Gabriel Valdivia
About
I've been helping founders and early-stage teams for more than fifteen years, both as a design leader within large organizations and sole designer for startups. Most recently, I worked with Patreon's leadership, first as an IC designing a new product vision, then as a Manager building a world-class team to execute it, and finally as a Principal Designer crafting 0→1 products.
Prior to that, I managed a Design and Research team at CNN's Emerging Platforms team following the acquisition of Canopy, spent two years at Google building technology for communities at risk, and four years exploring content creation and Virtual Reality at Meta.
In addition to designing digital products, I've bootstrapped a co-working studio, a design conference, a podcast, and several music projects. I was born in Cuba, grew up in Costa Rica and moved to the United States as an angsty teenager. I've lived in 4 countries, 3 continents, and 8 cities. Today, I'm living in Brooklyn with my partner, our son, and our dog.
Capabilities
Product Design
Strategy
0 → 1 Projects
Branding
Design Systems
Team Building
Coaching
Management
Fractional Leadership
Approach
01
Shared ownership. Whether I work independently or integrate with your team, everyone comes along the process.
02
I work fast, like really fast. Quick iteration allows us to zoom through explorations until we arrive at something that feels just right.
03
Show and tell. I frequently share work in progress, usually in the form of screen recordings with a voice over.
04
Bias for action. I prefer creating tangible artifacts to visualize the team's ideas over lengthy documents that often go ignored.
05
I work in systems. Whether it’s a small feature or an entire design system, I create reusable components for the team.
06
Design is thinking. I am not afraid to throw away an idea and explore divergent solutions. The more the merrier!
Clients
Frequently Asked Questions
What is fractional leadership?
Why not hire a full-time product designer?
What is your availability during contract projects?
What is your pricing structure?
How do you approach stakeholders who have different perspectives?
Can you adapt to various stages of our product development journey?
Contact
© Copyright 2023
Gabriel Valdivia
About
I've been helping founders and early-stage teams for more than fifteen years, both as a design leader within large organizations and sole designer for startups. Most recently, I worked with Patreon's leadership, first as an IC designing a new product vision, then as a Manager building a world-class team to execute it, and finally as a Principal Designer crafting 0→1 products.
Prior to that, I managed a Design and Research team at CNN's Emerging Platforms team following the acquisition of Canopy, spent two years at Google building technology for communities at risk, and four years exploring content creation and Virtual Reality at Meta.
In addition to designing digital products, I've bootstrapped a co-working studio, a design conference, a podcast, and several music projects. I was born in Cuba, grew up in Costa Rica and moved to the United States as an angsty teenager. I've lived in 4 countries, 3 continents, and 8 cities. Today, I'm living in Brooklyn with my partner, our son, and our dog.
Capabilities
Product Design
Strategy
0 → 1 Projects
Branding
Design Systems
Team Building
Coaching
Management
Fractional Leadership
Approach
01
Shared ownership. Whether I work independently or integrate with your team, everyone comes along the process.
02
I work fast, like really fast. Quick iteration allows us to zoom through explorations until we arrive at something that feels just right.
03
Show and tell. I frequently share work in progress, usually in the form of screen recordings with a voice over.
04
Bias for action. I prefer creating tangible artifacts to visualize the team's ideas over lengthy documents that often go ignored.
05
I work in systems. Whether it’s a small feature or an entire design system, I create reusable components for the team.
06
Design is thinking. I am not afraid to throw away an idea and explore divergent solutions. The more the merrier!
Clients
Frequently Asked Questions
What is fractional leadership?
Why not hire a full-time product designer?
What is your availability during contract projects?
What is your pricing structure?
How do you approach stakeholders who have different perspectives?
Can you adapt to various stages of our product development journey?
Contact
© Copyright 2023
Gabriel Valdivia
Design partner for early-stage teams
About
I've been helping founders and early-stage teams for more than fifteen years, both as a design leader within large organizations and sole designer for startups. Most recently, I worked with Patreon's leadership, first as an IC designing a new product vision, then as a Manager building a world-class team to execute it, and finally as a Principal Designer crafting 0→1 products.
Prior to that, I managed a Design and Research team at CNN's Emerging Platforms team following the acquisition of Canopy, spent two years at Google building technology for communities at risk, and four years exploring content creation and Virtual Reality at Meta.
In addition to designing digital products, I've bootstrapped a co-working studio, a design conference, a podcast, and several music projects. I was born in Cuba, grew up in Costa Rica and moved to the United States as an angsty teenager. I've lived in 4 countries, 3 continents, and 8 cities. Today, I'm living in Brooklyn with my partner, our son, and our dog.
Capabilities
Product Design
Strategy
0 → 1 Projects
Branding
Design Systems
Team Building
Coaching
Management
Fractional Leadership
Approach
01
Shared ownership. Whether I work independently or integrate with your team, everyone comes along the process.
02
I work fast, like really fast. Quick iteration allows us to zoom through explorations until we arrive at something that feels just right.
03
Show and tell. I frequently share work in progress, usually in the form of screen recordings with a voice over.
04
Bias for action. I prefer creating tangible artifacts to visualize the team's ideas over lengthy documents that often go ignored.
05
I work in systems. Whether it’s a small feature or an entire design system, I create reusable components for the team.
06
Design is thinking. I am not afraid to throw away an idea and explore divergent solutions. The more the merrier!
Clients
Frequently Asked Questions
What is fractional leadership?
Why not hire a full-time product designer?
What is your availability during contract projects?
What is your pricing structure?
How do you approach stakeholders who have different perspectives?
Can you adapt to various stages of our product development journey?
Contact
© Copyright 2023
Gabriel Valdivia
About
I've been helping founders and early-stage teams for more than fifteen years, both as a design leader within large organizations and sole designer for startups. Most recently, I worked with Patreon's leadership, first as an IC designing a new product vision, then as a Manager building a world-class team to execute it, and finally as a Principal Designer crafting 0→1 products.
Prior to that, I managed a Design and Research team at CNN's Emerging Platforms team following the acquisition of Canopy, spent two years at Google building technology for communities at risk, and four years exploring content creation and Virtual Reality at Meta.
In addition to designing digital products, I've bootstrapped a co-working studio, a design conference, a podcast, and several music projects. I was born in Cuba, grew up in Costa Rica and moved to the United States as an angsty teenager. I've lived in 4 countries, 3 continents, and 8 cities. Today, I'm living in Brooklyn with my partner, our son, and our dog.
Capabilities
Product Design
Strategy
0 → 1 Projects
Branding
Design Systems
Team Building
Coaching
Management
Fractional Leadership
Approach
01
Shared ownership. Whether I work independently or integrate with your team, everyone comes along the process.
02
I work fast, like really fast. Quick iteration allows us to zoom through explorations until we arrive at something that feels just right.
03
Show and tell. I frequently share work in progress, usually in the form of screen recordings with a voice over.
04
Bias for action. I prefer creating tangible artifacts to visualize the team's ideas over lengthy documents that often go ignored.
05
I work in systems. Whether it’s a small feature or an entire design system, I create reusable components for the team.
06
Design is thinking. I am not afraid to throw away an idea and explore divergent solutions. The more the merrier!