Hi, nice to meet you!

I'm Roque Sales

Head of Design

Design Facilitator

Digital Designer

Design Ops

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The roles I play

About Me

I'm a Design Professional originally from Brazil and now based in Portugal, with over 20 years of experience in IT and Digital Products Design, leading Digital Experience projects in large companies in Brazil and abroad. Specialist in Innovation Workshops and Design Sprints Facilitation. Creator of the Youtube Channel UXChat. Passionate about everything Design related, Experiences and especially People.

I'm convinced that the little things in life can make a great difference and I've been working to ensure I'll never underestimate the changes we can all influence in this world. I am passionate about how design and technology can improve lives and health of people around the world.This is one of the main reasons I love doing what I do. Making other people's lives better.

This has been my mission over the 20 years of my professional experience in Design and IT, in everything I do I give my best to ensure I’m making a difference.Communication, Connection and Empathy are my favorite words and I walk the talk. I believe you can do much more and with greater impact through partnership and collaboration than by yourself.

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Lifelong learning

Certifications

My career journey

My Experience

Ília

Jan 2023 - February 2024

Head of Product Design

Leading a dynamic team of Product Designers, UX Designers, UI Designers, and UX Writers, ensuring the delivery of outstanding Product Solution Designs and memorable Experiences for our Clients. In addition to creating and implementing new Design Service offerings for the Finance, Insurance, and Mobility markets in Brazil, collaborating closely with Marketing, Commercial, and Sales Teams. My responsibilities include devising and executing the Design Strategic Plan to enhance our organization's UX maturity, while also guiding clients through Digital Transformation initiatives and the creation of innovative Digital Products and Services, all driven by a relentless focus on UX principles and a commitment to quality and excellence.

Zappts

January 2019 - October 2023

Head of the Design & Innovation Office.

Leading and Supporting an amazing team of User Experience Designers in order to deliver High End Digital Product Solution Design and Memorable Experiences for Clients such as ABinBev, CooperJohnson, Santander, Auttar, Getnet, Ultragaz, Porto Seguro, iClubs, BTG Pactual and others. Responsible for defining and implementing the Design Strategic Plan, evaluating and improving the Organization’s UX maturity.Structuring and maintaining Design OPS, Design System and Innovation Initiatives. Responsible for the new Digital Creative Design, Innovation Services & Products Strategy of Zappts.

iClubs

January 2020 - July 2021

Head of UX Design

Leading the design strategy aimed at creating exceptional experiences for customers and partners. Collaborating closely with the Product Team, developing the Next Generation Loyalty Services and Products. Responsibilities included guiding the team towards a user-centric approach, fostering cross-functional collaboration, implementing design thinking methodologies, conducting usability testing, strategic design planning, effective stakeholder communication, trend analysis, innovation integration, and team development through mentorship. Through these efforts, I played a pivotal role in driving iClubs' success by contributing to the creation of groundbreaking loyalty services and products that resonate with stakeholders.

Johnson & Johnson

2009 - 2018

Digital Experience Delivery Manager

Responsible for all Digital Experience Projects in LatAm and delivered on multiple platforms and technologies, including Digital Health applications using Agile methodology and best practices, leading teams distributed in different countries. Responsible for implementing the UX committee of LATAM Digital Delivery Center.Led E2E Digital Product Development projects, interacting with Main Stakeholders from different areas such as Product, Technology, Marketing, Sales Force, etc. Trained the AS Commercial Marketing Team on User Experience principles and foundations. Was responsible for implementing the UX committee of LATAM Digital Delivery Center.I led the UX Design front of one of the most important Digital Health projects at Application Services in North America. .. Read More

Johnson & Johnson

2006 - 2009

SR UX/UI Designer and Content Management Lead

Responsible for the UI, Prototypes and Creative Design of over 20 projects for internal websites of several J&J brands such as Aveno, Neutrogena, Listerine, ROC, Johnson’s Baby, Cordis, Depuy, OCD, etc. Led the Content Management team responsible for taking care of all websites content.Internalized the web creative design process, reducing the cost in ~70%.

Clients

Who I've worked with

People may not remember what you said or did. But they will always remember how you made them feel.

Tony Hsieh

My work

Portfolio

Creating the best credit card reconciliation portal on the market

Behavior tracker: Revolutionizing pediatric care with the UX role in clinical innovation

Impacting business organization through design

Impacting business organization through design

Impacting business organization through design

Impacting business organization through design

Testimonials

What my partners have to say

Sophia Fázzeri

Sr Product Designer @ Bradesco

Roque is an excellent professional! As a leader, he is always committed helping the team to grow and evolve professionally and personally. In addition, he's an excellent designer and friend! Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and for helping me evolve during this time we've work together! It was a great pleasure to be part of your team and I hope we can work together again in the future.

Verónica Alvarez Iturre

Head of Communications & Marketing at Siemens

It is a pleasure to work with Roque, as he brings a holistic view to each project, providing innovative and practical solutions. He has the ability to address issues in a proactive manner. It is worth noting that it is part of his routine to interact with regional teams, as well as different languages, proving to be of high value to have him as a partner and teammate. I recommend Roque to work in areas of innovation, such as digital, communication, since his expertise supports it. It would be an honor to have the opportunity to work with him again.

Mike Reilly

Global Head of Supply Chain Deliver Technology Products at Johnson & Johnson

Roque is a pleasure to work with on any program - creative, energetic, detailed oriented and passionate to succeed. He was a key contributor in supporting our user interface work stream on health tech program. His talents range from creative to detailed program delivery!

Rodrigo Paiva

IT Director at Johnson & Johnson

Roque is a really creative and energetic professional. I had the opportunity to observe him working in international projects, supporting the user interface work stream on health care application development. Roque's creativity and attention to details were key to the success of that program.

Carolina Galvão

Designer Coordnator @ ília

By far one of the best people and friend I have had the pleasure of working with and being mentored by at the very beginning of my career as a designer. Roque is a great professional, that everyday has something to teach me! As a leader, he is always concerned with the success of his team, the development and well-being of each member. Extremely competent, dedicated and organized on our team projects, with an enormous design knowledge and experience, being one of my biggest references today. Thank you for being so supportive and inspiring!

Steve Broomhall

Business Technology Leader - Sr Director - Strategic Solutions EMEA at Johnson & Johnson

Roque is a talented and experienced digital professional, having led dozens of digital development projects at J&J. I have always enjoyed my interactions with Roque, having partnered on multiple global projects. His knowledge and strong interpersonal skills make him a great addition to any digital team.

Michael Lima

IT Director at Johnson & Johnson

Roque is a great professional, always passionate about his work and focused on the best value to bring to the company. I had the pleasure to work with Roque in different projects, where he always showed really creativity to fix a variety of issues we encountered, also always supported the team members to keep the energy on the right place. Roque is a self learn professional, always bringing innovative ideas and ways to deliver the best in class solutions in the IT World. Really great professional and one of the best team players I've ever worked with.

Natalie Nodari

UX Manager @ GOL Smiles

Roque, besides being a leader, is a mentor! A person who inspires you to be better, not only professionally, but also personally. His knowledge is unique and every word is a teaching! He leads his team with great mastery and poise. Working with Roque means learning to have courage, autonomy, confidence in yourself and to be better every day. Lucky for those who worked and will work with him. I would like to express my gratitude for having the honor of being led by this incredible person, Roque, thank you for all your support and learning! May everyone have the opportunity to have a leader like you.

Vanessa Campos

Product Designer @ Zappts

Roque was my leader, and I choose this word with all the strength it has, LEADER, the one who makes the team grow, brings it together, defends it tooth and nail, cares about each one of his team members. I grew a lot as professional in his leadership, he always encouraged us to learn more, to improve, to look for ways to improve ourselves, and even after we no longer work together I still always receive messages from him, giving me tips on what to study, asking how I am. I recommend Roque as an example of what a real leader is and I really hope we can work together again.

Rodrigo Bornholdt

Founder & CTO @ Coren

Roque is a very talented designer, hard worker, loves to study and improve his skills. Excellent facilitator, didactic, is able to capture audience attention and make people understand and incorporate the content. He knows (and teaches) a lot about UX, UI, design , from tools to frameworks and best practices. It was a pleasure to work with him.

My Book

Facilitation & Leadership

This book is for anyone who wants to facilitate effectively in collaborative and co-creation environments, who seek to improve their facilitation skills to boost their team's productivity and engagement.