Hi. I'm Fred Pensom, 
an empathetic
design & UX leader .

I'm a people-oriented leader with 22 years of experience in UX and design and more than 10 years in operational leadership roles. I love working where there is a worthwhile mission, with organisational values that align with my own: human, sustainable, transparent, accessible, and fair.

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I value humility. Showing empathy, asking for help, and demonstrating gratitude are all important to me as a person. I rarely get things right first time but I'm always learning and looking to improve. I'm collaborative and inclusive, and I believe that design should be visible and impactful.

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As a leader, I want my teams to be better as individuals and as a collective. I empower them and ensure they have a real purpose in their work. I encourage them to constantly ask why. I don't micromanage. I trust my team to come to me for direction, inspiration, or just a different pair of eyes. I can be hands-on when required but my expertise is in growing and leading high-performing teams.

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I've led cross-functional teams of 2 to 30 people, from small internal start-ups to large multi-national organisations. I've worked in agencies and in-house teams across a wide range of B2B and B2C products and services, including fintech, e-commerce, productivity, transport, entertainment, and health. I’ve designed everything - auction sites that sell $billions of diamonds, consumer e-commerce, and entertainment sites, VR apps, health and transportation solutions, gamified productivity tools, and intelligence analysis tools.

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I am a trustee of a charitable design foundation and I'm a mentor on ADPList. I love talking and learning about design and I occasionally speak at events and group meet-ups.

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