Design Meets Business

Jennifer Darmour is VP of Design at Oracle Health, where she's reimagining the healthcare experience. Jennifer has developed a distinct point of view on design through three pillars: beauty, meaning, and wellness. On today's show we chat about building culture that sustains craft, why good debates lead to better design, how AI is reshaping creativity, and what designers should double down on.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 – Intro
• 02:40 – Jennifer's journey from journalism to design
• 08:26 – The three pillars: beauty, meaning, and wellness
• 14:22 – Building culture that sustains craft
• 28:16 – Why good debates and healthy conflict matter in design
• 42:34 – Leading design in complex healthcare systems
• 56:18 – AI's role in creativity and what it will never be good at
• 01:04:12 – Presenting work and getting meaningful feedback
• 01:06:44 – End of show questions

Rachel Been is Expedia's SVP of Design. Previously, she was one of the designers who laid the foundations for Google's Material Design, and has worked across products at Airbnb, Google Home, and Nest. Starting her career as a photojournalist, Rachel brings a unique perspective to product design, grounded in curiosity and craft. On today's show we chat about designing for infinite expressiveness, the tension between craft and efficiency, the power of curiosity over specialisation, and what AI should and shouldn't be able to do.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 – Intro
• 02:22 – Rachel's journey from photojournalism to design
• 05:42 – The power of curiosity and being a generalist
• 09:16 – Designing for infinity and infinite expressiveness
• 18:34 – The tension between craft and efficiency in design
• 28:22 – Material Design's impact and evolution
• 35:48 – AI-powered search and building AI products at Expedia
• 42:16 – The future of search and conversational interfaces
• 48:24 – End of show questions

Jehad Affoneh is Chief Design Officer at Toast, where he leads design across product, platform, and culture. Previously, he held design leadership roles at VMware and other complex B2B companies. Starting his career as an engineer, Jehad brings a unique perspective to design, viewing it fundamentally as problem solving. On today's show we chat about the transition from engineering to design, the value of being multilingual across disciplines, organisational design, and how AI is transforming the way teams build products.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 – Intro
• 02:08 – Jehad's journey from engineering to design leadership
• 05:32 – Being multilingual across disciplines and bridging gaps
• 09:48 – Organisational design and how teams should be structured
• 20:16 – The role of design systems and platforms at scale
• 31:44 – Leading design in complex B2B environments
• 42:22 – How AI is changing product building and design tools
• 52:18 – The future of AI agents and conversational interfaces
• 58:02 – End of show questions

Vuokko Aro is Chief Design Officer at Monzo, where she has led the design function for nearly a decade through hypergrowth from startup to one of the UK's most loved fintech brands. She oversees a team of over 100 people across product design, brand design, and user research. On today's show we chat about scaling design teams, building trust through transparency, the value of constraints, and how to focus on strengths rather than weaknesses as you grow in your career.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 – Intro
• 02:26 – Vuokko's journey into design and joining Monzo
• 06:16 – Building in the open and transparency as a core value
• 11:42 – Scaling design whilst maintaining craft and quality
• 23:12 – Building design culture and protecting craft at scale
• 37:44 – Managing stakeholders and navigating disagreement
• 48:36 – Transitioning from IC to leadership and learning to let go
• 55:48 – Career development and focusing on strengths
• 01:03:22 – End of show questions

Andrea Mangini is a design and creative leader whose career spans some of the most design-driven companies in the world — from Adobe and Autodesk to Netflix and Shopify. She’s led teams that built the tools and experiences shaping how people create, design, and build. Andrea’s work focuses on design craft, leadership, and helping teams find courage in the uncomfortable parts of growth. She believes great design comes from curiosity, collaboration, and a willingness to keep learning, even when the path isn’t clear.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 – Intro and Andrea’s career arc
• 06:45 – Taking risks and embracing discomfort
• 13:20 – Reframing imposter syndrome
• 18:40 – Balancing stability and growth
• 24:50 – The importance of collaboration, improvisation, and jamming with others
• 31:10 – Designing at the speed of conversation
• 38:20 – Learning to let go: not every problem needs to be solved
• 46:40 – Balancing collaboration with impact
• 48:10 – Leading craft at scale
• 54:00 – Reflections on growth, curiosity, and keeping design human
• 72:38 – End of show questions