Paul Stonick

Founding mentor

VP Customer Experience @ Big Green Egg

Atlanta, GA 15 yrs in design

About

Paul is a seasoned creative executive and leader who turns strategy, design, and emerging tech into business results. With 30 years at the crossroads of creativity and commerce, he’s helped Fortune 500s transform at scale, led a high-growth automotive startup to a successful exit, and pioneered early moves in e-commerce before it was mainstream. You’ve probably seen his work on national TV, Apple’s WWDC stage, or even during Super Bowl 58. Trusted by brands like Forrester, L2 Gartner, and global orgs, Paul is a speaker, coach, and advisor who helps people and companies lead what’s next, with confidence, culture, and craft.

How I can help

I'm a creative executive with 30+ years at the intersection of design, product, and business, and I help designers turn craft into career momentum. I can guide portfolio and resume reviews, mock interviews, and the IC-to-manager (and manager-to-executive) transition, building a personal brand, best practices in design leadership and building strong teams, plus the parts most designers struggle to articulate: how to influence without authority, tie design work to business outcomes, how to lead through change, and how to communicate with executives and stakeholders.

Ask me about

IC to manager

Layoffs

First or only designer

A reorg

Influence without authority

Stakeholder standoffs

Presenting to execs

Imposter syndrome

First design hires

Craft to strategy

Growing into leadership

Expertise

UX Designer

Product Designer

Visual/Brand

Design Manager

Design Lead

Design systems

Leadership

Negotiation

Interviewing

AI workflows

AI tools

E-commerce & Retail

Sessions

Free Intro Mentoring ChatFree
30 min
Mentoring is the part of the work I love most. The intro is a relaxed 30-minute first session to see if we click and to map out how I can help you no matter where you are in your career path. How the intro session works: • Your story (10 min): Where you are now — role, background, and what's prompting you to seek mentorship. • What you want (10 min): The skills, decisions, or outcomes you're after — from craft and portfolio to career moves, product strategy, scope, and leading people. We'll get specific about what "better" looks like for you. • A plan (10 min): I'll share where my experience is most useful and we'll sketch a short-term plan. You'll walk away with: an honest read on fit, clarity and prioritization for your top 1–2 goals, and a path forward. No pressure to book anything further. Come as you are — no prep needed.
Career Coaching (Single Session)$175
60 min
An hour with me, an equal parts punk and pinstripe design, product and CX leader who's here to help you in your career journey. Bring the problem(s) to be solved, the decision you need to make, how to manage the job market, the leap into leadership or going independent — and together we'll pin down the outcome you're chasing, expose the constraints holding you back, and map the exact step that comes next. This session can be held Monday through Friday at a time that works for both of us.

English

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