chino

Design Leader + Product Executive

Building exceptional products and services, and the design teams behind their growth.

Medium

Medium is a place to read, write, and deepen understanding. The platform is ad-free and supported by consumer subscriptions. Primary customers tend to be writers, thought leaders, and readers seeking quality long-form content.

As VP of Design at Medium (2022–2024), I was recruited to lead the company’s design and product strategy during a pivotal period of transformation. Tasked with reversing a decline in subscriptions following significant organizational changes, I unified and elevated cross-functional teams spanning product design, brand, research, product management, trust and safety, data science, and customer support. By championing a reader- and writer-first mission, helping to steer the launch of a premium subscription tier, establishing a Verified Book Author program, revitalizing the platform’s core experience, and reigniting subscriber growth for the first time in years.

Medium brand identity and logo design showcasing typographic excellence
Barack Obama's Medium profile page showing verified author badge, follower count, and book author status
Medium membership page featuring 'Support human stories' with subscription benefits and member-only content
Medium friend connection interface with animated heart icon and user profile showing social engagement features

Links

Chino presenting at ProductCon on stage with presentation slides behind him, discussing design leadership and product development strategies
ProductCon: Level Up Product Development
A video discussion on building effective design teams and leadership strategies in growing organizations.
on YouTube
Stylized WFH typography in black brushstrokes representing work from home culture and remote work benefits
Discovering WFH Gems ⟡
Exploring the unexpected benefits and hidden advantages of working from home that transformed how we think about productivity and creativity.
on Medium
Clean typography showing 'story.new' text on light gray background, emphasizing the simplicity and accessibility of starting to write
Start writing now: story.new
A powerful call to action for aspiring writers to overcome hesitation and begin their creative journey with practical advice and encouragement.
on Medium
Code syntax highlighting showing cyan-colored comment text '// finally' on black background, representing the excitement of improved developer experience
Syntax Highlighting Finally
Celebrating the long-awaited arrival of syntax highlighting features that make code more readable and development more enjoyable.
on Medium

Braze

Braze is a customer engagement platform that enables brands to orchestrate personalized, cross-channel messaging campaigns. While typically purchased by CMOs and CTOs at enterprise companies, the platform is primarily used by marketers, marketing operations teams, and implementation engineers. Braze closed its initial public offering in 2021 (Nasdaq: BRZE).

As Head of User Experience at Braze, I helped lead the company’s evolution from a pre-IPO startup of under 200 employees to a global, publicly traded organization with over 1,300 staff across three continents. I built and scaled multidisciplinary teams in product design, UX research, and technical writing, driving innovation and cross-functional collaboration. My tenure included launching a drag-and-drop email editor, integrating AI-powered features across the platform, and establishing a UX research function from the ground up. I also partnered with engineering and marketing to develop Beacon, our extensible design system. My leadership fostered a culture of design excellence and business impact, preparing Braze for its next stage of growth.

Braze Benchmarks analytics interface showing push notification performance metrics: 3.96% total open rate, 0.93% direct open rate, and 3.03% influenced open rate, with filtering options for channel (Push), platform (Android), and industry categories, featuring performance visualization chart
Braze animated gradient interface showing dynamic color transitions and smooth animations
Braze Prediction Audience by Churn Risk dashboard showing user distribution across risk levels: Low Risk (1.8M users), Medium Risk (510K users), and High Risk (370K users), with audience selection capabilities for churn risk scores 75-100, displaying selected audience of 370,243 users from 2,625,343 total and estimated accuracy of 280,845 users
Braze campaign builder interface showing workflow components panel with basic components (Message, Delay), flow controls (Decision Split, Audience Paths, Action Paths, Experiment Paths), entry rules configuration, and message variant creation with 'Add Variant' button and Variant 1 message setup featuring promotional content: 'Great news! An item that you wanted recently went on sale!'

Links

Three circular icons on warm orange gradient background showing search tool, network connections, and heart engagement symbols representing design team building strategies
Three Things Pre-IPO Design Teams Should Do
Key strategies and best practices for building successful design culture in fast-growing companies.
on Braze.com
Video conference call screenshot showing twelve team members in grid layout discussing prototype testing and user research collaboration
How Braze tested a Figma prototype 3x faster using Maze
A case study on how Braze accelerated their prototype testing process using Maze’s user testing platform to gather insights quickly and efficiently.
on Maze.co
Beacon design system documentation showing comprehensive UI components including link patterns, copy fields, base colors, alerts, in-product illustrations, and system UI directory with color palettes and component specifications
How Braze Embraced Teamwork to Build Our Beacon Design System
A deep dive into the collaborative process and strategic decisions behind building Braze’s comprehensive Beacon design system from the ground up.
on Braze.com

Animoto

Animoto is a cloud-based video creation platform that enables users to produce professional-quality videos without technical expertise. The platform serves small business owners, marketers, educators, and content creators who need to create engaging video content quickly and affordably. It operates on a freemium SaaS model with paid subscriptions that offer more. Animoto was acquired by Redbrick in 2023.

At Animoto, I built and led a unified design organization spanning motion, brand, product, and user research, driving our evolution from a consumer platform to a market-leading solution for SMBs. My leadership fueled exponential growth and positioned Animoto at the forefront of GPU-powered, dynamically generated video technology. I championed a culture of design excellence and cross-functional collaboration, ensuring every initiative delivered measurable impact.

Animoto video style selection interface with Featured styles including Lullaby, Grid, and Modern Minimalist templates, plus category browsing options
Animoto team celebrating success at escape room with victory signs and achievement banners
Animoto 2019 animated GIF showcasing dynamic video creation process with urban cityscape background
Animoto interface icons and UI elements including HD, Pro, CTA, music, and creative tools for video production

Links

Vintage portrait image for the Animated GIFs = GIFs article
Animated GIFs = GIFs
Exploring animated GIFs as a medium for digital expression and their cultural impact on modern storytelling.
on Medium
Chino's workspace setup showing design leadership materials and creative environment
How Animoto Can Help Make Anyone a Video Auteur
A comprehensive exploration of how accessible video creation tools democratize storytelling and enable anyone to become a skilled video creator.
on AI-AP.com