Director of Design
In 2018, Maria challenged herself to stop purchasing clothes. If she wanted some new pants or shirt, she had to make it herself. The kicker? She didn't know how to sew. In this talk, Maria will share her successes, failures, and unexpected learnings making her own clothes -like how it's helped her become a more empathetic leader. The added bonus? How you can also start making your own clothes!
Maria is the Director of Design at Clio. Maria previously served as Senior Director of Product Design at Schoology, a leading Edtech company in the K-12 US market. Maria established Schoology’s first design practice and elevated design culture within the organization by making numerous improvements in process throughout the product development life cycle. Past experiences include Group Director of UX at Critical Mass, leading work for the Citi Global accounts in Toronto and New York. She’s also held design leadership positions at GE, where she helped establish a design Center of Excellence, and Fry, an e-commerce startup later acquired by Oracle. In 2018, she took an oath to never buy clothes again, and has been making her own since, with variable success.
