Mara Ellison

PORTFOLIO ’27

AVAILABLE — MAR ’27

Mara Ellison

LISBON, PT — AVAILABLE MAR ’27

( Résumé ) — Updated October 2026

Résumé

Product designer with eleven years across fintech, mobility, publishing and energy. I lead from the messy middle: research that changes roadmaps, systems that outlive me, interfaces that read at a glance.

Request CV (PDF)

Contact

RÉSUMÉ ’26CV-2026

Mara Ellison

Product DesignerLisbon, PT

Access● All areas

RÉSUMÉ ’26

Lisbon — Remote

Mara Ellison
CV-2026

RÉSUMÉ ’26CV-2026

Mara Ellison

Product DesignerLisbon, PT

Access● All areas

RÉSUMÉ ’26

Lisbon — Remote

Mara Ellison
CV-2026

( 01 ) — Profile

Calm interfaces for complicated things.

Read it twice

Clarity is a second-draft quality. I prototype early so the second draft comes sooner.

Remove one thing

Every screen improves when something leaves it. I make that the default question in reviews.

Leave a system

The best result is a team that ships without me — tokens, docs and habits included.

( 02 ) — Experience

2024 — Now

Independent Product Designer

Studio Ellison

Product and design-system work for fintech, mobility and editorial teams. Usually embedded for 3–6 months.

2021 — 2024

Design Systems Lead

Oru Mobility

Built and ran a 40-component system across app, web and hardware displays. Grew the team from two to seven.

2018 — 2021

Senior Product Designer

Northgrid

Led the redesign of the live grid dashboard used by 300 operators, from research to rollout.

2015 — 2018

Product Designer

Fieldwork Agency

Shipped apps and sites for publishers and cultural institutions. Learned that the brief is a first draft.

2014

Design Intern

Kiln & Co.

Typography, print, and a lot of coffee runs. Still the best crash course I ever took.

( 03 ) — Education

MA Interaction Design

Royal College of Art, London

2015

BA Communication Design

ESAD Matosinhos, Porto

2013

Exchange semester

Hochschule für Gestaltung, Schwäbisch Gmünd

2012

( 04 ) — Recognition

Awwwards — Site of the Day

Kiln Studio storefront

2024

European Design Award — Gold

Field Notes reading app

2025

Speaker, Config

“Systems that outlive their makers”

2025

( 05 ) — Tools, spinning

01Figma

02Framer

03Rive

04After Effects

05React

06Notion

07Linear

08Blender

01Figma

02Framer

03Rive

04After Effects

05React

06Notion

07Linear

08Blender

01Figma

02Framer

03Rive

04After Effects

05React

06Notion

07Linear

08Blender

Drag it. Scroll it. It snaps.