Lead Product Designer at Torch
Unlocking coaching’s growth
Torch is a multi-sided web platform that connects enterprise employees with 1:1 leadership coaches and provides aggregated coaching insights to company admins. A YC W18 company, it has grown to Series C.
I led UX across four user roles, supported Product & Design team development, and established a new design system that improved both product quality and development efficiency.
Lead Product Designer at Torch
Unlocking coaching’s growth
Torch is a multi-sided web platform that connects enterprise employees with 1:1 leadership coaches and provides aggregated coaching insights to company admins. A YC W18 company, it has grown to Series C.
I led UX across four user roles, supported Product & Design team development, and established a new design system that improved both product quality and development efficiency.
Key accomplishments
Led new design system with principles, processes, and 60+ components.
Architected new platform UX & data model.
Migrated 12+ major areas of functionality from legacy products.
Repositioning supported $25M Series B.
Led new design system with principles, processes, and 60+ components.
Architected new platform UX & data model.
Migrated 12+ major areas of functionality from legacy products.
Repositioning supported $25M Series B.
Positioning a new product strategy
After a company and product merger in 2020, Torch was gearing up for its Series B fundraise and needed new product positioning and marketing communications to market its expanded platform.
In my first weeks on the job, I facilitated the executive team through a new product positioning process. Then I applied a new agency-designed visual brand and relaunched the company website in two months.
Positioning a new product strategy
After a company and product merger in 2020, Torch was gearing up for its Series B fundraise and needed new product positioning and marketing communications to market its expanded platform.
In my first weeks on the job, I facilitated the executive team through a new product positioning process. Then I applied a new agency-designed visual brand and relaunched the company website in two months.
Every day, Parker embodies Torch values by challenging his colleagues to think more deeply, ask tough questions, and constantly grow. Thanks to his dedication, we're all better off.
Torch company culture award
Every day, Parker embodies Torch values by challenging his colleagues to think more deeply, ask tough questions, and constantly grow. Thanks to his dedication, we're all better off.
Torch company culture award
Modernizing back-of-house workflows
In a scaling phase, Torch needed to modernize the custom internal tools its own staff used to manage the platform’s coaching operations.
I enhanced the user experience for easier coach matching and coach availability management. The key change was streamlining these processes into fewer interfaces, reducing the cognitive burden on Torch staff. I also updated the matching algorithm to improve coach recommendations.
As a result, Torch could scale its coach network to hundreds more coaches.
Modernizing back-of-house workflows
In a scaling phase, Torch needed to modernize the custom internal tools its own staff used to manage the platform’s coaching operations.
I enhanced the user experience for easier coach matching and coach availability management. The key change was streamlining these processes into fewer interfaces, reducing the cognitive burden on Torch staff. I also updated the matching algorithm to improve coach recommendations.
As a result, Torch could scale its coach network to hundreds more coaches.
Improving coach-facing features
As a global network of independent contractors, Torch coaches needed better client management features to make their coaching business on Torch feel seamless.
Despite redesign constraints during platform migration, I made practical improvements to coaches' main dashboards and flows, creating a simpler experience. The effort involved user research with coaches, then collaboration with Coaching Operations, Behavioral Science, Product, Engineering, and Data teams.
Coaches said it was, “Exactly what we need – much more intuitive and way easier.”
Improving coach-facing features
As a global network of independent contractors, Torch coaches needed better client management features to make their coaching business on Torch feel seamless.
Despite redesign constraints during platform migration, I made practical improvements to coaches' main dashboards and flows, creating a simpler experience. The effort involved user research with coaches, then collaboration with Coaching Operations, Behavioral Science, Product, Engineering, and Data teams.
Coaches said it was, “Exactly what we need – much more intuitive and way easier.”
Maturing the Product Design team
I elevated the profile, quality, and impact of the Product Design team at Torch.
My responsibilities included hiring, serving as interim manager, and leading cross-functional product development initiatives. I enhanced processes like discovery, scoping, and Design-to-Engineering hand-off with improved project documentation and team templates. Our team often shared our work at company updates.
I also influenced other functions, including leading a cross-functional R&D group around AI features and improving the Product team’s thinking by introducing them to service design concepts.
In May 2022, I received Torch’s company culture award.
Maturing the Product Design team
I elevated the profile, quality, and impact of the Product Design team at Torch.
My responsibilities included hiring, serving as interim manager, and leading cross-functional product development initiatives. I enhanced processes like discovery, scoping, and Design-to-Engineering hand-off with improved project documentation and team templates. Our team often shared our work at company updates.
I also influenced other functions, including leading a cross-functional R&D group around AI features and improving the Product team’s thinking by introducing them to service design concepts.
In May 2022, I received Torch’s company culture award.
Parker has stepped up during a time when our Design team was in need. He has done so by forging stronger relationships within our team. In particular, he has gone out of his way to help with onboarding and key projects on top of the workload he already has. Seeing how he collaborates and the detailed questions he asks gives me a blueprint for where I want to be.
Product Designer
Parker has stepped up during a time when our Design team was in need. He has done so by forging stronger relationships within our team. In particular, he has gone out of his way to help with onboarding and key projects on top of the workload he already has. Seeing how he collaborates and the detailed questions he asks gives me a blueprint for where I want to be.
Product Designer
Elevating the product with a new design system
Burdened by two legacy products’ design and technical debt, our designers, engineers, and users struggled with a patchwork of legacy systems. Torch needed a full design revamp to become a more user-friendly product.
I elevated Torch’s product design quality by establishing a new visual design direction, streamlining interactions, unifying global navigation across user types, and supporting accessibility compliance.
The new design system aligned the product branding with company branding and included new UI design foundations, bespoke experience principles, 60+ components, accessibility criteria, and cross-functional processes. I co-managed the new design system strategy and Storybook library with Engineering leads.
Elevating the product with a new design system
Burdened by two legacy products’ design and technical debt, our designers, engineers, and users struggled with a patchwork of legacy systems. Torch needed a full design revamp to become a more user-friendly product.
I elevated Torch’s product design quality by establishing a new visual design direction, streamlining interactions, unifying global navigation across user types, and supporting accessibility compliance.
The new design system aligned the product branding with company branding and included new UI design foundations, bespoke experience principles, 60+ components, accessibility criteria, and cross-functional processes. I co-managed the new design system strategy and Storybook library with Engineering leads.
He wins together by being a supportive, cross-functional team member, working with Product and Engineering to accelerate.
Product Manager
He wins together by being a supportive, cross-functional team member, working with Product and Engineering to accelerate.
Product Manager
The best hand-off I’ve ever been involved in.
Jack Murphy, Engineering Manager
The best hand-off I’ve ever been involved in.
Jack Murphy, Engineering Manager
Redesigning the experience and data models to serve the business strategy
One of Torch’s differentiating values is providing data-driven insights about the impact of coaching on leadership development. Torch’s Behavioral Science team researches and develops science-backed methods for measuring the effects of coaching. This data layer needed design to translate it into relatable stories and insights.
I pointed Torch towards a more effective coaching data story by reframing its experience design and turning a disconnected data model into a more cohesive ROI story.
In addition to designing new reporting dashboards for admins, I also redesigned the 360 assessment and colleague feedback features in the coaching experience to increase users’ understanding of their data privacy.
Redesigning the experience and data models to serve the business strategy
One of Torch’s differentiating values is providing data-driven insights about the impact of coaching on leadership development. Torch’s Behavioral Science team researches and develops science-backed methods for measuring the effects of coaching. This data layer needed design to translate it into relatable stories and insights.
I pointed Torch towards a more effective coaching data story by reframing its experience design and turning a disconnected data model into a more cohesive ROI story.
In addition to designing new reporting dashboards for admins, I also redesigned the 360 assessment and colleague feedback features in the coaching experience to increase users’ understanding of their data privacy.
Parker is a strong systems thinker who thoughtfully considers many different underlying facets of a problem in ways that often cause me to reconsider a design or solution.
Product Designer
Parker is a strong systems thinker who thoughtfully considers many different underlying facets of a problem in ways that often cause me to reconsider a design or solution.
Product Designer
