article January 2026
Some advice on managing your design career upwards
Piccalil.li
I work on how systems make decisions
I help institutions design, govern, and oversee AI‑driven decisions. I work with leaders who need clarity on how their systems should delegate authority, manage risk, and maintain trust as they adopt AI. My background spans service design, civic tech, and federal digital transformation — all focused on how organizations make decisions at scale. Today, I work on decision infrastructure at Occupant, teach at the University of Michigan and built State Capacity AI. Previously, I was Head of Design at 18F.gov
Currently
Wishing they'd bring Andor back to television. ICYMI: My 2025 year in review is here.
Selected Work
Case studies exploring service design, civic technology, decision systems, and product strategy. View all work →
delivery
Service Delivery at Scale
Design leadership across federal programs serving millions. Working at the intersection of policy intent and delivery reality to improve how eligibility systems, intake processes, and service recovery work in practice.
Cross-functional service delivery Read more → delivery
Service Delivery at Scale
Design leadership across federal programs serving millions. Working at the intersection of policy intent and delivery reality to improve how eligibility systems, intake processes, and service recovery work in practice.
Cross-functional service delivery Read more → event
Beyond Civic Tech: Public Mechanics Starts at Home
Conference talk about the systems that keep public services running after launch day—the invisible maintenance work, workarounds, and repair practices that hold services together.
Community engagement & events Read more → delivery
Oregon High School Tennis Rankings System
A data-driven ranking and playoff simulation system for Oregon high school tennis, designed to solve real problems in how teams are evaluated and seeded for state competition.
Cross-functional service delivery Read more →Currently Reading
- Waging A Good War by Thomas E. Ricks
- Maintenance of Everything: Part One by Stewart Brand
- Religion And The Decline of Magic by Keith Thomas
- The Field Guide to Design Futures by Giovanni Caruso, Silvio Cioni
Listening To
- The Jungle by Wynton Marsalis
- Italo disco by
- KCRW, NTS & The Lot Radio by