References
One of the things I pride myself on is team collaboration. Whether that’s within the UX team or working with other teams like development, product management, and customer support, I will always go out of my way to build strong work relationships. Below are a few of the LinkedIn recommendations I’ve gained over the years from colleagues at every level. Check out all 26 of my LinkedIn recommendations.
Note: The “@” symbol is the company(s) I worked with the reference.
Jeff Melton
Sr. Director, User Experience
– Ashley Furniture
@ Ashley Furniture
“During my time working with Charles at Ashley Furniture, I was continually impressed by his exceptional talent, which truly shone when we worked with countless cross-functional teams across the organization. His deep understanding of human-centered design, along with his design skills, prototyping expertise, and genuine empathy for users, set him apart.
Charles quickly rose to a leadership position, advancing from Manager to Director. He demonstrated remarkable abilities in leading, coaching, and mentoring his team. Under his management, the UX team experienced zero turnover, a testament to his leadership and the positive environment he created.“
Suzie Berry
Sr. Graphic Design / UX Architect
– Summit Insurance
@ Highland Ag Solutions
“I had the privilege of working with Charles at Highland, despite my limited experience in UX. With years of background as a graphic designer and art director, I was eager to learn, and Charles welcomed me onto the team with confidence. He’s an exceptional teacher who opened my eyes to a whole new world of design. I often refer to him as a unicorn in User Experience—he’s not only a talented designer and thought leader but also possesses a deep understanding that comes from years of dedication and high level work. Beyond that, he is a fantastic manager and mentor, and I’m grateful to now call him a friend.”
Kelly McCabe
Senior UX Designer/Researcher
– Applied Information Sciences
@ Ashley Furniture & Highland Ag Solutions
“Charles is a visionary leader who combines empathy with a demand for excellence. His expertise in UX is unparalleled, and his dedication to fostering a collaborative team environment significantly boosted team spirit. Charles is not only a skilled UX professional but also an inspiring mentor.”
Josh Stockdale
Web Development Manager
– Summit Insurance
@ Highland Ag Solutions
“Charles was an absolute pleasure to work with. He was thoughtful, creative and courteous. He was also very flexible and worked great with the Dev team to find the best solution given the technology constraints. His technical knowledge was invaluable to this end. He was always able to come up with great workflows for our users that far exceeded our legacy product.”
Emilie Marnell
Senior UX Writer, Digital Product Design
– Abercrombie & Fitch
@ Ashley Furniture
“Charles was an absolute pleasure to work with. He was thoughtful, creative and courteous. He was also very flexible and worked great with the Dev team to find the best solution given the technology constraints. His technical knowledge was invaluable to this end. He was always able to come up with great workflows for our users that far exceeded our legacy product.”
Darshini Narayan
Senior UX/UI Architect
– Visual Comfort
@ Ashley Furniture
“Charles was an absolute pleasure to work with. He was thoughtful, creative and courteous. He was also very flexible and worked great with the Dev team to find the best solution given the technology constraints. His technical knowledge was invaluable to this end. He was always able to come up with great workflows for our users that far exceeded our legacy product.”
Luis Meza
Senior Software Engineer
– Highland Ag Solutions
@ Highland Ag Solutions
“I was consistently impressed by his ability to think of a customer journey and create impactful changes. Charles’s leadership and experience was key in the rebuild of our SaaS product which resulted in an increase in customer satisfaction as well as ease of use. He is a highly motivated and results-oriented individual who fosters a collaborative work environment.”
Whitney Smith
Senior UX Interaction Designer
– Staples
@ Ashley Furniture
“Charles hired one of the closest teams I’ve ever enjoyed working with, he cares and has a talent for finding culture fit. He kept a calm and focused department, even among the uncertainty of Covid and corporate restructuring. I would happily work with Charles again if given the opportunity.”
Scott Burgin
Cyber Security Engineer
– Palo Alto Networks
@ Former IT Director, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
“I hired Charles after a very long process of combing through resumes. The skill set I was looking for was very difficult to find because I needed a graphics artist that also had Flash programming skills as well as a good understanding of video. Charles resume was impressive and we flew him to Tampa for an interview. Meeting him in person was a slam dunk as he’s such a personable guy with excellent skills. I have remained good friends with Charles and would hire him again in a heart beat.”
Ngoc Nguyen
Senior Software Development Engineer
– Workday
@ Exemplum and Tampa Bay Buccaneers
“Charles is an extremely talented designer who is deeply passionate about his work. Over the past five years, I have worked with Charles on multiple projects spanning numerous websites and other projects. Charles is a great co-worker, mentor, and friend, and it has been my honor to work alongside such a creative and professional individual.”
Kris Moerschel
Director of Ticketing Operations
– Los Angeles Chargers, NFL
@ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
“Charles and I worked together for almost 4 years. During that time, he helped me create numerous projects that were designed to be distributed to thousands of season ticket holders. The majority of these projects had an extremely tight window. Often times these projects required quick turn around and had to be out the door immediately. Charles definitely helped me get projects done quickly and in a timely manner.”
Mikayla Rogers
FFVA Water & Natural Resources Manager
– Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association
@ Highland Ag Solutions, Product Manager
“I had the pleasure of working closely with Charles for nearly 3 years in tandem on user workflows for product development. I can confidently say he demonstrated expertise in developing highly functional and visually appealing user interface workflows, while simultaneously creating and maintaining our design system. Charles seamlessly adjusted to changes recommended by Product Managers, always maintaining a positive attitude and collaborative spirit.”