My Journey so far
High School AND a University drop out!
*I still received a GED and B.A.
I thrive on exploring unconventional solutions and questioning the ‘why’ behind every action. This approach not only fuels my curiosity but also brings unique, valuable perspectives to my work.
I have learned that sustainable happiness and joy comes from hard, deliberate, work and empathy. I’ve also learned that we tend to over-estimate what we can accomplish in months and underestimate what we can do over years.
Resume
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Product Designer with 14 years of experience leveraging cognitive psychology to craft intuitive and immersive user experiences. Passionate about designing products that align with true human behavior, I specialize in leading full product design lifecycles—from ideation to launch. Skilled in 3D product imagery, interactive design, and emerging technologies, I aim to drive innovation and business success through empathetic and strategic design solutions.
Experience
Product Designer | 2020 – present
Simply Smart Home | Dublin, CA www.sshome.com
Education
Bachelor of Arts (B.A.), Psychology | 2011
University of California Santa Barbara
- Led end-to-end product design for existing and new products, including ideation, stakeholder management, technical documentation, prototyping, branding, and UI/UX design for web and mobile applications. Produced 3D product imagery, animated ads, presentation decks, package designs, and vendor displays. Internalized all design tasks, rapidly learning new skills to deliver a wide range of design solutions that were previously outsourced, resulting in significant cost savings and accelerated project timelines.
- Optimized workflows using Notion, enhancing team collaboration and leading to successful placements in Walmart and Costco, tripling annual revenue in 2023.
- Soley designed and developed the company’s e-commerce website, increasing user engagement and boosting total sales by 22%.
- Executed a brand refresh targeting key demographics, resulting in a 233% YOY sales increase in 2021.
Technology Director | 2020 – present
QTBIPOC Design 503c, New York NY www.qtbipoc.design
- Directed design and development of the organization’s website; mentored junior designers in content management and administration.
- Led Business design initiatives improving internal operations, project management, marketing, and branding.
- Co-Founded the planning committee, contributed significantly to the graduation of the first three student cohorts, leading to transformative outcomes and strategic business partnerships. Involvement was instrumental in driving the organization’s mission and expanding its impact.
Website Development Contractor | 2024
Website Administrator | 2016 – 2019
The iO Theater, Chicago IL www.ioimprov.com
- Soley designed and developed a 2024 website for new ownership and trained staff members on content management and website administration.
- After the site’s launch, managed and enhanced the company’s website, increasing online ticket sales from 50% to 75% and driving a 24% year-over-year increase in total ticket sales in 2018.
- Collaborated with TicketFly in 2017 as iO’s project manager, providing stakeholder-approved designs for iO Theater’s website as part of their flagship managed hosting service. This partnership optimized ticket purchasing and integrated a seamless POS system.
Founder and Product Designer | 2019 – Present
Kovalik Design, Los Angeles CA
- Designed, built, and continue to maintain www.vacuumsealersunlimited.com, transforming an existing store by redesigning and migrating over 2,000 products to WooCommerce, enhancing user experience and site scalability. Led database mapping, crafted custom style sheets, and developed user-centric page mockups. Trained staff on site management, improving operational efficiency. Ongoing support and enhancements have tripled annual revenue to over $5 million, enabling the client to compete effectively with big-box retailers.
- Designed and developed www.jeremynovystencils.com through in-depth client consultations. Created sitemaps and branding style tiles for a cohesive visual identity, and built a responsive lead-generation website. Provided ongoing updates over five years, increasing commission requests and allowing the client to selectively choose projects.
- Developed branding and a user-centered website for www.whatmattersproductions.com, leading to six-figure contracts and contributing to Emmy nominations.
Technical Skills: Product Development, UX/UI Design, Interaction Design, Information Architecture, Wireframing, Prototyping, Design Systems, Responsive & Mobile Design, User Research, Usability Testing, A/B Testing, User Persona Development, Customer Journey Mapping, Data-Driven Design, Graphic Design, Web Development, Brand Strategy, Business Development, Package Design, Mobile App Design, HTML/CSS, JavaScript, PHP, React.js, Bootstrap, WordPress, WooCommerce, SEO Optimization, Data Visualization, Digital Marketing, Project Management, Agile Methodologies (Scrum, Kanban), Team Leadership, Notion, Jira, Slack, Git/GitHub, Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign), Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD, InVision, Axure RP, Principle, Miro, Google Analytics, MS Office Suite, Google Suite
Languages: English and Spanish
Multiple References available.
2010-2013
Tantum Technologies
Remote
Figure out things as you go along, for a Shark Tank Shark
A friend I made online as a teenager, we learned our trades by modifying games together, co-founded this web-hosting and design company with me in 2010 after being approached by a Shark to do all their high-traffic websites for Shark Tank.
We experimented with whatever worked process wise, and failed more often than we succeeded, but we did well enough to launch nearly two dozen sites designed to handle over 200,000k unique viewers within 10 minutes of airing on TV.
2013-2019
Contracting & Freelancing
Remote, Chicago IL, and Southern CA
Contract work gave me the freedom to continually learn design, and explore the art of communication through improv
Things got weird, in a fun way. I took the full training course at iO improv, joined a troop and performed weekly, had fun trying to do well with stand up comedy, did some visuals for a late night talk show, got tricked into being the photographer for a friend’s sister’s weeding, and had a role in a student film.
Improv helped me learn active listening, and a bunch of other soft-skills that make my personal and professional life leagues easier than before to navigate. Desired outcomes from interactions requires empathy, deliberateness, and mindfulness.
2020-present
QTBIPOC Design
Remote & Annual meets
Found some awesome peers online, and helped them start and grow a nonprofit UX bootcamp and design collective
We empower LGBTQ+ designers of color with free and accessible digital design education, mentorship, and networking opportunities.
The staff and members of QTBIPOC Design are wonderful and deeply driven folks. We’ve created a space where one didn’t exist before, and graduated three classes from our scholarship based UX bootcamp. I helped build their site, lead branding, and instruct designers on WordPress content management and development.
Find out more at QTBIPOC.design
2020-present
Simply Smart Home
Remote
Contract work that turned into a full time role
I have been able to learn and experiment in a production setting at warp speed within Simply Smart Home. This lean startup is a dynamic and diverse group of talented professionals.
Pictures of Dogs
Family Life & Balance
San Francisco and Southern California
Dogs, Cat, Partners, loving life.
I feel like life is about having shared experiences with loved ones. I’m lucky enough to share my life with three dogs, a cat, two husbands, and an incredible chosen family of loved ones.
I spend a decent amount of time listening to Sci-Fi audio books, keeping pace with continual learning, helping friends with their professional goals, and weightlifting.
Contact Me
Let’s start a conversation about making things pretty
Have an opportunity you have in mind something you think I’d be interested in? Any questions you think I may be able to help answer?