Intelligent by Design

Designers today need more than insights — they need human judgement. I work inside that uncertainty. Turning evidence into assessments that guide creative decisions.

Hire Me 
Hi, I'm Emma.

Coming from a military background, I don’t just “do research”. I produce intelligence. Assessments that enable action when the path forward isn’t always clear. My job isn't to compile what's already known, it’s hunting for gaps. Asking the questions nobody has asked, and making sense of incomplete, ambiguous, or difficult to access information.

What I Do

From interviews to usability testing, ethnographic studies and competitor benchmarking, my work supports brand, user, and customer experience transformation programs. I embed as a design research partner throughout the process, from strategy through execution.

  • Fail to plan, plan to fail. I bring honesty to the table to cut through internal politics and bias. Whether it’s choosing the right research method or framing the design problem, I make sure research supports critical decision points in your design process.

  • People rarely reveal the full story. I observe people in their natural environments and push them past the polite answers. Through qualitative and quantitative research, we uncover opportunities that market research often misses.

  • I test your concepts, prototypes, and designs to validate key assumptions early. Through this process, we surface risks, reduce war game potential ideas, and strengthen concepts before the next major roll out.

  • This is where my fun, creative side comes out. I deliver workshops using structured analytic techniques and design thinking frameworks to collaborate with users and stakeholders, and make sense of information. Together we create a shared understanding, stronger ideas, and clearer opportunities for design.

CORE OPERATING PHILOSOPHY

How I work reflects what I believe: that design researchers need intuition and intellect — without both, they lose their edge.

Follow me on Linked In

For me, it’s as much about creative problem-solving as it is analysis. The evidence still needs to be there, but the puzzle is rarely complete. Imagination is what allows me to work with that uncertainty — not by inventing facts, but by exploring, framing, and testing hypotheses beyond what the data can reveal.

DIVERGENT THINKING, INTELLIGENT IMPACT

Selected work.

  • The Evolve Project

    In 2023, I supported the design team in developing the clients brand, customer, and employee experience. The challenge was designing one research program that could support multiple initiatives with different objectives and information requirements.

    Using a mixed-method approach combining qualitative interviews, generative research, and co-design workshops, I created a shared understanding that helped teams make aligned design decisions.

  • Cover of the Illume storytelling studio website featuring the company name, logo, and the text 'Illume is an Information Storytelling Studio' on a dark blue background.

    The Illume Project

    In 2026, Australia’s first information storytelling company launched. Because the team were creating something new, there was no existing design to evaluate or competitors to benchmark.

    Using an assumptions-based planning approach combining stakeholder interviews, co-design workshops, and qualitative research, I helped the team imagine how people might perceive, understand, and respond to the experience before it was brought to life.

  • The Sila Project

    I was first brought in by this Perth engineering company ahead of a full identity and website redevelopment. Instead of running research as a single phase, we worked together over 18 months.

    Using an agile sprint based approach, I supported the team at different stages of the design process, from understanding the brand, to exploring customer pain points, and evaluating the UX of the website. This helped the team avoid costly mistakes often associated with waterfall approaches.

  • A sepia-toned photo of snow-capped mountains and a river valley, with overlaid text promoting a playful and intelligent approach to writing and copywriting for various brands.

    The Fiction Project

    Fiction Agency is a playful and intelligent writing company working with brands including lululemon, Nosworthy Group, and Merrell Australia. I conducted market and design research to support their brand repositioning and website redevelopment.

    I ran surveys, stakeholder interviews and co-design workshops, to understand the people, perceptions and behaviours. This gave the team a stronger foundation for creative decisions.

  • "Emma has a dynamic and meticulous approach. Highly recommend for intelligent solutions"

    — Fiction Agency

About Emma

I’m multidisciplinary researcher. In my career spanning 17+ years, I have managed agile teams, founded a company, built brands for startups, and more. I’m Australian, born and bred. Working with me gives you access to my networks, wisdom and experience.

HIRE ME

Need to chat? You can DM me on Linked In or send me an email enquiry and I’ll get back to you within 24–48 hours.

Perth, Australia

© 2026. All Rights Reserved.