John Quealy
(sounds like "Kway-lee")
I am currently a Principal User Experience Designer at Blackbaud with over 10 years of experience designing and building the digital tools and workflows that allow mission-driven organizations to scale their impact.
Background
My interest in design began with a fascination for the UI design and visual world-building of video games. While studying graphic design for game development, an elective in new media shifted my focus toward how technology influences social behavior. This led me to major in Interdisciplinary Computing and the Arts (ICAM) at UC San Diego, where I explored the intersection of computer science, art, and the cultural impact of technology.
Experience
I started my career designing websites for nonprofits, which introduced me to NationBuilder. Inspired by founder Jim Gilliam’s vision of creating software that empowers anyone to organize for collective action, I joined as their sole product designer. Embedded within the Product team, reporting directly to the VP of Product, I spent over four years translating that vision into a platform used by thousands of organizations worldwide.
"John is a rare mix of artistic and analytical. He often picked up the reins to help groom backlogs, plan releases, and interview users. He has a 'do whatever it takes' attitude to make a positive impact." — Product Manager, NationBuilder
Seeking to learn from and grow within a design team, I moved to Blackbaud, where I have spent the last five years and advanced to Principal UX Designer through three promotions. Within the team, I drive growth across the UX discipline by modeling how to align product teams around user outcomes, contributing to our global design system, and providing direct peer feedback to improve our collective practice.
"John's work creating 'visiontypes' to illustrate what 'good' looks like when solving for unmet user needs is a brilliant way to align the team around outcomes." — Senior UX Manager, Blackbaud