Hi, I’m Maria,
I do UX.

About Me

As a UX leader with 15 years of experience in the software industry, I specialize in designing intuitive, scalable, and user-centered solutions that drive product growth and solve complex, cross-platform challenges. I’m certified in Design Thinking, Storytelling, and Scrum, and I bring a systems-thinking mindset to everything I build. You can explore my UX process here.

Collaboration fuels my work—I thrive at the intersection of design, strategy, and engineering. I’ve built and led new design teams, launched design hubs from the ground up, and created recruiting pipelines in partnership with local universities. Mentoring and coaching early-career designers is one of the most rewarding parts of my work, and I take pride in fostering environments where creative talent can thrive.

Outside of design, I enjoy digital illustration, caring for rescue dogs, reading, and exploring innovative business models.

Products Shipped

Microsoft Office
Number one productivity suite in the world.  
2003, 2007 & 2010 releases.  
Oracle Social Network
A collaboration and social network designed to support the sales lifecycle.  
Oracle Documents
A file sharing and collaboration cloud service with mobile and desktop companion apps.  
Oracle Sites
A light-weight site manager and site builder to create landing pages and micro-sites.
Oracle Content
A digital asset repository with collaboration features and mobile and desktop companion apps. 
dotCMS
A content management platform designed for marketers and developers to create digital experiences across different channels.

Contributed to the Following Design Systems

Microsoft Fluent UI
Oracle Alta UI
Redwood Design System
dotCMS Design System

Featured Case Studies

Image Editor
Merging Two Products
Site Governance
Image Renditions

What People Say

“Not only is she an incredible design tactician and strategist, she’s also an authentic mentor who cares deeply about her reports and her colleagues.”

Preston So
Product Executive, Strategist and GTM Leader

“She is able to cover topics from high-level strategy to tactical implementation ensuring an end-to-end process that helps her team deliver with confidence.” 

Gian Franco
UX Designer

“She draws from various sources of knowledge and inspiration, and then delivers innovative and creative solutions to hard problems.” 

Mark Peters
ex- Google, ex-Microsoft

Work

dotCMS

Head of UX

Oracle

Principal UX Designer
Senior UX Designer

Microsoft

Program Manager in User Experience

Disney

Cast Member

Education

IDEOU

Story telling for Influence

MIT Sloan School of Management

Mastering Design Thinking

Scrum Alliance

Scrum Master

ITESM

B.S. Computer Engineering with Emphasis in User Experience