Strategic Design Leader & Lead UX Manager
Lead UX Manager & Senior Designer with 15 years at the intersection of strategy and craft. I've led teams of 10+ through a major telco merger, remediated 100% of enterprise accessibility issues to WCAG 2.2, and designed experiences used by 10 million Three UK customers — all while maintaining 'Excellent' team engagement throughout.
How I lead
Building high-performing, psychologically safe teams that move from service providers to strategic partners.
Scaling user-centred practices across large organisations — research upstream, accessibility non-negotiable.
Moving UX from execution-only to a strategic partner with a seat at the table for all flagship decisions.
Selected work
A strategic initiative creating a single source of truth for every customer journey — aligning squads and transforming cross-functional collaboration.
Led remediation of 100% of critical accessibility issues — transforming WCAG compliance from a legal obligation into a hallmark of product quality.
Strategic UX lead through the UK's largest telco merger — maintaining design consistency, brand equity, and WCAG standards across two converging organisations.
Built a high-performing team from the ground up — permanent roles, career frameworks, and a culture of craft and continuous growth.
A high-visibility, high-pressure piece of work. I navigated the management complexity, established a rigorous qualitative-first testing methodology, and guided the team to a 29% conversion uplift through iterative testing on UserTesting.com before any live A/B commitment.
Pioneered an AI-augmented research practice using synthetic user groups, AI note-taking, and automated analysis to triple research velocity.
Identified and resolved a major drop-off in the home broadband acquisition funnel — assembling a cross-functional squad and shipping fixes at pace.
Revamped the My3 app and desktop experience for Three UK — modernising core account management journeys and tying design to commercial outcomes.
Shifted how a large organisation thinks about and values design — embedding user-centred practices across product, engineering, and senior leadership through workshops, critique rituals, and shared UX metrics as business KPIs.
How I think
Psychological safety & fail-fast culture
I foster an environment of trust where failure is an essential learning milestone. Removing the fear of mistakes empowers teams to take the creative risks necessary for genuine innovation.
People-first leadership mindset
My primary role is to be a blocker-remover. Whether navigating complex HR consultations or securing budgets for new tools, I lead by serving the needs of my team so they can focus on excellence.
Transparency & inclusion
Navigating uncertainty requires honesty. I prioritise clear communication and ensure inclusive, accessible design remains a core business value — not a legal checklist.
"My success is measured by the growth of my people. I am most proud of achieving 'Excellent' team engagement scores and maintaining high productivity, even during times of intense organisational change."
— Adam Williams
Background
Strategic Design Leader, Lead UX Manager and Senior Designer with 15 years building digital products for 10 million customers. Led teams of 10+ through the VodafoneThree merger, drove 100% WCAG 2.2 remediation, and delivered measurable commercial outcomes including +28% broadband orders and +29% SIM Calculator conversion uplift.
I led cross-functional teams through the VodafoneThree merger, scaling UCD processes, governing design systems, and embedding WCAG 2.2-compliant standards into the product lifecycle. My focus: empowering teams to design for millions, where every touchpoint is data-informed and accessible.
Skills & expertise
Leadership
Team building · Mentoring · Recruitment · HR & consultation · Agile
Strategy
UX maturity · Stakeholder storytelling · NPD integration · Design culture
Research & Design
UCD methods · Usability testing · Accessibility · Design systems · Prototyping
Tools
Figma · UserTesting · Applause · Adobe Analytics · Medallia · Miro
Get in touch
Available for Lead UX Designer, Lead UX Manager, Head of UX, and Director of Design roles — permanent, FTC, or contract. If you need a design leader who bridges strategy and craft and has delivered at scale for millions of users, I'd like to hear from you.