I build

Visions that lead.Products that grow.Teams that scale.

Product executive by day, AI builder by choice. I've spent 14 years turning strategy into products that ship, scale, and stick. Now I'm doing it with AI.

Britney Russ
Strategic PlannerTeam BuilderOperations ExpertMentorAI BuilderDesign ThinkerInstructional DesignerAnalytics & Insights Partner

About Britney

I believe strategy only counts when it ships — and that the best product leaders are just as comfortable in the details as they are in the boardroom.

I've spent 14 years building and leading product organizations at companies like Codecademy, Evite, and PlanetArt — scaling cross-functional teams, launching new product lines, and driving growth across consumer platforms. What I bring isn't a framework — it's judgment built from operating at every stage of the product lifecycle, and now applying that same instinct to integrating AI into products and the teams that build them.

I know what great looks like because I've built it more than once — and I'm more energized about what's possible now than I've ever been.

My Experience

Work

Codecademy

CONSUMER & AI

VP of Product & Technology · 2021–Present

Overseeing a consumer P&L across product, design, engineering, curriculum, data, and finance. Launched an AI personalized learning platform that drove 3X free signups and restored free-to-paid health. Opened new revenue streams across bootcamps, SMB, and native mobile, delivering meaningful incremental growth. Represent three-year vision and roadmap to the company.

PlanetArt

ECOMMERCE

Director of Product · 2021

Owned product strategy and roadmaps across four direct-to-consumer brands. Negotiated a Shutterstock partnership for a new canvas art print offering, driving MoM revenue growth. Stood up new operational processes for roadmap planning, stakeholder alignment, and backlog management across a distributed global team.

Evite

TEAM BUILDING

Director of Product · 2015–2021

Built the PM org from scratch and steered company-level strategic priorities. Grew the Premium Invitation channel 60% YoY for two consecutive years. Launched Evite's first business subscription — concept through acquisition model — and introduced mission-based squad structure to sharpen focus and velocity.

Bluebeam

ENTERPRISE B2B

Product Manager · 2012–2015

Developed foundational product craft inside a construction technology company. Owned B2B software delivery end-to-end, building early fluency in stakeholder management, technical trade-offs, and customer-driven roadmapping.

Contract

Freelance

AI-NATIVE BUILDING

AI Product Builder · 2026–Present

Service project-based contracts designing and shipping production-grade software solo — from architecture and product decisions to working code. No team, no handoffs. Currently delivering a full-stack client portal for Alternative Resolution Centers with secure authentication, encrypted document management, and database integration built to production standards.

Community

PMA.LA

COMMUNITY

Mentorship Chair & Founder · 2021–Present

Founded the organization's first mentorship program to open pathways into product management for underrepresented undergrads. Built the program entirely from scratch — frameworks, matching process, marketing acquisition, and all operational assets. 100% volunteer-run with 300+ graduates to date.

My Projects

AI Builder project screenshot

EDTECH · AI PRODUCT

AI Builder: Re-architecting Codecademy for the AI Era

An AI-native personalized learning platform that re-architected Codecademy's core subscription around career survivalists — driving 3X free signups and restoring free-to-paid conversion health

Bootcamps project screenshot

EDTECH · NEW REVENUE

Bootcamps: Launching a Live-Learning Business

A new expert-led bootcamp business built on Codecademy's existing curriculum that grew to 10% of annual revenue run rate.

Shape Up Implementation project screenshot

OPERATIONS · METHODOLOGY

Shape Up: Doubling Velocity with Shape Up

An org-wide shift from sprint-based AGILE to Basecamp's Shape Up framework that doubled velocity and took 5 new SKUs to market in a single year.

ARC Neutral Portal project screenshot

FREELANCE · FULL-STACK

Contract: ARC Neutral Portal

A full-stack client portal replacing entirely manual workflows at one of the last ADR firms without a digital product — built solo from research through production code.

TBR Tamer project screenshot

PERSONAL PROJECT · WEB APP

Personal: TBR Tamer - A Smarter Way to Tackle Your Reading List

A personal reading app that imports a Goodreads TBR list and generates a personalized weekly schedule — balancing genres, series, and new releases.

Services I Offer

Product Strategy

I turn ambiguous problems into clear product visions, prioritized roadmaps, and go-to-market plans. Whether you're defining a new direction or scaling an existing one, I help you build with intention.

AI Product Building

I design and ship production-grade software using AI-native development tools — end-to-end, from architecture and UX to working code. No large team, no long timelines.

MVP Development

I take ideas from concept to a lean, tested product fast. Research, design, build, launch — I run the full loop using modern AI-assisted workflows with startup speed and production-grade quality.

Team & Org Design

I build PM functions from scratch and redesign how product teams work. From hiring and coaching to methodology rollouts, I help orgs ship faster and think more strategically.

Britney Russ

Product Executive & Strategist