Me in a paragraph.

I’m a business-minded Experience Design executive who still understands the craft at a pixel level. I believe that design leadership requires equal parts creativity, strategy, and humanity. I leverage my creative hybridity to help companies dream big(ger) and execute soundly. Oh, I’m also a dad. I’m especially proud of that last one.

What’s next for me?

I want to work with clients strategically while I grow teams hands-on.

The most fulfilling roles are those where I can provide or contribute to vision and direct the story that make the solutions memorable and unique. This means being a leader in tune with the needs of the user and the team crafting the experience.

I want to use my cross-disciplinary creative background.

The best situations I've worked in were where I brought different mindsets to creatives, strategists, technologists, and clients. I've brought storytelling production techniques to strategists, user journey exercises to visual brand designers, principles of 3D and lighting to marketers, and so on. And each time, the outcome and the human relationships were richer.

I want to lead teams. I want to lead leaders. I want to follow leaders I believe in.

I also want a place where they need me to be a leader who is invested in the people I lead. I also want to support credible leaders who value humanity as much as the business.

I want to work for an organization that values diversity and inclusion.

This is not just a personal value but also a tremendous business value.

I want to be where design and design thinking are valued.

I've parts of my career where design and strategy were secondary to technology, and the customer came second to the platform's capabilities. I want to be in a place where the practice of design and design thinking have a home serving the user and the client.

Me in LinkedIn Posts

  • How to lead leaders — Four principles for guiding the leaders of the pack

    In part 2 of “How I Lead”, I give four principles for leading your leaders of the pack. Download PDF

    View on LinkedIn
  • Pitch link an all-star cheerleader

    My daughter and her teammates get just two minutes and thirty seconds to convince a panel of judges that they are the best. Sound familiar?

    Here are three lessons about winning pitches at an elite level. (P.S. Yes, this is my photography 🤓) Download PDF

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  • "You Suck." How to give better feedback.

    With over two decades as a creative executive, the foundation of my career is built on feedback. Here’s what I’ve learned about delivering the information people need to hear, better. This advice is industry-agnostic. 😇🤓🤟🏼

    View on LinkedIn
  • See Jack kick ass.

    Jack Croft attached a GoPro camera to his chest as he led a January 2023 lunch service. Here are the five leadership lessons I picked up seeing Jack run (a kitchen.) Download PDF

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  • How I transform individuals into teams.

    In part 1 of "How I Lead", read how I leverage Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs to transform individuals into teams. Download PDF.

    View on LinkedIn
  • Hope and advice for the recently laid off.

    In recent weeks, more friends and colleagues have lost their jobs. And by the end of this quarter, the number will rise. From a person in that situation, I have 5 bits of Hope and Advice for the Recently Laid Off. Download PDF

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“I am a better strategist and a better CX'er because of his leadership, collaboration, and his ability to bridge Strategy and Design to create something meaningful. He taught me to tell stories, he reminded me to find inspiration everywhere.”

— STEPHANIE HOPPER
Strategy Director at Smith Commerce

“He understands and navigates the political channels and interdependencies of the agency/partner relationship nimbly and intelligently and sets a wonderful tone for his team. Mark shows consistently strong leadership with his work, vision for a project and with his team and I am always confident partnering with him, that the work will be of the highest quality.”

— CATHERINE PATTERSON
Executive Director Development at DXR/MR

“What may not always be apparent is his understanding of the broader ecosystem of how all things come together to drive success. This results in great work that creates beautiful experiences that are technically realistic and drive business outcomes.”

— RYAN HEUSINKVELD
Chief Technology Officer at Smith Commerce

Brands I’ve done work with

Content Creation

  • Abbot

  • Adobe

  • Air Force

  • Amerada Hess Corp.

  • American Express

  • Ascendis Pharma

  • Blue Shield

  • Canon

  • Charles Schwab

  • Converse

  • Crocs

  • Dasani

  • Don King Productions

  • ESPN

  • FedEx

  • Ford

  • GMC

  • Hyundai

  • Ice Breakers

  • John Deere

  • Johnson & Johnson

  • Kimberly Clark

  • Kraft

  • Lexus

  • LG

  • Mastercard

  • Miracle Gro

  • Motorola

  • NBCU

  • NYU

  • The NFL

  • Norwegian Cruise Lines

  • Pepsi

  • Pfizer

  • Porsche

  • Proactiv

  • Puma

  • Radio Shack

  • Remington

  • Samsung

  • Shell Polymers 

  • Smirnoff

  • Sony Playstation

  • Toyota

  • Walmart

  • Wells Fargo

  • Woolite

  • Wynn Las Vegas

Commerce

  • Air Canada

  • Almay

  • ASICS

  • Amway

  • Barnes and Noble Ed.

  • Bed, Bath & Beyond

  • Boeing

  • Border States Electric

  • Carhartt

  • Chevron Lubricants Covetrus

  • David Yurman

  • Discount Tire

  • Dow Corning

  • Elizabeth Arden

  • Great West Life

  • GSK Direct

  • Hill-Rom

  • Home Depot

  • Hubbell

  • Kennametal

  • Kylie Beauty

  • Legrand

  • Leslie’s Pool Supplies

  • Michael Kors

  • Oregon Tools 

  • PCNA

  • Ram Tool

  • Revlon

  • Simon Properties

  • TE Connectivity

Recruiter FAQs

  • I’ve been a team of one and led as many as 22-24 designers at a time. If you include strategists and front end devs, the teams have been as large as 30.

  • Yes, I’m open to travel for the role up to 25% of my time.

  • Yes and boostered.

  • No.

  • Yes.

  • Yes. Email me for details.