My work promotes human growth and wellness through user experience design.

My most recent role as a Design Manager at WHOOP taught me just how much I love creating harmony between people so that they can do their best work. We did some pretty amazing things together to push the future of the wearable industry. Different pieces of my decade-long design journey began to fit together—from applying a love for facilitating workshops and teaching others to reusing insights I’d gained in previously designing for skill development and hiring technology at IBM.

Learning to think as I do

Before spending a few years as team manager, I was the founding designer for WHOOP Unite. I heard stories from leaders who wanted to change the world, one metric at a time, by offering people insight into their bodies that they’d never been exposed to before. As someone who prioritizes movement in daily routines, be it through CrossFit, yoga, or climbing and snowboarding in the Rocky Mountains, I was highly passionate about WHOOP’s mission as well.

This continued to hone my “why” as a designer, which I had begun to realize in my time at IBM. Whether I get to do the designing myself or lead amazing teams in their efforts, I find the most joy in tackling challenges that promote human growth and wellness. This could be physical wellness, as seen at WHOOP, or it could be less tangible in how we design our work lives through HR technology. I bet it looks like a domain I haven’t yet touched too.

There is so much green field to play in with new technologies. When I look back on my first decade in design, I realize I’ve established a habitual practice of designing new products from 0-1. Seeing things through from 1-10 is pretty exciting as well, but how cool is it to carve out confidence when we don’t yet know what we’ll create together?

One thing is a constant—I adore learning.

There are some personal rituals that I do every year, one is writing a reflection essay every December on what I learned that year and how that’s shaping my career intentions. Another is taking a multi-week course or trying out a new skill to advance my practice. This year, it’s taking the course that I sit on the advisory board for—Women in Leadership at UCCS. Previously, it’s been emotional intelligence training or applying speculative design to play a modern take on Buckminster Fuller’s World Game. Beyond the work day, I’ve also been using my free time to design a new video game that we plan to unveil in 2025 (stay tuned 🤫).

  • As designers, we have an ethical responsibility to do our homework on the people we’re serving. While we can speak to our expert craft and design decisions, we must also recognize that user needs and challenges differ across every project. In other words, we can’t rely on our own worldview to accurately determine what to design and how it should work for those with different backgrounds. Through the habitual practice of conducting user research, I’ve found that transitioning from opinion-based to evidence-based design is one of the most liberating things we'll do for ourselves as designers.

  • The best experiences are considerate of not only quantifiable measures that move the business forward like ROI and DAU, but also establish a positive relationship between humans and technologies. Not every interaction will be a delightful one, but when we approach problems with empathy and humility, we foster satisfactory engagements that bolster the future of technology as an augmentation our human experience. I'm excited to bring frameworks for purposefully designing relationship arcs between humans and technology to guide teams toward promoting ethical futures through the use of our technology.

  • The hardest problems we tackle are too complex and multifaceted to be meaningfully solved alone. Bringing together diverse teams of individuals from a wide range of backgrounds primes us to generate value that serves the masses. Through the consistent use of design thinking and human-centered methodology, I lead workshops and activities to navigate uncertainty through growth mindsets, embrace constraints, and amplify diverse perspectives.

  • It’s deceivingly easy to get trapped in our annual roadmaps and never-ending backlogs in ways that obstruct our ability to adapt to new information. By applying speculative design methods, we give ourselves space and grace to question the long-form value of ideas that can push our agendas today. By bringing an understanding of human contexts and mobilizing interests into our decision process when exploring ambiguity, we can prioritize alternative futures ahead of market and industry imperatives.

Don’t just take my word for it…

“One of the qualities that sets Beth apart is her unwavering commitment to putting the team first.

Her dedication to fostering a collaborative and supportive environment has significantly contributed to our team's cohesion and success. It's evident that she prioritizes the collective goals and well-being of the team, ensuring that everyone feels valued and included at all times. What truly stands out is her ability to lead with a genuine, fun attitude, even amidst a chaotic or stressful environment. Her positive energy is infectious, creating an atmosphere that inspires creativity and camaraderie.

Her approach brings a sense of joy to the workplace, making it a more enjoyable and productive space for all of us. Her authenticity and warmth contribute to building a strong team culture, where individuals feel comfortable expressing their ideas and collaborating effectively.”

— Alyssa Carofano, Head of Strategic Program Operations at WHOOP in 2024

“From the moment I first started working with Beth, I was impressed by her professional approach, her passion for human-centered design, her drive, and the way she leverages her extensive experience and technical knowledge to her current work building a foundation of valuable products for the Enterprise team.

She is a natural service leader with high EQ who combines a strategic mindset of seeing the big picture while having a high degree of focus on process and execution. She has a range of tools to draw on and uses them effectively to lead design thinking sessions, frame project objectives, and manage product development initiatives. She has an extraordinary ability to know how and when to bring in teammates with complementary skills/experiences to amplify her efforts and get a diversity of opinions. She manages up and down and cross-functionally with ease and high effectiveness.

Her design work and understanding of the Whoop user experience is top-notch! She is setting a standard of using UX research to drive the design of products that will enable the Enterprise team to deliver value to its customers.”

— Norman Stolzoff, Director of User Research at WHOOP in 2022

“I always look forward to my meetings and workshops with Beth.

She is a powerhouse within user experience and always brings a fresh perspective around how to solve a particular problem. She is a kind and uplifting force when a project may feel stuck. Beth does a great job of proposing options and ideas for finding the best solution for the member at whoop. Her thoughtful presentations during onsites around member interviewing, creating stories, and identifying member journeys are always so appreciated and she truly is always helping those around her learn more by being able to work with her. She is always willing to take the time to explain her thought process or the reasons behind decisions, and is always doing it with such a positive attitude and outlook!”

— Emily Smith, Product Manager for Sleep & Recovery at WHOOP in 2024

“Beth is a force; she is an incredible product designer, imaginative design strategist, and unparalleled collaborator.

She led the design of a global IBM product with the ease of someone who is genuinely motivated by her users, and is comfortable treating her work as an ever-growing and iterative experience. Beth's strong communication skills were also invaluable when we brought two design teams together to launch an integrated product. It was nothing but a pleasure working with Beth - she will be missed!”

— Claire Kelly, Senior Employee Experience Designer at IBM in 2021

“Honestly, Beth is probably one of the top 3 designers I've ever met in my entire career, not just because she's great at designing, but also because she's a kind, charismatic, empathic, and super hard worker.

Beth was my mentor for about 2 years, and I couldn't be happier and more grateful to her. She made my transition into IBM quite smooth and always was there to help me when needed. I truly wish there were at least one Beth at each company, I'm sure it would make it so much better working there.
Beth has a set of incredible skills, amazing communication skills, she's a natural leader, also has a great designer eye, and an amazing attitude for helping others, she inspired me in so many ways and so different levels that I can not say anything else to her other than thank you so much!”

— René Bautista Rivera, UX Designer at IBM in 2021

“I had the privilege of working with and learning from Beth during our time together at IBM.

As our HR Design team lead, Beth consistently went above and beyond to create and contribute to a positive team environment inside and outside of her product teams. She took a personal interest in learning as much as she could about the company's design philosophy and readily shared that knowledge with me as my mentor, and for that, I am extremely grateful. Beth has a passion for pushing new boundaries in design with enthusiasm and valor, and that is a quality I not only feel is extremely hard to find but a quality I aspire to develop in myself in the future. She has been a key resource and leader on projects that transform outdated ways of working and is a true catalyst for change. Her work speaks for itself—Beth is one of the most talented designers I've ever worked with and I highly recommend her to anyone who has the opportunity to connect with her.

— Allie Jehle, UX Designer at IBM in 2021