Find the real problem first.
I do not follow a fixed process. I follow the problem, especially when the brief is incomplete or the first assumption is wrong.
ABOUT
Designing for complexity, at human scale.
I’m Lai, a principal product designer who gets called when the problem is tangled, high-stakes, or crossing too many systems for one perspective to hold.
I listen closely, make the invisible visible, and help teams move forward with confidence.
The story is wider than a résumé.
BETWEEN WORLDS
I learned early to notice what goes unsaid.
I grew up in Shanghai and moved to the United States as a high school junior. Learning to move between cultures taught me to listen closely, read the room, and understand more than one perspective at a time.
That instinct still shapes how I work. I translate between users and systems, strategy and execution, quiet voices and decision-makers.
The medium changes. The way I work doesn’t.
My design philosophy.
These principles help me decide where to focus, how to bring people along, and what should remain after the work ships.
They guide both product design and team leadership.
Make the invisible visible.
Maps, frameworks, prototypes, and stories give teams something concrete to react to. Once people can see the problem together, alignment follows.
Influence without overpowering the room.
I listen for what each person needs, then use evidence and storytelling to help the right idea travel.
Build something others can carry forward.
The strongest work keeps working after I leave: a durable product foundation, a reusable pattern, a program, or a leader ready to take the next step.
Leading beyond the role.
Some of the work I’m proudest of never appeared in a product roadmap.
ACCESS FOR ALL
Turning a quiet series into an organizational priority.
I rebuilt Access for All as a cross-Oracle program, bringing together five organizations and 15 speakers. The result was 1,984 registrants, 1,160 live attendees, and nearly six times the previous attendance.
View Access for All
OPAL GLOBAL LEADERSHIP
Building communities at scale.
I started by founding OPAL Midwest, then stepped into global leadership as Marketing Officer, Co-Chair, and eventually Global Chair, supporting more than 8,000 members across 29 chapters with 38 executive sponsors.
The real work was developing leaders, rebuilding the global board, navigating conflict, and earning trust without relying on title.
View OPAL Leadership
UNLEASHING YOUR QUIET SUPERPOWER
Making space for quieter voices.
I created this workshop with three of my closest friends, all fellow OPAL Global Board officers. We shaped the session together, opening with a skit, moving into a fireside conversation, then inviting the audience to practice ways to recognize and elevate quieter voices.
Empathy + Storytelling = Influence with Authenticity
View Speaking EngagementsOFF THE CLOCK
A few plot twists.
Somewhere along the way, I recorded 200+ songs, taught Zumba, appeared on camera, produced videos across borders, and planned a lot of ambitious trips.
Our family spent 2 nights at a fall festival that never happened.
Our agency recommended us for Don’t Move, a Kansas City-filmed horror movie produced by Impractical Jokers’ James “Murr” Murray. My husband, the kids, and I were cast as festivalgoers and spent 2 memorable nights on set.
I plan complicated trips around what matters.
Multi-country routes, connections, cultural context, and detailed itineraries are how I create meaningful experiences for my family. It is systems thinking in service of connection, discovery, and time together.
Pandemic boredom became almost 200 videos.
I ran our kids YouTube channel, produced almost 200 videos, and monetized within 5 months.
I am certified to teach 6 kinds of Zumba.
Basic, Advanced, Aqua, Gold, Kids, and Zumbini. The group photo tells this story better than six certificates would.
I produced a global music video in 2 weeks.
I organized the concept, recruited contributors worldwide, coordinated filming, collected footage, edited the final production, and collaborated with established YouTubers and dance channels.
A commercial became a family production.
My husband and I were booked as the real Asian couple at the center of a Toon Blast commercial. We brought the kids, they filmed the behind-the-scenes vlog, and the spot later ran in Japan and South Korea.