# Paulo Azevedo > Design leader with engineering DNA who loves building things Location: San Francisco Bay Area, United States Profile: https://flows.cv/pauloazevedo I’m a design leader with 19+ years of experience shaping products and leading transformation across technology, finance, and healthcare in global markets. Having grown from a hands-on designer and frontend engineer into a global design executive, I bridge product, engineering, and design to create thoughtful, scalable, and technically sound solutions that balance craft, customer needs, and business impact. I’ve been trusted to lead design in world-leading companies, including Atlassian and Credit Suisse, where, given my top performance, I was selected into their top leadership cohorts (Atlassian’s Ascent Program and Credit Suisse’s Young Leader Circle). I’m deeply passionate about people and craft, the two forces that define great design at scale. I believe leadership is about creating the conditions for others to do their best work: clarity, trust, and shared purpose. I care as much about how we build as what we build, cultivating teams where designers feel empowered, guided, and connected to the impact they create. As teams grow and scale, I focus on scaling design excellence through principles, critique, and coaching that keep quality consistent while giving individuals the space to innovate and grow. I love helping teams untangle complex challenges and uncover what truly matters to customers, turning that understanding into experiences that move both hearts and metrics. From hands-on collaboration with delivery teams to leading global multi layered organizations, I stay deeply connected to the work and the people behind it. I’ve shaped products across startups and Fortune 100 companies, from 0→1 AI innovations to mature enterprise platforms. At Atlassian, I led design for AI-native Strategy & Planning products, launched two 0→1 innovations (Focus and Talent), directed design for the Cloud Shift program (unlocking hundreds of millions in revenue), and scaled the design organization sixfold across global teams. At Credit Suisse, I built the Customer Experience (Design + Research) function from the ground up, led the design and launch of CSX - Switzerland’s most recognized digital banking brand - and established the bank’s first unified design system and shared engineering component library, aligning design and development across platforms and markets. I’m known for scaling teams that deliver at the intersection of creativity, clarity, and impact, where craft thrives, leaders grow, and people feel proud of what they build together. ## Work Experience ### Head of Design @ Atlassian Jan 2022 – Jan 2026 | San Francisco Bay Area Lead design for Atlassian's Enterprise Strategy & Planning business, and AI-powered internal solutions incubator, shaping AI-powered products that help Fortune 100 companies align strategy with execution. 0→1 AI-Native Leadership & Product Innovation - AI solution incubator: Pioneered vibe coding and EPD AI-native ways of working. Mentored cross-functional teams. Vibe coded solutions including marketing tools, sales pipelines and Mac-native coding agent for RovoDev - Business turnaround: Turned around declining business by launching two AI-powered products (Focus and Talent) as Strategy Collection, featured at Team '25, contributing to Forrester Wave 2025 Leader recognition - AI-native design vision: Partnered with central AI, product, and engineering to define intelligent experiences. Designed interaction patterns and IA that make strategic complexity navigable across Fortune 500 hierarchies - Architected complex information systems: Designed IA bridging strategic planning (goals, initiatives, outcomes) with execution (teams, work, capacity) at enterprise scale Organization Building & Operational Excellence: - Cloud Shift program: Led design for critical Atlassian strategy delivering enterprise security, compliance, admin, unlocking hundreds of millions in revenue - Platform modernization: Elevated design quality for admin experiences, strengthening ecosystem foundation - Scaled 6×: From 10 to 60+ designers across 8 managers globally. Implemented design operations, leadership development, collaboration frameworks - Championed craft: Established principles, review rituals, quality frameworks elevating standards for millions of users. Delivered major Atlassian Design System enhancements Strategic Leadership & Executive Influence - Adaptive leadership: Scaled organizations, drove 0→1 innovation, architected complex systems - Atlassian Ascent: Recognized as top 1% of Atlassian's global leaders for strategic influence and organizational impact ### Head of Customer Experience (Design + Research) @ Credit Suisse Jan 2020 – Jan 2022 | Zurich, Switzerland Built and scaled the Design and Research function from scratch, hiring and inspiring a high-performing design and research team with near-100% retention, and embedding CX practices into major transformation programs with budgets exceeding CHF 50M. Designed and launched CSX, a disruptive digital banking app and ecosystem praised in the media, which secured 100,000+ clients and over CHF 1B in deposits and investments within its first year. Elevated Credit Suisse’s digital channels to #1 in Swiss digital banking rankings (Finnoscore 2021) by transforming customer journeys across online and mobile platforms. Strengthened the role of design as a strategic partner across the bank by embedding user research and rapid prototyping into executive decision-making, shaping strategy with customer insights and influencing programs at enterprise scale. Strengthened market recognition, with CSX nominated for The Banker’s Innovation Award (2021), positioning the bank as a digital leader. ### Head of Design @ Credit Suisse Jan 2017 – Jan 2020 | Zurich, Switzerland Founding member of the Client Experience team, establishing internal Design and Research capabilities. Selected to the Credit Suisse SUB Young Leader Circle, an exclusive, nomination-only program for the bank’s top leaders. Scaled design operations by implementing systems, governance, and practices that improved efficiency, consistency, and impact across design teams. Hands on Product designer, leading critical work streams elevating the quality of the design across online and mobile banking. Built and scaled Credit Suisse’s first enterprise-wide design system for Mobile and Web, unifying digital experiences across mobile and web platforms, accelerating delivery speed, and elevating brand consistency and accessibility across global markets. Partnered with engineering to establish a shared component library and governance model, ensuring seamless design–development alignment and enabling faster, higher-quality product delivery across teams and regions. Partnered with engineering to influence the creation of a shared component library used across development teams, ensuring design and technical alignment at scale. Secured funding and built a cutting-edge UX Lab with eye-tracking, motion analysis, and usability testing capabilities, enabling evidence-based design decisions at scale. Evangelized design and research across the bank through executive presentations and showcases, embedding customer understanding and design-led decision-making into strategic initiatives. Top 3 in the Credit Suisse group-wide Employee Award for Client Focus. ### Lead Engineer, Lead Product Designer @ Credit Suisse Jan 2013 – Jan 2017 | Zurich, Switzerland Led engineering teams delivering large-scale software programs with distributed teams, ensuring quality, scalability, and performance. Introduced UX practices into engineering workflows, including research sessions with relationship managers, usability testing, and rapid prototyping with design tools, bridging the gap between technical delivery and user experience. Advocated for a user-first approach in technology programs, influencing product direction and fostering stronger collaboration between engineers, designers, and business stakeholders. Delivered high-quality, award-winning solutions with scalable backends and intuitive interfaces that improved adoption and reduced training needs. Designed and developed mySolutions, an award-winning cross-asset trading portal described by users as “the only internal software that doesn’t require training,” subsequently awarded Best Internet Banking Service by a leading banking technology magazine. Served as key technical leader for frontend development, introducing modern frameworks including HTML5, React, and Angular to accelerate delivery and improve user experience. ### Lead Software Engineer Consultant and UX Designer @ Novabase Jan 2011 – Jan 2013 Developed and designed a CRM application that integrated multiple legacy banking systems and delivered a unified experience and new functionality to support the bank’s evolving business needs. Rolled out the solution across all bank counters, central services, and the full network, consolidating employee, client, and asset information into a single articulated platform. ### Senior Software Engineer @ Retmarker Jan 2009 – Jan 2011 Developed award-winning healthcare applications with a focus on vision science and diabetic retinal disease prevention. Applied a deeply user-centric approach by spending extensive time in training sessions and meetings with doctors, and analyzing treatment and surgery videos to better understand both the medical context and the end-users of the software. Collaborated closely with medical professionals to design tools that improved accuracy, usability, and adoption in clinical environments. ### Software Engineer @ MediaPrimer Jan 2008 – Jan 2009 Developed an equipment registration solution with built-in GIS capabilities to map water distribution infrastructure. Integrated historical data from distributed equipment across the water network to enable monitoring, reporting, and trend analysis. Generated actionable reports that supported management decisions and improved infrastructure oversight. ### Software Engineer @ Visabeira Digital Jan 2007 – Jan 2008 Developed a mobility solution for fleet and route management, improving operational efficiency and reducing vehicle-related costs. Built a desktop application to visualize maps and daily vehicle routes, enabling managers to optimize scheduling and resource allocation. Delivered a web application for in-vehicle use, allowing drivers to receive and manage work orders in real time. ### Software Engineer - Intern @ SMAS Jan 2006 – Jan 2006 Designed and developed the company’s dynamic website and backend, creating a modern online presence and improving content management capabilities. Project was recognized with a top grade evaluation and contributed to the successful completion of the Computer Science degree. ## Education ### Licentiate degree in Computer Science Instituto Politécnico de Viseu Jan 2003 – Jan 2007 ## Contact & Social - LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pauloalmeidaazevedo - Website: https://pauloazevedo.me/ --- Source: https://flows.cv/pauloazevedo JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/pauloazevedo/resume.json Last updated: 2026-04-07