San Francisco

Hi, I'm Kristen.

Product leader with 19 years experience in Product Management, Marketing, and Design.

I like experimentation and love efficiency.

I'm also a writer.

For Startups

Founder Support
& Product Leadership

Embedded product and operational support for early-stage founders.

Expertise: consumer experience, marketplaces, mobile & ecommerce, iOS & Android apps

Management

Mission, vision, and values definition
Team topology design
Coaching, mentorship, and career development

Product

Strategic planning and roadmapping
Goal and metric definition
Product-market fit iteration
Core product rebuilds and refactors
Zero-to-one initiatives
Opportunity sizing
User research

Operations

Vendor evaluation
Customer feedback loops
QA processes

Team building

Talent sourcing for engineering, product, design, data, marketing, and sales
Interview script, exercises, and case study design
Role leveling, competencies, and evaluation framework

What sets Kristen apart is her rare combination of technical fluency, strategic vision, and customer-first mindset. She is fearless in gathering feedback by any means necessary.

TJ Moretto — CTO, Babylist

She consistently was able to dissect incredibly complicated use cases and technical subject matter and deliver on features that created order out of chaos.

Jared Shapiro — Former VP of Engineering, Newfront

Thanks to her, the API integration process was streamlined, cutting development time by half.

Wei Wen — Former Senior Software Engineer, Shippo

With a careful eye on the strategic picture, she is able to execute the important details relentlessly.

Derek Elley — CEO, Ponoko

1:1 Coaching

Career Coaching
& Mentorship

Coaching is tailored to your specific goals and challenges. Sessions are practical and focused on actionable ways to advance your career.

Communication: writing and speaking
Product sensibility: user psychology centered approach to thinking about features
Product execution: how to successfully land the plane over and over
Product strategy: looking at product development as a vital organ of the overall business
Technical & systems thinking: demystification and accessible explanation of how things work
Reputation & image: help with blindspots and seeing yourself as others might
Mock interviews: hiring manager screens, case study presentations, and think-on-your-feet exercises
Asking for a raise or promotion: how to successfully plan and achieve your next career goal

Kristen is an exceptional career coach. She's one of those rare leaders who combines high expectations, direct feedback, relentless support, and the discipline to stay in the details that actually matter.

Lanie S. — Promoted from PM to Senior PM

Kristen cuts through BS better than any manager I've ever had. Every piece of feedback is actionable. After a couple months working with her, the narrative noticeably shifted and I got proactive positive feedback from peers and managers.

Alex R.

Completely changed the trajectory of my career. I'm now an AI Program Manager, leading company-wide adoption and fluency in artificial intelligence tools.

Cathleya S. — Transitioned from Marketing to Program Management

Kristen helped me realize that I had a leadership communication and visibility problem. After working with her, I was not only promoted from Senior to Staff PM, I was chosen to lead a new financial services product line.

Kelly H. — Promoted from Senior to Staff PM

Selected Work

Product
Portfolio

Great product management is grounded in the human experience and elevated by the astute.

I've spent over a decade in product management for startups at every stage.

I enjoy managing teams through complex projects and love learning about the technical details. I'm motivated by learning, humor, ownership, and centering user happiness and business results. I believe in bold ambitions and deliberate, focused execution.