cv - Derek Arrington

New York, NY | +1 910.231.4077 | View Linkedin

Derek Arrington

Head of Design / Senior Design Director & Strategist

about me

An innovative, design-thinking leader with a reputation for spearheading human-centered design strategies and delivering exceptional product designs and customer experiences. I excel at providing a narrative and giving voice to the product and customer experience. Proven expertise in standardizing design processes, fostering collaboration, and leading high-performing teams through strategic initiatives toward successful organizational transformations, seeking to leverage my extensive experience and skills to bring impactful and positive change to your organization.

experience

ORION INNOVATION //
SENIOR XD DIRECTOR & STRATEGIST //
DECEMBER 2021 - JUNE 2023 //

Led the Experience Design (XD) group for Orion’s fintech and telecom and media business verticals.
Spearheaded the Orion Design Maturity Initiative, driving a design-first approach throughout the organization.
Oversaw the creation of the Orion XD Sales Hub, enhancing sales presentations and pitches, resulting in a 15% increase in successful client business engagements.
Directed the complete redesign of a top-tier fintech advisor platform, reducing project lifecycle by 50% and delivering MVP within six months.
Led the design system integration of a major U.S. financial institution’s acquisition into the parent company’s ecosystem—streamlined internal design processes, boosting team efficiency by 30%.
Established and managed team resources and design ops for XD projects, aligning project and business goals with strategic outcomes.
XD sponsor and point of contact with executive business stakeholders, sales channels, and clients.
Develop and implement overarching CX/XD strategies and establish OKRs, KPIs, and project roadmaps.
Provide leadership, guide discussions on strategic and tactical execution, facilitate workshops, and ensure quality control based on client brand guidelines.

SENIOR DESIGN & STRATEGY LEAD //
MCKINSEY & CO //
MAY 2019 - SEMPTEMBER 2021 //

As director of the Professional Development Platform (PDP), I led the design and implementation of complex change programs that delivered technological innovation alongside new service lines into core talent development processes.
Leader of a 10+ global design team responsible for vision-setting, product ideation, design, technical development, and change management to digitally transform the way talent is diversified, deployed, evaluated, and developed. Architected, built, and scaled 3 new service lines within McKinsey.
Unified three disjointed design teams to create a cohesive and singular creative group.
Co-chaired the creation of the internal McKinsey design system, increasing team efficiency by 40% and improving overall productivity by 15% through defined working methodologies and governance.
Cultivated customer-centricity by creating a change program to energize the broader organization around the importance of being customer-led as well as a design maturity model.
Professional development leader coaching designers/researchers on how to increase their leadership and impact on day-to-day design activities. Participating in bi-yearly calibrations/review cycles for our global design chapter.

PRUDENTIAL //
SENIOR DESIGN DIRECTOR //
DECEMBER 2013 - MARCH 2019 //

Led the effort to create the internal design team from five to over 30 members and was responsible for scaling teams, executive stakeholder management, capability building, alignment workshops, defining customer journeys, team health and retros, product reviews, and design critiques.
Developed cross-functional, interactive B2C and B2B tools, significantly boosting user engagement and satisfaction.
Introduced design sprints and workshops, reducing project completion time by 30%.
Led the creation of Prudential’s first native iOS and Android apps for the retirement business unit, increasing user engagement by 45%.

DESIGN DIRECTOR & FED //
LIBERTY TAX //
MARCH 2013 - OCTOBER 2013 //

Lead Design Consultant for the vision, strategy, and production of the company’s online DIY tax tool.
Provided product management and established the overall front-end product design and development process.
Set design standards and quality assurance guidelines.
Responsible for all front-end development