Hello.
I’m Richard W. Baker.
I’m a seasoned, design leader committed to growing design and innovation teams' influence, scale, and output to improve business results and customer experience. I fuse strategy, design, and technology to help teams solve difficult problems. I have over 15 years of experience in helping enterprise orgs, governments, and startups amplify the impact of design in their business, products, and culture.
I believe design is strategy visualized. I believe design is a team sport. I believe diverse perspectives translate into stronger products and a better workplace.
I build teams like I build products—focusing on users and outcomes, striving for perfection by iteratively incorporating feedback.
I'm a life-long learner. I have an intellectual curiosity, with the ability to find and create meaning, bridging theory and practice to bring innovation to life.
Shared vision. It is the job of the leader to communicate a vision to the team clearly and directly to make sure everyone both understands and are committed to that vision.
Positive culture. A great leader works to create a culture of trust, high morale, diversity of thought, and minimal drama. When a leader
can create a strong and positive culture, retention is easy. It becomes a place where people want to be.
Open communication. A strong leader will create standards, practices, and time for clear and open communication. I give honest feedback regularly, and I expect the team to do the same.
People-focused, customer-centric. Becoming a great leader is about taking time to create clarity and confidence in our teams and enabling them to deliver. It’s about creating connections and loyalty and helping those around us grow daily. When we can learn these lessons and show up with a mindset to serve others and give our best, everyone wins. Happy teams create happy customers. Happy customers, create a happy balance sheet.
Leadership Principles
Adapted from Forbes’
Five Basic Principles of Highly Effective Leadership
“…Richard brings a unique skill set to his role as the global leader of UX for our organization. He not only has a strong strategic vision for his group, but he also has the ability to be hands-on tactically, whether it be for customer or internal-facing work. This makes him very versatile in large or small companies....”
~Wesley Mukai, Chief Technology Officer
“…Richard was a relentless advocate for software product users and for applying innovation best practices to meet those needs. Additionally, Richard built an organization of highly effective individuals who shared his qualities and effectively applied them across our business….”
~Andrew Tople, Director of Engineering
“Richard is a collaborative, accommodating leader. He has proven that he can build User Experience teams in legacy environments with an ability to balance matrix organization constraints. Each team member admires his genuine desire to mentor up and coming talent….”
~Ryan Leveille, Director of Innovation