UX Director, Google Maps • Google • Mountain View, CA • December 2021 - Present

Leading two globally-distributed teams and two horizontal efforts within the Google Maps organization, also known as Geo.

Geo Auto is responsible for: built-in Google Maps experience in several leading brands’ latest models including: Polestar 2, GMC Hummer, Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray, Cadillac Lyriq, Renault Mégane, and Volvo XC40 Recharge; sustainable mobility with eco-routing and features for EVs; Google Maps through Android Auto and Apple Carplay; and powering an auto brand’s own in-car experience, with Mercedes-Benz announced as our first partner.

Geo Sustainability enables governments, businesses, academia, researchers, and individuals to address the sustainability challenges of climate change with products that include: Google Earth, the premier 3D model of the globe; Earth Engine, Google’s geospatial data and visualization platform; Environmental Insights Explorer, data & insights for cities to measure & reduce emissions; Delve, generative design for real estate teams; Mesa, for efficient commercial building management; Pebble, enabling municipalities to manage mobility operations; and Breezometer’s air quality (powering Apple’s weather app), pollen, and fire alert data and capabilities.

UX leader for horizontal cross-functional efforts: Driving Experiences across all surfaces (in-car + mobile), enabling cross-team coordination for cohesive driving navigation experiences; Electric Vehicle enablement across driver, automotive OEM, developer, and city experiences powered by Google Maps.

Responsible for leading each team’s related UX functions and activities that inform the product portfolio’s strategy, design, development, and ongoing evolution; directly managing design managers and designers to enable their growth, well-being, engagement, and effectiveness. Member of each business’ cross-functional staff responsible for day-to-day management and product area leadership. Managing teams located in Los Angeles, Mountain View, New York, San Francisco, Seattle, Sydney, Tel Aviv, and Zurich.

Driving Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) as a member of the Asian Leadership Group, executive sponsor of the Filipino Googler Network, and organizational DEI councils.

Board of Advisors • ARK • New York, NY • 2021 - Present

Advising and supporting the team behind ARK, Advancement for Rural Kids, a non-profit that co-invests alongside farmers and fisherfolk in the developing world who want to secure their food, health, income, and a sustainable future.

Board of Trustees • PhilDev • Silicon Valley, CA • April 2020 - Present

Enabling the success of Filipinos globally through education, innovation & entrepreneurship as a board member of PhilDev, a non-profit founded by Dado Banatao, successful entrepreneur, engineer & philanthropist.

Board of Advisors • College of Fine Arts, Carnegie Mellon University • Pittsburgh, PA • January 2019 - Present

Inaugural member of the College of Fine Arts Dean's Council to advise the college Dean and the respective heads of the Schools of Architecture, Art, Design, Drama, and Music to meet the evolving needs of higher education in the arts.

Mentor • Endeavor Philippines • Manila, Philippines • July 2019 - Present

Joined the Endeavor Philippines mentor network to support local entrepreneurs in the country of my birth and be a resource for the broader, global Endeavor network.

Advisor • Kabisig ng Kalahi / Kabisig USA • Manila, Philippines • 2017 - Present

Providing design, technical, operational, and financial support for non-profits helping Filipino families overcome poverty, hunger, malnutrition, and lack of education. Designed, launched, and maintained their websites in 2023, enabling international partnership & support, resulting in a significant increase in financial & operational support.

UX Director, YouTube Ads • Google • San Bruno, CA • August 2017 - November 2021

Started, built, and led the cross-disciplinary UX team whose mission is to create a healthy YouTube ecosystem of viewers, creators, and advertisers, keeping the world's largest online video experience free for billions of users around the world through delightful experiences. Grew and managed a 75+ person international team responsible for design, research, writing, program management, and prototyping for the ~$30B YouTube Ads business, in partnership with Product Management, Engineering, Sales, and Marketing, growing the business 35% YoY over a 5 year period. Managed teams based in Bangalore, Boulder, Los Angeles, Mountain View, San Bruno, and Zurich.

Drove Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) as a member of the Asian Leadership Group, executive sponsor of the Filipino Googler Network, and organizational DEI councils.

Instructor within Google’s UX Design Certificate, teaching the final course in its 7-course Professional Certificate offered through Coursera. This online-only course has enabled thousands of people around the world to learn UX design and pursue new careers.

Adjunct Professor • Carnegie Mellon University Silicon Valley • Mountain View, CA • February 2015 - May 2020

Created and taught a highly-reviewed and sought-after graduate level course in HCI & UX Design in the MS in Software Management program providing a theoretical & practical foundation for future product designers, product managers, and engineering leaders. 

Design Director, TV & Website / Growth & Acquisition • Netflix • Los Gatos, CA • February 2015 - June 2017

Led the team of designers & prototypers responsible for the global member user experience on smart TVs, game consoles, set-top boxes, media devices, and web browsers. Primary product design driver for the Netflix custom font. Helped craft Netflix's position on virtual reality, augmented-reality, and voice-enabled experiences. 

Led design for cross-platform member acquisition, messaging, and accounts through Netflix’s global expansion to 190 countries and growth from <60M to almost 80M members. Responsibilities included driving product design initiatives, creative direction, organizational development, team management, and strategic leadership. 

Vice President, Advanced User Experience Design • Mercedes-Benz R&D North America • Sunnyvale, CA • January 2013 - January 2015

Founding leader of the Silicon Valley-based team responsible for designing & prototyping the future digital user experience for Mercedes-Benz automobiles globally. Creative direction and management of multiple teams responsible for defining the digital design language and interfaces for future production cars, concepts, and connected products. Full operational & financial responsibilities as an Executive Management team member driving initiatives for employee happiness, hiring & development, management, and communications.

Director of Product, Zynga Mobile Platform • Zynga • San Francisco, CA • March 2011 - December 2012

Founder, product, and UX lead of the Zynga Mobile Social Channels team, the social game service for the company’s mobile game portfolio to drive viral discoverability and social engagement. Responsible for Chess With Friends, a popular turn-based mobile app, to test our platform. Drove day-to-day operations and grew it into a 30+ person product development team.

Principal Executive Producer, Pioneer Studios • Xbox/Microsoft • Redmond, WA • January 2008 - March 2011

Founding member of an internal design studio responsible for discovering and defining new product opportunities for Microsoft’s entertainment business. Led cross-disciplinary teams of up to 20 and budgets of up to $2.5M to design and prototype product concepts that visualize the future of the Xbox product & brand. Work directly led or contributed to Xbox 360 platform updates, Xbox Live Studios, Xbox Live on Windows Phone 7, Xbox SmartGlass, and Xbox One.

Director of User Experience • Pelago • Seattle, WA • May 2007 - January 2008

Launched Whrrl, a geo-social network for discovering and sharing activities via web & mobile. Hands-on design & research to go from concept to product within 6 months as a KPCB/Trilogy/Bezos funded startup. Built a team of three responsible for UX/UI design & research. 

User Experience Manager, Xbox 360 • Microsoft • Redmond, WA • March 2004 - May 2007

Launched the groundbreaking Xbox 360 console, industry-leading Xbox Live service, and the Zune player. Hands-on leadership for interaction design, information architecture, HW/SW integration, out-of-box experience, and multiple feature areas. Built & led a team of 9 designers, prototypers, and program managers. Created roles, best-practices, and processes to enable world-class design.

Lead Game Designer, FASA Studio • Microsoft Game Studios • Redmond, WA • January 2000 - February 2004

Multiplayer & UI design lead for Crimson Skies II: High Road to Revenge, AIAS action-adventure GOTY for Xbox (89.6% Gamerankings). Designed/scripted all multiplayer games & maps. Designer/producer on A.I. “The Beast”, the first alternate reality game (ARG) named New York Times’ “Best Idea of the Year”. User interface design lead for MechWarrior 4: Vengeance, the definitive big-robot action game (86% Gamerankings). Hands-on lead of 6 for UI design and scripting. 

User Interface Program Manager, SQL Server • Microsoft • Redmond, WA • September 1998 - December 1999

Drove UI design and usability activities for SQL Server 7.0 OLAP, Microsoft’s first integrated business intelligence & data warehousing product. Delivered feature specs, prototypes, assets, and oversaw user research & usability.

User Interface Designer, UI Design & Usability Group • Oracle • Redwood Shores, CA • August 1996 - September 1998 

Lead designer for the corporate style guide for Java-based products and several enterprise product lines. Designed product user interfaces, wireframes, icons, prototypes, and final art assets.

Graphic Designer • IBM • San Jose, CA • July 1995 - August 1996

Created graphics, illustrations, packaging, interactive tutorials, and websites for the DSS/DB2 Visualizer product line. Early driver of corporate web design standards and best practices.

Shipped Products & Services

Google Maps: Google Maps built-in, Google Earth • Earth Engine • Environmental Insights Explorer • Delve • Mesa • Pebble

YouTube Ads: Google Ads for Video • YouTube/Video Ad Formats • YouTube Director Mix • Google Ads Reach Planner

Netflix: Netflix on TV devices • Netflix.com • Netflix Sign Up

Mercedes-Benz: F015 “Luxury In Motion” • Concept S-Class Coupé • Smart Cross Connect • Comand APS NTG 5.5/6.0

Zynga: Zynga With Friends Mobile Network • Chess With Friends

Pelago: Whrrl.com & Whrrl Mobile

Microsoft: Xbox One (pre-production concept) • Zune Media Player • Xbox Live Service • Xbox 360 Console & Accessories • Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge • A.I. “The Beast” Alternate Reality Game • MechWarrior IV: Vengeance • MS SQL Server 2000 & 7.0

Oracle: Oracle Java Look & Feel • Oracle Enterprise Manager/Internet Commerce/Application Server

IBM: IBM DSS/DB2 Visualizer

Patents & Applications

Social Network Data Analysis To Generate Incentives For Online Gaming, Zynga, U.S. Patent US11654370B2

User Mounted Device Calibration Using External Data, Microsoft, U.S. Patent 9,588,935

Integrated Haptic Control Apparatus and Touch Sensitive Display, Microsoft, U.S. Patent 8,698,750

Customizing Streaming Content Presentation, Microsoft, U.S. Patent 8,667,533

Method and device for storing and providing game-related and user-related information in a profile for a gaming service, Microsoft, European Patent 1669117B1 

User Interface for Viewing Aggregated Game, System, and Personal Information, Microsoft, U.S. Patent 8,425,331

Image for a Portion of a Display Screen, Microsoft, U.S. Patent D566,717

User Interface for a Portion of a Display Screen, Microsoft, U.S. Patents D565,583, D565,582, D565,581

Icon for a Portion of Display Screen, Microsoft, U.S. Patents D565,592 & D562,845

Portion of a Display Screen With an Icon, Microsoft, U.S. Patent D562,844

Social Network Data Analysis To Generate Suggestion Metrics For Online Gaming, Zynga, U.S. Patent Application 20140004953

Social Network Data Analysis To Generate Provide News For Online Gaming, Zynga, U.S. Patent Application 20140004954

Systems and Methods for Providing System Level Notifications in a Multimedia Console, U.S. Patent Application 20060205518

Systems and Methods for Providing a System Level User Interface in a Multimedia Console, U.S. Patent Application 20060205517

Provision of Contextual Advertising, Microsoft, U.S. Patent Application 20120158511

Sophisticated Sort Mechanisms on a Limited Interface, Microsoft, U.S. Patent Application 20080163133

Browse Filters on a Television Interface, Microsoft, U.S. Patent Application 20080163284 

Customizing Streaming Content Presentation, Microsoft, U.S. Patent Application 20110265113

Education

MBA Design Strategy (incomplete) • California College of the Arts • San Francisco, CA  • 2012

First semester: MBA in Design Strategy 

Certificate in Human Factors Engineering • University of Michigan • Ann Arbor, MI • 1997

BFA Art & Design • Carnegie Mellon University • Pittsburgh, PA • 1991 - 1995

Majors: Painting, Drawing, Printmaking (PDP); Electronic & Time-Based media (ETB)

Minors: Visual Communications; Art History; Chinese Studies

Semester Abroad • Zhejiang University • Hangzhou, Zhejiang • 1994

Languages

English: fluent speaking, reading & writing

Tagalog/Pilipino: fluent speaking; conversational reading & writing 

Spanish: conversational speaking; basic reading & writing

German: rudimentary speaking, reading & writing

Mandarin Chinese: rudimentary speaking

References available upon request or on LinkedIn