Philosophy and what I value

  • People > Process

    When you put people first you unlock creative problem solving. This allows you to start designing systems that recede into the background. I focus on building work practices that help teams grow, instead of hindering progress or hurting morale. Putting people ahead of process is the best road to growth.

  • Start with stories

    Understanding the story, reveals the why, and the why informs the how. When you skip why, you leave your partners, especially design and other creative teams, in a lurch. Mutual understanding and buy-in is not only critical to change management, it’s critical to the creative process.

  • Authenticity is key

    I take ownership of my work, and my words, and I expect the same of my teams. Building a culture of authenticity and ownership means that each individual is able to bring their best ideas to the table. Ownership is about owning outcomes, not just “jobs”.

  • Time is valuable, work smarter

    There’s often a way to improve a task efficiency, or accuracy, by automating or putting a standard process in place, but only if it really does deliver value. There are a host of tasks that when offloaded, can free talented individuals to innovate vs execute. Finally, and importantly, sometimes the best decision is just to make one and move on.

How I approach any work

  • Discovery

    Going back to people and stories matter, I spend a lot of time understanding the whys, and the underlying hopes and concerns of those involved.

  • Ideation

    Dream big, ship small. I start by thinking of everything that could be done, and then narrowing to what should be done. I prioritize traditionally using an urgent vs important matrix.

  • Pilot... always test

    Sometimes this is a full scale test, sometimes this is a series of conversations; but before committing resources I double check the solution.

  • Implement and iterate

    I like to find and measure success, learn, and then quickly move to the next opportunity. I generally find it’s healthier to build a brick at a time. Nothing is ever final, and waiting to move forward till everything is perfect is only another barrier to progress.

How I work with others

  • Management Style

    I adapt, but lean more towards leading by inspiring and pushing others to achieve their best. I’ve found over the years it provides the best outcomes. For the sake of the team, I have no problem taking ownership of the decision or outcome.

  • Personal Organization

    I like to set things up so that the day-to-day is as day-to-day as possible. I rely heavily on email scheduling, reminders, zero-inboxing, and calendaring. For everything else I decide to do now, later, or differently.

  • How I Communicate

    I prefer ad-hoc communication over standing meetings when standing check-ins aren’t productive. I don’t have a strong preference for writing vs face to face/audio but I do prefer that when someone needs me to do something they email or message me. I always check for clarity, and I always try to remain curious.

  • Maverick

    I never color too far outside the lines. I have a strong understanding and affinity for legal/compliance/security. However I’ve learned where coloring on the line, in the right situation, can provide creative solutions where others don’t exist.