Vanessa Kirby
International UX & Product Design Leader
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I help organisations transform digital products and user experiences to achieve growth and engagement without losing customer focus or agility.
Ex Argos, Marks & Spencer, LexisNexis, BTFG, SapientNitro, Avande and startups/growth companies.
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TRACK RECORD
Proven Impact
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Measurable results across retail, finance, and legaltech sectors
£3M+
Incremental revenue generated through strategic UX improvements
300-450%
Seasonal (golden quarter) revenue uplift YoY through design leadership
33%
Shifted from 33% to 66% online revenue in 12 months
CORE EXPERIENCE
Strategic Capabilities
Product Design Leadership
Leading cross-functional teams to deliver products generating significant incremental revenue through user-centered innovation
Digital & AI Transformation
Spearheading enterprise-wide transformations across M&S, BT Financial, Argos and SeedLegals with measurable impact
Departmental Development & Mentorship
Building and scaling international design organisations, reducing attrition while fostering innovation across distributed teams
User Experience Design
Expert in UCD, service design, information architecture with demonstrated ROI improvements of 15-450%
Data-Driven Decision Making
Leveraging analytics and user insights to drive strategic product decisions and optimise business outcomes
Agile & Lean Methodologies
Implementing agile methodologies and design systems at scale for rapid iteration and delivery
CURRENT POSITIONS
Head of Product & UX
SeedLegals London
April 2022 - Present
Leading teams of Product Managers and UX/Visual Designers across SaaS products, connected services and commercial website in LegalTech. Driving 15% YOY revenue growth through multiple product launches, new market expansion (USA), and AI integration to reduce support levels and enhance capabilities.
Member Board of Trustees
Wimbledon Windmill Museum
November 2022 - Present
Strategic oversight focusing on digital content, website, and social media. Redesigned and refitted museum shop, doubling income for windmill maintenance. Introduced Bloomberg Connects app for remote exhibitions. Working with local business community to raise awareness and drive events.
Digital Advisor
Conduct Change
January 2017 - Present
Ongoing advisor for digital resources and online communications to support campaign-based mental health and anti-bullying initiatives.
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
Executive Leadership Experience
Consultant
VExD Ltd London
August 2020 - April 2022
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Director of Service Design (Mat leave cover) - Modern Human Design
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UX Design - Altruistiq, a SaaS startup focused on ESG metrics, in creating a prototype for fundraising and kickstarting UX team
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UX Designer - Harvard Medical for a Mental Health Ap in the USA
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UX Research Lead - global bank on expat money transfer behaviours and required services.
Head of Experience Design
Marks & Spencer London
October 2017 - July 2020
Led team of 26-30 across UX, User Research, Copy, and UI. Defined and created experiences for responsive web, mobile apps and in-store during digital transformation. Worked across M&S Retail, M&S Bank, M&S Corp and stores.
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Furniture redesign: 16% increase in conversion (£2.5m-£3m incremental sales pa)
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SPARKS loyalty scheme: 1m downloads, 6m uniques & 8% increase to NPS in first 8 weeks
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Christmas Food to Order: 300-450% increases vs prior year
Head of UX
Argos London
August 2015 - October 2017
Led team of 26-30 across UX, User Research, Copy, and UI. Delivered creative strategy and high-quality design execution across web, mobile apps and store devices with definitive, trackable increases in sales with each feature.
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33% uplift in online revenue to 66% via redesigned entire selling journey: HP, DLP, PLP, PDP & Checkout
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Integrated finance across selling journey
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Homepage improvements: increased scroll, dwell time & conversions
Head of UX
BT Financial Group Sydney
January 2013 - July 2015
Led team of 30-40 across UX, User Research, Copy, UI, and Frontend Development. Delivered entirely new user experience for BT Wealth investors and financial advisers. Ground-up product development with iterative take-to-market over 5 years. Challenging business transformation: re-platforming, redesigning and re-branding multiple products to one cohesive experience across all digital channels.
Head of User Experience
SEEK Melbourne
October 2011 - December 2012
Led teams across UX, User Research, Copy, and UI for Australia's leading online recruitment platform. Shifted experience to meet brand personality and strategic initiatives across all platforms. Strengthened UX processes to work with newly implemented Agile methodologies.
My footprint
International, in country experience
Who I have worked with
'If you can make things easy to use, then the world will love you'.
Making Websites Win, Karl Blanks & Ben Jesson
Conferences
2019 ECommerce Digital conference - Journey Mapping
2019 UX Roundabout, London - Agile & UX
2015 Interact, London - UX Unicorns -fables or legends?
2014 Digital Delivery - Wealth Management
2012 OzChi - Agile & UX
2012 Agile UX - Sydney