Senior CX and experience designer, Sydney

Experience design that starts by listening.

I'm Maryam Mahlberg. I lead research, design and customer experience strategy for large brands in retail, banking, higher education and automotive, and I have led design teams at THE ICONIC, Zookal and Safewill.

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Open to remote work, across time zones

Hiring a lead designer? See my experience

Need a freelancer? See how we could work together

Maryam Mahlberg smiling, holding a coffee and a notebook

Sectors I've worked in

Retail and e-commerce
Banking and financial services
Superannuation
Higher education
Automotive
Health and government
Payments
Consumer goods
Energy and fuel
Wills and legal tech
Property and building
Media and advertising
Investing and fintech

Selected work

A few recent projects

See all 12 projects

Kind words

What colleagues and clients say

Read all recommendations on LinkedIn

“Maryam championed user centric design in parts of the business that never received it before. ... If you are looking for a design leader who understands the development cycle, Maryam is a strong and understanding leader and I would thoroughly recommend her.”

“Maryam is a UX whiz who clearly articulated her user research related findings to drive customer journey and product optimisations at BrickX.”

“Whilst at BrickX we saw her grasp complex financial products and scenarios and help turn this into simple intuitive customer journeys.”

“She is constantly looking to interact with customers to understand their needs and how they feel when they are using the products she works on.”

“She has the ability to iterate quickly on ideas and produce quality work without compromising attention to detail.”

“She is extremely insightful and values research and feedback in her design.”

“She is a top class UX professional who is extremely thorough, adaptable and simply knows her stuff.”

Have a project or a role in mind?

Whether you need a freelancer for a defined project or a lead designer to guide a team, I'm happy to talk. Tell me about your customers, what isn't working and what you would like to change, and I'll reply with ideas and a suggested first step.

I work with teams remotely across time zones, and in person where it helps. I'm happy to overlap with your working hours. If you're not sure where to start, a short chat about the problem is enough.

Work with me See my experience

Selected work

Selected projects

Client work is shown by sector. I am adding full case studies over time.

Showing 12 of 12 projects

More case studies will be added over time.

Services

What I do

Most projects blend several of these. Choose one to see the related work.

01

UI design

Interfaces designed in Figma, from first flows to screens developers can build from.

Flows and wireframes
High-fidelity Figma screens
Interactive prototypes

See UI design projects

02

User research

Interviews, diary studies and surveys to find out what customers need.

Interviews and surveys
Personas and insights
Findings you can act on

See user research projects

03

Usability testing

Testing early with real people, so problems are found before anything is built.

Moderated and remote tests
Clear issue priorities
Before and after proof

See usability testing projects

04

CX strategy

Journey maps, service blueprints and roadmaps that connect the whole experience.

Journey maps
Service blueprints
A prioritised roadmap

See CX strategy projects

05

Design systems

Shared libraries and guidelines that keep products consistent.

Component libraries
Tokens and guidelines
Developer handoff

See design systems projects

Process

How I work

The size of the project decides how many of these steps I use.

Discover
I learn the business and its customers, and review what has already been tried.
Output Stakeholder interviews and an audit
Define
Research tests our assumptions. We agree on the problem and how we will measure success.
Output Insights and success measures
Design
Journeys, flows and screens, shared early in Figma so feedback shapes the work.
Output Journeys, flows and screens
Test
Real customers try the designs. We fix what breaks and confirm what works.
Output Findings and priorities
Deliver
Handover, documentation and a roadmap, with support while the team builds.
Output Handover and roadmap

Not sure which you need?

If you're not sure where to start, tell me what isn't working and I'll suggest what would help most, and in what order.

A first conversation costs nothing, and I'll always say if a smaller piece of work will do.

Talk it through See the work

Experience

Twelve years across agencies, start-ups and in-house teams

Full history on LinkedIn

May 2023 to now

Ogilvy One

Senior Experience Designer

Lead CX and experience design for enterprise clients across retail, banking and financial services, superannuation, higher education and automotive.

Turned customer research and business goals into journeys, flows and Figma prototypes that delivery teams can build
Shaped CX strategy with strategists and client stakeholders: finding friction, prioritising fixes and setting roadmaps
Designed digital experiences from web and app interfaces to end-to-end service journeys
Worked with developers, content and analytics teams to test, measure and improve live experiences

Apr 2022 to May 2023

Safewill

Head of Product and Design

Led product and design at an online wills start-up.

Oct 2020 to May 2022

Zookal

Head of Product Design

Led product design at an education start-up.

May 2019 to Oct 2020

THE ICONIC

Head of User Experience (from Mar 2020), after interim UXD Team Lead and Lead Product, UX and UI Designer

Led a team of six UX and UI designers, owning research, design and UX strategy for the website, iOS and Android apps.

Led high-end, effective features by standardising THE ICONIC UXD practices
Built a culture of constant improvement and mentored designers with feedback on research and designs
Upheld and expanded the consistency of the design system
Produced information architecture, site maps, wireframes, prototypes and UX requirements
Represented UXD work and priorities to senior leadership

Jun 2019 to Oct 2020

MinimalistDesign

Founder

Home of The DesignerCast, a podcast exploring the world of designers, plus a blog on UX, minimalist living, productivity and gardening.

Oct 2018 to May 2019

oOh!media

Lead UX Designer

Designed online trading systems and SaaS products for Australia's leading outdoor media company, testing with users and iterating on the design.

May to Oct 2018

BrickX

Senior UX Designer

Research, user flows and interfaces for a property investing start-up.

Worked with product managers and cross-functional teams to understand customer needs
Tested solutions with customers and iterated quickly
Worked with the copywriter on a consistent, fun tone of voice
Represented BrickX at UX Australia 2018

May 2017 to May 2018

Adslot

UX and UI Designer

Researched and designed the trading platform used by media agencies globally.

Ran user research and testing in Australia and internationally
Worked with product and project managers and over 40 developers
Balanced user needs, technical constraints and business objectives
Represented Adslot at UX Australia 2017 and ran internal UX workshops

Sep 2014 to May 2017

Laureate Australia

Junior, then Mid UX and UI Designer

Designed online learning experiences for Torrens University Australia, from enrolment to graduation.

Led UX and UI projects from conception to development, mobile first
Created video, animation and interactive media for online subjects
Worked closely with developers across HTML, CSS and React
Created and led the Laureate LGBTI group and attended Pride in Diversity 2016

Earlier, 2003 to 2015: sales roles at Rebel Sport, Harvey Norman and Dick Smith.

About

About me

I'm a senior CX and experience designer at Ogilvy One in Sydney. I turn customer research and business goals into journeys, flows and Figma prototypes that delivery teams can build, and I work with strategists and client stakeholders to find friction, prioritise fixes and set roadmaps.

Before agency life I led design in-house: Head of User Experience at THE ICONIC with a team of six designers, then Head of Product Design at Zookal and Head of Product and Design at Safewill. I started in 2014, working in start-ups and higher education.

Outside client work I co-founded FairDesignCo, which offers fair-cost design to not-for-profits and social enterprises, wrote for UX Collective, and hosted a podcast about the world of designers.

Role: Senior Experience Designer, Ogilvy One
Based: Sydney, Australia. Open to remote work across time zones
Experience: 12 years in UX and CX
Sectors: Retail, banking, superannuation, higher education, automotive, property, ad tech
Tools: Figma, journey mapping, usability testing, design systems
Education: Bachelor of Design Computing, University of Sydney
Languages: English, Burmese
Beyond work: Co-founder of FairDesignCo. Writer on UX Collective. Host of The DesignerCast

Beyond client work

Things I make for myself

Side projects keep my skills sharp and let me test ideas without a brief.

Hourlight Daybook digital planner shown on three tablets in the colourways Frosted Blush, Frosted Sage and Charcoal-Plum

Website

Hourlight Goods

My own brand and online shop for digital planners, designed and built end to end.

Visit hourlightgoods.com.au

Tool

Hourlight 3D generator

A customisable generator for 3D printable lamps, vases and planters. Anyone can customise one without any 3D software experience.

Visit hourlight.com.au

Automation

Trading bot

A personal automated trading bot, built and run with my own money as a live experiment. It taught me a lot about monitoring, dashboards and designing for systems that make decisions. Not financial advice.

The cover of My Two Mummies and Me, a colouring book, with open pages, coloured pencils and dried flowers

Books

Rainbow Home Press

A series of inclusive family colouring books published through Amazon KDP. The first book is live and a nine-book series is planned, with AI workflows keeping the illustrations consistent.

Music

Double Love

My country album, Double Love, plus a few singles, all on Spotify.

Listen on Spotify

AI in my work

How I use AI at work

What I use it for, and where I check its work.

Research

I use AI to tidy interview notes, group themes and draft discussion guides, then check every insight against the recordings and the people I spoke to.

Design

It helps me explore layouts and wording quickly, so I can test ideas before spending hours in Figma. The design decisions are mine.

Strategy

I use it for first drafts of journey maps, roadmaps and workshop plans, then edit them heavily and check them against customer evidence.

Responsible use

I protect client data, check outputs for accuracy and bias, and am open about where AI was involved.

Work with me

Ways I can work with you

From a single project to a lead role.

For small businesses

Freelance project

A defined piece of work with a clear scope, timeline and price.

UX and CX audit
Research sprint
Journey map and roadmap
Website or app design in Figma

Discuss a project

For growing teams

Ongoing retainer

A set number of days each month, so research and design keep pace with your roadmap.

Regular testing and iteration
Design system care
Strategy and workshop support

Ask about a retainer

For larger organisations

Lead designer role

Leading design, research and CX strategy for a product, a team or a programme.

Setting direction and standards
Leading and mentoring designers, as with six at THE ICONIC
Partnering with product and engineering
Linking design to CX measures

Talk about a role

Contact

Say hello

Questions about my work, or a project you would like to talk through? A short note is all it takes.

See my work See my experience

Email: maryammahlberg at gmail.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/mmahlberg
Time zones: Remote friendly, and happy to overlap with your hours
Replies: Within a few working days

Experience design that starts by listening.

A few recent projects

What colleagues and clients say

Have a project or a role in mind?

Selected projects

What I do

UI design

User research

Usability testing

CX strategy

Design systems

How I work

Discover

Define

Design

Test

Deliver

Not sure which you need?

Twelve years across agencies, start-ups and in-house teams

Ogilvy One

Safewill

Zookal

THE ICONIC

MinimalistDesign

oOh!media

BrickX

Adslot

Laureate Australia

About me

Things I make for myself

Hourlight Goods

Hourlight 3D generator

Trading bot

Rainbow Home Press

Double Love

How I use AI at work

Research

Design

Strategy

Responsible use

Ways I can work with you

Freelance project

Ongoing retainer

Lead designer role

Say hello