Inside propelland: Jonel Seon

We spoke to propeller Jonel Seon to learn about his career in strategic design, his favorite projects at propelland, and how he helps create connections with clients and colleagues as our North America Growth Lead.

Name: Jonel Seon

Region: North America

Role at propelland: Growth Lead

When you started working here: March 2022

Tell us more about your career path. What led you to the design field?

JS: I had worked in spaces as a relationship manager for much of my career, but I’ve always been interested in learning from other people and figuring out ways to help them solve the challenges they face within their organization. I began my career working as an account manager with a digital design firm based in San Francisco. During that time, I learned more about how to improve the products and services that companies bring to market through design and strategic thinking.

Taking on the role of a conduit between organizations and the firms I was a part of felt really natural to me. Realizing I had a knack for that, I decided that my passion for design was something I wanted to connect with my career. Over the last five years, I've been doing design and strategy work with different organizations. Now here at propelland, I get to combine design, strategy, and engineering through the capabilities we offer. It gives me more tools under my belt, allowing me to equip organizations with multidisciplinary skill sets and bring exciting projects to life here at propelland.

Do you have any favorite projects you've worked on??

JS: One of my favorite projects has been working with Global Newborn Solutions. They're a nonprofit organization that came to us for help designing a product centered on addressing infant hypothermia in rural countries and underdeveloped nations. They were looking to develop this global newborn dream warmer technology that provides warmth for infants and newborns. It equips nurses and medical professionals with a mattress kit that can generate and sustain around six hours of warmth for a baby while they rest. The solution offers a dual benefit to both the child and their mother because it also offers mothers a chance to rest with peace of mind that their baby is receiving warmth.

It resonates with all of us when there's an opportunity to create something tangible that you can actually see helping others, especially infants and children. It's one of those cool intersections of product design where you get to work on a product that is both interesting and has a meaningful impact. That's the project that I would probably hang my hat on, helping a global organization address a universal problem with infant mortality and potentially saving lives. Getting to be a part of a project like that is something I can take great pride in when looking back on my career

What are your main responsibilities as a growth lead at propelland?

JS: My role centers around introducing propelland to the different industries that we try to work in. It's connecting with individuals at our client organizations and trying to find opportunities where we might be able to create value solutions for the various business challenges that they face, whether it be design, engineering, or strategic challenges. A lot of my job is focused on learning from those individuals, finding out what it is that they're looking to tackle, and then coming back to our team and letting them know where we might be able to help them. I’m creating external connections, but also acting as a partner to our colleagues here at propelland, the people that are going to be delivering the impact through the work that we do. I’m partnering with them to think about the right strategies and approaches for helping that particular company we're looking to work with. I’m also playing a bit of the client role and pushing back on our propellers to make sure they think from the standpoint of the client, being a voice for them because they're not always in the room with us. We have to think about where their business is going, what's happening in the market landscape, and how we can try to share that thought leadership with our clients and prospective companies.

Outside of that, there are the day-to-day tasks where you're communicating over email, sending proposals, sharing presentations about what propelland does. But in a nutshell, my job is really centered around connecting propelland to the interesting work that is out there, and connecting people who are at the organizations doing interesting work to propelland. I’m taking all the best that propelland can offer and showcasing that to the world.

What has you feeling most excited about the future for propelland and the entire industry?

JS: Every day the intersection between the physical and digital world is evolving into a more connected space. The fact we're playing in that space to find new ways where technology can enhance usability, where products can offer greater ease, and where we can add delight to people’s day-to-day lives – those are the things that excite me most. We’re looking at how to create the best experience from very different vantage points through the lens of strategy, design, and engineering. While there are certain industries that currently understand the value of this, we get to introduce that framework and methodology to other industries that may not necessarily be working in that manner, but are looking to because they recognize the importance of being much more human-centered in how they go about solving challenges.

What advice would you give to aspiring designers or people who want to get into the creative field?

JS: Come with an open mind. Be open to asking questions, be inquisitive, and ask people for their advice. That was the way I learned how to navigate this industry. I did take a non-linear path into this profession, and it was an organization that took a chance on me, someone with no formal experience in design. Keeping myself open-minded to the possibility of where I can grow in this field has been tremendous for me personally and professionally. I'm now six years into this career and it all started with me being open to the challenge, even though I didn't necessarily have the credentials to from a certificate or diploma standpoint. That's the one thing that has helped me and I think could help younger professionals who are looking to get into design. It's all about how you think and solve problems. Having a creative mindset is really critical for this work because that’s what allows you to approach challenges in different ways.