PRODUCT LEADERSHIP + AI-NATIVE
Deciding what's worth building.
Then building it.
I set direction, build teams, prototype in code, test product bets, and ship products people actually value.
How I see The
work changing
Direction matters even more right now
There's a lot of motion in response to AI in product orgs, often before the direction is set. The work worth doing names what the company is actually trying to become, what it's willing to leave behind, and where AI fits in that picture, before anything gets built.​​
Value gets created in new places now
AI is changing where the work happens and who does it. Designers have impact after shipping, not just before. PMs prototype before specs exist. Engineers are involved earlier, designers later. Old handoffs break when everyone can do more of the work themselves.
AI changes what the work is, not just how fast it gets done
The teams getting value from AI aren't the ones using it more. They're the ones rethinking what's worth doing in the first place. That means changing what gets shipped, what gets retired, and what humans and agents each spend their time on. Not just adding tools to existing workflows.​
Teams compound when they're built to keep evolving
Strong teams aren't built once. They evolve continuously, adapting to AI, new workflows, and changing expectations. That takes leadership willing to inspire curiosity, retire old ways as new ones arrive, and protect the team's capacity to keep delivering real outcomes.
About Me
I'm a product leader focused on how companies stay valuable as AI changes what products can do and where advantage comes from.
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The hard question is what a product should become now that the constraints have changed. That's where I focus.
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AI has made design more important, as building gets easier and the bar for products people genuinely want to use goes up. The floor has been raised; more people can build and design now. Taste, judgment, and product craft are where differentiation lives. That's the lens I've built over twenty years across product, design, and strategy.
Most recently I ran design at Workleap, an HR platform reimagining itself for AI: turning a "ship seven AI features" mandate into hypothesis-driven value bets, taking an agentic reconception of the platform from brief to working prototype, and moving a skeptical senior design team to full-cycle AI use. I built the prototypes myself, in Lovable and Claude Code, working directly with engineering. I lead hands-on, not from a distance, and stay close to the work, the customers, and the tools.
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None of this happens without strong teams. The best products come from people who understand the problem, the business behind it, and how their work connects to outcomes. The strongest teams go further, spotting new sources of value before they're obvious. Building and reshaping teams to get there is half the work.
Outside the work, I'm based in Toronto with my family, and reading more about AI evals than is probably reasonable.
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If you're figuring out what your product should become in the AI era, or hiring the leadership to figure it out with you, then Let's connect.
Resumé PDF: Here
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Clients
Collaboration and Innovation
Experience
Leadership in Progress
2024-PRESENT
GEFFEN GROUP
Principal, Product & AI
Advisory for product leaders and teams on beating the AI-project failure rate: which AI bets are worth making, and how to organize and drive the work so it ships. Alongside client engagements, designing and building AI product tools end-to-end.
2025-2026
WORKLEAP
Sr. Manager, Product & Experience
Led Workleap-side design as acting director through the platform's shift from no AI to shipped AI products. Turned a seven-AI-features mandate into hypothesis-driven bets: the first shipped release hit 28% adoption in its opening weeks, and a replaced notification went from 60% opt-out to 89% open rates. Concepted and personally prototyped an agentic reconception of the platform in Lovable and Claude Code.
2019-2024
FUSE CREATE
Director of Strategy and Brand Innovation, Head of Strategy
An agency dedicated to brand creativity and innovation, I directed strategy across diverse categories, guiding teams through the end-to-end delivery of digital platforms and translating complex business challenges into experiences that drove engagement and growth. Highlights include Ricola's e-commerce rebuild (58% conversion, 1.7× category average) and CIBC's Costco card launch journey (67,000 cardholders in two weeks). WINA AOY 2024; Campaign UK Top 10 Small Agency '23; Strategy Indie List '22; AOY Bronze '21
2017-2018
KOHO FINANCIAL
VP, Product Design
Led product design for the full rebuild of KOHO's mobile banking platform during a 250,000+-user growth run. Deep user insight and relentless simplification cut onboarding to under two minutes and drove customer satisfaction to a category-leading NPS of 80.
4.8 Star Rating, Apple App Store Editor's Pick
2011-2014
DIGIFLARE
VP, User Experience and Design
Recruited to build the UX and design practice from the ground up, I established a team of UX architects, UI designers, and business analysts. We defined user-centric processes focused on shaping pioneering Over-The-Top (OTT) media experiences across all screens for major media companies.
2014-2017
ONEMETHOD
VP, Strategy and User Experience
Known for outstanding creative work, my role involved translating creativity into ground-breaking products and strategies. We developed brand platforms, innovative products, and go-to-market approaches that drove client engagement, revenue growth, and enterprise value, including Nestlé Canada's digital platform (engagement up 300%) and a content service generating $400K in new revenue inside first quarter.
2008-2012
PIXEL SMASHING
Creative Director
A consultancy delivering specialized digital learning platforms and tools for highly regulated industries like Pharma and Nuclear Facilities. I led the full product lifecycle, from user experience design through development and deployment, creating intuitive solutions that substantially increased revenue and reduced operational costs.
2004-2008
Proximity / BBDO
Interactive Designer / Developer
At Proximity/BBDO, I played an instrumental role in bringing ambitious creative campaigns to life digitally. Combining graphic design and front-end development skills, I helped build award-winning interactive websites and applications for major brands like RBC and Pepsi, pushing early digital boundaries.
Let’s get acquainted.
Start a conversation about transformation, innovation, or my secret hummus recipe (it's surprisingly relevant to user experience).
hello@lannygeffen.com
