I started my career as a project and product manager, learning early on how decisions actually get made inside product organizations: the tradeoffs, the timelines, the internal debates that can stall a team for months. That foundation shapes everything I do now. When I moved into UX research, I didn't leave the PM mindset behind, I brought it with me, and it's what makes my approach different from a traditional researcher or a traditional consultant.

Over 20+ years I've worked across startups, consulting, and Meta, most recently as UX Research Director for Meta AI. I've helped teams build products from the ground up and manage them at global scale. I've also spent seven years co-building and leading Meta's Research Associate Program, a pipeline that developed UX researchers from non-traditional backgrounds. Watching people discover what they're capable of, when given the right structure and support, is some of the most meaningful work I've ever done.

That instinct to develop people shows up everywhere in my life. I'm a USATF and USAT certified coach, a three-time Ironman finisher, and an eleven-time marathon finisher, and I've coached women through couch-to-5K and beyond. What endurance sports taught me, meeting people where they are, knowing when to push and when to hold back, is the same philosophy I bring to this work.

As a death doula trained through Going with Grace, I'm drawn to the moments in life that ask for the most presence, vulnerability, and care. These are the moments that connect us, and I don't believe we're meant to move through them alone. It's where the Legacy Party grew from: I use the same discovery tools from my product work to help people define their legacy, the gift they leave behind.

I'm also co-writing a book with Elissa Darnell on UX research in the age of AI, because I believe understanding users has never mattered more than it does right now. We're writing it out in the open, posting excerpts as we go to learn what lands before it's finished. Read along on Substack and tell us what resonates.

My work is anchored in five values that show up in every project I take on: owning mistakes and learning from them, showing up consistently, seeking to understand without judgment, connecting and giving generously, and reframing challenges into opportunities. These aren't aspirational. They're how I try to operate every day.

If any of that resonates, I'd love to talk.