Alex Zapadenko
Alex Zapadenko
Alex Zapadenko
Product Design Director
& Hands-on AI Builder.
Product Design Director & Hands-on AI Builder.
Product Design Director & Hands-on AI Builder.
Design leader with 15+ years building teams that ship. I operationalize design, keep a hands-on craft practice, and partner tightly with engineering and product to drive measurable business outcomes.
Design leader with 15+ years building teams that ship. I operationalize design, keep a hands-on craft practice, and partner tightly with engineering and product to drive measurable business outcomes.
Design leader with 15+ years building teams that ship. I operationalize design, keep a hands-on craft practice, and partner tightly with engineering and product to drive measurable business outcomes.
Scaled a design org from 10 to 50+, later rolled into a 200-person global practice
Scaled a design org from 10 to 50+, later rolled into a 200-person global practice
Scaled a design org from 10 to 50+, later rolled into a 200-person global practice
Led design for critical client programs in tech, banking, retail, and real estate
Led design for critical client programs in tech, banking, retail, and real estate
Led design for critical client programs in tech, banking, retail, and real estate
Helped close multimillion-dollar partnerships
Helped close multimillion-dollar partnerships
Helped close multimillion-dollar partnerships
Built career frameworks, design systems, and delivery playbooks used across distributed teams
Built career frameworks, design systems, and delivery playbooks used across distributed teams
Built career frameworks, design systems, and delivery playbooks used across distributed teams
Selected Projects
Selected Projects
Selected Projects
Vibe-code
Vibe-code
Vibe-code
Assorted
Assorted
Assorted
Resume
Resume
Resume
Download PDF
Download PDF
Download PDF
Download PDF
Product Inc.
Product Inc.
Product Inc.
Founder & Principal Product Designer
Founder & Principal Product Designer
Founder & Principal Product Designer
Dec 2022・3 years
Dec 2022・3 years
Dec 2022・3 years
Partnered with founders to define, design, and launch new products from 0 to 1
Partnered with founders to define, design, and launch new products from 0 to 1
Partnered with founders to define, design, and launch new products from 0 to 1
Built a marketplace for fine crystal collectors: strategy, GTM plan, and product UX
Built a marketplace for fine crystal collectors: strategy, GTM plan, and product UX
Built a marketplace for fine crystal collectors: strategy, GTM plan, and product UX
Advised early-stage startups on product-market fit, team building, and design ops
Advised early-stage startups on product-market fit, team building, and design ops
Advised early-stage startups on product-market fit, team building, and design ops
.Monks
.Monks
.Monks
Senior Director, Product Design
Senior Director, Product Design
Senior Director, Product Design
May 2022 - May 2024・2 yrs 1 mo
May 2022 - May 2024・2 yrs 1 mo
May 2022 - May 2024・2 yrs 1 mo
Scaled design org from 10 to 50+ team members, later merging into a 200-person global design practice
Scaled design org from 10 to 50+ team members, later merging into a 200-person global design practice
Scaled design org from 10 to 50+ team members, later merging into a 200-person global design practice
Built career frameworks, mentoring systems, and performance processes across the org
Built career frameworks, mentoring systems, and performance processes across the org
Built career frameworks, mentoring systems, and performance processes across the org
Led critical client engagements in banking, retail, and real estate verticals
Led critical client engagements in banking, retail, and real estate verticals
Led critical client engagements in banking, retail, and real estate verticals
Actively contributed to design sales efforts, helping close multimillion-dollar partnerships
Actively contributed to design sales efforts, helping close multimillion-dollar partnerships
Actively contributed to design sales efforts, helping close multimillion-dollar partnerships
Theorem
Theorem
Design Director
Design Director
Design Director
Dec 2015 - May 2022・6 yrs 6 mo
Dec 2015 - May 2022・6 yrs 6 mo
Dec 2015 - May 2022・6 yrs 6 mo
Hired, coached, and grew the product design team from early stage maturity to enterprise-level scale
Hired, coached, and grew the product design team from early stage maturity to enterprise-level scale
Hired, coached, and grew the product design team from early stage maturity to enterprise-level scale
Implemented design systems and delivery playbooks across distributed teams
Implemented design systems and delivery playbooks across distributed teams
Implemented design systems and delivery playbooks across distributed teams
Advocated for design quality and efficiency in client-facing digital product builds
Advocated for design quality and efficiency in client-facing digital product builds
Advocated for design quality and efficiency in client-facing digital product builds
Facilitated design process adoption across engineering, strategy, and product groups
Facilitated design process adoption across engineering, strategy, and product groups
Facilitated design process adoption across engineering, strategy, and product groups
Earlier (Rokitt, Star, Ciklum)
Earlier (Rokitt, Star, Ciklum)
Earlier (Rokitt, Star, Ciklum)
UX/Ul Designer
UX/Ul Designer
UX/Ul Designer
2010 - 2015・5 years
2010 - 2015・5 years
2010 - 2015・5 years
Delivered UX and visual design for international clients across enterprise and consumer tech
Delivered UX and visual design for international clients across enterprise and consumer tech
Delivered UX and visual design for international clients across enterprise and consumer tech
Built early mobile/web applications, shaping user experience from concept through delivery
Built early mobile/web applications, shaping user experience from concept through delivery
Built early mobile/web applications, shaping user experience from concept through delivery
Worked across industries including fintech, logistics, gaming, and enterprise SaaS
Worked across industries including fintech, logistics, gaming, and enterprise SaaS
Worked across industries including fintech, logistics, gaming, and enterprise SaaS
How we can work together
Work together
Fractional (1-3 days/w)
Fractional (1-3 days/w)
Best for: growing teams that need senior leadership without adding a full headcount.
Best for: growing teams that need senior leadership without adding a full headcount.
Best for: growing teams that need senior leadership without adding a full headcount.
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Player-coach support for designers
Player-coach support for designers
Player-coach support for designers
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Tighter design/eng handoffs
Tighter design/eng handoffs
Tighter design/eng handoffs
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Hands-on design where it matters
Hands-on design where it matters
Hands-on design where it matters
Get in touch
Get in touch
Get in touch
Get in touch
Full-time Principal
Full-time Principal
Full-time Principal
Best for: hands-on execution in complex areas where an expert IC leads by doing.
Best for: hands-on execution in complex areas where an expert IC leads by doing.
Best for: hands-on execution in complex areas where an expert IC leads by doing.
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Ownership of critical product surfaces
Ownership of critical product surfaces
Ownership of critical product surfaces
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Deep discovery, design and prototyping
Deep discovery, design and prototyping
Deep discovery, design and prototyping
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Close pairing with engineering and pm
Close pairing with engineering and pm
Close pairing with engineering and pm
Get in touch
Get in touch
Get in touch
Get in touch
Full-time Director
Full-time Director
Full-time Director
Best for: teams that need a long-term design leader to scale people, systems, and delivery.
Best for: teams that need a long-term design leader to scale people, systems, and delivery.
Best for: teams that need a long-term design leader to scale people, systems, and delivery.
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Org design, hiring, leveling and coaching
Org design, hiring, leveling and coaching
Org design, hiring, leveling and coaching
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Design ops and governance
Design ops and governance
Design ops and governance
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Hands-on high-leverage work
Hands-on high-leverage work
Hands-on high-leverage work
Get in touch
Get in touch
Get in touch
Get in touch
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