Design Coaching

My Coaching Approach

As a designer, I’m a player-coach: I still get into the work because it keeps me grounded in the day-to-day realities of a practising designer, and it’s how I stay relevant as I coach practitioners and develop design leaders. My coaching style is centred on bringing out your potential, leaning into your strengths, and connecting with your inner self. I can’t get you a better job: only you can do that; however, I can help you get your design practice in full bloom and identify what a “better job” for you actually looks like, and that’s what will get you there.

Whom Is My Coaching For

My coaching practice is focused on supporting early and mid-career designers on their journey. You could be a:

  • Sole practitioner
  • Practitioner on teams of any size
  • Design leader of small teams (fewer than 5 designers).

Pricing

When I was starting out in my design career, I needed a coach the most and yet could least afford it. To pay it forward, I’ve designed my coaching services to make it affordable for those who are just starting out or in mid-career.

Sounding Board

These are sessions that you direct: I go where you need me to follow. Sometimes, you just need someone to hear you out, jam on ideas, get a second opinion, or when you’re just feeling discombobulated. You could even use these sessions for design critiques.

Outcomes

  • Clear your mind
  • Get things off your chest
  • See things differently
  • Test or validate ideas

Pricing (á la carte)

  • Early career (fewer than 3 years in practice: C$100 / hour
  • Mid-career (3 to 5 years in practice): C$150 / hour

Pathfinder

This is a good place to start if you’re not sure where to take your design practice or career. I believe there’s a difference between our practice which we own and our career which can be subject to organizational and economic externalities that we can’t control.

Outcomes

  • Deconstructed view of the state of your design practice
  • Insights into where you’ve been, where you might want to take your practice
  • Version 1 of your design practice roadmap: use it for self-directed practice and career development or with your manager

Pricing for core program (3 x 60-min sessions):

  • Early career (fewer than 3 years in practice): C$225
  • Mid-career (3 to 5 years in practice): C$375

You may need more time to achieve these outcomes. You can book follow-up sessions at a reduced hourly rate.

Pricing for follow-up sessions (á la carte):
  • Early career (fewer than 3 years in practice): C$25 / 30-min session
  • Mid-career (3 to 5 years in practice): C$50 / 30-min session

Being Your Best

Do you want to accelerate your design practice? No, I can’t magically give you experience, but I can help you plan your path strategically to master your craft and drive your design practice. Owning your design practice puts you in the driver’s seat of your career.

Outcomes

  • A skills matrix framework of your current and future design practice
  • Insights into your level of mastery for the skills in your matrix through self-reflection and my assessment
  • Version 1 of your OKRs (Outcomes and Key Results)
  • Version 1 of your Action Plan to achieve your OKRs

Pricing for core program (6 x 60-min sessions):

  • Early career (fewer than 3 years in practice): C$450
  • Mid-career (3 to 5 years in practice): C$750

You may need more time to achieve these outcomes. You can book follow-up sessions at a reduced hourly rate.

Pricing for follow-up sessions (á la carte):
  • Early career (fewer than 3 years in practice): C$25 / 30-min session
  • Mid-career (3 to 5 years in practice): C$50 / 30-min session

Book a 30-min discovery session today

During this session, we’ll decide if we’re a good fit and can achieve good outcomes together. I’m not obliged to accept you as a client nor are you obliged to hire me as your coach.

How I’ve Helped Other Designers

Andrea has an uncanny ability to shift perspective and unlock growth in others. Her carefully considered input always came just at the right time, formulated personally for me. Some of her questions and feedback took me months – even years – to understand more deeply. Andrea pushed me to bump against my own limitations, embrace discomfort, lean on my strengths and become a better designer.

Kristina Rostorosky, Design Lead

Like many UX and Digital Product Designers my pathway followed a traditional graphic design education. There were gaps in my UX practice that were holding back my effectiveness and impact in a high stakes enterprise environment. Andrea first outlined areas that would strengthen my UX craft and round out my design practice with clarity and patience. She helped frame up and picture successful outcomes and used tactics as a player-coach to help visualize how to achieve those outcomes with clear goals, tools, methods and self-reflection. As I began to master my craft, Andrea then turned her focus onto developing me as a design leader. Providing me with advice, support and ownership to build an authentic leadership style as I take on a small team of my own. Working with Andrea has been a mentorship journey that I will always be grateful for and would recommend to anyone looking to level up their design practice.

Adam Brace, Senior Product Designer