Fractional Design Leadership for Startups
Led by founder Melissa Quintanilha, Dupla Studios provides embedded design leadership that bridges strategic vision and hands-on execution—without the full-time commitment.
Led by founder Melissa Quintanilha, Dupla Studios provides embedded design leadership that bridges strategic vision and hands-on execution—without the full-time commitment.
Three Ways to Work Together
Full-time commitment to your design vision. I integrate completely with your team, owning design strategy and execution from vision to launch. Ideal for companies scaling rapidly or building design systems from the ground up.
Dedicated part-time design leadership. Strategic oversight combined with hands-on design work on core features. Perfect for companies with mature products or existing design resources who need strategic direction.
Focused strategic guidance with targeted execution. Design consultation, audits, and production-ready designs for priority initiatives. Great for early-stage companies or specific design challenges.
All partnerships begin with a Discovery Sprint—a 2-week engagement to assess your design landscape and create a clear roadmap forward.
Relationships with multiple teams since 2020.
Relationships with multiple teams since 2016.
User Research to inform Google Cloud Platform offerings.
Product Design for MURAL’s onboarding experience.
User Research and Product Design for an autonomous boating system.
User Research and Product Design for event production and logistics.
Research and design for the Washington Council for Economic and Financial Education.
Evaluation and improvement of benchmarking process with a meta-analysis across all pillars.
Card Sort and Evaluative Research for Ziply’s website redesign.
Case study
How we designed an unparalleled platform to manage the logistics of the events we all know and love, from the VMAs to the NBA.
Geoff McDonald
CEO @ Ambassador
Case study
How we designed for the safe and remote control of autonomous vehicles.
Phil Huber
Chief Product Officer @ Augmentir
Case study
How we designed a vision for a platform that enables seniors to live independently and age at home.
Alison Andrews-Reyes
Global Director @ Google
I'm a fractional design lead with 20+ years of experience bridging strategic thinking and hands-on execution.
My background
I've been designing digital products since 2001, including 7 years as a Senior Designer at Microsoft where I shipped products at scale. In 2015, I founded Dupla Studios, which has partnered with companies like Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Smartsheet, and MURAL over the past decade. Our work was recognized as a 2024 IxDA Interaction Design Award finalist.
Why fractional
Over the years at Dupla, I learned something important: the work I loved most wasn't the project engagements—it was the fractional partnerships. The clients where I embedded with their team for months, seeing the full journey from strategy to shipped product to real business impact. So I'm focusing exclusively on what I love: long-term fractional partnerships with software companies.
What makes me different
→ CS + Design Background - I have an MFA in Design and a BS in Computer Science. I speak the same language as engineers and understand technical tradeoffs.
→ Strategy AND Execution - I'm not just advising from the sidelines. I embed with your team and do the actual design work.
→ Experience at Scale - From Microsoft to award-winning studio work, I've shipped products that millions of people use.
