Hello, I’m Mariesa 👋🏽
I’m a product design leader, agile development coach, and customer advocate.
I believe in elevating the impact of design within your company to ensure your team builds product which has usability, desirability, AND your bottom-line in mind. Ultimately, good design strategy leads to stronger product-market fit, a sharper competitive advantage, & the impact you’re seeking for your organization.
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Are you an Ideālist?
You won’t get there without deep knowledge of your customer and connecting those insights to your bottom-line business goals.
In today’s competitive landscape, where customer loyalty is fleeting and options abound, a superior Customer Experience (CX) is not just a good-to-have, but a business imperative. A positive CX fosters customer loyalty, encourages repeat business, and fuels positive word-of-mouth, all of which directly impacts the bottom line. My studio, Ideālis, aims to leverage the multifaceted relationship between your customer’s experience, your business, and what’s technically possible to provide you with a strategic direction that is clear and actionable.
“Mariesa is the best manager I have ever had…
I came to her at a stage of my career where I was wanting to advance to a senior title but didn’t know how exactly to get the promotion. I was in a generalist UX role I wasn’t super inspired by and felt a little trapped. Over the course of the 2.5 years I reported to her, we worked together to get that promotion, building up my skills, identifying areas for growth and filling in the gaps to make sure I was ready for a senior role, while also figuring out a path for specialization.
That 2.5 years we worked together had such a positive impact on me as a designer and helped me get to where I am today. She encouraged me to pursue my specialization and the design system leadership role I am in now was a goal we identified together years ago. With her help, I grew from a generalist practitioner to a manager and leader in my specialty.
Mariesa is the kind of manager that challenges and encourages people to reach their full potential in a way that has a long term impact long past when they report to them. I have had several managers since, but when I look at my career today I can’t help but attribute a lot of the path I forged for myself the result of conversations we were having when I was her report 2020-2022.
If you want to bring in a design leader that will inspire your team to do their best work and love their jobs, Mariesa is who you want.”
— Shauna Keating, direct report from 2000-2022 @ Truss.works
Skills I can bring to your team and organization
Large group facilitation
Elevate your team’s collaboration and innovation through immersive workshopping experiences, turning diverse perspectives into actionable insights that drive success and foster a culture of engagement and a shared vision.
Designing orgs & building teams
I harness quality Customer Experiences to elevate your organization’s design and improving team dynamics can significantly increase your bottom line, teaching IC’s how to do the same for themselves along the way.
Help teams focus on the right thing, in the moments that matter most.
By ruthlessly prioritizing and leveraging a comprehensive toolbox of research practices & techniques, I empower teams to focus sharply on building the right solutions in times of change.
Change management consulting
I adeptly guide teams through transitions, ensuring alignment and fostering a culture of adaptability and resilience.
Design Leadership
My leadership approach fosters collaboration across product, engineering, and business stakeholders, ensuring that design is not just a function but a strategic driver of success.
Product Design with impact
I revel in complex and ambiguous challenges, ensuring that business strategy and customer needs are seamlessly connected through thoughtful design solutions.
Trusted by some of the best:
Idealis Design 