.

They can mean different things in different organisations, at different times. Some teams focus on visually stunning deliverables and well-architected design systems. Others focus on identifying user needs, pain points and friction in their customer journeys. Each has its right place and time.

Design is at its best when all of these work together. With the right people focused on the right disciplines, working as one team, amazing products and experiences can be created.

A designer with a good eye for visual design, who keeps up with product design trends, brings a lot of value to a team. You also need great problem solvers and researchers, who make sure you understand users' needs, wants and frustrations, so designs are informed and validated.

When every part of a design operation is well coordinated, the outcome is far greater than the sum of its parts.