09/2022 – present

As Executive Director at INDEED, I guide clients, teams, and programs on the journey to Circularity, the only path to sustainability. In my dual-leadership role, I oversee the 'build' unit, leading 20 experts in crafting physical and digital circular products and services, while also serving as the go-to person for outreach, converting leads into new clients. 

Leading new client projects, I excel in stakeholder management, opportunity identification through ecosystem mappings, navigating regulatory landscapes, calculating ROI for circular business models, and implementing 'R-Strategies' with corresponding AI-powerd LCA forecasts. Our project outcomes drive paradigm shifts and systemic change, generating new revenue opportunities, future-proofing businesses, and enhancing resilience in existing systems. 

Leveraging my two-decade focus on Customer Experience, I am pioneering CircX (Circular Experience) within the global Circular Economy and Design practice, frequently speak on this topic at international conferences.

06/2020 – 09/2021

During my tenure at Babbel, I spearheaded the consolidation of the organization’s creative force, integrating 10 new hires and leading a team of 35 experts across UX/UI design, research, writing, and strategy. By forming this cross-disciplinary team, I established and rolled out a unified product and brand strategy framework, ensuring a seamless customer journey from marketing to in-app learning. By translating extensive research data into impactful learning experiences, my team delivered iterative MVPs and facilitated ongoing updates to further enhance the self-guided learning journey. Collaboration with product marketing resulted in the successful pioneering of B2B and a live learning pilots, introducing parallel revenue streams and securing market leadership in the EdTech industry.

04/2016 – 06/2019

At TEAGUE in Seattle, I navigated complex corporate ecosystems to translate insights into impactful UX & CX projects. By co-developing the Creative Direction and Process practice, I effectively activated multinational and cross-functional departments across an organization of 200 designers. I successfully guided agile teams on parallel projects, often co-locating with embedded client-side designers and initiated cross-industry collaborations with Steelcase and Johnson Controls. Utilizing design thinking methodology, I co-authored the BOEING Vision 2050, supporting the airframe manufacturer's vertical integration strategy. My entrepreneurial drive and creative leadership culminated in the $100 million BOEING-Adient joint venture in 2018 and acquisition of EnCore Group in 2019, disrupting the aviation seating market.

08/2014 – 09/2015 

With MING Labs, I restructured the Berlin office, leading a team of 15 UX/UI experts. By enhancing organizational and creative processes, I fostered a unified approach to digital experience design. Through a detailed analysis of the start-up ecosystem, I further expanded the team and diversified the offerings to include both digital and physical human-centred experiences. This strategic capability mix enabled industry partnerships with two key clients, the world's first AI app-controlled directional lighting solution for Luke Roberts and the groundbreaking market leadership for an organic liquid egg whites product, receiving an iF Award.

01/2006 – 04/2013 

In 2006, I established WILDDESIGN Shanghai, China's first international design consultancy, and expanded it into a 360º full-service brand and design company, receiving numerous international design awards. Overseeing all business and design aspects, I developed a diverse, cross-functional team of 20, cultivating future industry leaders with a focus on human-centred experience design. Forging global partnerships with over 50+ multinational brands, including Clarks, Bosch, SanDisk, and BASF, lead to multi-year client engagements – like Fissler's holistic China market presence, spanning online to retail, under a five-year retainer agreement. Outside the company I acted as jury member for the iF Design Award and spokesperson for RedDot across Asia.

05/2001 – 12/2005 

At Panasonic's Tokyo headquarters, I established lasting partnerships as the key liaison for international projects with US alliance partners Procter&Gamble and Johnson&Johnson. Leading award-winning collaboration projects, I created a significant global impact in the skin & hair care industry, resulting in five design patents and a Red Dot Design award. I co-crafted and executed Panasonic’s global design strategy, establishing an international design team of five experts and fostering collaborations with European universities. In my final years, I investigated Chinese market opportunities, laying the foundation for a Panasonic Design Center in Shanghai.