Jan 2022 – Present · 4 yrs 4 mos

• The Forbes Coaches Council is an invitation-only community for world-class executives, successful CEOs, entrepreneurs and business owners.

Sep 2021 – Present · 4 yrs 8 mos

• Teach human-centered design and facilitation skills to individuals and organizations while coaching them to help foster innovative thinking
• Create an engaging experience for different audiences with varying levels of interest and experience
• Help participants make connections back to their daily work; encouraging application of the human-centered design thinking to people’s professional and personal challenges
• Listen to participants share stories of their application of the LUMA System and provide guidance on LUMA Method mechanics, facilitation tips, and how to engage others in their organizations
• Work with other Facilitators to deliver multi-day experiences; both online and in-person

Apr 2021 – Present · 5 yrs 1 mo · Greater Chicago Area

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Aug 2020 – Jul 2023 · 2 yrs 11 mos

• Coach students during their career change, help them find their niche and prepare them for their first job in a new industry
• Help clients with creating and enhancing their resumes, LinkedIn profiles, storytelling skills and design portfolios needed to secure a job outside of the bootcamp
• Prepare students with networking skills, interview preparation, and any communication with prospect employers (including cover letters) in order to land a new job
• Act as a mentor while giving students industry insights in a new arena, preparing them for life in the design field
• Provide expert feedback on assignments throughout their bootcamp experience in order to get their work portfolio ready

Jan 2019 – Jan 2021 · 2 yrs · Tinley Park, IL

• Develop and champion strategies and product vision to improve the user experience based on insights and analytics
• Responsible for creating personas, journey maps, touch points and outlining gaps for new products and services
• Collaborate effectively as a team player while encouraging positive energy and engagement in group environments
• Lead and facilitate idea generation and design workshops
• Teach design thinking methodology across the entire organization to promote innovative problem solving
• Oversee roadmap, planning and design work for all digital products in a variety of breakpoints, ensuring consistency
• Empower, coach and mentor junior, mid and senior UX designers while pivoting operationally when needed based on Agile best practices

Jan 2017 – Jan 2019 · 2 yrs · Greater Chicago Area

• Championed new business development for UX team that supported agents, which included the approval of the business case to increase the UX staff budget by $1M
• Made changes to operations in UX staff, shift and pivot based on ever changing portfolio
• Hired, trained and mentored junior, mid and senior UX designers based on experience, altering coaching methods based on situation
• Managed UX vendors needed to support overage
• Fostered a UX culture among the entire UX department through key department meetings and mentorship guilds
• Responsible for strategy/vision, planning and execution of the entire portfolio crafting solutions based on user research and user needs
• Solved problems at the enterprise level using a human-centered design approach, maintaining speed and agility
• Taught business value and understanding of UX driving measurable results through data, analytics and user testing
• Oversaw portfolio design work through discovery and delivery while building innovative products and services
• Facilitated design workshops with agents using LUMA Institute human-centered design methodology

Jan 2011 – Jan 2017 · 6 yrs

• Managed and grew user experience and usability resources within the Digital Business Group and worked with senior business leaders, creative design personnel within Marketing and IT application development areas
• Supervised the pipeline of all user experience design work: identification, planning, and resourcing
• Established, defined and trained individuals on user experience design methodology, frameworks, and tools
• Set a course for user research and usability testing within the organization
• Served as a consultant regarding Agile methodology, relating to product management, design and development
• Enhanced the company’s digital presence on the web/mobile/email, expanding Lincoln’s usability capabilities
• Responsible for defining and enforcing the visual, interaction, editorial guidelines and asset management for all web and mobile design across the enterprise and all lines of business from design through development
• Championed the User Experience team through user interface requirements: persona development, user stories, use cases, flow diagrams, information architecture, wireframes and prototypes
• Spearheaded brainstorming sessions and partner with officers to help shape roadmaps and planning

Jan 2011 – Jan 2011 · 0 mo

• Managed and mentored a team of user experience professionals focused on designing and developing cars.com online editorial and research products, including the launch of the Android App using Agile
• Responsible for user interface requirements through persona development, use cases, user stories, page flows, information architecture, and wireframes
• Served as a user advocate throughout the product lifecycle and collaborate closely with product managers, technical leads and visual design leads
• Guided business and functional requirements
• Led a variety of user research/testing exercises and analyzed results which influenced product strategy and design; tracked and analyzed user-behavior metrics

Jan 2006 – Jan 2010 · 4 yrs

• Assisted numerous departments interagency and led all design efforts in the planning department on a variety of mediums: web, print, kiosk, and mobile
• Created personas, scenarios, storyboards and analyzed data gathered from testing information architecture, interaction diagrams, wireframes and prototypes
• Designed, developed and maintained regional transit information standards and guidelines
• Established human interface strategies for innovative projects based on user research and user needs
• Coordinated directly with the service boards, presented to the board and managed outside consultants

Jan 2006 – Jan 2009 · 3 yrs

Jan 2005 – Jan 2005 · 0 mo

• Designed and created the self-serving searchable Finance Image Library; included research of users and existing tools, developed taxonomy, selected, sized, and optimized images, created prototypes, uploaded images and pushed to servers
• Developed style guide for the Finance Image Library
• Mocked up concepts for the Columnist and Health’s Blog for Hope
• Participated in an ethnographic study session and design research brainstorming workshop

Jan 2004 – Present · 22 yrs 4 mos · Greater Chicago Area

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• Successes in "Featured"
• Forbes Coaches Council Member
• LUMA Institute | Executive Innovation Coach & Facilitator, Design Thinking Methodology Expert
• AIGA, Mentor | Mentorship Program
• https://chicago.aiga.org/2020-mentors/carmelina-piedra/
• Adjunct Mentor, CareerFoundry
• Flatiron School, Mentor & Speaker "User Research During a Global Pandemic" and "History of UX; How the Field Has Evolved Over Time"
• General Assembly, Mentor
• Adjunct Faculty, Northpark University
• Speaker and panel member at a variety of conferences

Jan 2000 – Jan 2004 · 4 yrs

• Managed and directed developers in a look and feel capacity while following corporate standards
• Acted as a liaison between Corporate Marketing, developers and business case owners
• Served as an Information Architect on major projects by developing site maps and wireframes
• Led web site analysis sessions as an User Experience Expert
• Conceptualized, designed and produced web sites and style guides for the B to B Global Marketplace of Coface, the Reporting Tool of Clear Channel Communications, the Go Delphi web sites of Delphi Automotive and branding using SAP and Plumtree portals for Alcoa
• Traveled extensively, domestically and internationally, while dealing directly with clients and vendors on-site

Jan 1999 – Jan 2000 · 1 yr

Jan 1997 – Jan 1999 · 2 yrs

Jan 1996 – Jan 1996 · 0 mo

Jan 1995 – Jan 1995 · 0 mo