# Erin Mongan > Design Leader • 3-Time 1st Designer Location: San Francisco, California, United States Profile: https://flows.cv/erinmongan Seasoned design leader spanning 13 years, 3 companies, and 10 products. Over the past 13 years, I’ve guided startups from ground zero to growth and acquisition by building impactful products, establishing scalable systems, and cultivating high-performance. I've been fortunate to work closely with founders and executives, enabling me to develop a deep understanding of how design drives business outcomes. I pride myself on being a product-minded, executional, pragmatic leader who navigates ambiguity and helps others adapt to shifting priorities while staying connected to a larger vision. ## Work Experience ### Growth Design @ Rakuten @ Rakuten Rewards Jan 2025 – Present | San Francisco Bay Area Leading Product Design for the Growth Tribe redefining the member journey across web and app ### Product & Design Advisor @ Unknown Jan 2024 – Present Helping multiple early-stage, AI-native companies validate ideas and bring consumer apps to market ### VP, Product & Design @ Reforge Jan 2024 – Jan 2024 My team at Reforge develops learning and productivity solutions that enable product and growth operators to do the best work of their career. I lead a team of 12 across Product Management and Design, responsible for organizational leadership of the product organization from strategy to execution. ### VP of Design @ Reforge Jan 2024 – Jan 2024 Led Product Design (6), Marketing Design (1), and most recently Product Management (5) Created and delivered the H2 2024 Product Strategy & Vision, managing its company-wide rollout Guided the product organization through a strategic shift from a learning-focused to a productivity-focused product through AI product development Conducted workshops ranging from small executive sessions to company-wide offsite workshops Developed and implemented a product quality rubric to enhance the standards within the product organization Led a complex, cross-functional project to unify two products into a single cohesive solution, aligning with company strategy and vision ### Head Of Design @ Reforge Jan 2019 – Jan 2024 | San Francisco, California Designed our proprietary learning platform Built a Product Design Team from scratch (0-8) Executed a rebrand of the product Lead the team in building many net-new, zero-to-one features Championed "voice of the customer" across the company Lead executive visioning exercises to inspire and align the company tops down Peers included VP Product and VP Engineering & reported to the CTO ### Design Director @ Darby Smart (acquired) Jan 2017 – Jan 2019 | San Francisco Bay Area I led and managed the design team, worked cross-functionally to solve design problems across the organization, conducted user interviews to inform decision-making, and worked with the CEO to define the product roadmap. ### Principal Designer, Product & Brand @ Darby Smart (acquired) Jan 2013 – Jan 2017 | San Francisco Bay Area As the first hire and Principal Designer, I designed our brand, website and iOS app from the ground up. As part of the product team, I drove all phases of design (Flow Charts > Interface Design > Visual Design > Prototyping) until handing over to our engineers. My team consisted of the CTO, 2 full-stack engineers, 1 backend engineer, 2 iOS developers, and a Product Manager. I developed a deep understanding of agile software development. ### Lead Designer @ Wello.com Jan 2012 – Jan 2013 As the sole designer, I designed and helped develop the entire product experience for both clients and trainers, including the core interactive virtual workout experience. Our product leveraged emerging in-browser live-streaming technology, which was considered cutting-edge at the time. ### National Creative Director of Marketing @ Independent Adoption Center Jan 2011 – Jan 2012 ### Design & Marketing Associate @ Independent Adoption Center Jan 2008 – Jan 2011 ### Graphic Design Intern @ Whizbang Ideas Jan 2007 – Jan 2007 ### Graphic Design Intern @ Armstrong Associates Jan 2007 – Jan 2007 | Santa Rosa, California ## Education ### BFA in Art & Design (Graphic Design) California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo ## Contact & Social - LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/elgcreative - Portfolio: https://meetdezzy.com/ --- Source: https://flows.cv/erinmongan JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/erinmongan/resume.json Last updated: 2026-04-13