Roots

Jake Nuñez is an experienced Senior Product Designer at Maya, focusing on enhancing the merchant experience by designing their Business products. He brings over 9 years of diverse work experience in fields such as Digital Marketing, Graphic Design, Art Direction, and User Experience. Additionally, he is dedicated to mentoring aspiring designers and equipping them for the industry through his involvement with ADPList - a global mentoring community committed to democratizing mentorship.

In this episode, we talk about taking risks and investing in education, learning UX design during the pandemic, and going from aspiring disc jockey to senior product designer.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakealfrednunez/

ADPList: https://adplist.org/mentors/jake-nunez

Frances To is an Independent Designer who specializes in creating bespoke websites, digital products, and interactive stories for fast-growing companies. Previously, she co-founded UX+ University, a learning platform that empowers career shifters to become User Experience professionals in 16 weeks. She also designed digital products at First Circle and Maya. Since the start of Frances’ independent design practice her work has been recognized by Awwwards, CSS Design Awards, Typewolf, and Buried Signals.

In this episode we talk about owning your background and past as a designer, exploring the boundaries of design through interactive storytelling, and learning to be an independent freelancer.

Instagram - https://instagram.com/francesto.design

Twitter - https://twitter.com/francesto927

TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@francesto

DigiValet - https://www.digivalet.com

The Haircut - https://the-haircut.webflow.io

Jarell is an intermediate product designer currently working on enterprise software for Copperleaf who helps utility companies make better decisions that make a better world. On the side he volunteers at ADPList and BCIT as a mentor, regularly hosts or speaks at local meetups and events, and started a local design community in Vancouver on April 2020 with over 600 members worldwide for casual bi-weekly calls. 

In this episode, we talk about the power of community and building it from scratch, helping other people succeed, doing enterprise design, and so much more.

Jen Enrique is a Staff Product Designer at Slack. With over 14 years experience, she has worked at agencies, startups, and big companies. Today, she champions building design culture and teaching designers how to self-advocate at work. As a 2nd generation child of immigrants, she had to learn how to navigate corporate cultures without insider expertise or formal mentors. In the last year, she has parlayed that experience into mentoring 100+ designers.

In this episode, we talk about starting and formalizing design community work at Slack, going through the interview circuit, finding balance through travel, and so much more. 

Ray Sison is a Senior Design Director for Product Design for SNKRS at Nike, designing for a niche community of sneakerheads. Before that, he was the Head of Design at Clarity Money, which was acquired by Goldman Sachs in 2018. He was previously a Design Director at both Work&Co and R/GA, and worked on top brands like Google, Apple, Facebook, Playstation, Fortnite, Aesop, Nike+, Nike Basketball, Samsung, and a lot more.

In this episode, we talk about what it’s like to design for a brand like Nike, how to be an effective design director, why making it harder to buy shoes makes sense, and so much more.

Pia Zaragoza is a creative technologist, researcher, and educator exploring the current use cases and future possibilities of emerging technologies. She is the former Vice President of Accessibility Research and Insights at JP Morgan Chase and is currently a Presidential Innovation Fellow. Pia’s Google Home once told her that the meaning of life is all about finding a way.

In this episode, we talk about how Pia found her way into inclusive design and research, finding your voice as a designer, contributing to civic tech, designing for accessibility and inclusion, and so much more.

Leonardo is a content designer and content strategist from Seattle, Washington—where he was born and raised. He currently works at Orca Pacific, a MightyHive company, as the lead content strategist, helping some of the leading brands optimize their content across multiple eCommerce platforms such as Amazon, Target, and Wal-mart.  In his spare time, he mentors up-and-coming UX writers through the UX Writing Hub, and is particularly passionate about helping those in the BIPOC/AAPI community.

In this episode, we talk about shifting to a UX writing career, systemic racism and the BLM movement, the challenges and privileges of being Filipino-American, and so much more.

Ian Sagabaen is a UX Designer at Google, building Google Cloud's enterprise tools. If you've ever been described as shy and need that nudge to break out of your comfortable shell, Ian’s travel stories might motivate you. He started as the quiet kid from San Jose, when on a whim challenged himself to live on the other side of the world, then applied his newfound courage he discovered while abroad to build up his body of work at different Silicon Valley tech companies. 

In this episode, we talk about progressing from graphic to interaction design, moving to Japan to study, designing for internal tools, enterprise vs consumer design, UX mentoring, and so much more.

Francis Estrada is an Interaction Designer at Google, currently working on YouTube Music Ads. As a fan of taking the scenic route, Francis gained experience working in marketing, software quality assurance, and web design before finding his way into UX. Over the years, he's picked up a side hustle as a UX instructor, having taught both undergraduates and adult learners at several institutions including The University of Washington, Bellevue College, and the School of Visual Concepts in Seattle. 

In this episode we talk about starting out as a web designer, designing for Amazon Key and its delivery experiences, working on Google Cloud design systems, joining the Youtube Music Ads team, and so much more.

Krizia Lim is a Senior Graphic Designer at Kalibrr by day, a Freelance Illustrator and Designer by night, and a photographer, web designer, and more in between. She was previously an intern at Pepper.ph and an art director at Elevation Partners, where she worked with Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf — developing her interest in designing for F&B brands. She believes that her love for design, food, music, games, and k-culture fuels her to create, illustrate, and explore other trades of design.

In this episode we talk about creating a narrative for your illustrations and designs, how deep interests and hobbies help Krizia create, starting out in an industry you’re not used to, and so much more.

Mike Walkusky is a Senior Content Designer at Intuit, the maker of TurboTax, Mint, and QuickBooks. Prior to joining Intuit, he was the editor-in-chief of https://EDM.com and a sports journalist for Bleacher Report. Mike lives in San Diego, California with his wife, daughter, and three dogs. He loves spending time with his family, discovering new music, basketball, sneakers, Asian food, K-dramas, and movies. Also, he's passionate about diversity, equity, and inclusion.

In this episode, we discuss the difference of content writers and journalists, breaking into tech as customer service rep, becoming a lead content designer, fostering inclusion and equity through content design, and so much more.

Riel Mosqueriola is a Product Designer at LiveMore, a personal development app whose goal is to provide the right tools and knowledge in achieving one's personal goals. Previously, she worked at Grab, designing for GrabFood and GrabExpress. She greatly believes that in order to get better in anything you do, you should never be afraid to ask. She is currently based in Singapore, wherein apart from being a Designer, she’s a “chef” at her own kitchen experimenting new dishes.

In this episode, we talk about starting a design agency right after college, building your first design system, going from agency to in-house product designer, designing in small versus big startups, and a lot more.

Alysa Trinidad is a Senior Visual Designer at Intuit, the maker of TurboTax, QuickBooks and Mint, based in Mountain View, California. As a California native, she grew up in nearby Wine Country where her love for art, music and digital media led her to a fulfilling career path as a multidisciplinary designer. She has lived many creative lives, from leading the very first social media department at her college radio station, to working as an in-house designer at high profile startups in Silicon Valley.

In this episode, we talk about her personal experiences growing up in the North Bay Area as a first generation Filipino-American, the importance of speaking up and advocating for yourself in the workplace as a WOC, and so much more.

Sheryl Cababa is the Vice President of Strategy at Substantial, a design and technology consultancy in Seattle, and has more than two decades of experience as a multi-disciplinary design practitioner. With a background in human-centered design research and strategy, she has worked as a design consultant at companies like Artefact, frog, and Adaptive Path. She is an international speaker and facilitator, and has developed methods for designers to integrate systems thinking with their practices.

In this episode, we talk about design consulting, Filipino representation in tech, ethical decision making and systems thinking, the consequences of designing products at scale, and so much more.

Rannie Teodoro, Ph.D., is the Head of Design at Thumbtack, an online marketplace that matches customers with local service professionals. She is one of the few researchers in the world leading a design organization, including the Product Design, Experience Research, and Creative teams. Prior to Thumbtack, she was leading a team of UX researchers at Facebook. Her work has informed strategies for news-based platforms, search products, local services, and emerging markets.

In this episode, we talk about going from academic research to UX research, creating ethical products, management and representation in leadership, fighting ingrained Filipino mindsets, and so much more.

Ed Salvaña is a Product Designer at Facebook. After long stints on Facebook Ads, Instagram and Events, he now designs experiences for new platforms and devices at Facebook Reality Labs. While growing up, he thought he would become a priest, a pilot, or even a scientist. He ended up becoming an animator, engineer, then eventually a product designer. He still has trouble explaining what he does to his parents. Ed is also a voracious carnivore, appreciates fine brews and well-made video games.

In this episode we talk about going from flash developer to product designer, designing for FB Ads, Events, Reality Labs, and Instagram, delivering impact through product incubation, and so much more.

Niki Torres is the founder, producer, and host of Chief Best Friends, a podcast helping women succeed in work and business through meaningful friendships. She also writes BFFs, a bi-weekly email for Asia’s female founders, bringing together resources on growing a business, cultivating friendships, and seeking opportunities for funding. Niki has 12+ years of experience in communications, growth, and digital marketing, and was most recently the Director of Product Growth at a Sequoia-backed startup.

In this episode we talk about pirate metrics and growth loops, changing a team’s mindset from doing marketing to growth, building a community for content and UX writing, and so much more.

Francis Alturas is the Co-founder and CDO of Abstract Digital—a digital product design agency with expertise in doing design sprints for venture-backed seed stage startups in Southeast Asia. He worked with brands like 500 Startups, Rocket Internet, The World Bank, and The Presidential Communications Office.  He enjoys designing interfaces, writing frontend code, and co-organizing local design events like the UXPH Roadshow, Visual 4 and Sketch & Dribbble Meetups.

In this episode we talk about Francis and his early days with the web, wearing multiple hats as a designer and manager, building his company as a Chief Design Officer, and so much more.

Erika Sibal is a Senior Designer and UX Lead at ExxonMobil’s Modern Applications & Platforms team. Before joining Exxon, she was a 2D Senior Project Lead at The Studio of Secret 6, a game development company based in the Philippines. Erika merges her passion for design, culture, and games by transforming experiences through gamification. Outside of design, she enjoys playing video games, reading books, and illustration.

In this episode, we talk about how Erika went from architecture to game design to evangelizing UX, navigating design politics, gamifying corporate onboarding, and so much more.

Jonathan Remulla is a Product Design Manager at SurveyMonkey, leading design for the core surveys experience for self-serve and enterprise customers. Since 2015, he's been an educator at General Assembly, teaching UX at the San Francisco campus. Jonathan also runs Supafrenz, providing clients with both traditional graphic and product design. A Bay Area native, he loves watching anything fighting, forever the Warriors, and the 49ers and Giants, only when they're good. 

In this episode, we talk about leading north star redesigns in tech companies, learning to be a UX instructor, being an open and authentic design manager, and so much more.