Leo Ehrlich

Brazilian UX / Product Designer for 15+ years working remote globally.

leo_photo_01

Hello, nice to meet you.

I’ve been designing things since 1998 when I first learned photoshop during high school. I was designing and coding interactive flash websites for family and friends back in the day.

Then I spent a couple of years designing for big brands while working at advertising agencies in Brazil, Mexico, and Dubai and finally made a transition to product design, leading multidisciplinary teams and ended founding my own company, a digital platform that helps thousands of Brazilians reach their financial goals.

In 2022 I successfully exited the business selling my shares to investors. Now I’m working remote as an independent contractor for the US and other markets, designing products for startups and big enterprise clients.

Through all these years, I gathered a lot of experience working on different markets and industries, from startups to Fortune 100 companies.

I have a passion for making things and crafting experiences. I want to see the products I design helping millions of people but I am also experienced working under an MVP strategy.

 

leo-dubai

I enjoy leading teams and I also like to get my hands dirty and  never miss a day designing something on my own. That’s why I started a side hustle where I design posters with inspiring quotes.

During my time working in the advertising industry, I got some great international awards, like Cannes Lions, The One Show, and D&AD. But honestly, to me, my biggest award is to be able to inspire and help someone with my work. 

If you have a great product that need someone with my skills, please don't hesitate to contact me.

etisalat_design_system_085
leo-index

would you like to work with me?

skills

creation of design systems

Establishing the right tools and methods to create a living design system that works in multiple platforms and it’s synced with both development and design teams in an agile environment.

creation of design systems

Establishing the right tools and methods to create a living design system that works in multiple platforms and it’s synced with both development and design teams in an agile environment.

product design

Leading the design of a digital product through all it’s platforms from mobile, web, smartwatch, TV, interactive surfaces and marketing, ensuring that it all follows the same design system to create a seamless user experience while making sure it’s implemented correctly across each step.

design and creative direction

Providing complete creative output and dealing with a multidisciplinary team, ensuring that the work stands out while communicating with the brand essence and guidelines.

management of multidisciplinary teams

Finding and hiring the right talent to collaborate and give their best on a specific project, while mentoring and managing the quality output of their deliverables to ensure career evolution.

selected clients

icon-client_04
icon-client_07
icon-client_03
icon-client_01
icon-client_02
icon-client_05
icon-client_09
icon-client_10
icon-client_06
icon-client_11
icon-client_12
icon-client_13
icon-client_08
icon-client_15
icon-client_14
icon-client_16
icon-client_17
icon-client_18
icon-client_19
icon-client_20
icon-client_21
icon-client_22
icon-client_23
icon-client_24
icon-client_25
icon-client_26
icon-client_27
icon-client_28
icon-client_29
icon-client_30

professional experience

Apr 2018 - Present
Remote Worldwide

Design Consultant

Working remote as an independent contractor for the US and other markets.

Designed a series of initiatives for Salesforce including their design system, product and home page components.

Designed an authoring platform for Forrester Research, a leading global market research company.

Helped building Permiso, a Silicon Valley Venture-Backed startup in the Cloud Security industry.

Designed an internal digital marketing platform for Kraft Heinz, the third-largest food and beverage company in North America.

Created a design system for Context 365, a conference leader company in the alternative asset management industry in the US.

Designed a website for Narrative Science, a technology company based in Chicago that specializes in data storytelling.

Helped 300k Canadians and Americans to retire faster and richer through Planswell, a $15 million robo-advisor platform.

Created a design system for Bang the Table, an Australian governmental engagement platform with 12k administrators worldwide.

Designed several digital products for Hatch, a global multidisciplinary management, engineering and development consultancy headquartered in Canada.

Designed a messaging app downloaded by 1 million users in the United Arab Emirates for Etisalat, the biggest telecom in the Middle East

Jan 2015 - Apr 2022
Remote Worldwide

Co-Founder

Clube FII

Clube FII is a website of Real Estate Investment Trust ( REITs ) in Brazil. The website provides daily information through forums, online courses, articles, interviews and a set of advanced tools for investors to learn, build, and track their portfolios. My role as a design co-founder consisted of leading the entire creative and design efforts in the disciplines of design systems, UX, marketing, branding, advertising, motion and social media. After 7 years of growing and bootstrapping the product to +300k users, In 2022 I had a successful exit selling my shares to investors.

July 2016 - March 2018
Dubai

Associate Design Director

Fjord Dubai

Was invited to join the Etisalat Design Studio to be responsible for all the visual design delivery of all the digital projects and products of Etisalat, the biggest telecom in the middle east. Led a team of 8 visual designers at times and worked along with other 16 designers specialized in research and service design. Initiated and created a design system for the company, impacting all the digital products and being used by millions of people through the emirates and middle east.

April 2015 - April 2016
Dubai

Head of Design

BBDO Dubai

Joined BBDO Dubai as a Head of Design integrating their digital arm called Impact Proximity creating and designing digital projects for top companies and brands in the Middle East while leading a team of 4 multidisciplinary designers and working alongside creatives and developers but also dealing with a diverse range of freelancers, vendors, and production companies to bring value to the projects.

Oct 2012 - Dec 2013
Dubai

Senior Art Director

Ogilvy Dubai

At Ogilvy, I was working with some local clients designing their websites, doing a lot of digital campaigns for big brands in the region, several pitches and I also had the chance to participate and design the most globally awarded digital campaign for the region winning 7 Cannes Lions awards and many other international awards, while leading a team of 2 junior art directors.

Oct 2011 - Oct 2012
Dubai

Senior Art Director

Wunderman Dubai

I had my first experience in an advertising agency in Dubai hired as a senior creative, conceptualizing and designing digital campaigns for international brands and some local clients too, doing their websites and social media campaigns, also working on a lot of pitches to acquire new business and helping win and secure the multi-million business of Saudi Telecom.

Jan 2011 - Oct 2011
Mexico

Senior Art Director

Grupo W

I moved from Brazil to Mexico to work in this company that was the most awarded digital agency in Mexico at the time, producing very complex digital websites for big brands around Mexico and the world. I had the opportunity to create and design the biggest revenue project of the company in 2011, for Coors Light exclusive to the American market. I worked in this project during my entire tenure, working alongside a very talented team with multidisciplinary skills having the chance to learn a lot about digital production.

Sep 2008 - Jan 2011
São Paulo

Art Director

DDB Brazil

My period working at DDB Brazil ( locally known as DM9 ) was the most creative period of my career. There I had the chance to work with some of the most brilliant advertising legends of my country, and together with them I contributed for the agency to achieve the status of "Agency of the Year" at the Cannes International Lions festival, and also created and designed projects that won several major global advertising awards including "Volta Ferrorama", a project that won the first Gold Cannes Lions award in Brazil on the “Direct” category.

Jan 2007 - Jun 2008
São Paulo

Assistant Art Director

Isobar Brazil

My first experience moving from Rio de Janeiro to São Paulo was full of learning and discoveries. I designed digital advertising campaigns and websites for top Brazilian companies and worked with some of the best digital talents in Brazil that are now working for the best companies around the world. I've learned a lot from each one of them and was able to contribute to great projects.

jun 2006 - dec 2006
Rio de Janeiro

Intern

Tecnopop

While studying Visual Communications in Rio de Janeiro, I managed to find the time to intern at one of the most prestigious design studios in my city. The studio was focusing on making a design for bands, artists, and the cultural scene, and I had the chance to design websites for famous bands in Rio de Janeiro.

awards

the one show

1 Gold

2 Bronzes

2 Merits

são paulo creative club

1 Silver

2 Bronzes

wave festival

2 Golds

1 Bronze

clio

1 Grand Clio

1 Gold

1 Silver

3 Bronzes

the webby awards

1 People's Voice Award

el sol

2 Silvers

1 Bronze

d&ad

1 Wood Pencil

new york festivals

1 Silver

fiap

1 Grandprix

1 Gold

2 Silvers

dubai lynx

2 Grand Prix

5 Golds

2 Silvers

epica

1 Grandprix

1 Gold

1 Silver

cannes lions

1 Gold

6 Silver

3 Bronzes

5 Shortlists

el ojo

1 Grandprix

2 Golds

2 Bronzes

london international

1 Silver

2 Bronzes

2 Finalists

the fwa

1 Shortlist

colunistas

1 Grandprix

2 Golds

frequently asked questions

do you only care about visuals ?

Not at all. I think the best designs have both great user experience and aesthetics backed by research. I care about solving problems to people and bringing value to the companies that I work with.

what can you do to my startup?

I can take care of the UX, product design, creative and art direction, design system, branding, advertising and social media of a startup, same way I currently do for my company, Clube FII.

are you hands-on or only manage other people?

Depends on the circumstances. Even though I've been leading teams for 6 years now, I still get my hands dirty and design a lot of things every day, not because I want but because I have to. I like to work with people that complement my skills, like researchers, engineers, illustrators, motion designers, 3d artists, photographers, etc.... I also like to work with other designers mentoring and learning from them.

do you code?

No, and I don't want to. I prefer to invest my time in having a good relationship with developers and engineers and understanding from them how we can collaborate better together. But I do understand the concept of CSS, Javascript and HTML and how they work together.

do you think your previous experience in advertising makes you less qualified to work on a product?

No. It gives me even more capabilities to see the product through a different lens, bringing creative and art direction in a way that products could be much more interesting and engaging.

what languages do you speak?

English, Portuguese and Spanish

what do you think of leadership?

I'm a strong believer in teamwork and creating a culture where everybody can contribute to the best of their skills. For this to happen, there should be trust, honesty, transparency, communication and everyone should be on the same page while aligned with the same goals. That's where leadership often fails. Managers don't invest enough time building trust and trying to find a healthy balance between people's interests while making each team member motivated and the business profitable. That's why most people are unhappy with their jobs, feeling stuck and not being able to give the best out of their skills.

what are you looking for next?

I'm looking to work on a great product while being able to contribute to creating a design culture for the organization and lead a small multidisciplinary team and If I'm lucky enough, find the ideal partner to start a new company with. I have a bunch of ideas and I'm also open to joining other people's ideas.

did you ever work in an agile environment?

Yes, at PlanswellFjord and at my company, Clube FII.

what part of UX are you weak?

My background is not on UX research, so I recognize that I lack skills on complex research methodologies.

what part of UX you are confortable with?

Talking to users, conducting usability tests, wireframing, prototyping, creating personas, flows, journey maps, analysing data, conducting brainstorm and ideation sessions.

do you neglect the importance of research in the design process?

Absolutely not. I think any research is beneficial to the quality of the design and every company should allocate time and budget for it. 

are you a people's person?

Definitely not. That doesn't mean I'm not friendly.

are you a people's person?

Definitely not. I'm an introvert.

how do you make wireframes and prototypes?

I find it much faster and easier to create a design system on the go while I'm wireframing, with reusable components, so wireframes will almost look like high fidelity designs. Then I prototype the experience using any tool that meets the requirements of what needs to be tested or presented, from Invision to Adobe After Effects.

what’s a project that you’re most proud of?

I'm most proud of having designed my own company and product that helps thousands of Brazilians to reach their financial goals by investing in real estate.

have you designed any digital product that is live and being used?

Yes, all the projects showcased in this website are/were live and used by millions of people. You can read all info about the results in the respective case-studies.

do you have experience working at startups? 

Yes, at Planswell and Clube FII  

are you successful working remote? 

Yes, I've been working fully remote for my company for 6 years. I use the best online tools for remote work and I'm much more productive and happy working from home.  

what tools do you use?

Currently I use the entire Adobe Creative Suite, Sketch, Figma, Invision, Miro, Notion, Asana, Jira, Trello, Slack, LoomTandem, Google Meet and Drive, Amplitude.  I'm always open to learn new stuff.

what is your ideal design process?

While every company that I worked for had completely different processes, my ideal one would be working as a synergetic trio of engineering, design, and product manager through the entire process.

are you eligible to work in the US or Europe?

No. I hold a Brazilian passport and I will need a visa sponsorship to live abroad.

are you willing to relocate?

If remote is not an option and you can sponsor a visa, yes.

what’s a project that didn’t go as planned? How did you handle it?

Nothing ever goes as planned. Life is a series of unpredictable events and blows. I believe the best way to handle it is with patience, perseverance, a bit of humor, and not being afraid of taking risks and failing. Successful people are just surviving while constantly learning and improving.

what would you say is the next big trend in UX design?

I hope more UX designers realize that everyone is a designer, including engineers, product managers, and classically trained graphic designers too. Without them, you cannot have a great user experience.

latest designs on dribbble

Damac Properties Website
Damac Properties Website
Damac Properties Website
Damac Properties Website
Damac Properties Website
Damac Properties Website
Damac Properties Website
Damac Properties Website
Damac Properties Website
Budget Planner
Budget Planner
Budget Planner
Budget Planner
Budget Planner
Budget Planner

latest photos on instagram

instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image
instagram-image

© Leo Ehrlich 2020