rodo h orellana

Head of Design · Design Director · AI-native Operator

I lead design from
complex idea to
shipped product.

I build teams, product systems, and AI-native delivery workflows that turn complex business problems into clear, scalable digital products.

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  • 10+ Years leading teams
  • 50+ Platforms shipped
  • 3 → 12 Studio co-founded and helped grow

Selected work

Seven projects. Range, complexity, and measurable impact.

Rocketvan Design Technology Practice How I built the design team at Rocketvan, and set the way a twelve-person studio frames, prototypes and reviews its product work. Design technology · Product operations · AI-assisted delivery · Co-founder · Head of Design & Innovation Built the design team from one person to three, and put AI into the delivery workflow without handing it the product judgement. Digital Fibre A real-time operations platform for France's national fibre-optic roll-out. Enterprise infrastructure · Product design director Cut field-to-office reporting time by about 40%, and removed the hand-off errors that came with spreadsheets, FTP and email. Watling Centre Space Hire A venue-hire booking and billing platform for a north London community centre, replacing phone calls, spreadsheets and paper books with online booking, member pricing and card payments. Venue hire · Community · Payments · Design and delivery lead · Ran design and the tech team end to end Close to 1,200 orders and around 970 accounts, with bookings, payments and refunds that no longer wait for the office to be open. Pharmatalent A multi-sided B2B SaaS talent platform with dual-algorithm ML search for regulated life-sciences. Life-sciences · B2B SaaS · Lead product designer · Interface architect · Client lead Gave recruiters an ML search they could read and steer in their own words, instead of a ranking they had to trust. Ford — Access Tomorrow Today A gamified recruitment experience repositioning Ford as a mobility-technology brand. Automotive · Mobility technology · Co-lead product design (transatlantic agency cohort) Delivered a fully interactive proof-of-concept on a tight schedule, using AI-assisted design pipelines. ToPlayGether A multi-sided platform connecting players, teams, clubs and competition organisers, from finding a game to running a paid league. SportsTech · B2B2C · Marketplace payments · Product design director · Visual identity & design system Brought the whole amateur-sport journey — discovery, community, payments, and running competitions — into one platform across web and mobile. Commerce, three buying decisions Three e-commerce projects across skincare, personalised children’s books and coffee, each asking a different version of the same question: what does someone need to understand before they feel ready to buy? E-commerce · Beauty · Publishing · Coffee · E-commerce design · UX/UI & delivery A skincare routine configurator that sells a plan rather than a single product, and an automated pipeline that turned hand-edited personalised books into print-ready PDFs delivered in 48 hours.

A curated selection from 50+ shipped platforms — more case studies on request.

Leadership system

The interface is visible. The operating system behind it creates momentum.

  1. 01

    Direction

    Translate commercial ambition and user needs into a clear product thesis.

  2. 02

    Teams

    Hire, mentor, align, and raise the multidisciplinary craft bar.

  3. 03

    Systems

    Create scalable product, design, and delivery frameworks.

  4. 04

    Shipping

    Connect design and engineering, reduce risk, and move ideas into production.

AI-native delivery runs as a thread through all four — not a standalone service, but how direction, teams, systems, and shipping move faster.

Evidence

Seniority, verifiable at a glance.

  • 20+ Years across product, design & delivery
  • 10+ Years leading teams
  • 50+ Platforms shipped
  • 1 → 3 Design team scaled
  • 12 Multidisciplinary studio team
  • Up to 70% Faster MVP time-to-market
  • 30% Delivery-efficiency improvement
  • 6 Countries: UK, US, FR, ES, UAE, TW

Selected organisations · Ford · Unilever · Disney · Ubisoft · Activision

Career trajectory

A widening scope of responsibility.

  1. Rocketvan

    2022 — present

    Co-Founder & Head of Design & Innovation

    Co-founded and lead a dual-shore product studio; helped grow it from 3 people to 12, and grew the design/UX team from 1 to 3 within it.

  2. Hacking Founders Podcast

    2025 — present

    Co-Host & Executive Producer

    Built the brand and AI-driven content pipeline; interviewed 12+ venture-backed founders.

  3. iMediaVan

    2015 — 2022

    Digital Director / Digital Art Director

    Directed a digital team of 6 scaling to 10+ across web, cloud, and IoT delivery.

  4. YardPartners

    2010 — 2015

    Senior Digital Designer

    Led interactive platforms and identities for global consumer brands.

  5. Paris · Barcelona · London agencies

    2001 — 2010

    Art Director & Digital Designer

    Delivered high-profile campaigns and interactive work for entertainment and telecom brands.

About

I have built digital products across London, Barcelona, and Paris — but my approach to leadership was shaped just as much by teaching capoeira: create a strong system, make space for individual expression, and help the group move as one.

I work across five languages, speak and sit on panels at industry events including the AI Summit and FrontierTechX, and co-host the Hacking Founders podcast. More about me →

Contact

Let's turn the next complex idea into working form.

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