About
Jinsoo An
As a Product Design Leader, Jinsoo develops digital products by piecing together consumers' changing behaviors, emerging cultures and converging technologies.
Why Work with Him
Established leader in designing & developing products of all shapes & sizes
Jinsoo is a creator of software and services who has worked with global powerhouses and Silicon Valley innovators such as Instacart, Google, Sony, Nike, NFL, and LG. His portfolio spans across a vast array of form factors, encompassing smartphones, tablets, IoT devices, wearables, smart TVs, game consoles, connected vehicles, smart shopping carts, and personal wellness products.
A systematic thinker rooted in human-centered design
Jinsoo brings a unique combination of expertise in product design, UX and innovation. With a proven track record, he has demonstrated outstanding leadership skills by successfully leading teams, both big and small, in revitalizing, diversifying, and scaling products and services across more than 20 industries.
Jinsoo's approach to design is characterized by the seamless integration of iterative design principles, systems thinking, and an entrepreneurial mindset. This winning combination enables him to deliver intelligent solutions that have a significant impact on revenue, often reaching hundreds of millions of dollars. With his guidance, teams have successfully navigated mission-critical projects, achieving remarkable outcomes.
A multidisciplinary approach to drive world-class products and teams
From an early age, Jinsoo's passion for engineering and programming has shaped his approach to product design and development. Having learned a programming language at the age of 6, he brings a unique perspective and technical expertise to every project. With a deep understanding of both the technical and design aspects, Jinsoo excels in handling and evaluating functional specifications, PRDs (Product Requirement Documents), and EVT (Engineering Validation Testing) as well as defining design principles.
Jinsoo's ability to seamlessly navigate between technical and design realms allows him to lead product discussions effectively. He brings a holistic approach to his work, ensuring that both the technical functionality and the design aesthetics of a product are thoughtfully considered and integrated.
A team problem solver who is nimble, strategic & impact-driven
Jinsoo helps teams solve problems with agility, seamlessly transitioning between tasks. Whether it's creating pixel-perfect design systems in Figma, developing functional prototypes, or conducting unbiased satisfaction surveys, he delivers results.
His craftsmanship drove a 500% mobile engagement growth for the NFL's 100M+ users and elevated their app rating from 2 to 4.8 stars.
Recognized expert in innovation practice & design process
Jinsoo is a recognized authority in innovation practice and design process. Through his expertise, he empowers teams of various levels to overcome challenging roadblocks by implementing proven frameworks and methods.
As a facilitator, Jinsoo frequently conducts co-creation workshops and exercises. These collaborative sessions untangle complexity and enhance cross-collaborations, leading to effective problem-solving and improved outcomes.
Areas of Expertise
Product & Innovation
Product Design Leadership
Product Vision & Concept Development
Multimodal UX & Interaction Design
Rapid Software & Hardware Prototyping
Insight & Analysis
Consumer Insights
User Testing & Usability
Ethnographic Research
Risk Assessment
Planning & Strategy
Growth Strategy
Platform Integration
Foresight
Glocalization
Experience at a Glance
Years of Experience
Completed Projects
Fortune 500 Companies
Talks Given Worldwide
Industries
Honors & Awards
Notable Companies
A
- Activision Blizzard
- Albertsons
- Amazon
- Anthem
- Audi
B
- Blackberry
- Bosch
- British American Tobacco
C
- California Milk Advisory Board
- California State of California
- Cannes Film Festival
- British American Tobacco
- CENTRO College for Design, Media and Film
- The Clorox Company
- Coca Cola
D
- Diamond Foods
- DIRECTV
- Disney
E
- Eastman Kodak Company
- Esurance
F
- Ford
- Foster Farms
G
H
- Hyundai Motor
- HTC
- HP
I
- Impossible Foods
- Infiniti
- Instacart
K
- Keurig Dr Pepper
- Konami
L
- LG Electronics
- Lucasfilm
M
- Microsoft
- Murad Skincare
N
- NFL
- Nike
- Nintendo
- Nissan
P
- Pizza Hut
S
- Sony
- Spin Master
- Sprint
- Subaru
T
- T-Mobile
- Taco Bell
- Target
V
- VCA Animal Hospital
- Verizon Wireless
- ViacomCBS
- Vivint Smart Home
- Volkswagen
Z
- Zillow
What People Say
"Jinsoo has brought a wealth of subject matter expertise to our team while also taking on a huge chunk of the work."
Marcus White
Creative Director Grow - 2020 Ad Age Small Agency of the Year, Southeast January, 2022
"I recently had the pleasure of working with Jinsoo on a high-profile client project for one of our most trusted clients. Jinsoo has brought a wealth of subject matter expertise to our team while also taking on a huge chunk of the work. Jinsoo was helpful and highly collaborative through various phases from planning, strategy, UX, design, and development. He worked closely with our team of designers, strategists, engineers, and producers to deliver effective solutions for very specific client problems. During Jinsoo's time with us, he helped craft thoughtful and industry-leading UX and worked closely with designers and engineers as that work took shape. He was also instrumental in documenting the work in an incredibly comprehensive set of UI guidelines that clocks in at 297 pages."
What Mentees Say
"Jinsoo is a patient and dedicated teacher who understands the fundamentals of design and can bring them to life to students."
Sasha Podolsky
Former Associate Product Manager Instacart June, 2022
"Jinsoo is a patient and dedicated teacher who understands the fundamentals of design and can bring them to life to students. He is able to expertly navigate between nuances of practical design and higher level principles to ensure students can anchor their design decisions in a deeper level of understanding—not just an eye candy in Figma."
Selected Honors & Awards
1st Place Winner & Team Lead
1st Place Winner & Team Lead
Best Brand Experience, Volkswagen VW.com
Mobile of the Day, Volkswagen SmileDrive App
Nominee, Pop Secret Poptopia & Pop Dongle
Professional Involvements
- Product Owner, Supply Chain Management
Food Lab Accelerator at Google (FLAG), 2019-2020 - Local Group Organizer of Los Angeles
Interaction Design Association (IxDA), 2011-2012 - Member, System Dynamic Society
- Member, EPIC
Bio
Prior to immigrating to California, Jinsoo was raised on a small family-owned farm in South Korea, just a few miles away from the DMZ.
As a child, he spent his days tending fields and indulging in home-brew games and gadget teardowns. It was during this time that he nurtured his dream of using design and science to create a happier world.
Years later, Jinsoo's passion evolved into crafting transformative experiences and services across over 20 diverse industries. From wellness and food to gaming, sports, consumer electronics, automotive, and finance, his work has reached and impacted the lives of millions worldwide.
With global recognition and support for initiatives like Project Nourished, and other undertakings, he continues to design innovative solutions for the global challenges.
Values
Curiosity
Let persistent curiosity and genuine passion drive work
Mastery
Don't settle for the status quo and strive for excellence and continual growth
Openness
Be open to understanding and acknowledging different perspectives
Special Interests & Passion
He is interested in finding effective means of facilitating human interaction and emotion that offer purpose, meaning and sustainability. By continuously building this knowledge, he hopes to enhance human relations with a net-positive impact on society.
During his spare time, he loves inspiring people of all ages by speaking to them and educating them about the human condition of today and tomorrow. Some of reoccuring themes include food design, commensality, play, fandom, social isolation, aging, community reintegration and behavioral economics.
Periodically, he engages with local and global communities to strengthen public–private partnership to improve the role of technology in people’s lives.
He enjoys playing indie games and doing yoga. Sometimes he likes to dabble with antique gadgets to reminisce about the past.
Favorite Reads
Design Methods
One of the most critical aspects of design is being able to reframe overlooked details about users, tools and environments.
To ensure that the most relevant insights are translated into success of your team and product, Jinsoo leverages methods practiced by IDEO, Google and McKinsey as well as foundations developed by practitioners such as Ann Pendleton-Jullian, David Rose, Anthony Dunne, and Steve Swink.
By strategically combining these design perspectives and tool kits for each project, teams gain significant leverage through insights, clarity and positioning. Best of all, this approach can be applied to virtually any consumer-oriented use cases regardless of demographics, medium, industry or application.