Hello
I'm Chris
I currently work and live in Denver Colorado.
I split my time between creative ventures and tackling various design-build projects including house renovations and furniture projects.
Early in my career, I was designing in the northeast cities of Wilmington DE, Washington DC and Boston MA working for a wide range of companies focusing on architecture, industrial design and packaging.
Since moving to Colorado, I’ve pivoted my career to focus more on leadership and mentoring. I’ve worked with both local and international companies to help refine their design strategy, strengthen business acumen involving design and evolving their in-house design teams. See below for values that guide my leadership style and some of the areas I focus on in the work I do.
Leadership Style
Practicing Adaptive Leadership
There are many different forms of leadership. I believe in setting clear goals and achieving them helps drive individuals and teams towards their road of growth. My role as a leader is to tie threads between the goals of the organization and that of the design team. Those ties provide visibility into the impact of the work and highlight the importance of the team and its contributions toward the success of the business. Bridging the gap between the higher level strategy development and the details of the work being produced allows the team to run faster, pivot when needed, always feel plugged into the bigger picture.
Building Confidence through Ambiguity
Many designers struggle with ambiguity. One area of focus for the teams I work with is how to not get distracted by the noise. Use your skills to stay focused on your role to the best of your ability using best practices, collaboration and making decisions based on research and metrics. When you deliver strong work, you quiet the noise around you. As a leader, I help people weigh their options, rely on their knowledge to make a decision and support them when that decision works out and also when it doesn’t.
Promote Collaboration & Transparency
Collaboration and transparency create a supportive environment between designers and partners who share experiences, challenges, and aspirations. Coming together through engaging discussions, feedback, and joint problem-solving, helps build stronger relationships. Balancing organic development with consistent touch-points such as critiques and retros help foster a constant stream of feedback. As a leader, my role is to cultivate these opportunities to strengthen the fabric of an organization.
Cultivating a Culture of Success
Creating a successful culture on a team starts with a clear understanding on achievement and the camaraderie among teammates. By promoting open communication, balancing inspiration with accountability, and leaning on trust, teams will start to bond and that will spark success at every level. Creating a support system to motivate and align professional and personal goals helps individual growth which then feeds back into team growth. As a leader my role is to empower individuals and teams to reach their full potential through collaboration, motivation, and care.
Mentorship & Coaching
Creating growth opportunities and learning opportunities are key to setting up a strong and nurturing environment. Receiving real time feedback helps designers deepen their self awareness, try new tools and techniques, and push themselves in areas they are passionate about. As a leader, my role is identify these opportunities and encourage others to take advantage of them. To create a supportive space where individuals can come out of their comfort zones and push themselves to try something different. Learning is an iterative process and one where the hardest step is often the first one.
Areas of Expertise
I am passionate to get involved in the strategy side of a business, helping teams align their work to the goals of the company and the needs of their clients. When goals are clear, everyone involved is able to stay in sync and work towards impactful solutions. Great strategy helps keeps teams focused and motivated to achieve success. Practices like roadmapping helps teams know what they are working towards giving them a clear understanding on how their work connects to long term goals.
Prioritization helps teams gain and keep momentum focusing on highly rewarding work that balances resources with impact. Planning also helps break down large initiatives into more actionable projects that design teams can pick up and run with. It allows teams to focus on solving problems vs dealing with the ambiguity of intake and competing requests that often create confusion and drag down confidence amongst the team in terms of knowing what their focus should be.
A design team’s process is the backbone to how efficient they work. While I have helped lift a wide range of processes throughout my career, the commonality is to set clear expectations. Good processes help stakeholders and clients know what they can expect while holding the team accountable. In addition, a good process helps designers work freely knowing what the proper steps are to move a project along and drive it to the finish line. Defining process promotes consistency and guidance to a design team, regardless of experience and skill gaps.
I love helping teams understand their audiences and how to reach them. Through strategy work, requirement gathering, and iterative concepting, many assumptions are typically made. It’s through the research and user testing that we find out how accurate those assumptions are and how/when to move forward or pivot in another direction. Through these findings design teams can discover unique perspectives. identify gaps and create robust experiences that support client and business goals.
History
Senior Experience Designer & Team Lead
Rocket Mortgage, Rocket Solar & Rocket Loans
Creative Director
University of Colorado Denver
Creative Director
Janus Henderson Financial Investors
Art Director
Rocky Mountain Institute & Carbon War Room
Lead Digital & Packaging Designer
Brewster Home Fashions
Digital Art Director
Group Goetz Architects
Senior Industrial Designer
Amtrak
Architectural Draftman & Web Designer
Homsey Architects