Helen Keighron
Helen Keighron is a fractional design executive and startup advisor focused on helping SaaS companies of all sizes unlock the business value of design and avoid common scaling pitfalls. Formerly Senior Director of Product Design at HubSpot and VP of Design & Research at Personio, Helen has supported and built capacity for multi-disciplinary design organizations of over 100. By championing the importance of consumer grade UX and end user engagement as important differentiators for B2B products, she has driven notable increases in customer satisfaction and top-line growth. She lives on a farm in Massachusetts with her family and unruly cats.
For more, keep up with Helen on LinkedIn.
Presentations
Tent Talks Featuring Helen Keighron
Keeping the Team Together: Lessons in Leadership and Alignment
Join us for a thought-provoking Tent Talks session with Helen Keighron, a seasoned design executive and startup advisor, as she explores the concept of “alignment” within teams and organizations. Drawing from her extensive experience in scaling teams and enhancing user experience, Helen will discuss the nuances of creating and maintaining alignment—beyond mere consensus—emphasizing the pivotal role of communication and leadership in steering teams towards shared goals.
This session will equip attendees with practical insights and strategies to foster a cohesive team environment, manage diverse viewpoints, and drive effective execution in their own organizations. Prepare to engage with Helen’s expertise in a lively discussion that promises to demystify alignment and inspire leaders at all levels.
Leadership By Design 2021
Dear Design Leader – Explanations & Experiences with Leading Designers
Leadership isn’t easy, and finding someone to ask questions to, or to give coaching and advice can sometimes be a challenge. Fear not, design leader, Maria and Helen, along with Meena as guide and expert interjector, will address your burning question about design, leadership, design leadership, and likely a few other things.
Leadership By Design 2020
Leading With Discomfort
Originally I’d planned to discuss the systems that keep HubSpot’s 120 person UX team focused on the right things for our customers. Then the world tilted back in March, and 2020 has served up a series of unprecedented obstacles.
So how did those systems fare under the extreme pressure test of working with needy pets, homeschooled kids, and a constant thrum of anxiety and grief? So far, it turns out that leaning into these challenges with vulnerability and transparency proved to be our greatest leadership tool, and our culture is our most important “system” of all. I’ll share how external turmoil has shaped my framework for allocating leadership attention across infrastructure, process, culture, impact, and vision. Sometimes you have to fall apart to truly come together.
Leadership By Design 2019
Designing Your Leadership Career Search
When we interview for a new role, design leaders frequently are not screened and evaluated the way other leaders in a company might be. In my most recent search, I tapped into a vast network of other design leaders and solicited their best advice. I leveraged their advice so effectively that well-known companies fought for me based on my skills as a leader, not a maker.
When design leaders search for new opportunities we are confronted with a market that doesn’t know where to place us internally or how to hire us. We face well-intentioned yet naïve requests for artifacts and exercises, all while being evaluated by people who don’t know what good design leadership looks like. I’ll regale you with tales from my experiences so we can all learn to elevate the design leadership hiring process!
