Ashley Sun

Lead UX Designer @ Zelle® · San Francisco

I bridge two disciplines that rarely meet: the spatial precision of architecture and the behavioral depth of fintech UX. After 11 years shaping physical environments as a landscape architect, I pivoted to digital design in 2018, drawn by the same challenge: designing systems people move through without noticing the complexity.

Today I lead end-to-end UX for Zelle®'s product design expansion, from trust & safety features to entirely new use cases beyond P2P. I'm fluent in strategic design, systems thinking, and cross-functional collaboration that keeps design at the table when priorities shift.

EXPERTISE

Systems Thinking

I design for complex systems, leading with strategy over surface. I translate cross-product user behavior into clear product and ecosystem decisions.

MINDSET

Innovation Advocate

I turn ideas into visible outcomes through rapid, focused prototyping. I challenge assumptions and expand scope to unlock new product opportunities.

BACKGROUND

Practice Fluencies

11 years in architecture practice built my spatial intuition. My fintech UX work adds research rigor and confidence in regulated environments.

CAREER ARC

2024 - present

Lead UX Designer

Early Warning Services (Zelle®) · B2B2C Payments · San Francisco

2022 - 2024

Senior UX Designer

Funding Circle · B2B Lending · San Francisco

2018 - 2022

UX Designer

Freelance · B2C Mobile SaaS · San Francisco

2011 - 2022

Landscape Architect & Urban Designer

Perkins & Will et al. · San Francisco / New York City / Boston

Systems Thinking Across Disciplines

Long before I was designing financial products, I was designing complex systems.

My career began in architecture and landscape architecture, where I became fascinated by the relationship between people, technology, and the environments they move through. I was often among the earliest adopters of new design tools—not because the software itself was exciting, but because it opened new ways to solve problems, visualize complexity, and help teams make better decisions.

From computational design and custom visualization tools to 3D rendering and motion storytelling, I frequently found myself introducing new workflows, teaching others how to use them, and helping multidisciplinary teams work more effectively together. I became known as the person people sought out when projects required translating complexity into something tangible, understandable, and actionable.

The tools have changed. The questions have not.

Today, I design products at the intersection of human behavior, complex systems, and emerging technologies. Whether navigating the needs of multiple financial institutions, aligning stakeholders with competing priorities, or exploring AI-assisted workflows, I am energized by ambiguity, constraint, and scale.

My goal is rarely to make technology more visible. Instead, I aim to make complexity disappear—so people can focus on what matters to them while powerful systems work quietly in the background.

Storytelling for Architecture Design

Visualizing Complex Systems Layers

Surfacing Technical Challenges