Our Awards Jury Knows Great UX Design

Gennett is head of brand experience globally at Siemens. She is passionate about helping brands to “do different” to make a difference and shape a positive future today. In her career, she has worked with various brands in the automotive, travel, banking, healthcare, energy, and home appliances sector.

Gennett holds a Diploma and MA in Communication Design and an MBA in Business Administration. She is a lover of creativity, humor, and excellence. And so far, she has lived on three continents: Londoner at heart, Berliner by default, and Beijing-inspired.

Melanie is Lead Strategist at Manyone Cologne, bringing a seasoned background in design and a proven track record in strategic innovation and customer experience design. With extensive experience in both industrial and digital agencies, as well as corporate environment, her expertise spans both physical product and digital design strategy.

Her approach is characterized by a deep understanding of all relevant perspectives, including users, stakeholders, market trends, brand values, business strategy, and backend processes. This comprehensive insight allows her to translate complex information into clear, actionable strategies, compelling value propositions, and tangible experiences that drive impactful results.

Throughout her career, Melanie has successfully led long-term client relationships and project teams for a diverse array of European and Asian clients across industries such as consumer goods, healthcare, telecommunications, aviation, and logistics.

Melanie holds an MFA in Advanced Product Design from Umeå Institute of Design and a Dipl.-Ing. in Industrial Design from FH JOANNEUM Graz.

Michelle Castañeda is the Design Lead for the AI Competence Center at Deutsche Telekom. In this role, she drives the development and implementation of design strategies that empower Deutsche Telekom’s employees and customers by leveraging AI effectively through new GenAI products and services.

Michelle has a proven track record of more than 10 years in innovation teams, leading projects both internally and as a strategic design consultant in the APAC, LATAM and EMEA markets. Her passion lies in user-centered design, making her a strong advocate for the user's voice within multidisciplinary product development.

With a background in industrial design and a Master of Science (MSc) in IT and Product Design, Michelle bridges the gap between user research, business goals, and technical feasibility. This sweet spot allows her to craft impactful design concepts that resonate with users, and ensure success for both the business and the customer.

Ingolf's passion is to inspire people as they interact through and with technology. He works at the intersection of design, art and technology.

As part of a team of talented researchers, designers and engineers Ingolf supports the brands of the Volkswagen Group on UX design issues – from strategic direction to handover-ready prototypes. In his role, he also supports transformative business processes.

Before joining the Volkswagen Group in 2018, he spent over a decade designing and developing spatial experiences and interactive exhibitions. His diverse work for international clients and artist collaborations has won numerous awards.

Ingolf is a founding member of NODE – Forum for Digital Arts and has taught at various universities.

Auzita has extensive experience shaping product strategy through a deep understanding of users needs and motivations over her 10+ year career. She currently leads the Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technology research team at Airbnb focused on enhancing the user experience through artificial intelligence.

Previously, she led research teams at Meta that played a critical role in the launch of Facebook Marketplace and guided global commerce initiatives. She is focused on innovating and enabling experiences that are transparent and provide clear value to both the user and business.

Auzita has a background in computer engineering and a masters in Human Computer Interaction from Georgia Tech.

Daniel Löhlein is a Senior UX & UI Designer at Experience One AG with over 20 years of experience in UX strategy, UI design, and research. He has led major projects for Mercedes Benz, Bosch, and ZDF, excelling in eCommerce and automotive platforms.

As a co-founder of a Digital Asset Management platform, he has worked with clients like Coca Cola. Daniel is certified as a "Certified Professional for Usability and User Requirements Engineering.”

Christoph is a creative-driven design leader with a passion for delivering innovative value.

With a proven track record at Bosch, he advanced from industrial designer to user interface designer, eventually becoming the Head of User Interface Design. Christoph’s design philosophy focuses on creating holistic experiences that seamlessly integrate physical and digital design, with a deep understanding of how to build an iconic brand experience.

He is responsible for developing and implementing the two generations of Bosch’s unique Ring UI, leading recently to a UX award in 2023 and IF Gold awards in 2023 and 2024. These design innovations contributed to a fourfold increase in the market share of Bosch's premium ovens.

Outside of work, Christoph is a proud father and a passionate enthusiast of a classic Swedish car brand.

Yedan leads the design and technology team at frog Munich studio where she drives digital innovation and product design and delivery across industries. She is known for her in-depth knowledge and experience in creating user-centered, business-impactful products powered by AI (GenAI, NLP, Knowledge Graph, ML).

Before joining frog, Yedan was Creative Director at BMW Designworks, where she led future vision of intelligent in-car experiences, from OS to UXUI, AI Assistants, Multi-modality experience for BMW, as well as app design for Rolls-Royce. She also worked at various prestigious R&D institutes incl. MIT Media Lab, Samsung Research America, and Baidu Institute of Deep Learning, focusing on product innovation with AI, computer vision and VR/AR.

She is an active speaker and a passionate university guest lecturer on AI, Behavioral Design and Experience Prototyping.

Yedan holds a Master’s degree in Interaction Design from Umeå Insitute of Design, Sweden, and a Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Design from Zhejiang University, China.

Shruti builds and leads teams of designers and researchers to deliver impactful products and experiences that serve people, planet and business. Currently a mentor at the Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design, Shruti held design leadership roles at IDEO, N26 and Zalando, among others.

A researcher at heart, Shruti leverages her empathy to build healthy teams and foster nurturing work environments. She is dedicated to sharing her expertise and regularly teaches design students and mid-career professionals. Shruti was born and raised in India, but Germany has been her home for the past 10+ years.

Josh Richman is a visionary UX product design leader with over 20 years of experience, known for pioneering innovative design solutions that align with business goals. He has driven success for global giants like Meta, Samsung, and Visa. His deep understanding of human factors ensures impactful, elegant products, earning him numerous international awards, including Red Dot and iF Awards.

With a Master's in Industrial Design and expertise in Product Design Human Factors, Josh blends analytical rigor with creative insight. His work consistently pushes the boundaries of innovation, shaping the future of design and inspiring the industry.

Tim leads the Siemens Healthineers Industrial Design team, designing products across all modalities in close collaboration with the other design crafts of the Design & User Experience department. He is responsible for several guidelines such as Shui Industrial Design to ensure high value design across the product range.

Before he joined Siemens Healthineers, he was Head of Group Design at VAILLANT, where he shaped the future product design strategy for 3 brands including UI/UX, packaging design and design processes. His international experience is based on more than a decade of working with clients such as Siemens, Motorola, P&G, Nike, Fluke, Osram, Lenovo when he was VP at s.point design in Shanghai and later setting up the BSH China Industrial Design Department in Nanjing. During his time in China, he founded his own brand Naolab, where he spent two years experimenting around innovative design solutions from idea to market launch.

In essence, Tim’s career has spanned all aspects of communication design, industrial design, engineering and manufacturing. This comprehensive interdisciplinary background is the foundation of his key principle: design connects. Tim graduated as a Diplom Industrial Designer (FH) from the University of Applied Sciences Darmstadt in 2002.

Annika is a Senior UX Concept at Scholz & Volkmer’s Berlin office. She enjoys working in an agile team, collaborating closely with UI designers and developers.

When creating digital solutions for different clients such as Deutsche Bahn or HARIBO, her focus is on information architecture guided by user behavior and needs. She is particularly fascinated by a user experience that considers psychological wellbeing and addresses social or environmental challenges.

Annika studied business communication (MA) and media economics (BA) at Stuttgart Media University with exchanges in Mexico and Chile. She likes to explore different points of view and gain a deep understanding of the context as well as its implications for business objectives.

Claudia is Design Business Manager at PHOENIX, based in Stuttgart. In this role, she builds client relationships and leads design teams to create impactful customer experiences and services that not only meet people’s needs but also elevate brand identity.

With a passion for a holistic approach to interaction and industrial design, Claudia has worked for a diverse range of industries, including automotive, aviation, healthcare, energy, home appliances, and consumer electronics.

From shaping visionary concepts to supporting their successful implementation, she attaches great importance to making ideas tangible. She is driven by the excitement of seeing great design come to life and resonate in the market.

Claudia holds an Industrial Design Diploma with a focus on interaction design from the Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences.

Bernd Wiesenauer serves as the Director of User Experience Enabling at Bosch, driving the company's transformation into a human-centered organization. He is responsible for the UX Maturity Model and Assessment, UX Networking, the UX Convention, and UX Knowledge Transfer, as well as overseeing the Bosch UX Academy and its curricula.

Prior to Bosch, he was Head of Design at User Interface Design GmbH for over six years, where he integrated user-centered design for clients like Jura and Vorwerk.

Bernd studied product and environmental design at the University of Applied Sciences in Potsdam and has held various roles, including designing ergonomic driver information systems for automotive giants such as Daimler and Porsche, and developing furniture for brands like Thonet and Cor.

Cagri draws on more than ten years of experience in cultivating design excellence for products in various sectors, with a particular focus on the fintech industry. Her work is characterized by a strong commitment to leveraging the inherent value of design in products and driving the level of maturity in design.

Since 2021, Dominique Burkard has played a leading role at EAO AG, focusing on industrial and UX design within the realm of product innovation and development. His expertise lies in harmonizing usability, aesthetics, and ergonomics with market demands and customer needs during the initial stages of product definition and conceptualization.

With a 25-year career in development and industrial design, Dominique has contributed to renowned companies including Emerson, Viega, Sika, DePuy Synthes, Schaffner EMV, and Hilti. His accomplishments are highlighted by several patents and design awards.

Grace's extensive career in design leadership spans various industries, including tech, retail, and finance. She has worked with prominent companies such as Pinterest, Meta, Amazon, and BlackRock.

Notably, her most recent and exciting experience was at TikTok, where she took on the role of Head of Design for the US market. During her time there, she established a fully functional product design, research, and content design team, resulting in a significant business impact globally.

Tae Young Kang is a Director of Customer Experience and a Product Lead at Deutsche Telekom with roundabout 20 years of experience in UX and service design. Currently, he focuses on streamlining and digitizing Deutsche Telekom's customer-centric innovation process, leading a team to implement a corporate-wide collaboration platform that accelerates idea collection, target customer validation, and data-driven concept prioritization.

Previously, he worked at Samsung Electronics for over 15 years, where he cultivated extensive hands-on experience in the end-to-end product innovation process – leading diverse projects from new product development to production model enhancement and shipping to global audiences, including the Galaxy Smartphone series.

Tae Young studied Service Design (M.A.) at the Royal College of Art in London and Visual Communication Design (B.A.) at HongiK University in Seoul.

Dr. Anna Raveling has played a key role in shaping user experience, design pre-development, design research and strategy at BSH Home Appliances Group. Her path from industrial design via product marketing and innovation management to a leadership role as Product Owner User Experience underlines her expertise in the implementation of horizontal user-centered processes.

She currently leads project teams with a focus on developing and implementing user-centered product and design development processes on a global scale. In addition to supporting the development of UI and industrial design projects from a UX perspective, she leads design research projects and strives to make user experience known and applicable across the organization.

Dr. Raveling's contributions extend beyond the corporate realm into the academic world, where she shares her insights on sustainability, design methodologies and UX research. With a PhD from the Technical University of Munich (TUM), she has been teaching at various design schools since 2005 to date.

Sofia Ryan is a Principal Design Director at Microsoft. She creates UX visions and strategies that bridge AI design goals with business objectives in the Microsoft 365 product ecosystem.

Sofia holds a master’s degree in product design and a PhD in user research and co-design. Her drive to connect design leadership skills with business strategy development led her to also take an executive MBA.

Sofia has worked as an academic researcher, design practitioner, chief product officer, and design leader. She has built global design teams and UX strategies in both larger enterprises and startups. She uses this broad experience not only to improve UX maturity in companies, but also to evolve design as a discipline to ensure that design gets a seat at the table.

As Strategic Design Director at Manyone, Matthias works at the intersection of strategy, design and technology. He advocates for human-centered innovation that effectively addresses practical and emotional needs in people's daily lives. To transform strategic visions into tangible realities, he enjoys connecting teams and co-creating with researchers, designers and builders, who want to make the world more colorful and livable.

Before joining Manyone, he worked at frog Design, leading several transformation projects for global brands such as BMW and Lufthansa. Previously, Matthias established multiple design and innovation teams, both within client organizations and on the agency side. He co-founded the Munich studio for Star, a global digital design and development firm, pioneered the in-house design team for the brand JBL at Harman International in Shenzhen, China and contributed to the growth of Designit Munich in its early years.

Matthias studied Product Design at the HS Munich and the Umeå Institute of Design in Sweden.