Associate Principal Product Designer | Licensed Entertainment, Toys & Games | AI-Forward Design Leadership

 

20+ years designing toys for the world's biggest entertainment brands. I'm seeking design manager to director roles.

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Design,  Manage, LeadI managed a team of six for six years and was the 11th employee at Hasbro's new LA office. I'm a pattern recognizer, and it pays off. On one factory visit, I spotted unnecessary rubber bands being used on our dolls. Across millions of units, fixing that added millions of dollars to our profit that year. My last supervisor told me, "You are great as both a designer and a design manager. You are rare."

 

Both Sides of the Aisle
Fashion dolls and action figures: Barbie, Disney Princess, and Frozen, alongside Marvel, Star Wars, Transformers, Harry Potter, and Beyblade. Twelve years at Hasbro, six at Mattel, and two in Hong Kong.

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Licensor Relationship
Disney, Marvel, Warner Bros, and Takara Tomy trust me with their characters. On Frozen, I worked with Disney Animation's Mike Giaimo and presented to directors Chris Buck and Jennifer Lee. On Beyblade and Transformers, I worked directly with Takara Tomy in Japan, learning each partner's process and culture.

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Mentoring & Teaching
ELVTR recruited me to teach toy design, and I built a six-week curriculum that takes students from idea to toy pitch using AI tools.  Of my 45 students, none were designers.  One went on to launch their own toy line, and another debuted as an inventor.

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Gratitude
I've been fortunate to work under many great leaders and alongside talented designers, marketers, engineers, and sculptors, and each of them taught me something along the way.  I'm grateful to work alongside so many creators, storytellers, and fellow toy collectors who are pure geniuses.