Branding

I have had the pleasure of working with Iris twice, at Xplanation (a Language services company) and at XTM International (SAAS platform). She is an exceptional brand and UX expert, whose talent and dedication in the fields of design, branding, and project management (PM) are truly remarkable.

As a Design Manager and Brand Manager, Iris has consistently delivered excellence and always demonstrated a profound understanding of UX/UI principles, coupled with unwavering honesty, clarity and a strong work ethic.

Iris was the key design lead in the successful brand refresh and new website at our company a few years ago, breathing new life into the brand and web assets and ensuring it resonated with our target audiences. She took full ownership of all stages, pre-planning, design and wireframing, validation, deployment and measurement. I still remember how she led the profiling and persona development process for the corporate look and feel, it was a masterclass in how to do this inclusively (polling all stakeholder groups) and to a clear timeline.

I had the privilege of having Iris on my team for multiple years at XTM. During her time, she did far more and was responsible for far more than her job title may have suggested. Not only was she the primary designer for the company, but she led a number of significant projects during her time and acted as design manager, brand manager, and UX/UI lead.

One of these projects was our company’s brand refresh, helping to truly modernize the company brand. This involved thorough research and preparation + delivery of presentations to the executive team to seek alignment and approvals. It also involved managing the entire project from start to finish, which also included launching an entirely new website. She was the person pulling together all the resources, ensuring we kept to our timelines, while also executing all of the design work, wireframe, and more… She also created the brand strategy for M&A, creating a new brand architecture, logo system, and more.

I had the pleasure of working with her on multiple projects, but the one I remember the most is XTM Live. Her attention to detail and willingness to always give 110% contributed to its huge success. Thanks to her organizational and design skills, all the pieces of the event came together seamlessly to form a cohesive whole.

She not only managed the necessary collaterals for the event but also created a complete brand identity for it. Every element fit perfectly, from the conference slide deck and social media posts to booth design, website creation, and much more.

Iris is a true professional you can always rely on. With her involvement, your project will not only be well-managed but will also reach the next level. Most importantly, she is a friendly and kind person – someone you will always want on your team.

I had the pleasure of working with Iris and can confidently say she is one of the most organized and results-driven professionals I’ve collaborated with. She consistently demonstrated exceptional dedication, ensuring that projects were executed efficiently and to the highest standards.

What I appreciated most about Iris was her ability to maintain clear communication and foster a productive working relationship.

Her attention to detail and proactive approach played a key role in keeping our work aligned with goals and delivering great outcomes. Beyond her professional skills, Iris is a genuinely kind and approachable person, making her an absolute joy to work with.

Iris is a kind and dedicated team member, offering a keen eye for detail and planning expertise.

Iris led XTM’s post-acquisition Brand integration and design strategy, incorporating complex and varied inputs into a comprehensive and phased approach.

Her organization and documentation skills are unmatched, which give her the ability to deliver reliably meticulous, quality results.

I’ve had the pleasure of working closely with Iris in cross-functional activities at XTM. As a Design Manager and Brand Manager specializing in UX/UI and team leadership, Iris consistently demonstrates an exceptional level of expertise and dedication. One of the most remarkable characteristics of Iris is the great sense of initiative, ownership, and proactiveness. Iris doesn’t just wait for opportunities to improve the product and brand experience; but actively seeks them out. This proactive approach has been invaluable in ensuring our projects are forward-thinking and cutting-edge.

Deep knowledge of branding, brand strategy, and creative management is an understatement when describing Iris. Iris’ understanding of the intricate elements that make up a compelling brand and exceptional UX/UI design is second to none. Iris has a knack for blending creativity with strategic thinking, ensuring every design decision aligns perfectly with our company core values and vision. Iris is also great when it comes to presentation skills. Whether briefing stakeholders, leading team meetings, or presenting to clients, Iris communicates complex ideas with clarity and precision. Iris’ ability to convey the nuances of design and branding strategies to diverse audiences is truly impressive. Furthermore, Iris embodies core values of honesty, clarity, quality, and a strong work ethic. Iris’s work is consistently up to the highest standards, ensuring that everything is of the utmost quality. Iris caring nature and dedication inspire everyone else to strive for excellence.

Iris is an incredibly creative individual who can navigate any branch of design, possesses extensive knowledge about branding, and is one of the most well-organized people I’ve ever had the privilege of working with.

She embraces challenges, often taking leaps into uncharted territories. Her ability to build strong relationships with team members and her trustworthy nature stand out. Over two years of collaboration, including more than a year and a half as Iris’s line manager, were a pure pleasure. Every task she undertook was executed flawlessly, showcasing her exceptional planning and execution skills. Add to this her continuously proactive attitude and excellent, direct communication.

Iris was leading the rebranding project. It was a long, challenging process, which she handled exceptionally well. This project demanded not only her excellent knowledge in branding and design but also immense responsibility. It involved extensive planning, project management, and collaboration with individuals from various teams. From my perspective, I wish every project could be as successful as this one.

She was a valuable team member who could deliver projects on-time, at high-quality, and across multiple formats (web, indesign, video, illustrations, animation, photography). Her ability to structure complex brand and visual concepts was a big asset during the merger of Xplanation and LanguageWire, two 130+ headcount companies with long histories. She really helped strategise and create brand clarity during the unification of the two Language Platforms.

In particular, Iris took on a lot of web design and implementation during our time together, quickly understanding Sitecore and publishing SEO and visually optimised web pages. This showed she has the ability to work from a to z with web, from strategy and conceptualisation, to wireframing and publishing.
Iris is the definition of a doer, able to take on any project and delivering. But she also has this magical mix of being a creator with strong commercial sensibilities, something I’ve found quite rare and valuable during my 10+ years in marketing.

I had the pleasure of working closely with Iris at both Xplanation and LanguageWire, where she was a key contributor in the marketing team, with a strong focus on brand, design and UX. Iris is a proactive, multi-talented team player. During a full company rebranding project I was involved with, I clearly remember Iris’s ability to not only ideate but also execute. She is versatile, knows how to get buy in from stakeholders and always ensures her team delivers high-quality, valuable content. In the 2 organizations we worked together at, Iris’s dedication to crafting compelling brand narratives and creating engaging user experiences has significantly enhanced visibility and customer engagement.

I highly and warmly recommend Iris to any company looking for a creative and strategic marketing leader. She’s a gem!