Hey, I'm Puja! (she/her) 👋🏼 🏳️‍🌈

I’m a UX and Product Design leader with over a decade of experience scaling teams, shaping product vision, and aligning design strategy with business outcomes. I specialize in building strong, collaborative teams and translating complexity into clear, human-centered solutions. Now based in NYC, where I relocated in 2024 after being awarded the Director’s Fellowship at ICP to pursue a degree in Documentary Storytelling. I continue to support UX strategy and maintain ties to Seattle and Detroit! 🎉

Selected Work

Shaping UX at Scale for Starbucks

I built the UX discipline from the ground up as part of Starbucks’ retail tech transformation, shaping the design vision, growing the team, and launching tools like My Daily, which the CTO called "the gold standard for how we design at Starbucks for our partners."

Case study coming soon

Modernizing a Traditional Industry

At Avvo, I led the creation and growth of Avvo Advisor, an on-demand legal service recognized by the American Bar Association for innovation and featured in national media as a disruptor in legal access. This work played a key role in the company’s successful acquisition, marking a major milestone for the startup.

Case study coming soon

Simplifying Fragmented Experiences

I led a cross-functional redesign at Dropbox of the onboarding experience to reduce drop-off among high-intent users. Oversaw design, content, and research to untangle UX and system complexity, streamlining activation and driving alignment across product and engineering.

Case study coming soon

About me 👋🏼


I’m a design leader with a background in Human-Centered Design & Engineering and a passion for how people actually experience the products and systems around them. I’ve built and led high-performing design teams, shaped strategy across startups and global orgs, and created joyful, collaborative cultures along the way.

Born to Indian immigrant parents in Detroit, I began my career at Microsoft in Seattle and spent over a decade leading design, product, and strategy across a range of industries. I care deeply about connecting design to behavior and systems, and I love sharing what I’ve learned in rooms (and Zooms) through talks and workshops on design thinking.

Beyond the screen, you’ll find me in the darkroom printing film, working on a long-term documentary photo project, or getting lost in a public library. I love road trips, golden hour light, and thrifting my way through new cities, and while hiking isn’t exactly my thing, I’ve been lucky to tag along with my wife to some of the most breathtaking national parks around.

Highlighted Work Experience 🧑🏽‍💻

Design & Strategy Consultant – UX Innovation

(2025)

Visualizing future-facing tech and service concepts like geolocation, predictive kitchens, and global scalability for Wingstop International. Working directly with executive leadership and leading a small team to turn complex strategies into clear, actionable narratives that support alignment and global expansion.

Dropbox - Product Design Group Lead

(2021 - 2023)

As Group Design Lead, I orchestrated the product design strategy for the Core Desktop cloud experience, managing up to 14 product designers and 2 design managers in a remote-first environment. I spearheaded the redesign of key conversion flows across Desktop product lines, responsible for 92% of company revenue—leveraging user research and usability testing to deliver user-centric designs that drove a 20% increase in user satisfaction and a 15% improvement in Net Promoter Score (NPS).

Starbucks - Design Manager, Principal

(2018 - 2021)

Led and fostered a user-centric culture within Starbucks Retail Technology, building a team of nine focused on early-stage product releases, UI platforms, and hardware devices, positively impacting 23,000 stores and over 180,000 partners (employees). Streamlined operations by spearheading the development of an enterprise-wide design system and leading the organization’s migration to Figma, significantly improving design efficiency. Integrated user research, strategy, and design into product and engineering workflows, accelerating agile delivery and contributing to a 9% increase in Customer Connection Score with direct revenue impact.

Avvo - early stage legal startup acquired by Internet Brands, the parent company of WebMD

(2015-2018)

Recruited as the second product manager at an early-stage startup and entrusted with leading consumer innovation initiatives. Led the creation and successful launch of Avvo Advisor, an on-demand legal advice service available by phone or through a free iOS app, covering over 75% of the U.S. population. As the company scaled, I transitioned into a Product Design role and, within a year, moved into Design Management, ultimately managing a team of five designers, all of whom went on to impactful roles at Airbnb, Dropbox, Facebook, and a fast-growing startup.

Highlighted Work Experience 🧑🏽‍💻

Design & Strategy Consultant – UX Innovation

(2025)

Visualizing future-facing tech and service concepts like geolocation, predictive kitchens, and global scalability for Wingstop International. Working directly with executive leadership and leading a small team to turn complex strategies into clear, actionable narratives that support alignment and global expansion.

Dropbox - Product Design Group Lead

(2021 - 2023)

As Group Design Lead, I orchestrated the product design strategy for the Core Desktop cloud experience, managing up to 14 product designers and 2 design managers in a remote-first environment. I spearheaded the redesign of key conversion flows across Desktop product lines, responsible for 92% of company revenue—leveraging user research and usability testing to deliver user-centric designs that drove a 20% increase in user satisfaction and a 15% improvement in Net Promoter Score (NPS).

Starbucks - Design Manager, Principal

(2018 - 2021)

Led and fostered a user-centric culture within Starbucks Retail Technology, building a team of nine focused on early-stage product releases, UI platforms, and hardware devices, positively impacting 23,000 stores and over 180,000 partners (employees). Streamlined operations by spearheading the development of an enterprise-wide design system and leading the organization’s migration to Figma, significantly improving design efficiency. Integrated user research, strategy, and design into product and engineering workflows, accelerating agile delivery and contributing to a 9% increase in Customer Connection Score with direct revenue impact.

Avvo - early stage legal startup acquired by Internet Brands, the parent company of WebMD

(2015-2018)

Recruited as the second product manager at an early-stage startup and entrusted with leading consumer innovation initiatives. Led the creation and successful launch of Avvo Advisor, an on-demand legal advice service available by phone or through a free iOS app, covering over 75% of the U.S. population. As the company scaled, I transitioned into a Product Design role and, within a year, moved into Design Management, ultimately managing a team of five designers, all of whom went on to impactful roles at Airbnb, Dropbox, Facebook, and a fast-growing startup.

Highlighted Work Experience 🧑🏽‍💻

Design & Strategy Consultant – UX Innovation

(2025)

Visualizing future-facing tech and service concepts like geolocation, predictive kitchens, and global scalability for Wingstop International. Working directly with executive leadership and leading a small team to turn complex strategies into clear, actionable narratives that support alignment and global expansion.

Dropbox - Product Design Group Lead

(2021 - 2023)

As Group Design Lead, I orchestrated the product design strategy for the Core Desktop cloud experience, managing up to 14 product designers and 2 design managers in a remote-first environment. I spearheaded the redesign of key conversion flows across Desktop product lines, responsible for 92% of company revenue—leveraging user research and usability testing to deliver user-centric designs that drove a 20% increase in user satisfaction and a 15% improvement in Net Promoter Score (NPS).

Starbucks - Design Manager, Principal

(2018 - 2021)

Led and fostered a user-centric culture within Starbucks Retail Technology, building a team of nine focused on early-stage product releases, UI platforms, and hardware devices, positively impacting 23,000 stores and over 180,000 partners (employees). Streamlined operations by spearheading the development of an enterprise-wide design system and leading the organization’s migration to Figma, significantly improving design efficiency. Integrated user research, strategy, and design into product and engineering workflows, accelerating agile delivery and contributing to a 9% increase in Customer Connection Score with direct revenue impact.

Avvo - early stage legal startup acquired by Internet Brands, the parent company of WebMD

(2015-2018)

Recruited as the second product manager at an early-stage startup and entrusted with leading consumer innovation initiatives. Led the creation and successful launch of Avvo Advisor, an on-demand legal advice service available by phone or through a free iOS app, covering over 75% of the U.S. population. As the company scaled, I transitioned into a Product Design role and, within a year, moved into Design Management, ultimately managing a team of five designers, all of whom went on to impactful roles at Airbnb, Dropbox, Facebook, and a fast-growing startup.

Testimonials from LinkedIn 💕

"Puja and I worked together at Avvo. She was a phenomenal design manager. Her deep expertise in user centered design, plus background in product management, makes her a fierce advocate for building the right products, for the right people, for the right reasons."

Joni V.

Head of UX Writing at Airbnb

"Puja is able to make sound arguments for her decisions and is an excellent storyteller using quantitative data and user insights. She moved in a UX leader role, something that comes naturally to her. She enjoys the challenge of growing high performing individuals and will be a leader in that space."

Nischal P.

Product Management Leader at Meta

"Puja's inclusive personality is central in her ability to bring people together, understand complex problems by making astute observations and asking the right questions, and successfully drive challenging projects to completion. She is an energetic and positive influence, and I enjoyed sharing knowledge, learning, and collaborating with her on a daily basis."

Sandra B.

Product Design Director at Dropbox

"Puja inspires people to be their best selves just by being around them. She has big visions, impactful strategies, and her process of achieving them is always grounded in bringing people along and elevating them, celebrating them in the process. Her strong connection with the UX industry and ability in the field was instrumental"

Lucie T.

Senior Director at Starbucks

"Puja is an incredible a design leader. I had the pleasure of working with her at Dropbox. Puja has a keen eye for the big picture, and pushes her team to target the highest impact work. She cares deeply about research and was a valued thought partner in research planning. Puja's leadership, collaborative nature, and infectious positivity make her an excellent design leader & collaborator."

Alesandro B.

Lead UX Researcher at Dropbox

"Puja was a tremendous mentor, teaching me about design thinking and always encouraging me to think in new ways about product design. Puja is one of the best product design thinkers that I've seen; she is able to take user needs and pain points and transform those into real solutions. As my manager, it was a fantastic experience."

David H.

Chief of Design at Internal Revenue Services

Get in touch ✉️

Whether you have a question, a project idea, or just want to say hello, I'd love to hear from you. Reach out and let's start a conversation.

pujaparakh@gmail.com

Get in touch ✉️

Whether you have a question, a project idea, or just want to say hello, I'd love to hear from you. Reach out and let's start a conversation.

pujaparakh@gmail.com

Get in touch ✉️

Whether you have a question, a project idea, or just want to say hello, I'd love to hear from you. Reach out and let's start a conversation.

pujaparakh@gmail.com