With 25 years of experience — ranging from early-stage 'zero-to-one' builds to operating as a Principal Designer (IC6) at Meta — I bridge the gap between high-level business strategy and technical execution. While I’ve worked at the highest levels of Big Tech, my heart is firmly in the startup world. I love the energy of small, focused teams where design isn't just a department — it’s a competitive advantage. I see myself as the glue between high-level business strategy and technical execution. Whether I’m stepping up as a de facto Product Lead to double a team's shipping speed or architecting systems for 3 billion users, my goal is always the same: to cut through the noise and jargon to find the human story at the center of the product. I don’t just design features; I spot the structural flaws and systemic trade-offs that automated tools or less-experienced eyes often miss. I treat AI as a powerful force multiplier to handle the 'busy work' of design, which frees me up to focus on the truly hard problems: deep discovery, complex logic, and the stakeholder diplomacy required to keep a team aligned and moving forward.
2023 — Now
New York, United States
2022 — 2023
London, England, United Kingdom
2021 — 2022
London, England, United Kingdom
2020 — 2021
London, England, United Kingdom
2019 — 2020
London, United Kingdom
2018 — 2019
London, United Kingdom
2015 — 2018
London, United Kingdom
2006 — 2018
London, United Kingdom
2010 — 2016
Slough, United Kingdom
2007 — 2012
London, United Kingdom
1998 — 2004
London, United Kingdom
Feel free to contact me at edthomas@placeholder.flows.cv