Michael Arestad

Improve the UX of the web.

Collaborate with a team to design and build improved WordPress experiences with powerful features growing the user base and increasing annual recurring revenue.

• Designed popular products serving millions of people worldwide.
• Worked in concert with engineers, researchers, and designers to redesign and rebuild entire interfaces including WordPress.com, Jetpack, and WordPress’s new block-based editor, Gutenberg.
• Designed, engineered, and maintained design system components for WordPress.com and Jetpack reducing design debt, speeding up prototyping, and resulting in a cohesive product experience.
• Transformed Jetpack from a free product into a highly profitable plugin for Automattic and its partners bringing in millions in annual recurring revenue.
• Conducted qualitative research and gathered quantitative data resulting in clear understanding of customer needs and informed design decisions.

Volunteer design and code to aid the WordPress community and advance the goal of democratizing publishing.

• Led the design of product releases and product features delivering improvements to WordPress (powering 40% of the web).
• Organized and conducted online and in-person WordPress events.
• Designed identity systems and collateral for WordCamps across the US.

Work with a small team to make major design improvements to the interactive and print products produced by the state.

• Designed and produced websites, printed collateral, and identity systems for internal and external clients.
• Audited hundreds of pages on the website removing redundant/outdated content resulting in an improved user experience.