Discovery and Intuitive Wayfinding on the Road
Discovery and Intuitive Wayfinding on the Road
Building core app features and a design system end-to-end at a travel + tourism startup.
Building core app features and a design system end-to-end at a travel + tourism startup.
DURATION
DURATION
Jan 2024 - present
Jan 2024 - present
ROLE
ROLE
Lead Product Designer
Lead Product Designer
LOCATION
LOCATION
Mountain View, CA
Mountain View, CA
TOOLS
TOOLS
Figma, Sketch, Jira, Confluence
Figma, Sketch, Jira, Confluence
Due to my NDA, all visuals, product-specific details, and company name are omitted!
Due to my NDA, all visuals, product-specific details, and company name are omitted!
CONTEXT + CONSTRAINTS
CONTEXT + CONSTRAINTS
I'm currently at an early-stage startup building AI solutions in the travel and tourism space.
I'm currently at an early-stage startup building AI solutions in the travel and tourism space.
We’re designing a platform that helps travelers plan, personalize, and adjust trips, from the first spark of inspiration to navigating experiences in real time. I joined early, when the team was small, fast-moving, and mostly business-focused. At the time, there were no formal UX or product processes in place, which meant I've had the opportunity to shape how design fits into our long-term strategy and decision-making.
The goal is to build thoughtful, scalable design structure in a space that's still in flux: balancing big-picture vision with what's feasible, meaningful, and intuitive for travelers.
We’re designing a platform that helps travelers plan, personalize, and adjust trips, from the first spark of inspiration to navigating experiences in real time. I joined early, when the team was small, fast-moving, and mostly business-focused. At the time, there were no formal UX or product processes in place, which meant I've had the opportunity to shape how design fits into our long-term strategy and decision-making.
The goal is to build thoughtful, scalable design structure in a space that's still in flux: balancing big-picture vision with what's feasible, meaningful, and intuitive for travelers.
MY WORK
MY WORK
I'm leading design for both mobile and desktop experiences.
I'm leading design for both mobile and desktop experiences.
I own the mobile companion app and major portions of the desktop planning flow, including onboarding, itinerary editing, and post-booking adjustments. Much of the design process involves translating abstract ideas (“a fun, map-based onboarding,” “an immersive trip editor”) into tangible flows users can understand.
I've also helped establish small but foundational UX habits: keeping a shared design file structure, documenting decisions, and building reusable components.
I own the mobile companion app and major portions of the desktop planning flow, including onboarding, itinerary editing, and post-booking adjustments. Much of the design process involves translating abstract ideas (“a fun, map-based onboarding,” “an immersive trip editor”) into tangible flows users can understand.
I've also helped establish small but foundational UX habits: keeping a shared design file structure, documenting decisions, and building reusable components.
CHALLENGES
CHALLENGES
Learning to designing within ambiguity and shifting priorities has been a big part of the process.
Learning to designing within ambiguity and shifting priorities has been a big part of the process.
With no dedicated UX process in place, I often have to read between the lines, decoding verbal brainstorms and transforming them into structured prototypes. Stakeholder priorities shift frequently at early-stage startups, so I've learned to advocate for focus: identifying what is core to the user experience versus what was visual noise.
This has meant learning how to communicate design rationale clearly and tactfully and to maintain momentum when direction changes quickly. Communication has become just as important as design. Every day is an exercise in finding ways to make complex decisions feel grounded and visible.
With no dedicated UX process in place, I often have to read between the lines, decoding verbal brainstorms and transforming them into structured prototypes. Stakeholder priorities shift frequently at early-stage startups, so I've learned to advocate for focus: identifying what is core to the user experience versus what was visual noise.
This has meant learning how to communicate design rationale clearly and tactfully and to maintain momentum when direction changes quickly. Communication has become just as important as design. Every day is an exercise in finding ways to make complex decisions feel grounded and visible.
TLDR;
TLDR;
Shaping processes, structure, and clarity through design. Yay!
Shaping processes, structure, and clarity through design. Yay!
I've created onboarding flows and trip editors that simplify how users express their travel interests and discover personalized trips, turning sprawling concepts into immersive, map-centered experiences. We've set a precedent for agentic, conversational modalities of engagement, setting the foundation for our team’s next product phase.
More personally, this work has sharpened my product sense: how to prioritize what truly matters for users, how to advocate for design in ambiguous environments, and how to create structure and replicability.
I've created onboarding flows and trip editors that simplify how users express their travel interests and discover personalized trips, turning sprawling concepts into immersive, map-centered experiences. We've set a precedent for agentic, conversational modalities of engagement, setting the foundation for our team’s next product phase.
More personally, this work has sharpened my product sense: how to prioritize what truly matters for users, how to advocate for design in ambiguous environments, and how to create structure and replicability.