At Merkle, I took initiative to build connection and community across the entire company, helping break down the silos created by project-based work.

- Planned and facilitated workshops for the design team to define internal initiatives for the year ahead – guiding the team through uncovering pain points and collaboratively prioritising areas for improvement and focus.

• - Revived and led the Auckland office’s ‘Vibe Team’ post-Covid, creating a space to reconnect employees outside of delivery roles. We met monthly to plan inclusive, engaging events – ranging from cultural celebrations (Diwali, Chinese New Year etc) to social activities like board game nights, themed movie nights, and our own version of Taskmaster.
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• - Launched and ran a book club, using creative approaches like ‘book bingo’ to encourage reading outside of comfort zones. It became a fun, low-pressure way for people from different teams to connect.
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• - Mentored junior staff across both design and development teams, helping them understand user-centered design principles, while gaining insight into the developer mindset myself.
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• - Ran UX knowledge-sharing sessions for junior developers and others across the business, equipping them with design tools and thinking they could apply independently when working without a designer.
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These efforts led to me being awarded Merkle’s Culture Vulture award twice – something I’m proud of, as I believe fostering connection, inclusion, and curiosity across disciplines is essential for strong design culture.