Hey! I’m Yolanda

design leader

with 12+ years of experience in the industry

Crafting smooth experiences

Technology is continuously evolving, and every time we interact with new software means we need to both unlearn and relearn. Our main goal as designers is to create new experiences for users than can make their adoption feel seamless and easy.

Strategy

Provide a strategic lens to build a user centric collaborative environment, data-driven design processes, and high quality delivery based on a deep understanding of user needs that can translate into real business value.

Design Culture

Hire, manage, and mentor design teams. Oversee design practices, and implement rituals and activities that foster strong team morale, professional growth, and promote a culture of innovation and continuous improvement.

Operations

Work closely with product leaders and diverse stakeholders to integrate design into overall business and tech strategy and align team goals and objectives to ensure a cohesive user experience across projects and initiatives.

My latest Projects

A handful of my reflections and insights gained from navigating everyday challenges within cross-functional product teams, that offer a window into my leadership practice.

Navigating the challenges of scaling a Design System

Managing a Design System in the early stage of its development, and strategies I’ve learned to tackle growing pains and increasing its adoption and maturity.

case study

Setting effective OKRs for teams that enable other product teams

My experience exploring strategies for setting up quarterly OKRs tailored to “enabling” teams, whose main purpose is to support other product teams.

case study

Fostering teamwork and creativity by optimizing design rituals

Creating structured opportunities for a diverse team to actively engage, collaborate, and the impact this can have in design processes and team culture.

case study

Perspectives on thought leadership within Product Design

Reflections on the Product Design landscape and how managers can play a crucial role in fostering innovation, alongside lessons on teamwork and personal growth.

case study

Shifting away from a small-increment mindset

How a team can challenge incremental development norms and move towards a mentality that encourages innovation and impactful design outcomes.

case study

Transitioning product design teams to Figma

Migrating design processes from Abstract and Sketch to Figma, and how we approached training to quickly adapt and boost collaboration and efficiency.

case study

A few words on design processes

I believe the most crucial part of a design process is approaching projects with a beginner’s mindset, and allowing space for deep understanding of users and their needs through research and data analysis. This then helps inform all the steps that follow.

Next, it’s really valuable to ensure diverse perspectives are considered early on, so a collaborative, cross-functional ideation phase helps ensure a collective sense of ownership and better understanding on the product context. Ideas are then translated into design concepts, user-tested, and iterated upon, in that lovely double-diamond, explore-shape-build style.

Throughout the process, I find it super important to maintain a focus on simplicity, usability, and consistency, and make sure the final design meets a good balance between user needs and business goals. And lastly, collecting regular post-release insights, to drive future improvements.