ROBERT BARLOW-BUSCH (he/him)

Robert leads a team of UX designers, writers, and engineers on Stadia, Google's cloud gaming platform. Prior to Google, he held UX leadership positions at both product companies and agencies in Waterloo region. He has been a long-time supporter of the local UX community through efforts such as co-founding UX Waterloo and the Fluxible conference.
@becubed on Twitter

KAITLYN BARNETT (she/her)

‍Kaitlyn is a University Programs Specialist at Google Waterloo. Working on the Campus Outreach team, she manages outreach with schools across Canada and is responsible for building a demographically representative pipeline for Google's student internships and entry-level roles. She studied at the University of Waterloo in Kinesiology and Human Resources Management. Outside of work she enjoys walking her dog and golfing.  

CRYSTAL CHIN (she/her)

Crystal is an Interaction Designer at RBC, where she works on building bridges between users and systems. From tech startups to enterprise businesses, Crystal enjoys working with her partners across disciplines and functions to build kinder, more thoughtful products. This is her first speaking gig, and she's excited to be a part of blend 2022.

Bio coming soon!

MARIM GANABA (she/her)

Marim is a UX designer at Google Waterloo where she focuses on simplifying complex concepts & tasks in the Cloud space. Prior to Google, she has worked on a number of projects creating mobile app experiences for consumers. Marim is an alumni of the University of Waterloo MDEI program. When not working, she spends her time creating 2D animations, playing retro video games or doing metalsmithing. 

Bio coming soon!

JENNIE HEO (she/her)

Jennie is a UX Researcher for Google Cloud, working in Toronto. She has degrees in English Literature, Applied Psychology & Human Development, and Digital Innovation. At Google Cloud, she works with enterprise cloud customers to deliver insights on user behaviours and emotions.  Jennie is passionate about storytelling and believes that stories operate as a bridge to help people connect on a deeper level.  

PAUL JURKOVIC (he/him)

For almost 20 years, Paul has been a leader and practitioner of human-centred design and design thinking methods for product teams and clients across a wide range of industries. As Creative Director and Strategist at TWG/Deloitte, Paul plays a key role in shaping the direction for the design craft, including leading Ethical Design and Inclusive Design initiatives within TWG. soon!

BEN KIM (he/him)

Ben is currently a Sr. Consultant at CIBC on the Enterprise Authentication program, creating secure and frictionless customer interactions.  Previously, Ben was a Manager of Service Design and Strategy at TELUS, where he lead a team that developed great end-to-end journeys for its customers.  Ben also has a lean six sigma background and previously as a product manager, he was responsible for launching several industry leading customer programs.

JULIE McCLEMENT (she/her)

Julie is a Senior UX Designer at Code for Canada. She also volunteers in the civic tech community, working on initiatives for the Ontario Coallition of Rape Crisis Centres and The Inclusive Safety Project.

Bio coming soon!

Bio coming soon!

KELLY RIBACK-SMALL (they/them)

With nearly 20 years of leading major brands to proven success, Kelly’s driving philosophy is that purposeful work can happen anywhere. A Master of Design graduate and affiliated design researcher with Emily Carr University, Kelly is also a professor of design ethics at the George Brown School of Design and mentor with The RGD, The One Club for Creativity, and OCAD University. Kelly is currently writing a book about practical ethics for a youth audience to be published by Groundwood Books in 2023.

Bio coming soon!

KATHERINE SERWIN (she/her)

Winner of Sun Life’s 2021 CEO's Award of Excellence, Katherine worked her way from an entry-level position to running the behavioural economics practice at Sun, where her team’s work simplifies decision-making for millions of Canadians.  Katherine first became interested in BE while completing her MBA at Wilfrid Laurier University. She’s passionate about helping her colleagues learn about behavioural barriers and has trained dozens of practitioners through her BE bootcamps.

MELISSA TOMKO (she/her)

With a background in ecommerce and financial services, Melissa brings a behaviour-based, data-driven approach to experience design – collaborating with Product, Engineering, and Marketing teams to help simplify complex decisions for millions of Canadians.   Melissa holds an Honours Bachelor’s of Science in CCIT and Psychology from the University of Toronto, as well as a Masters of Information with a focus in Knowledge media design from the University of Toronto’s iSchool.

LINN VIZARD (she/her)

Linn is one of Canada’s leading advocates of service design, and co-founded Service Design Toronto in 2013. She currently runs a boutique consulting practice,Made Manifest, leading transformational service design projects with a wide range of clients. Clients have included organizations like TELUS, Shopify, Instacart, the City of Toronto, WSIB and OCADUCO. She also writes the popular ‘Ask a Service Designer’ newsletter. She loves glitter, dancing, and cats, and lifting very heavy things.

ROB WILLIAMS (he/him)

Rob has over ten years of experience leading teams across financial services and tech in the design and delivery of digital experiences. Today Rob leads the UX Design practice at Sun Life Canada, working with a team of designers, writers, researchers, and recently behavioral scientists in the design of experiences to simplify the needlessly complex world of digital health and finance. Rob holds a Master’s in Communication Design from the University of Waterloo.