Hi, I'm Joaquin

What I've Built

Problems I couldn't ignore, solutions I had to build

These are just a few of the ideas I’ve followed to completion. I’m always open to new ones worth exploring.

Hire Me

Ready to create meaning?

If you're building something that is truly unique, doesn't fit the usual patterns, or you're trying to turn complexity into clarity, let's talk. I work with teams who ask deep questions and aren't satisfied with obvious answers while pushing the limits of what's possible to create.I'm based in Portugal and work remotely worldwide. Whether you're looking for full-time leadership, contract expertise, or strategic consulting, I'm ready to help turn your vision into reality.

My Story

I transform exploration into scalable maps

I am curious enough to start anything and structured enough to finish the ones that matter. I once read that entrepreneurship is "bringing social change by modifying patterns, driven by holding on to an anomaly." That idea has guided me for over 20 years: spotting what others overlook and building systematic approaches to turn those insights into scalable businesses.My work centers on finding tensions people feel but don't articulate, then designing products and marketing strategies that resolve those tensions with meaning. Whether working in logistics, education, games, or fashion, I use whatever tools the opportunity demands - market research, product strategy, cultural insights, or brand development.Along the way, I've learned that sustainable growth sits at the intersection of what a product does and what it represents. Cultural marketing taught me that meaning must be embedded from the beginning. Product strategy showed me how to translate insights into frameworks teams can execute. Game development revealed that even small interactions carry emotional weight when designed with care. Strategic leadership taught me how to keep teams focused when direction is unclear and aligned when stakes are high.I build systems that teams can follow, products that people love, and frameworks that turn complexity into clarity.

My Skills

Strategic Leadership | Marketing Strategy | Product Strategy | AI Tools | Game Design | UX/UI Design | Brand Development | Cross-functional Team Management

SmartHop

AI-powered freight browser

SmartHop is an AI-powered platform that helps independent truckers and small dispatch companies optimize their business. The platform aggregates freight data and provided profit analysis tools in an industry dominated by traditional spreadsheet-based load boards.As Co-Founder and COO, I guided the company from concept to Series A funding by combining strategic product decisions with deep cultural understanding of our user base, scaling the team from 0 to 40+ people while leading both product strategy and go-to-market execution.

Year: 2016-2020

Challenge: The trucking industry relied on traditional load boards and resisted technological change. Independent truckers couldn't optimize profitability across complex variables, and existing tools ignored the cultural and operational realities of our target users.

Solution: I developed a profit-first product architecture that prioritized earnings as the primary element rather than traditional metrics, combined with targeted cultural marketing. This included identifying our advantage with Latino truckers through deep user research, launching Spanish-language campaigns addressing immigrant struggles (improving conversion rates from 19% to 40%), and creating progressive information architecture that allowed users to drill down from macro market trends to specific route profitability with real-time data storytelling.

Impact: This design approach resulted in 50%+ increase in user retention and significantly improved decision-making speed for customers. The combined product and marketing strategy proved that complex B2B tools could be both powerful and delightful, leading to Series A funding led by Union Square Ventures.

• Other Projects

Celcob

Time is money.

Celcob was a mobile time-tracking application designed for professionals who bill by the hour, including lawyers, consultants, and freelancers. The app pioneered mobile-first time tracking when most solutions were desktop-based, allowing users to track time across calls, emails, meetings, and field activities.As Co-Founder and CEO, I led complete product strategy from concept to global execution, managing product development, international expansion, and the strategic pivot to enterprise features that drove B2B adoption.

Year: 2012-2014

Challenge: Professionals needed comprehensive time tracking across multiple activities and devices, but existing solutions were either too complex for daily use or too simple for professional billing requirements. The market was dominated by desktop applications when mobile usage was emerging.

Solution: I developed a mobile-first product strategy with multi-platform consistency (BlackBerry, iOS, Android), creating intuitive interfaces that captured time tracking through multiple input methods while maintaining professional-grade reporting. The product architecture included automated activity detection, client and project organization systems, and detailed analytics. I also led international expansion strategy across 150+ countries and executed a strategic B2B pivot based on usage pattern analysis.

Impact: Reached 22,500+ global users with 200K+ tracked activities, successfully expanding across 150+ countries. The early mobile-first approach and strategic enterprise pivot demonstrated how product innovation combined with systematic international scaling could capture emerging market opportunities.

• Other Projects

[Not] Bored Games

The power of play.

[Not] Bored Games is an educational board game studio that creates games with mechanics specifically designed around measurable learning outcomes. The company focuses on transforming play into practical skill development, particularly in areas like conflict resolution, negotiation, and communication for children and families.As Co-Founder and CEO, I lead end-to-end operations, including product design, brand development, and publisher acquisition strategy, creating systematic approaches to validate learning transfer from game mechanics to real-world applications.

Year: 2023-Present

Challenge: Educational games typically fail because they prioritize education over engagement, or vice versa. Parents and educators want games that are genuinely fun while delivering measurable learning outcomes, but most products compromise on one dimension or the other.

Solution: I developed a systematic approach linking specific game mechanics to targeted learning objectives, creating products where skill development emerges naturally through engaging play. This included designing validation methodologies to prove measurable learning transfer, building a comprehensive brand universe using AI tools that positions education as adventure rather than instruction, and establishing partnerships with educators to validate real-world skill application. The approach combines rigorous learning science with compelling game design and strategic brand positioning.

Impact: Developed and validated three game prototypes through 250+ hours of systematic playtesting, proving measurable learning transfer from game concepts to real-world family negotiations. The systematic approach to educational innovation demonstrates how strategic product development can create meaningful impact while building sustainable business models.

• Other Projects

Runco & Co

Mindful drinking ecosystem

Runco & Co is a dual-app ecosystem designed around mindful drinking culture, combining cocktail discovery with consumption tracking. The platform includes a discovery app that helps users make great drinks with their actual bar inventory, and a tracking app focused on maintaining healthy relationships with alcohol rather than abstinence.As the creator of this personal project, I'm developing a complete product strategy from user research through systematic validation, using real MVP methodology by building solutions I personally use and iterate based on daily experience.

Year: 2020-Present

Challenge: Most alcohol-related apps are either pure indulgence (endless cocktail recipes assuming professional bar inventory) or pure restriction (sobriety tracking). How do you design for people who love cocktail culture but want to maintain thoughtful, balanced consumption habits?

Solution: I designed a comprehensive product ecosystem that addresses the full spectrum of mindful drinking. The discovery app uses ingredient-first search architecture, smart substitution logic with "Exact/Close/Wildcard" flexibility, and zero-proof parity for non-alcoholic options. The tracking app employs allowance-based monitoring showing "what you can drink" to maintain healthy averages rather than restrictive logging. Both apps feature progressive complexity allowing simple defaults with optional detailed input, making tracking less annoying while keeping discovery practical.

Impact: Created systematic MVP validation through personal use - evolving from cocktail recipes in notes to hashtag systems to mobile prototypes for discovery, and from programmed Excel tracking to app concepts for consumption monitoring. This real-world validation demonstrates how personal passion projects can explore complex behavioral design challenges while addressing genuine market gaps in wellness technology.

• Other Projects

Normalem

Ideas worth wearing.

Normalem was a conceptual clothing brand that translated philosophical ideas into wearable designs, creating t-shirts that embodied concepts worth wearing and living. The brand focused on fostering conversations and reflections about the foundations that guide startup founders' lives, turning abstract thoughts into tangible products.
As Co-Founder and CEO, I developed complete brand strategy, product design methodology, and go-to-market execution, creating systematic approaches for translating abstract concepts into market-ready products that fostered authentic community dialogue.

Year: 2021-2022

Challenge: How do you translate abstract philosophical concepts about startup culture - ambition, belonging, burnout, purpose - into tangible, wearable designs that foster meaningful dialogue rather than superficial statements within the founder community?

Solution: I developed a comprehensive brand and product strategy that turned cultural research into design methodology. This included conducting market research into startup founder identity tensions, creating a design language that translated abstract concepts into visual metaphors (using typography, symbols, and color psychology), and building community-driven marketing campaigns that fostered philosophical discussions through fashion. The approach combined cultural insight with systematic product development and digital-first go-to-market strategy.

Impact: Successfully launched complete brand identity and product line that resonated authentically with the startup founder community. Built e-commerce platform and executed community-driven campaigns that demonstrated how physical products can carry cultural meaning and create genuine connection around shared experiences and challenges.

• Other Projects