Hi! I’m Nikhil.

I help create impactful products through design and experience strategy.

I’ve had an entrepreneurial and multi-disciplinary design journey that spans over 18 years wherein I’ve been fortunate to help shape a range of successful products. From global giants with over a billion users to nascent startups still trying to find market fit, I’ve engaged with organizations with different needs and strategies, and leveraged design to help accomplish strategic goals.

As an individual, I tend to thrive in an environment that values creative thinking, authenticity, and growth mindset.

I’m currently a principal design manager with Microsoft, leading few key verticals in Microsoft AI.

Work

I love taking up bold and challenging problems, and my journey is a testament to this endeavour

Defining the smartphone experience for emerging markets

Indus OS / Mobile operating system targeted towards the needs of regional Indian users

Building a globally popular web browser

Microsoft Edge / Range of experiences driving user delight and loyalty for the browser with the second-largest market share

Designing India’s premier payment gateway and wallet service

Citrus Pay / Consumer and merchant experience for one of India’s first digital payment services

Creating a multi-lingual chatbot for regional Indian users

Indus OS / Chatbot allowing simplified access to a range of internet-enabled services in 13 Indian languages

Promoting financial learning using a mobile game

The Smart Investor / Award-winning game that offers a fun and exciting way for people to test and develop their financial acumen

Conducting pan-India research for product innovation

Samsung + IDC / Demystifying the Indian context and needs for the household refrigerator

View portfolio

Recognition

It has been humbling to receive acknowledgment and appreciation from notable quarters for some of my past work

Awards

NASSCOM Design4India Design Awards - Mobile category
2018, Indus OS

CII Design Excellence Award - Interaction Design
2015, The Smart Investor
CII Design Excellence Award - Packaging Design
2013, Araldite
Best Paper - Conference on Advances in Usability Engg.
2008, Industrial Design & Usability: Indifferent neighbours?
Vision Plus Award - Children's Eyewear
2014, Nickelodeon Eyewear Collection
Businessworld Design Brilliance Award - Best Student Concept
2008, Mobile Phone for the Unlettered

Papers and Presentations

Chatbot Platform for Services within a Mobile Operating System
Industry Presentation / INTERACT 2017

Visual Programming Language for Children to Program Robotic Toys
Paper / 2010, Designing for Children Conference
Industrial Design & Usability: Indifferent Neighbours?
Paper / 2008, Conference on Advances in Usability Engineering