Heya!

I'm Fred, a design leader & mentor based in the San Francisco Bay Area. I create and guide delightful product experiences.

About

My path to design started at an early age. Coming from a family of artists and educators gave me a deep appreciation for the creative process and beautiful visuals. As I entered into my college studies I took classes in design, psychology, and computer science where I found myself with the desire to understand why and how people interact with technology. After graduation I decided to move into the field of web and mobile design. This area suited me well as it allowed me to further my exploration of the human factors that make good design successful. Fast forward many years later and I find myself continuing to have love for this amazing field and wanting to share it with others.

Passionate about leadership and mentorship I took on the role of Director of the School of Interaction & UI/UX Design at the Academy of Art in San Francisco. This has allowed me to coach new and seasoned product designers while still providing the opportunity to practice. I mentor, provide career advice, interview prep, and portfolio reviews while also designing various learning applications and content.

When I'm not working, I enjoy staying active, traveling, live music, and studying languages. 안녕하세요! ¡Hola!

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Testimonials

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Ryan Medieros - UX Designer/Motion Graphics Designer

Direct Report
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I am pleased to recommend Fred McHale. He is an excellent designer, mentor, and manager. He successfully manages more than 75 design professionals and approximately 600 design students and mentees. He personally takes on the duties of mentoring our User Experience Design students even though it falls outside of his job duties. Fred is a proven leader, collaborator, and key team member essential to the operation of our organization.
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Dale Jones - Software Engineer

Direct Report
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I worked with Fred designing our backend web app from scratch and we are delighted with the results. He has excellent communication skills and uses robust workflows that allowed me and my team to work with him efficiently.
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Andrea Pimentel - Creative Director

Colleague
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The UI designs he crafted are top-notch, and the design system he integrated allows for straightforward fixes and bulk updates throughout almost every area of the app. Looking forward to partner with him on upcoming projects. Highly recommended!
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Ashley Yeo - UX Designer

Mentee
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Fred has helped me so much in my UI/UX Design field journey as an excellent academic professor and advisor. He always supported me whenever I had questions during my journey and professional growth. I feel grateful for his endeavor, resources, and integrity that constantly encouraged me to become a better designer! :)
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Lucille Huang - Product Designer

Mentee
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We’ve been working with David on multiple projects for the last 2 years. He has delivered consistent high quality designs for our web, and apps. He is a great communicator, always meets deadlines and has a great understanding of UX.
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Recent news

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By
Fred McHale
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August 15, 2022
The Handoff

As my mentoring or classes end I always get questions around design to development handoff. It has become such a part of my process that I don't really think about it until I’m asked.

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Seven ways that Progressive Web Apps are killing old apps

Strategies on low-hanging fruit to identify a ballpark value added activity matrix economically to beta test override the digital.