PORTFOLIO
PORTFOLIO
case summaryTalk to me like you know me
Root’s new CMO was looking to boost homepage engagement within his first 60 days.
The team pitched 18 unique options spanning 5 messaging lenses and moved from concept to development on an A/B test in 14 days.
As Co-creative director, I helped guide a task force of 15+ creatives (Web, Social, CX, and Campaign teams) through pressurized organizing, researching, and creative collaboration. The winning test didn’t hinge on a new look or headline alone, but a strategically crafted signal that spoke to our target customers and matched brand and product growth.
Co-creative director: Rachel Scherer
Design leads: Trenton Brulport (UX Manager), Jes Martin, Rebecca McMillan, Kent Harris, Taylor Bohn, Aaron Anderson, Connor McDunn, Wes Kull
Copy leads: Dylan Meister, Kat Kuchle, Matthew Lovett, Cecil Cross
Senior leaders: Jill Neely (Executive CD), Kelly Ruoff (Chief Brand Officer)
case summaryA visual system built to reduce bottlenecks
Klaviyo placed big bets on thought leadership content as a marketing strategy in 2023.
Our team designed an updated visual system for the content hub that streamlined review cycles, reduced oversight, and was built to adapt and meet quality at speed, while visually cutting through our core social branding. As a director, I helped guide the process end-to-end, amplifying our design lead's conceptual instincts and ensuring we were focused on the right goals—from concept to system, and development through launch.
Design lead: KW Nemelka
Marketing leader: Tracey Wallace
Web/UX partners: Tim Rabb, Robert Yu, Tim Dwyer
Senior leaders: Allison Mack (Creative Director), John Goodwin (Executive CD)
case summaryReduced decisions, expanded capacity
Root.com was growing. Fast. We needed to stop custom-building every landing page and design a CMS with speed and scalability in mind.
This wasn’t my first involvement with a speedy CMS design and content migration. In 2011, I led moving EXPRESS’ blog from proposal to development in two weeks’ time as a solo contributor. But this was different—it was a well-documented, companywide investment with 8 weeks, and a group unaccustomed to thinking in systems.
This meant everyone was learning new methods and terms WHILE partnering closely with developers in the build and demo phase. As a design director, I was responsible for making sure we focused on the right priorities even when I didn’t have all the right answers. Pages that took weeks now take hours to publish. But this wasn’t just about speed—it expanded choice around where our resources were spent.
Co-creative director: Maria Minnelli
Design leads: Jordan Hetzer, Aaron Anderson, Rebecca McMillan
UX manager: Trenton Brulport
Senior leaders: Jill Neely (Executive CD), Kelly Ruoff (Chief Brand Officer)
Experience summaryA world in 3D
I spent four years moving fast, lean, and down-and-dirty in the world of overseas giftware manufacturing.
Designing for a company with an employee count in the thousands isn’t too far removed from this experience designing in a tiny garage studio—similar hurdles, smaller scale. I supported a very small team in tripling the product line and doubling down on sales. As a Design Director for a tiny operation, I was on the front lines of rapid concepting, vendor sourcing at trade shows in China, working white label deals, creating sales enablement materials, and overseeing production feedback.
VP: Paul Pearson
Admin: Mary Panayiotou
Sales: Becky Beebe, Cathi Hawkins
Overseas agent: Cathy Zhou
case summaryWe’ve never done this before…
DSW made a first-time PR play of publishing a 200-page book targeted for the NYT Bestsellers list.
The objective was to move from “Where do we even start?” to “Let’s take this show on the road.” The challenge: start leading design work without a manuscript or content outline in hand.
It took establishing direction and structure in an ambiguous scenario, moving forward on production without all the answers, learning to work with steep limitations, plus deep listening and collaboration where multiple executive-level stakeholders had a say. This project absolutely sucked, but I’d do it again! It fed an early interest in editorial content that continues to this day.
Senior leaders: Heather Marr (Art Director), Bryan Dow (Creative Director)
Design contractor: Barb Eicke
Marketing leaders: Kelly Cook (Marketing VP), Derek Ungless (CMO)
From the archives
In the past, I designed assets ranging from emails to garment marketing to credit cards.
Each new start builds on the last.
-
I began my career in retail catalog production as an assembly line illustrator, eventually growing into concept, content, and layout design for cookbooks and calendars.
-
I grew naturally into workflow management. Honestly? ADHD thrives here—Prioritizing a big goal while attuning to changing conditions is satisfying.
-
I fell into 3D giftware design and found out starting over could be invigorating. I learned about: visualizing design specs from multiple pov’s, rapid iteration, white label manufacturing, selling at trade shows, and working with overseas vendors.
-
My experience spans print and digital—from production to special projects. I DON’T love doing it all, but I sure know what it takes to switch gears.
-
I feel most at home in a role that starts with the big picture, zooms down into the dots, then back out to connect them. Here, I lean on my broad experience to assess priorities and delegate to peoples’ strengths.
-
I believe in the efficacy of both managing and IC directors (especially when paired together).