Design-Rooted Transformation Leadership

An evidence-led, human-centered
mindset is my superpower.
I use it to lead.

Transformation Leader · Systems Thinker · Design Leader · 25+ years across three continents

I'm a leader whose edge comes from design. It started in Finland and continued in the Middle East, New York and Toronto, which is home. I've led teams, and teams of teams, across design, strategy and analytics, and I've done the hands-on work myself. Design taught me to see whole systems, and that's what organizations need to get real value from AI and keep its risks in check. These days I coach design capability into global teams at Sunlife.

Led a large practiceFrom a single discipline to discovery through delivery
Led team leadersDesign, creative, strategy and analytics leaders, each with their own teams
Coached teams across Canada, the US and AsiaLeaders and teams, across business units and levels
Worked on three continentsEurope, North America and the Middle East. Early to service design, when it was emerging in Europe and still unknown in North America

Where I add value

Teams aligned on the same goals. I help Product, Engineering, Operations, Design and Strategy agree on common goals, and I connect leaders with the teams doing the work. Teams get more efficient and do better work with less rework, because sound ways of working are in place and people are coached through them.
Design as a capability, not the whole job. My work reaches well beyond digital. To me, design is a way of working: led by evidence, tested and prototyped, aimed at root causes instead of symptoms, and judged by outcomes more than output. It keeps risk in view, too.
Strategy and tactics in one roadmap. I connect big ideas to the practical needs of the work, and shape both into roadmaps that hold up.
New ways of working that stick. Plenty of companies have spent years trying to adopt Agile and Design Thinking without much real change. I help get them into everyday work, and now effective use of AI as well.
Design in business terms. I translate design work into business value, and into ways to monitor and track it.
I come from the practice. Unlike some leaders, I've done the work myself. I started out as a practitioner before stepping into management, and it shapes how I lead and what I expect from a practice.

Translator

Hand me a messy, high-stakes problem and I'll help work out what's really going on, then get it into a shape people can say yes to. At RBC Royal Bank of Canada, that meant digging into why so many new customers had a hard time opening an account and getting started, then working with partners across the bank to build the case for fixing it. The case got funded and the redesign launched.

“At RBC, Karri was instrumental in laying the groundwork for our journey-focused teams. Those teams now benefit from ways of working that Karri helped define. He's a master at simplifying the complex, and cutting a clear path through ambiguity.”

Dave Dennis — Digital Product & UX Design Leader, ex-RBC Royal Bank of Canada, now at Dealer-FX

Capability Builder

I'd rather build the skills in other people than keep the work to myself. At RBC I grew a design practice into a team of 32. Today I coach experience design teams and their leaders directly, including a multi-region engagement in Asia that supports a team through its first major digital initiatives.

“Karri strikes the balance of providing a strategic perspective on overall programs while being able to get into the tactics and help teams understand how to adopt a design mindset.”

Marissa Freed — Director, Experience Design Strategy, Sunlife

Systems Thinker

I came to design through systems thinking, not the other way around. That started early in my career in Finland, where concept design and service design were already pulling business, technology and human needs together long before the idea caught on in North America. I look at an organization the way I'd look at a customer journey: as a system that can be redesigned.

“Someone from a digital marketing background who clearly gets it from both the business, customer, and creative perspective. Working with Karri enabled me to bring a different type of conversation to our clients and prospects that wasn't possible before.”

Reuben Segelbaum — Founder, VP Client Services, Insurgency

Educator & Voice

I have a d.MBA in human-centered design and business strategy, plus formal training in design and audiovisual production. I teach Service Design and UX Design at the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies, and I write about design leadership, systems thinking, and where AI fits into the future of design work.

“A more empathetic and wise design leader you'd be hard pressed to find. Karri is a generous leader, an excellent listener, and a practical strategist.”