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Product Design Leader + Speaker

I help teams build products that move the business.

20+ years leading product & design orgs, speaking at conferences globally, advising startups, and hosting supper clubs with rising chefs.

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Twenty years, in good company
Skyscanner Monta Amenitiz Glovo Spotify BookClub Booking.com Hilton EY PwC Uber Gap Inc. Capital One The Brookings Institution Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation American Chemical Society Society for Neuroscience Edelman Financial Engines
About me

The real design challenge is almost always organizational.

I've spent my career building products at the intersection of behavioral science, product design, and business strategy, and most of that work has been about more than interfaces. It's getting the right people in the room, creating shared language, and building the systems that let teams move fast without losing quality.

Kevin Hawkins Barcelona, Spain ✦
Kevin Hawkins with Tim Cook

I started as a product designer and UX researcher, spent 15+ years as an IC, and even three years as a front-end engineer, so I understand the implementation side of every decision I make. I've been mentored by amazing leaders along the way, and co-founded businesses like Relish.

Away from the screen I teach, and — as a gay, Liberian-American in tech — pay it forward by mentoring women and underrepresented folks in the industry. I also founded The Common Thread Club supper club in Barcelona, and have travelled to 70+ countries, because the best product insight comes from living in the world, not just studying it.

Cities I've lived in

🇺🇸 DC · SF · NYC · 🇳🇱 Amsterdam · 🇦🇺 Sydney · 🇪🇸 Barcelona · 🇬🇧 London · 🇵🇹 Lisbon · 🇨🇦 Toronto · 🇵🇭 Manila

I don't just help teams design interfaces. I build the
organizational muscle that makes great design repeatable.

01

Design leadership & org design

Team structures, career frameworks, research practice and ways of working that scale, turning talented people into a high-performing, durable org.

02

Product & growth strategy

Behavioral science and data turned into products you can measure: from Glovo's social commerce to acquisition, activation and retention work across 25+ markets.

03

AI-native design & infrastructure

Building the capability layer of design systems, tooling, and AI workflows that multiplies the people you already have, most recently across Monta's EV platform.

By the numbers
20+
Years building products, web apps, and teams
100+
Designers & researchers led across 25 markets
220+
Countries served through products I shipped
€500k
P&L saved through design-led efficiency at Glovo

Currently advising teams building what's next.

Why I advise
Latest Talks & Appearances

Speaking & media.

See all talks & features

Off the clock.

Teaching · speaking · wandering
Speaking at RGD, Vancouver 2022
RGD · Vancouver 2022
Kevin Hawkins jumping, pacific island hopping
Pacific island hopping
Keynote speaking at UXDX EMEA, Dublin 2023
UXDX EMEA · Dublin 2023
Workshop
Workshop
With Barreira A+D design students in San Francisco
Trip to SF with Barreira A+D students
In New York City, cofounding Relish
NYC · Relish, 2022
Let's talk

Let's make something that moves.

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