Hugo Welke, a lead designer at Canva, shares his journey from Brazil to Ireland and eventually Australia, where he's been with Canva for five years. He discusses his transition from product design to design operations, emphasising the importance of creating a positive employee experience. Hugo highlights Canva's commitment to inclusivity, both in the workplace and in their product design. He reflects on the challenges of maintaining simplicity in design as products scale and the importance of ef...
Feb 06, 2025•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 29
In this episode of Digitally Diverse, we sit down with Gareth Rydon, co-founder of Friyay, Australia's first generative AI studio. Gareth shares his unique career journey, transitioning from accounting to human-centered design and eventually to the cutting-edge world of AI. He discusses the challenges and rewards of starting a value-driven AI company, emphasising the importance of augmenting human capabilities rather than replacing them. Gareth offers insights into maintaining work-life balance ...
Oct 23, 2024•49 min•Ep. 28
This episode of the Digitally Diverse podcast features a conversation with Rebecca Preston, a Senior Product Designer at Zipline. Rebecca discusses her career journey, the importance of user research and design collaboration, and the challenges and rewards of working in a remote-first environment. She also offers valuable advice for aspiring designers and emphasizes the power of networking, self-improvement, and the willingness to pivot and adapt in the ever-changing tech industry.
Aug 16, 2024•47 min•Ep. 27
Join us as we chat with Jitesh Ramesh, Lead UX Designer at Rate My Agent. Jitesh shares his journey from mechanical engineering to industrial design and eventually to digital product design. He discusses the complexities and challenges of bridging the gap between tangible and digital products, reflecting on his experiences working on projects ranging from motorcycle design to construction and fintech software. Jitesh emphasizes the importance of being adaptable, stepping away from the details, a...
Aug 01, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 26
Wal Gedeon joins us for this episode of Digitally Diverse. Wal shares his career journey from teaching himself design skills to becoming a delivery lead at VMware Tanzu Labs. He started with a background in product design and worked at companies like Woolies X and Goodlife Health Clubs. Wal then expanded into UI and UX design by taking courses at General Assembly. He also completed some product management training to become more well-rounded. Now at Tanzu Labs, Wal manages projects and coaches e...
Mar 27, 2024•45 min•Ep. 25
Join us as we follow Sarah's journey from industrial design student to senior product designer at a bank. We'll hear how she leveraged work experience to land her first packaging design role and then made a big move to the UK. After struggling to find work abroad, Sarah returned to Australia, pivoted to commercial flooring, and discovered user experience design. She then honed her skills at a cloud platform startup before deciding to learn about banking. Through roles at various companies, Sarah...
Mar 21, 2024•57 min•Ep. 24
Kathryn Sadler joins us to discuss her winding career path through linguistics, UX design, and conversation design. After studying languages at university, Kathryn worked in business consultancy and tech startups in Australia. She then transitioned into voice user interface design and UX before returning to her passion for conversation design. Kathryn gives us the inside scoop on her day-to-day work crafting conversational experiences. She also shares how her background in languages informs her ...
Mar 13, 2024•38 min•Ep. 23
Lara Summers joins us to discuss her multifaceted career journey, from finance and government to education, and her current role as manager of the Service Experience team at the University of Newcastle. We explore the university environment, Lara's collaborative team culture, and how she balances work, family, and personal interests. Lara opens up about how taking time off to care for her children impacted her path, as well as her motivations for continuing education and development. Tune in as ...
Feb 28, 2024•28 min•Ep. 22
Join us as we follow Jane's journey from a small town in Australia to leading design at a fintech startup. Growing up near Port Macquarie, Jane found her passion for design while studying graphic design in Newcastle. After some globe-trotting adventures and a career change, she discovered user experience design and honed her skills in Sydney. Jane built her experience at agencies before realizing fintech was her true calling. Though a stint at a corporation proved too restrictive, Jane finally f...
Feb 15, 2024•43 min•Ep. 21
In this episode, Ellen interviews designer Fran Mether about her career journey and founding the service design consultancy Arteri. Fran discusses growing up in a creative household in Canberra and studying industrial design. After working for major retailers in Melbourne, Fran became inspired by human-centered design approaches that create impact. She relocated to Canberra to work on strategic projects for clients like the ATO. Fran then co-founded Arteri with her business partner to pursue her...
Feb 07, 2024•57 min•Ep. 20
On this episode of Digitally Diverse, Ellen talks to Joseph Hallahan, Head of Design at StarRez. Joseph recounts his 15 year career journey from agency work to becoming a part owner and eventually launching his own startups. He shares insights from his current role as Head of Design at Starres, a global student housing platform, and the differences between agency and in-house work. Joseph discusses how he helps maximize value for Starres' university customers, and is motivated by continuous lear...
Jan 31, 2024•45 min•Ep. 19
Join us as we speak with Paul Kelly, Head of Experience Design at Mudbath, about his journey from studying visual arts to leading design at a digital agency. Paul discusses pivoting to study design in university and getting his start at Bicycling Australia magazine. He then did freelance work before moving to Glasgow and learning coding. After returning to Sydney, Paul spent 8 years at a digital agency before joining the growing team at Mudbath. He talks about Mudbath's expansion from 4 to 17 de...
Jan 24, 2024•47 min•Ep. 18
This episode of Digitally Diverse features Nusa de Melo, a Product Designer at Atticus. Nusa opens up about her journey from studying math at UC Berkeley to becoming a product designer at a legal tech startup in Australia. She talks about pivoting from sales to design, taking online courses, and landing her first product design role. Nusa discusses life as the only designer at Atticus, working on software that verifies legal documents, and why she finds the small startup environment more rewardi...
Jan 17, 2024•45 min•Ep. 17
This week's episode of Digitally Diverse features James Kwong, Chief Product Officer at Unleash Live. James discusses his career journey in the Australian design industry, from studying industrial design in university to starting his own agency to working in strategic design consulting. He then transitioned into product management roles before joining Unleash Live, a video analytics startup using computer vision and AI. James opens up about challenges he's faced, including ageism as a young lead...
Jan 10, 2024•59 min•Ep. 16
Join us as we chat with Chelsea Wilkinson about her lifelong passion for building and creating. She studied user experience design in university and landed internships that allowed her to combine her interests in tech and design. Chelsea shares her experiences working at major companies like ANZ and Coles Group, the challenges of juggling music and career, and her recent ADHD diagnosis. She talks about how she used the pandemic as a time for self-improvement and dove into hobbies like building m...
Jan 03, 2024•32 min•Ep. 15
In this episode, Luisa Lombardo shares her career journey from print designer to product design manager. After studying graphic design in college, she worked at agencies and companies as a visual and UI designer. Seeing the field change, Luisa took a UX course and found her passion in digital product design. She's since progressed to lead and manager roles on product teams for B2B and B2C companies. Luisa gives an inside look at her current role at Mabel, a platform connecting people with disabi...
Dec 20, 2023•38 min•Ep. 14
This episode features Christian, the global design and quality practice lead at Telstra Health. Originally from Venezuela, Christian has lived in Australia for over a decade. Beginning his career as a graphic designer, he transitioned to UI design across various industries. Driven by curiosity about user experiences, Christian has focused on UX for the past 8 years while maintaining a full-scope view. With experience in ecommerce, finance, energy, aviation, and now healthcare, he discusses the r...
Dec 13, 2023•41 min•Ep. 13
Benaz Irani joins us to discuss her career journey from discovering user experience design during a study abroad program to leading product teams at Open Table today. She shares lessons learned from struggling with being a people pleaser early on and the importance of setting boundaries to grow in your career. Benaz opens up about the identity crisis she faced transitioning into management and not doing hands-on design work anymore. She finds inspiration from women leaders in tech and enjoys lea...
Dec 06, 2023•36 min•Ep. 12
On this episode of Digitally Diverse, host Ellen Bennett talks to Lisa Jacquiot, Product Design Manager at Airwallex. From the vibrant city lights of San Francisco to the serene waters of the Great Barrier Reef, Lisa's journey spans the globe in pursuit of her passions. Her interest in UX design took root at Glassdoor, prompting a mid-career shift. Venturing to Australia for new experiences, she polished her skills at a startup in San Francisco before settling downunder. However, the onset of CO...
Nov 29, 2023•35 min•Ep. 11
In this episode we talk to Kelly Weiss, a Senior Product Designer at Salesforce. Kelly has spent half her career working in corporate and half in tech, mostly for startups. We discuss the differences between corporate and start-up work cultures, and Kelly highlights that the main skill you can develop in either is adaptability. We delve into a range of topics including advice on getting started with UX and UI, building creativity into your way of work, creating healthy cultures and more....
Nov 22, 2023•46 min•Ep. 10
Don’t miss our latest episode of Digitally Diverse series with our host Ellen Bennett and our guest Richard Sneesby. After living in Scandinavia for 10+ years, Richard has had a unique journey to his current role of Senior Product Designer at Atlassian. He and Ellen chat about how this has impacted his career, his outlook on remote working, and how he views his craft. He embodies the phrase “Everything is design when you look at it in a certain way.” We hope you enjoy the episode!...
Feb 07, 2023•26 min•Ep. 9
Don’t miss our latest episode of Digitally Diverse series with our host Ellen Bennett and guest for this episode Leanora Horne, Software Product Delivery Manager at Bradken. Leanora is the ultimate career chameleon. Her journey from starting as a TV presenter to now making waves in the corporate tech scene has been turbulent and full of speed bumps. However, this struggle ultimately led her to discover her true passion in entrepreneurship and digital product development. So, take a page out of L...
Jan 25, 2023•39 min•Ep. 8
Welcome to the first episode of our Digitally Diverse series with our host Ellen Bennet, UX & Design Recruiter at NTP/RTP. This series is a deep dive into the careers of some inspiring people within the Australian digital and technology industry. On this episode we interview Tricia Martin Founder of Virtual Intern. We find out about Tricia’s career to date, her experience as a female founder, interesting projects she has been involved in and the idea behind coffee with purpose. We hope you e...
Nov 30, 2022•40 min•Ep. 7
Liz shares how her team have managed to grow, collaborate and thrive remotely and the practices that they have developed to build their team culture. Hope you enjoy the episode!
Sep 02, 2022•20 min•Ep. 6
On this episode we interview James Dillon, Senior Content Production Manager at Remote. James shares his experience working remotely, the future growth of Remote and helpful tips for building culture and relationships within remote teams. Hope you enjoy the episode!
Aug 01, 2022•25 min•Ep. 5
On this episode you will hear about all things product design with James Barr. James shares insights from the different stages of the product design life cycle and explains how he collaborates with his team and his clients entirely remotely. Hope you enjoy the episode!
May 30, 2022•19 min•Ep. 4
On this episode of RemoteTechPeople we interview Ben May from the Code Company. Ben shares his advice on building culture remotely as well as how he has scaled the Code Company from Hervey Bay Queensland to a worldwide audience. Hope you enjoy the episode!
May 12, 2022•29 min•Ep. 3
With remote work on the rise, the issue of creating the same deep relationships in a team virtually compared to being in the office is becoming more and and more challenging. Jessica Baird and her team at Remote Social have created a product to encourage social moments between teams through a series of virtual games and hosted experiences well suited to remote and hybrid teams. We hope you enjoy the episode!
Jan 20, 2022•34 min•Ep. 2
In our first episode of the RemoteTechPeople Podcast we interview Brendan Yell, Director of Twilio StartUps. We discuss his experience setting up a team remotely, the benefits of both remote work/hybrid model and the challenges associated with pay adjustment for employees moving out of the area of their certain salary banding. We hope you enjoy the episode!
Jan 20, 2022•31 min•Ep. 1
