Karen J. Paquette

User Experience Designer (and Social Media Specialist

 Karen is a veteran of the digital world. She spent a decade building another digital agency prior to working as an independent consultant for several years and working in the marketing departments of several local organizations. She has considerable expertise in online and offline creative design, copywriting, video and photography, social/community design and management, event planning, Web analytics, HTML markup, content management, and Web execution too. Her passions include online and offline marketing, photography, design, content curation, social media, user interface design, and video production—which reveal her versatility and value to our clients.

Karen’s most recent engagements prior to joining Dirigo were with Maine Golf & Tennis Academy, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Maine, United Way of Greater Portland, Harding Lawson Associates, and the Maine College of Art (MECA). She helped these organizations build their brands, with fundraising and all areas of marketing.  

She’s especially fond of high fashion. This next bit seems to sum it all up. If stranded on a desert island her must haves include: an Al Merrick Surboard (she surfs), Anthelios Sunscreen, La Perla swimsuit & sunglasses, iSurvival (duh, the Wilderness Survival Manual for the iPhone), Send GPS for the iPhone, and Jason Statham. Essentials in everyday life include: Italian Vogue, Voss Water, pearls, spin class, flatscreen with Apple iTV, calla lilies, Nikon, Holga with Ilford film, SOA, Facebook, and the New York Yankees (or the Rangers, depending on the season).

She’s very proud to have paid for her college education by working in various marketing roles. Karen completed post-graduate work towards a Masters in Fine Art (MFA) from the Maine College of Art too. Her creative specialties include: photography, mixed media collage, and blogging. At Lasell College, she majored in Liberal Arts focusing in writing and social science. While simultaneously maintaining her GPA, Karen played soccer and wrote for the school paper too.

 Outside of work Karen can be found at the gym; she even teaches a spin class. Her avocations include cycling, surfing, tennis, ballet, hockey skating, photography, and retail therapy (e.g. shopping to the rest of us!). She’s especially fond of myhabit.com, gilt.com, hautelook.com and other flash sale sites (otherwise known as market research to us!).

As a Star Wars Character she says she’s 100% Princess Leia, except for the kissing your brother part, of course. Sort of fits her theme of partiality toward Coco Chanel, Anna Wintour, Princess Diana, and Ray Lewis. And she’s cosmopolitan, too, in her languages. Besides English, Karen is fluent in Spanish, is a strong French speaker, and as she says, “I can butcher Italian quite well.”  

Here at Dirigo, Karen interfaces with our clients in a project management role and splits the rest of her time engaged in user interface/personas, design, wireframing, blogging, social marketing, market researching, and all around best practices.

 Her all-time favorite movie is The Godfather. Guess why and then call her to find out?