Julia Elman

Julia Elman is a UX Lead for Login.gov. She has 15 years of experience in design and technology. Known as a leader in her field, her most recent work experience includes VA Lighthouse, an API platform that gives developers secure access to the VA data they need to build helpful tools and services for Veterans, the Zapier Visual Identity, the U.S. Web Design System project, Pulse and developing the project scoping and evaluation process for 18F Experience Design.

Prior to Ad Hoc, Julia grew the fully remote Zapier Design Team staff, workflows and processes to help meet the needs of a quickly growing company. She established an effective, repeatable hiring process to streamline the hiring cadence of Product Designers and UX Researchers. Julia also led the completion of the first Zapier Visual Identity to establish a cohesive, uniform brand.

Earlier in her career, Julia published a book called Lightweight Django with O’Reilly Media. She also wrote curriculum and tutorials about design and development as the Front end Engineering Instructor at the Iron Yard Academy. She has also worked with clients such as Mozilla, the Python Software Foundation, University of Chicago, Hallmark Cards and Product(RED).

In 2012, Julia co-founded Girl Develop It RDU, a non-profit organization that provides affordable programs for women interested in learning web and software development in a judgment-free environment. The organization has grown to over 2,200 members and has taught over 100 classes within the Triangle area.

Julia lives in “the sticks” in Durham, North Carolina with her two kids and a fluffy mutt named Digby. She enjoys hiking, camping and being in nature as much as possible. Her ideal day would be on top of a mountain somewhere with her kids and a picnic lunch.