At Cisco

Built a content design team for CX (customer experience).

Grew the team from 1 to 12, creating a 1 : 4 content : design ratio.

Created the first content ops system at Cisco.

Taught a course on GenAI for Cisco Learning with 1,000+ participants.

Received emerging leader recognition and travel award.

Design Approach

Start with the user (and the business) - UX research is the window into your customer needs and your product gaps. Use research to create outstanding experiences.

What’s the data say? - How do you know design is making an impact? You look at the data. Are views going up or down? Are customers getting stuck or moving forward? Find out from the data and iterate.

Let the design do the work - Words are not the only tool in content design. Before we write a message, can we use the design to drive customer action and solve customer problems?

Feedback is a gift - Years of experience, titles, and expertise can’t replace feedback. Seek out feedback and watch your work improve.

Hi! I’m Katie.

I'm a hands-on, collaborative manager with experience building enterprise networking solutions for a global market. I love turning complex problems into simple solutions using design thinking, psychology, research, and data. Coming to product design through content, I've seen that the best work happens when teams collaborate cross-functionally to support customer needs and drive business impact.

Building a team

Educate - Socialized content design principles and ideas through roadshows and town halls. Reinforced role and impact through ongoing design shares, AMAs, and huddles.

Collaborate - Introduced the “embedded” model where content designers are brought on to projects at the same time as other stakeholders. Empowered content designers to work independently and directly with their design teams.

Iterate - Established weekly design critiques to drive excellence across projects. Sought out monthly feedback from design leaders to ensure designers were integrated into the UX process.

Leadership PrinciplEs

Invest in others - Helping others grow is the best part of being a leader.

We rise as a team - Share knowledge, give feedback, and drive impact together.

Find the right fit - People do their best work when they work on something they love.

Clarity is kindness - Being clear about expectations, quality of work, and performance isn’t always easy, but it is kind.

Create the culture - Team culture starts at the top. Make time for fun and giving back.