Smita Pawa

With over 16 years of experience in product design and strategy, I have built a career on delivering impactful, user-centered digital experiences across diverse industries. Beginning as a 3D Texturing Artist, where I contributed to Emmy and Cannes award-winning projects, I discovered my passion for UX/UI design while creating engaging educational products for children at Jumpstart. This foundation sparked my commitment to crafting meaningful, human-centered designs.

Today, as a Creative Director at Photon, a leading digital and AI agency serving 40% of Fortune 100 companies, I lead a multidisciplinary team to design best-in-class products that generates millions in revenue. My leadership has earned me multiple recognitions for outstanding performance, quality output, and innovative approaches.

I specialize in leading product design, UX research, and experience strategy, aligning user and business needs to deliver impactful solutions. With experience collaborating with global brands, I’ve led projects that simplified user experiences, impacted billions of users, and generated millions in revenue. A strong advocate for design excellence, I foster team collaboration and innovation through empathy and people-focused leadership.

Beyond my professional work, I actively contribute to the design community as a mentor, speaker, and judge, sharing insights with organizations such as AIGA Dallas, AIVA- W3 Awards, Davey Awards and Communicator Awards, Orpetron, and the 100 Successful Women in Business initiative.