Professional Resume
15+ years of UX leadership experience
Christina Alchus
VP, Product Experience
Product Strategy • Design Leadership • DesignOps • Enterprise Platforms
Executive Summary
Director-level UX & Product Design leader with 15+ years building and modernizing complex digital products across SaaS, B2B, and regulated enterprise environments. Known for aligning Product, Engineering, and Design around outcomes—not outputs—through strong operating mechanisms, portfolio clarity, and evidence-based decisioning.
Proven record scaling teams, establishing DesignOps, and improving adoption, time-to-value, and release quality across multi-product ecosystems. Founder and former Director of a distributed design practice (2017–2024), partnering with executives to deliver platform modernization, design systems, and measurable business impact.
Focus Areas
- •Product strategy
- •Org & team leadership
- •DesignOps & governance
- •IA & complex workflows
- •Accessibility & quality at scale
- •Metrics-driven UX
Leadership & Business Impact
- •Org Leadership: Hiring, coaching, leveling, performance management
- •Product Strategy: Roadmap shaping, problem framing, prioritization
- •DesignOps: Design systems, acceptance criteria, KPI ladders
- •Enterprise UX: Scalable IA, search, object models
- •Evidence & Analytics: Research ops, scorecards, feedback loops
- •Quality & Accessibility: WCAG/508 compliance, performance budgets
Leadership & Business Impact
Six key competencies that drive measurable design impact
Org Leadership
Hiring, coaching, leveling, performance management, cross-functional rituals.
Product Strategy
Roadmap shaping, problem framing, portfolio rationalization, prioritization models.
DesignOps
Design systems, acceptance criteria, KPI ladders, release gates, governance.
Enterprise UX
Scalable IA, search, object models, complex workflows.
Evidence & Analytics
Research ops, scorecards, UX → Dev feedback loops.
Quality & Accessibility
WCAG/508 compliance, performance budgets, production standards.
Operating Model
How I LeadKPI Ladders
Connects design work to business metrics
Decision Gates
Design & a11y reviews tied to acceptance criteria and release readiness
Feedback Loops
Research + analytics → signal triage → prioritization → backlog → scorecard
Cadence
Predictable, cross-functional design reviews
Professional Experience
15+ years of UX leadership across diverse industries and complex systems
Omni Federal
CurrentSenior UX & Product Design Manager
Goal: Lead UX strategy and product direction for large-scale data platform modernization
Direct product experience strategy and design leadership for a complex, data-intensive platform supporting advanced analytical workflows. Partner with executive stakeholders to shape product vision, establish design governance, and drive measurable business outcomes through user-centered innovation.
- •Align product roadmap priorities with measurable outcomes through executive workshops and strategic planning sessions
- •Establish UX-to-delivery feedback mechanisms converting research signals and usage analytics into prioritized product initiatives
- •Define and deliver high-fidelity information architecture, user flows, and system-level design decisions
- •Build design operations framework enabling scalable delivery across distributed product teams
Key Results
Related Work
Pixel Creative Services, LLC.
Founder & Principal, Product Experience Strategy
Founded and led boutique consultancy delivering product strategy, UX leadership, and experience innovation for B2B SaaS, nonprofits, and enterprise platforms. Directed business operations including client acquisition, portfolio management, team building, and strategic partnerships.
- •Shaped product vision and experience strategy across complex platforms, aligning design decisions with business growth objectives
- •Built and scaled distributed design operations with reusable systems, governance frameworks, and quality standards
- •Led cross-functional product teams using Agile methodologies to deliver user-centered platforms efficiently
- •Established design practice operations: scoping, resource planning, budget oversight, and risk management
- •Elevated organizational design maturity through UX enablement programs and embedded design leadership
Key Results
Enterprise & Public-Sector Clients (via Pixel)
Lead UX Strategist & Product Director (Platform Programs)
Directed product experience strategy for mission-critical platforms serving complex search, discovery, and analytics workflows. Led information architecture, content strategy, and experience design for multi-dataset enterprise systems.
- •Architected scalable information architecture, entity models, and faceted search frameworks for large-scale platforms
- •Established use-case libraries, result templates, and relevance tuning governance adopted across product teams
- •Delivered UX strategy for platform modernization initiatives driving user adoption and operational efficiency
- •Built design systems and component libraries enabling consistent experiences across product portfolios
Key Results
Earlier Experience
Lead UX Engineer / Strategist
Adwaiy Tech LLC
2015–2016
Goal: Cloud and App Modernization
Led UX modernization of legacy platforms transitioning to cloud infrastructure. Introduced responsive design patterns, accessibility compliance frameworks, and modern interaction paradigms.
Senior UX Strategist
INCATech
2014
Goal: Redesign The United States Department of State website: Study Abroad
Directed redesign of high-traffic public platform serving international audiences. Delivered accessible component library and responsive information architecture.
View ProductSenior UX Engineer
Salient CRGT
2014–2015
Goal: Modernization of USPS, US Parks, SEC
Introduced UX governance frameworks and standard operating procedures for federal agencies modernizing digital services. Established design quality standards and compliance protocols.
UX Subject Matter Expert
Masslight
2013–2014
Led large-scale content strategy and information architecture redesign for Defense Technical Information Center. Streamlined content organization and improved findability.
View ProductMultimedia Designer / Team Lead
Pixel Creative (Freelance)
2007–2013
Delivered branding, UI design, and digital marketing for commercial clients including Library Ideas and their product line: Freegal Music, Rocket Languages, and Freading. Managed creative teams and client relationships.
View ProductSelected Case Studies
Full case studies at scienceofdesign.io/portfolio
Core Capabilities
Comprehensive skill set across leadership, strategy, research, and technical implementation
Leadership & Mentorship
- Hiring & coaching
- Team development
- Performance management
- Cross-functional collaboration
Product Strategy
- Roadmap planning
- Problem framing
- Portfolio optimization
- Prioritization frameworks
Research & Analytics
- Research operations
- UX scorecards
- Feedback loops
- A/B & qualitative testing
Design Operations
- Design systems
- Acceptance criteria
- KPI frameworks
- Release governance
Enterprise UX Expertise
- Scalable information architecture
- Search & discovery
- Data models
- Complex workflows
Tools & Methods
- Figma • FigJam • Adobe XD
- Jira • Confluence • Notion
- Miro • Productboard
- Google Analytics • Looker
- Fusion Method™
Certifications
UX Management
Nielsen Norman Group
SAFe Agile
Scaled Agile
Accessibility Compliance (WCAG / Section 508)
DHS
Education
Bachelor of Science in Psychology
University of Maryland
2015
Associate of Arts in Web Design Technologies
The Art Institute (Bradley Academy for the Visual Arts)
2001
Ready to Connect?
Let's talk about where you want to take your product next.
christina@pscienceofdesign.io
Phone
571-260-3164
Portfolio
View case studies in detail
Design has always lived within me—less a skill than a way of being. I notice the smallest details: how people move through systems, where they hesitate, where something feels cold. And I'm drawn to turning that coldness into meaning—where small changes create real impact.
Over the years, that instinct became a practice, and that practice grew into leadership. Now I guide teams through complexity with care—building the right thing, not just because we can, but because we've asked if we should.
For me, this work is a mindset that becomes a plan—then becomes action, accountability, and lasting change. A way of leaving things better than we found them. A way of building a world that's better for all.
This is the thread I keep coming back to: make it human, make it honest, and make it last.
