Hi, I'm Max.

I'm a product manager in Charlottesville, VA.

I started in design. I studied studio art at UVA with a math minor, and I still use both. Most of my work since has been taking businesses that ran on paper or by hand and turning them into software. I've done that for a matchmaking firm with filing cabinets full of client files, and for bike rental shops running on combination locks and clipboards.

How I like to work

I start with the user, but I never lose sight of how the business makes money.
I'd rather watch people work than read about it. Some of my best product calls came from standing behind a rental shop counter for a day.
I write specs clear enough that engineers can move fast without guessing.
I prioritize hard. At a startup every dollar counts, so I size each bet to the runway we have.
I build with AI in the loop now. Specs, prototypes, and code move a lot faster, so more of my time goes to the decisions.

Before product I sold. I interned at Northwestern Mutual, then ran a retail team for Vail Resorts in Breckenridge. That's where I learned to care about revenue as much as the screens.

I also guest lecture on UI/UX design at The New School.

Education

University of Virginia. BA in Studio Art, minor in Mathematics.
Springboard. UI/UX Design certificate.

Teaching

Guest lecturer, UI/UX design, The New School. Spring 2025 and spring 2026.

Skills

Product: product strategy, roadmapping, PRDs and requirements, acceptance criteria, sprint planning, backlog management, go-to-market, pricing and packaging, pilot programs, partnerships, user research, usability testing.
Design: UX and UI design, design systems, information architecture, prototyping, wireframing.
AI tools: Claude, Claude Code, ChatGPT, Codex, Gemini, Lovable.
Other tools: Figma, FigJam, Plane, ClickUp, Jira, Supabase, Stripe, Make, Zapier, HTML/CSS, Miro, Google Analytics, Hotjar.