My journey and a little about me.

Hey there! I'm a UX designer living in Houston, Texas. I am an experienced UX leader with a 6-year track record in successful product delivery and team leadership. Skilled in user-centered design, UX research, product design, and design thinking workshops, I leverage my engineering background to bring a logical and analytical approach to decision making. As a former front-end developer, I effectively communicate with cross-functional teams, providing clear perspectives on timelines and feasibility. I foster teamwork and inclusivity to maximize output and encourage diverse creative ideas.
My story starts in December 2014 in Houston, Texas where I graduated with a bachelors degree in Petroleum Engineering. After having a hard time breaking into the oil and gas industry I tried a new approach and joined a coding bootcamp,

After learning the fundamentals of web development I started working in the startup space as a full-stack web developer. Shortly after moving a few jobs I found myself working as a consultant. My client needed some design work and I had some experience designing in the startup space so I tried my luck and fell in love with the process. Luckily I had an art background and have been painting and drawing my entire life so this felt like a happy marriage of my skillsets. After 6+ years of making the switch I am happy to say I am a design leader and have learned a lot through my years but have a lot more to learn.

“Zaki brings dual perspectives to all his work. He positions technical and model driven ideas to ensure experiences are feasible. Connecting his development background to user need and goals. He also provides design and interaction direction to align business viability to user desires and goals. Bridging his design experiences to technology users want to use. In both perspectives, he grounds his work in human centricity. This has made Zaki strategic and collaborative in executing user experience and leading team on projects. Any organization and team that adds them to their roster is getting a huge boost for their users and products.”

Zaki is an excellent leader and facilitator. He fearlessly fosters idea sharing. I admire his ability to open channels of communication to ensure everyone has a voice. It's common for differences of opinions to persist when opposing ideas are shared. I always felt comfortable sharing my viewpoints and reasoning during team meetings and design workshops led by Zaki. The team dynamics were always positive and our teamwork felt goal-driven. Ideas were challenged, opportunities were explored, and boundaries were pushed. I've found Zaki to be strong advocate for user experience. As our UX Manager he was also invested in our career growth. His process promotes a culture that emphasizes the needs of users. He brings great energy and excitement to any team that gets the privilege to work with him.