Ian Swinson
Head of Design & Research; UX leader focused on design careers
ian
San Francisco Bay Area
Joined August 2025
Network
3.8K connectionsJGKBNW
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Network
3.8K connectionsSummary
Seasoned enterprise UX leader who scaled UX organizations: Ian was an early UX hire at Salesforce and later led large UX organizations (Salesforce platform & analytics, Anaplan) and design teams at major tech companies; his work focuses on building effective teams, process, and career frameworks for designers. rosenfeldmedia+2
Founder and product design leader focused on relationship intelligence: As co-founder and Head of Design & Research at Connect The Dots, he helps build a product that turns professional networks into actionable recruiting and sales signals, applying his enterprise UX experience to product design and research. ctd+1
Career‑design and mentorship advocate: Ian authored and presents the 'Abilities Framework' and workshop material to help managers and individual contributors talk about and plan UX careers, emphasizing structured coaching and career ladders. slideshare+1
Community and pro‑bono involvement: sits on the Board of Directors of the Women's Daytime Drop-In Center (Berkeley), reflecting engagement with local social services and community support. womensdropin+1
Work
Education
Projects
Writing
Supercharge Recruiting through Quantifiable Connections
October 28, 2021CTD.ai blog post by Ian describing lessons from hiring at large companies (Facebook, Salesforce, Anaplan) and how relationship intelligence can streamline recruiting.
Designing and Driving UX Careers: A Framework for Empowering UX Teams
January 1, 2016A slide deck and framework (Abilities Framework) for structuring UX career conversations, coaching, and career ladders — used in workshops and conference presentations.
Hobbies
Ex01hardcore musician, Category 3 road racer, gravel and mountain bike racing, amateur photographer ixda+1
Cooking delicious, healthy meals in under 30 minutes to fit a super busy life.
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