Hi! My name is Zoë. I recently returned to Texas after concluding coursework for my Masters in Strategic Design at Politecnico di Milano. I am a recent industrial design graduate from The Ohio State University, where I was a Division I fencer on a full academic scholarship. After a few internships introduced me to the intricacies of management and product development, I want to combine my passion for product design and business strategy development to help startups become viable businesses. 

For two summers during college, I interned at Rogue Fitness, a leading US manufacturer and global distributor of strength and conditioning equipment with over 1500 employees. As the Product Development Intern (2022), I worked with machinists and engineers to design, prototype, and release the Rogue Stainless 20” and 40” Straight Lat Bars. Additionally, I calculated labor and assembly time. Within the first year of production these bars comprised 40% total revenue of the lat bar product line with a 1% return rate.

The next summer, I returned to Rogue as the Product Management Intern (2023). I was entrusted to implement major design updates across Rogue’s flagship barbell line: barbells with a tighter spin and a quieter drop. I worked on the factory floor, prototyped barbell sleeves, oversaw drawing updates, and piloted production runs. Additionally, I identified cost discrepancies by analyzing cost of goods, labor time, bill of materials, and shipping costs. I increased the barbell production rate by 25% by running time studies and piloting a new gauging process. This management role taught me the importance of communication among departments from marketing, engineering, purchasing, and welding. When one part of the process was blocked, the whole production stopped. 

Last summer, I interned as the Project Management Intern (2024) for Qwake Technologies, an Austin based startup that has developed a navigation and communication platform for firefighters. I closely collaborated with colleagues from business to design to marketing. The skills I gained at Rogue Fitness were put to work as I asked the right questions to keep us on track for production, coordinated among teams to develop the official testing manuals, and created implementation schedules for important product testing.

I continued my studies in Italy at Politecnico di Milano for a Masters in Strategic Design. I joined classmates from all over the world including India, Mexico, and Thailand. Facilitating group projects among these different cultures taught me about group mediation and earned me strong communication skills. Outside of class, I learned to live in a different culture. From learning Italian, to finding an apartment, to joining a fencing club, I became much more resilient and open to new ideas. 

I would love to start a conversation about project management, business, or living abroad. Don’t hesitate to reach out!