Medbridge

It isn't just about designing. At Medbridge, my work has centered on shaping product vision and driving alignment — not just defining end states, but helping teams see possibilities early, build buy-in, and make confident bets in moments of uncertainty.

I've helped guide the evolution from a primarily education-focused platform into a scalable care ecosystem, supporting a rebrand, launching a new care platform, integrating more care experiences, and growing the design function from a team of one to three. I see design not just as execution, but as a way to shape direction, momentum, and belief.

Building the team I wanted to lead

During my time at Medbridge, I've interviewed 30+ designers while learning that building a strong team takes more than finding talented people. I had to learn which skills, perspectives, and personalities complemented each other—and which qualities mattered far more in practice than they did on a résumé.

But hiring was only the beginning. I learned that leading a team wasn't just about making sure the work was good. It was about creating an environment where people could grow: giving designers room to stretch, helping them find goals they were genuinely excited about, and creating opportunities to learn from one another.

Eventually, I realized my job wasn't to build a team that could execute my vision. It was to build one where each designer could develop their own.

Rethinking what the role looks like

Everyone in our industry is debating about whether AI will replace designers or not. I got tired of the debate and started asking a better question: if it’s not replacing us, what is it actually doing to the role? A year of digging into that turned into a framework for how design needs to operate now — less about craft alone, more about judgement, systems thinking, and owning outcomes.

• Defined four pillars (Systems Thinking, Judgement, Influence, Champion for the User) and six core skills that translate them into daily practice
• Redesigned the team’s workflow from a linear handoff model into a non-linear Understand → Explore → Build → Measure loop
• Reframed design’s relationship to Product and Engineering — from service function to strategic partner, with concrete implications for both teams
• Rolled the framework into an all-hands presentation and a career ladder redesign, moving the org from theory to practice