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Hi, I’m Richard (Rick) Smith, a product design leader with 15+ years guiding the end-to-end product process, from discovery to launch, in product-led teams across education tech, telecommunications, and finance. I thrive on in-context research—spending real time with users and stakeholders to reframe problems around workflow and cognitive load, not just UI polish. I’ve led large-scale design programs, built and governed design systems, and partnered closely with engineering and product to ship iteratively while preserving quality. I collaborate with PMs, engineers, and executives to move fast with AI-assisted tooling, and I’m energized by Top Hat’s scale and mission in higher education. Based in remote Canada with Eastern hours overlap, I’m ready to contribute leadership, research discipline, and hands-on design craft to drive impact at scale.…Hi, I’m Richard (Rick) Smith, a product design leader with 15+ years guiding the end-to-end product process, from discovery to launch, in product-led teams across education tech, telecommunications, and finance. I thrive on in-context research—spending real time with users and stakeholders to reframe problems around workflow and cognitive load, not just UI polish. I’ve led large-scale design programs, built and governed design systems, and partnered closely with engineering and product to ship iteratively while preserving quality. I collaborate with PMs, engineers, and executives to move fast with AI-assisted tooling, and I’m energized by Top Hat’s scale and mission in higher education. Based in remote Canada with Eastern hours overlap, I’m ready to contribute leadership, research discipline, and hands-on design craft to drive impact at scale.

Richard (Rick) Smith

Product Designer, UX Designer, Designer, +1

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Hi, I’m Richard (Rick) Smith, a product design leader with 15+ years guiding the end-to-end product process, from discovery to launch, in product-led teams across education tech, telecommunications, and finance. I thrive on in-context research—spending real time with users and stakeholders to reframe problems around workflow and cognitive load, not just UI polish. I’ve led large-scale design programs, built and governed design systems, and partnered closely with engineering and product to ship iteratively while preserving quality. I collaborate with PMs, engineers, and executives to move fast with AI-assisted tooling, and I’m energized by Top Hat’s scale and mission in higher education. Based in remote Canada with Eastern hours overlap, I’m ready to contribute leadership, research discipline, and hands-on design craft to drive impact at scale.…Hi, I’m Richard (Rick) Smith, a product design leader with 15+ years guiding the end-to-end product process, from discovery to launch, in product-led teams across education tech, telecommunications, and finance. I thrive on in-context research—spending real time with users and stakeholders to reframe problems around workflow and cognitive load, not just UI polish. I’ve led large-scale design programs, built and governed design systems, and partnered closely with engineering and product to ship iteratively while preserving quality. I collaborate with PMs, engineers, and executives to move fast with AI-assisted tooling, and I’m energized by Top Hat’s scale and mission in higher education. Based in remote Canada with Eastern hours overlap, I’m ready to contribute leadership, research discipline, and hands-on design craft to drive impact at scale.

Available to hire

Hi, I’m Richard (Rick) Smith, a product design leader with 15+ years guiding the end-to-end product process, from discovery to launch, in product-led teams across education tech, telecommunications, and finance. I thrive on in-context research—spending real time with users and stakeholders to reframe problems around workflow and cognitive load, not just UI polish. I’ve led large-scale design programs, built and governed design systems, and partnered closely with engineering and product to ship iteratively while preserving quality.

I collaborate with PMs, engineers, and executives to move fast with AI-assisted tooling, and I’m energized by Top Hat’s scale and mission in higher education. Based in remote Canada with Eastern hours overlap, I’m ready to contribute leadership, research discipline, and hands-on design craft to drive impact at scale.

Skills

Experience Level

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Expert

Intermediate

Intermediate

Intermediate

Intermediate

Intermediate

Intermediate

Beginner

Beginner

Beginner

Language

English

Fluent

Work Experience

Director of Product Design at Oliver Agency

January 1, 2025 - January 1, 2026

Embedded Director of Product Design within PIMCO’s digital organization, leading product design and UX strategy across enterprise-scale public and gated platforms serving global institutional and advisor audiences. Own experience strategy across complex, regulated financial products, balancing brand systems, compliance requirements, and usability at scale. Partner with Product, Engineering, Marketing, Analytics, and Executive stakeholders to shape experience vision, prioritise initiatives, and align teams around shared outcomes. Lead design system evolution and cross-platform experience consistency, improving design quality, decision velocity, and cross-team alignment. Provide senior design leadership, mentorship, and strategic guidance across distributed teams within a highly matrixed environment. Leveraged generative AI to accelerate research synthesis, early concept exploration, and design system workflows, improving speed and decision clarity across teams.

Director of Product Design at Tech Mahindra (Born XDS)

November 1, 2021 - July 1, 2024

Led product design and UX strategy for enterprise clients across telecom, financial services, retail, and transportation, delivering complex multi-channel platforms at scale. Shaped experience strategy and delivery across web, mobile, and in-store systems, partnering closely with product, engineering, and client leadership. Founded and led an AI Research and Performance Center to support data-informed design decisions and product performance optimization. Directed service design and discovery efforts for 25+ enterprise initiatives, aligning business goals, user needs, and delivery teams. Oversaw delivery of high-impact design programs, including large-scale platform and POS redesigns, improving operational efficiency and customer engagement.

Senior User Experience Designer at RedSpace Entertainment

May 1, 2020 - November 1, 2021

Designed and developed mobile UX/UI for Patriot One Technologies, creating a real-time threat detection platform that increased operational efficiency by 40% through cohesive product design and integration of complex sensors. Led the design and development of a digital learning platform for the Canadian Armed Forces, improving training efficiency by 45% and reducing training costs by 30%.

Solution & Technical Sales Consultant at Igloo Software

April 1, 2018 - August 1, 2019

Advised clients on digital collaboration solutions, conducted discovery and prototyping with customers, and contributed to product strategy and go-to-market activities. Collaborated with sales and engineering to tailor solutions and accelerate adoption.

Senior Digital Design Consultant / Senior Product Manager at Booz Allen Hamilton

March 1, 2011 - April 1, 2017

Led end-to-end product management and product design of the Recreation.gov platform, a $450M digital transformation project, improving UX and establishing innovative revenue-sharing models across multiple government agencies. Directed the digital transformation of BoozAllen.com, achieving a 60% increase in user engagement and reducing content management costs by $30K per month through AEM integration and content strategy optimization. Delivered strategic UX design and product development solutions for high-profile clients like Johnson & Johnson, generating $3M in revenue by designing a brand-recognition portal that leveraged social and competitive insights.

Personal Sabbatical

May 1, 2017 - March 1, 2018

Personal sabbatical for family support and care.

Solution & Technical Sales Consultant at Igloo Software

April 1, 2018 - August 1, 2019

Note: prior listing already captured; included here to emphasize continuous industry engagement during 2018-2019.