# Blaise Bertrand **Head of Innovation Enablement** — San Francisco, CA, United States > Award-winning design executive with 25+ years driving breakthrough product innovation and leading multidisciplinary teams across hardware, software, and brand strategy at companies like Meta, Google, IDEO, and Adobe. Career Archetype: **Concourse Navigator** (OE-DG) — One of the first Concourse Navigators on Saywise ## Links - LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/blaise-bertrand/?isSelfProfile=true - Website: https://blaisebertrand.com ## Experience ### Director of Product Design, Handshake (2026-03 – present) San Francisco Bay Area ### Founder/Design & Innovation Consultant, Blaise Bertrand Design Consulting (2022-08 – present) San Francisco, CA · Consulted on complex design and innovation challenges for corporate and nonprofit clients. Contributed to creating and running the first Parenting conference in Abu Dhabi. Designed a transformational communication curriculum for a leading French insurance company and a breakthrough wellness brand and experience. ### Executive Design Director, Heath Ceramics (2019-05 – 2022-12) San Francisco, California · Provided creative leadership for all product design, marketing, and communication activities. Led the company through COVID-19 with new product innovation, eCommerce development, and a customer-centric approach that delivered the highest EBITDA results in company history. Developed cross-functional collaborations and strategic product roadmaps, including a collaboration with artist Andy Goldsworthy and a new tile line launched during clay supply constraints. ### Head of Creative @ Building 8, Facebook (2016-08 – 2019-12) Menlo Park, CA · Led all creative activities for Building 8's mission to develop category-defining consumer hardware products. As senior leadership team member, oversaw industrial design, user research, brand, and user interaction. Designed two generations of consumer hardware products within two years, with Portal launching nationwide in Q4 2018. Led early-stage innovation for Augmented Reality and AI efforts. ### Head of Creative - Google ATAP, Google Atap (2016-01 – 2019-12) Mountain View, CA · Led marketing, brand, research, industrial design, and UX design for Advanced Technology and Projects to create disruptive innovations. Directed Project Ara's ID, UX, and brand strategy for the developer edition, producing a video teaser viewed over 3 million times. Project Ara generated 930M impressions on Twitter and trended internationally. Designed and executed the ATAP website introducing all projects. ### Head of Innovation Enablement, Wells Fargo (2015-10 – 2026-01) San Francisco Bay Area · Led multidisciplinary teams of product managers, designers, and behavioral science researchers to design new business visions and roadmaps. Managed innovation incubation from research through new product development, including AI initiatives. Synthesized data from multiple sources to identify user insights guiding strategy and product definition, while developing human-centered learning experiences for internal teams. ### Partner/Managing Director, IDEO (2004-08 – 2016-12) Palo Alto, CA · Led evolution of IDEO's headquarters while driving year-over-year business growth and redefining company culture. Strengthened client relationships with Samsung, Fender, Western Digital, and Nike resulting in award-winning products. Created the transportation domain and portfolio vision serving global clients including Renault, Nissan, Ford, Hyundai, and Mercedes Benz. Established Designs On, an innovation platform exploring themes like food, climate, and aging. Developed new career growth processes based on Career Maps. ### Senior Industrial Designer, Motorola Mobility (2001-08 – 2005-12) San Francisco/Milan, Italy · Led the 3G design product portfolio based in Milan. Designed the first 3G headset family and contributed to winning three carrier contracts in Italy. Designed award-winning vision concepts for 3G technology demonstrated at Cebit 2001. ### Senior UI Designer, Adobe Systems (2000-08 – 2001-12) San Francisco, CA · Collaborated with product leadership to define requirements for eBook authoring tools based on Adobe Acrobat. Identified synergies and optimization opportunities across workflows, channels, devices, and segments. Led the design and development of Adobe's first eBook initiative. ### Senior Industrial Designer, IDEO (1994-08 – 2000-12) San Francisco, CA · Designed award-winning products for TiVo, TDK, Medtronic, and Nike. Created a time capsule concept selected as finalist in New York Times competition. Two lamp designs were exhibited at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York. ## Education ### Master's degree in Industrial Design, ENSCI - Les Ateliers (1995-06) ### Bachelor's degree in Industrial Design, ensaama (1992-06) ## Skills User Experience (UX), Human Centered AI Design, Digital Strategy, Innovation Systems, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Design Strategy, Design Thinking, Industrial Design, Brand Strategy, Creative Marketing, User-centered Design, Brand Development, Concept Development, Experience Design, Foosball, Innovation Management, Product Design, Service Design, Usability Testing, Packaging, User Experience, Creative Direction, Rapid Prototyping, User Interface, Ethnography, Human-centered Design, Concept Generation, User Interface Design, User Research, Design Management, Interaction Design, Strategy, Design Research, Design for Manufacturing, Product Development, User Experience Design, Strategic Design, Sketching, Concept Design, Information Architecture, Public Speaking, UX/UI Design, Behavioral Science, Team Leadership, Hardware Design, 3G Technology, eBook Development, Augmented Reality, Marketing Strategy, eCommerce, Business Development, Cross-functional Collaboration ## Credentials - **Design Excellence Award Winner** — Industrial Designers Society of America - IDSA - **Breaking in: Over 100 Product Designers Reveal How to Build a Portfolio That Will Get You Hired** ## AI Fluency - **Claude** — Creative partner, daily tasks, projects (https://claude.ai) ## Q&A ### [What AI tools do you use the most?](https://saywise.com/q/10c2b363a976) - I use AI as both a creative tool and a workhorse for daily tasks. It helps me generate ideas, refine concepts, and shape narratives in ways that weren't possible before. What excites me most is the expansion of what's possible in design—problems I'd have spent weeks on now have a different path forward. The constraint isn't the tool anymore; it's imagination. (https://saywise.com/s/b31f55db8126) --- Source: https://saywise.com/member3620 (last modified 2026-10-06T16:01:33.369Z)