Zendesk / Klaus
Design Lead
2023 – Present
B2B
Desktop
AI
Transformative years with an exceptional product team. I dove into the world of AI, expanded beyond design into product strategy, and grew into a business-oriented builder — not just shaping interfaces, but shaping the direction of the product itself.
From Klaus to Zendesk
I joined Klaus in July 2023, a high-growth startup (~$16M ARR) specializing in customer service QA. Klaus stood out in the market thanks to its exceptional design, and I had the privilege of leading design efforts to shape the user experience and AI strategy.
Our focus on design excellence and customer satisfaction ultimately led to Klaus's acquisition by Zendesk in February 2024.
My contributions and stats in ~1.5 years
+340%
Monthly recurring revenue
+180%
Customers
~97%
Gross revenue retention
Last update in March 2025
A unique way of working
We followed Basecamp’s Shape Up methodology, working in focused 6-week cycles. I played a central role across all phases — from framing new ideas to shaping bets and supporting delivery.
Framing
As team lead, I spent most of my time in the Framing phase — identifying valuable opportunities, aligning with product and research, and translating ambiguous ideas into focused initiatives. For example, in our chatbot analysis work, where the path forward was unclear, I helped define the problem space, led user research, and built early prototypes to drive clarity and confidence.
Shaping and building
Once initiatives were selected, I often led one or more delivery lanes, partnering closely with engineering to craft high-impact solutions. These 6-week cycles were fast-paced, but I thrived in the structured intensity — enabling rapid iteration, clear decisions, and tight cross-functional alignment.
Role and responsibilities
At Zendesk, I designed and shaped the product strategy for our quality assurance platform, formerly Klaus. I tackled complex problems, prototyped solutions, and ensured consistency and quality across teams.
As lead designer on high-impact initiatives, I set the vision and direction to keep us ahead of the market. I collaborated closely with the heads of ML, Engineering, Product, and the founding team to define strategy, visualise ideas, and position our product within the broader Zendesk ecosystem.
I also improved team processes to boost productivity, maintain cross-project consistency, and raise the bar for design craft. Additionally, I oversaw content design to ensure alignment with the overall user experience.
Key achievements
Reworked the navigation and core flows
Upon joining Klaus, I spotted immediate quick-win opportunities and kicked off one of the most transformative projects: the design refresh (see case study). This led to a series of follow-up initiatives that overhauled the information architecture and simplified onboarding.
Transformed the product from startup to enterprise
I led the design of Advanced Scorecards, enabling scalable AI- and human-led reviews. We balanced complex data with a flexible, enterprise-ready system — helping one of our largest customers reduce 10,000 configuration points down to just 30.
Set the vision for our AI solutions
I simplified our AI offerings to improve user understanding, enhancing conversation discovery through better filtering, introducing "Spotlight" for automatic insights, and reorganising the sidebar for easier data access.
Lighter specs and better collaboration
I simplified documentation by consolidating multiple Figma/FigJam files into a single page per project. I also introduced a unified UX spec process, structured critique sessions, and created a system for revisiting missed ones.