# Taylor Higashi

> Senior Product Designer at NerdWallet

Location: Oakland, California, United States
Profile: https://flows.cv/taylorhigashi

I’m a product designer working with local startups to craft meaningful experiences for their users. I live at the intersection of technology and humanity - I love solving the big problems that block people from achieving their dreams. 

My career in design was born in recording studios, grown in the chaos of restaurant kitchens, and honed through countless design sprints. With a background in computer and cognitive science, I break down problems empathetically and build solutions systematically.

Check out my latest work at thigashi.com

## Work Experience
### Product Designer @ t.higashi design
Jan 2017 – Present | San Francisco Bay Area

### Senior Product Designer @ NerdWallet
Jan 2021 – Jan 2025 | San Francisco Bay Area

### Product Designer @ NerdWallet
Jan 2018 – Jan 2021 | San Francisco Bay Area

### Product Designer (Contract) @ NerdWallet
Jan 2018 – Jan 2018 | San Francisco Bay Area

### Product Designer (Contract) @ FutureAdvisor
Jan 2017 – Jan 2017 | San Francisco Bay Area
Future Advisor: an internal trading tool for a BlackRock company.

•	Work with team of designers to redesign internal trading tool
•	Conduct comparative analysis and contextual inquiry to reveal pain points of internal trading tool and spark possible solutions
•	Collaborate with the Future Advisor design team to ensure a unified experience for their traders
•	Take part in design studios - produce and iterate over lo-fi sketches to uncover the best path forward 
•	Test prototype with traders and incorporate feedback into the next design phase

### Lead Product Designer(Contract) @ Simple Habit
Jan 2017 – Jan 2017 | San Francisco Bay Area
Simple Habit: a meditation app filled with thousands of meditations from a world-wide network of teachers.

•	Lead a team of 5 designers in redesign of meditation app
•	Conduct user interviews and diary studies to uncover what impeded user acquisition and retention
•	Run design studios to generate ideas and narrow focus
•	Create wireframes and lo-fi prototypes to test solutions, garner feedback, iterate, and test again
•	Produce pixel-perfect hi-fi screens and prepare final deliverable
•	Plan design sprints and ensure sprint goals are met

### Product Designer @ Tradecraft
Jan 2017 – Jan 2017 | San Francisco Bay Area

### Product Designer (Contract) @ Industrial Systems Management
Jan 2017 – Jan 2017 | San Francisco Bay Area
Industrial Systems Management: Air compressor management software for air compressor distributors

•	Build a dashboard for air compressor distributors from the ground up
•	Participate in design studios, generate and iterate over possible solutions
•	Uncover user needs through testing, affinity mapping, and interviews with the founders
•	Create style guidelines to ensure cohesion across a complex system
•	Systemize design components to enable easy implementation for the engineering team

### Sous Chef @ The Fifth Quarter
Jan 2012 – Jan 2016 | Oakland, CA
Collaborate with owner to produce artisanal line of charcuterie to build brand and garner support for funding brick and mortar store. Ensure quality and aesthetic remain consistent across product line.


## Education
### Bachelor's degree in Cognitive Science
University of California, Berkeley
Jan 2016 – Jan 2018


## Contact & Social
- LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/taylorhigashi

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Source: https://flows.cv/taylorhigashi
JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/taylorhigashi/resume.json
Last updated: 2026-03-25