EXPERIENCE DESIGNER

EMBO

A soft-technology intervention designed to bridge the "homework gap" in couples therapy through co-created digital artifacts.

ROLE

Product and Experience Designer

DURATION

Feb 2025 - May 2025,

Jan 2026 - Feb 2026

SKILLS

Figma & p5.js

GPT 4, Claude Code

Microcontrollers & System Design

Speculative Design Thinking

OUTCOME

Digital and Physical Embo Experience presented at UC Berkeley Jacobs Institute of Design Spring Showcase 2025.

The Maintenance Gap in relationships

Relationships, much like a garden, require constant tending; without regular maintenance, communication issues, the "weeds" of a partnership can quickly take over. We began this project by exploring how technological mechanisms could help mediate human conflict, specifically when it came to couples counseling and therapy.

our initial hypothesis

We originally aimed to develop a solution that could be used by couple's therapists in a counseling session. We hypothesized that this would help couples communicate better.

A PIVOT FROM OUR INITIAL ASSUMPTIONS

After conducting extensive research with real therapists and psychologists, our hypothesis was disproved. Therapists don’t need more tech in their sessions; AI doesn’t possess the lived experience to bring true empathy into this vulnerable space.

Therapists are already well equipped with the tools and frameworks for client success.

The process for requesting One Sheet design updates is confusing and bottle-necked.

WE LEARNED…

LIVED > LEARNED EXPERIENCE

“In therapy, lived experience is really important. AI cannot replace human experience.”

So I could shift my focus to visuals!

Before: Fragmented Workflow

WHEN I STARTED AT EPIC RECORDS…

As the primary designer on this project, I noticed the process for updating data/copy (which was very frequent, due to fast-paced environment) was bottlenecked. This resulted in inconsistencies and delayed updates to Onesheets, as well as multiple file versions.

AFTER INTRODUCING MODULAR TEMPLATES…

AFTER: Streamlined System

Migrating artist one-sheets to shared Figma templates transformed a fragmented, manual workflow into a streamlined, collaborative system. Marketing, A&R, and PR teams could edit content and leave comments directly in one live file, eliminating back-and-forth and version confusion. Updates were instantly reflected in exports, creating a single source of truth that stayed current and let the design team focus on visual storytelling instead of repetitive edits.

Designing Systems That Protect Creative Focus

Creating space for visual storytelling

By simplifying the workflow, the team could spend less time wrangling content and more time crafting visuals that captured an artist’s identity at a glance. The templates preserved flexibility while maintaining brand consistency, allowing designers and non-designers alike to move quickly without sacrificing craft. The result was a smoother, faster process—and stronger, more expressive work.

Driving adoption through clarity, not mandate

When I introduced these templates, Figma was still new to much of the team. Rather than enforcing a new tool, I focused on showing value quickly—walking stakeholders through live examples, documenting best practices, and designing the templates to feel familiar to existing workflows. By lowering the learning curve and demonstrating how the system saved time and reduced errors, the team organically adopted Figma as their go-to tool for artist one-sheets.

“Therapists already have the tools they need... What matters most in the room is presence.”

HUMAN PRESENCE IS IMPORTANT

Building a visual design foundation I still rely on today!

This experience sharpened my eye for typography, hierarchy, and color, and taught me how small visual decisions shape how work is perceived and understood. Just as importantly, it showed me how strong visual design is rarely solo work—it’s built through collaboration, critique, and iteration with partners across marketing, product, and strategy.