In 2013, a search for meaning incited a cosmic series of events that brought me all around the world.
My job was to provide grants and project management support where humanitarian crises struck. It was an incredible opportunity that taught me professionally how to quickly learn about a situation, prioritize the tasks to be done, and follow through; personally, it gave me a profound new perspective on life.
See the map below for more details about my non-profit experience!
Between every job I had in this five year period, I mulled over three choices: take another job, take a vacation, or go back to school. The thrill of travel and gainful employment often beat out my interests in higher education, but eventually living out of a suitcase lost some appeal and I felt it was time to plant some roots, and try something new.
This curiosity led me to learn more about what laid at the nexus of business, technology, and psychology at the HMKW University of Applied Sciences for Media, Communication and Management. There, in pursuing a masters in Business Psychology, I developed a deep interest in the forecasted effects of automation on business and society. Moreover, these studies allowed me to explore facits of software development, and helped me forge my path to product management.
Click the buttons below to learn more about my time at HMKW!
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Recent Trends in Organizational Psychology | Factors shaping the Organizational Psychology sector, including diversity globalization, social media, ethics, etc., with personal focus on big data, AI, and technological displacement. |
| Decision Making & Behavioral Finance | Psychology of decision-making including heuristics and biases, decisions in uncertain contexts, consumer behavior, nudging, group decision-making, etc. |
| Business Anthropology | History and methodologies of ethnographic research, including design thinking, mental maps, experience walkthroughs, etc., and conducted field research with the Oetker-Gruppe to gain insights for a smart-kitchen product line. |
| Advanced Statistics | Different types of analysis including z-tests, ANOVA, regression analysis, etc., and computation on SPSS and G*Power. |
| Empirical Social Research | Principles and critical analysis of empirical research, research design and methodologies, and conducted a content analysis. |
| Occupational Health Management | Various health risks and potentials in the workplace, models for measuring and improving occupational health, and change management. |
| Psychology of Marketing & Modern Market Research | Numerous case studies regarding marketing strategies and attraction drivers of consumers, as well as phenomenon that are predicted to influence the sector. |
| Converging Technological Trends | Basics in data journalism and front end web development languages including HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. |
| User Experience and New Media | User-centered design methods such as usability testing, site mapping, persona creation, etc., and conducted field research in collaboration with Vattenfall to document and adapt to user expectations on their website. |
| Human and Organizational Resource Management | Focus on strategic human resource management such as recruitment and selection, training and development, performance management and motivation, etc., and organizational management including diagnostics, development, and change leadership. |
| Law and the Media | Principles and exceptions of media law categories such as copyright law, patent law, competition law, data protection, etc. |
| Research Project | Research on machine learning predictability on relationship quality based on personality traits. |
| Title | Description |
|---|---|
|
Proj X-claimations: what social network users say about a social network concept (link) |
I learned a lot about product testing from this thesis - particularly, what not to do. Though my hypotheses were rejected through this research, it validated my desire to work in product, and it ultimately was an valuable experience that prepared me for a successful career as a product manager. |
I had hoped that my master studies would bring me closer to technology which could be harnessed to unleash humanity, in some way. Moreover, I hoped that I would be able to feel a sense of thriving in my new career. And after five years of work experience in B2B and B2C start up and scale up software companies, I am happy to report that my hopes were well placed.
It turns out, there are private companies with humanitarian missions, and I am truly in a state of flow when I work for them. As a Product Manager, I feel that I have both the creativity to conjure big ideas, and the logical reasoning as well as hard skills to test the validity of those ideas. I reckon that a healthy dose of skepticism helps me to think critically and plan well, given my record for punctually delivering complex initiatives. However I believe that I am particularly skilled at empathizing with users, managing stakeholders, and instilling a high team morale.
Check out my CV, or click the button below to learn more about my professional training and skills!
| Date | Name of course |
|---|---|
| November 2021 |
Udemy | Online Complete Web Design: from Figma to Webflow to Freelancing |
| October 2021 |
Reforge | Online Mastering Product Management |
| December 2023 |
Reforge | Online Finding Product/Market Fit |
| March 2024 |
Ironhack | Berlin, Germany Data Analytics |
Though I owe a lot to my previous experiences, I made this website for the experiences yet to come: entering a role which complements my strengths that also inspires me to learn; in a field where compassion, collaboration, and human ingenuity are deployed as means to foster health and happiness.
If you would like to get in touch, please send me a message in the field below!