Learning,
made beautiful.

EDUCATION | DESIGN | MINDFULNESS | PLAY 

Norman Tran is a learning experience designer
born in Los Angeles, and currently based
in San Francisco.

Working at the intersection of design, education, improvisational theater, and mindfulness, he's created experiences that have transformed
learners of all kinds, such as VC's, CEO's, MBA's
and underprivileged career starters. He has taught
for organizations like Facebook, IDEO, Stanford d.school, Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center, and Deloitte.

Currently, he's the founder of The Space Between, a tool for reading between the lines in human interactions (launching end of 2020). Previously, he served as Head of Design at Tradecraft where he taught smart people how to avoid avoidable failures in their careers. Prior, he created self-awareness & interpersonal dynamics courses at MissionU, and facilitated Stanford Graduate School of Business' reknowned "Touchy Feely" course.

Let's work together.
hello@normantran.com

LEARNING DESIGN | FACILITATION | branding

D.tech & Stanford d.school - Creating cultures of creative experimentation in high schools

PROJECT: K12 Design Thinking Playbook 
ROLE: Designer In Residence
YEAR: 2016 - 2017

Funded by a grant from Chan Zuckerberg Initiative to accelerate Design Tech High's (d.tech) implementation of new learning models, I was brought in as a Designer in Residence for 8 months to collaborate with the Stanford d.school to (1) improve d.tech's design programming for students; and (2) create various resources to help staff adopt design thinking as a change management process. 

LEARNING DESIGN | FACILITATION | program management

MissionU - Preparing underserved adults for the future of work 
through emotional intelligence

PROJECT: Course development: Self-Awareness, Interpersonal Dynamics
ROLE: Emotional Intelligence Program Manager (Employee #5)
YEAR: 2017 - 2018

As the Emotional Intelligence Program Manager (Employee #5), I was tasked with creating a year’s worth of curriculum and collateral for a new hybrid online/in-person college for underserved adults. I developed two classes: Success by Design (self-awareness), and Interpersonal Lab (interpersonal dynamics). Students left rave reviews such as "this class alone was worth moving across the country for."

LEARNING DESIGN | FACILITATION | PROGRAM MANAGEMENT | PARTNERSHIPS

Tradecraft - Helping smart people in career inflection points design their next move 

PROJECT: Product Design Program Management
ROLE: Head of Design
YEAR: 2018 - 2020

As Head of Design, I was tasked with updating and managing recurring three-month in-person intensives that help professionals break into product design. Responsibilities included curriculum design for technical and soft skills, as well as managing an agency that placed participants in high-growth startup roles for real-world experience.

Don't be a stranger

Let's talk about education, design, mindfulness, or play.