About Aaron.

Well, as you can see, I'm a family man. I love my people, the outdoors, and creating things. Product design, photography, and woodworking are my main creative outlets. But sometimes I'll take on a building project (backyard office) or create a fun challenge for myself and others (-10º polar bear run or cycling across the United States). 

aaron@eskam.com  ·  405 203 5720  ·  LinkedIn  ·  Resume

Experience

Goldman Sachs  |  Product Design (Contract)  ·  April 2022–Present

Designing products for structured finance and lending within the Global Markets division.

NextThought  |  Chief Creative Officer  ·  April 2012–November 2021

Helped grow NextThought, an ed-tech startup, to over 50 people and delivered a mix of learning products and services. Led a multi-disciplinary product team of 25—managed 4 full-time designers plus contractors and interns as needed.

Product Design (2012–2021) & Product Management (2019–2021)

  • Designed and Managed NextThought Collaborative Learning Platform from inception to mature product

  • Achieved G2 product rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars with a 9.8/10 rating for Ease of Use—far above category avg. of 8.8

  • Earned and maintained G2 High Performer, Easiest To Do Business With, and Best Support Trust Badges

  • Increased SaaS Clients and ARR by 5x with new go-to-market strategy

  • Introduced simpler and more profitable pricing structure while reducing sales cycle by 91.6%

  • Reduced client support and onboarding overhead by more than 80% with DIY features

  • Reduced client setup from 1+ week effort spanning multiple teams down to a 1-minute automation

  • Maintained annual customer retention rate of over 95%

  • Led award winning-design + dev consulting services for strategic partners (avg. $4.5MM/year)

  • Higher Ed Retention Apps credited by OU as helping achieve record retention rates above 90% (natl. avg. is 76%)

The University of Oklahoma  |  Adjunct Professor  ·  January 2013–May 2020

  • Taught digital product design to hundreds of Visual Communication students (upper-division, degree requirement)
  • Recruited the best students into internships at NextThought, and then to full-time

Dell  |  User Experience Designer  ·  July 2011–April 2012

  • Concepted and delivered web, mobile, and desktop applications

frog design  |  Senior Designer  ·  November 2005–July 2011

  • Acquired diverse experience and a strong design foundation at a world-renowned firm
  • Clients include: HP, SanDisk, AT&T, Walt Disney World, Microsoft, Flextronics, Hawaiian Airlines, Network Solutions, and many others

Education

The University of Oklahoma  |  BFA in Visual Communication   ·  2001–2005

Aaron Eskam
Product Design + Strategy
405 203 5720
aaron@eskam.com  ·  LinkedIn  ·  Resume

© 2022  Aaron Eskam