Samsung ElectronicsWhen I joined Samsung Design America, they were very interested in brining 'silicon valley style design' to Samsung. Design decisions were being made reactively, with no structured process for user research or testing. Leadership recognized that to compete with Apple's design-led approach, Samsung needed a team that could drive product vision from a user perspective rather than simply responding to technical specifications or market trends.
I built the UX team from the ground up, starting by defining the core roles we needed and recruiting world-class talent to fill them. I established a robust UX design practice that worked directly alongside industrial design and visual design teams to concept, polish, and pitch next-generation product ideas. This integrated approach allowed us to move beyond incremental improvements and pursue genuinely innovative product opportunities.
The impact was transformative. At Samsung Design America, our mission was to find new products for Samsung, and we delivered. We established an entirely new category of wearables that pre-dated both the Apple Watch and Google's wearable efforts. The Samsung Gear Fit, a multi-million dollar business created through pure design effort, wasn't on any product roadmap; it was a direct result of our team's work. We presented our concepts directly to the CEOs of Mobile and Home Electronics divisions, as well as VPs across software, hardware, and product teams throughout the massive organization. Samsung had a practice of pitting design teams against each other in competitive "run-offs," and our team at SDA consistently came out on top, proving ourselves more effective than any other global design team in the company.
