Alumni Spotlight: Daniela Jorge ’90, Chief Design Officer at Capital One

Long before she was leading design at one of the United States’ largest financial institutions, Daniela Jorge ’90 was sitting in the backseat of her father’s car, wondering why things didn’t work the way they should. Why was the window button placed there? Why hadn’t it been tested beforehand? Her father’s response was simple: maybe she should think about pursuing design.

Daniela went on to earn a BFA in industrial and product design and a master’s degree in computer graphics design from the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). She has since held leadership roles at several top US-based companies.

Today, as chief design officer at Capital One, Daniela still approaches problems the same way—with curiosity, empathy, and a belief that design begins by understanding people.

In this "Alumni Spotlight," Daniela discusses what made her fall in love with design, how her time at Graded prepared her to study and work abroad, and why diverse perspectives remain essential to creating meaningful, human-centered experiences.
 

When you think back to your Graded days, what are some of your favorite memories?

I transferred to Graded during high school because I decided I wanted to attend university in the United States. Even though I was only at Graded for two years, my favorite memories are of the friendships that I made. Graded did a really good job structuring breaks and lunch periods. There was always time to make connections. 

I vividly remember the fashion show. I was a backstage volunteer. I have memories of that day because I loved the rush of a live event—helping everyone get ready in the library and organizing everything.

Although I was at Graded for only a short time, I'm so grateful for the experience I had and the quality of the education I received. So many of my classmates have gone on to do incredible things, and the fact that you end up with such an impressive network is pretty cool.
 

Was anyone at Graded influential in your decision to study design?

Definitely. I already knew I wanted to study design when I joined Graded, but two teachers really stood out:

Ms. Diane Burger, my art teacher, encouraged me to build my portfolio so I could get into a strong college, and also allowed me to pursue independent projects. You have to submit a lot of your artwork to apply to design schools, and she was flexible in helping me build that. She also helped me find and research different schools. When I decided I wanted to attend a summer design program, she was the one who told me about the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) Pre-college summer program, helped me apply, and wrote my letter of recommendation. Without her, I don't know that I would have been as successful.

The second person was my college office counselor, Ms. Clemenson. After I came back from RISD, I realized I didn't want to attend an art school for university. I wanted something more multidisciplinary. So, I completely changed my list of schools right before application season. My counselor was amazing at helping me narrow down my options. She's the one who pointed me to RIT, and I really enjoyed the program. I never would have thought to apply there without her encouragement.

 

 

Tell us about your introduction to digital design tools.

Graded had an amazing computer lab. At that time, very few schools had one. I took classes with Ms. Arippol in the lab and learned to draw digitally using computers. Back then, you couldn't buy Macs in Brazil, but a classmate from the US, Sara, had moved to Brazil with one and sold it to me so I could practice at home. I spent my weekends in front of the computer creating designs with Photoshop. That's how I fell in love with computers and design.

Collaboration is a core component of a Graded education. Can you recall a group project that helped you understand its value or helped you develop as a leader?

In speech class, we always had to work as a group on presentations or debates, practicing a lot outside of school hours. We had to define roles, figure out who would do what, and play to each other’s strengths. The same was true for the fashion show. There were many group projects during my time—everything from working with a lab partner to study groups.

Working with others is so important. Those experiences helped me take on leadership roles very early in my professional journey.
 

Looking back, how did your time at Graded prepare you to study abroad and eventually lead design teams in the United States?

I joined Graded halfway through high school. I had to adapt to a new group of people, a new environment, a new curriculum, and a new set of teachers. Learning to be adaptable, make friends, and navigate all of those changes was a preview of what I would encounter when I eventually moved to the US. 

High school is a challenging time to change schools and leave all your best friends behind, but Graded was so welcoming that it was easy to fit in and feel good about the changes I was experiencing. Because Graded made it so positive, I don't remember it being difficult at all. That helped me go to college feeling confident. Without Graded, I wouldn't have had the same level of confidence.
 

When did it first click for you that design could become a career?

I always knew I wanted to do something creative, but I wasn't sure what. Initially, I thought maybe advertising. 

My dad worked for a car company. He got to test the cars and would submit reports on them before they were released to the public. I was always questioning design features in the car. One time, I remember sitting in the back seat, asking why my leg kept hitting the button that made the window roll down. ‘Why would they put the button at that level?’ My dad said I should really think about product or industrial design. So, I started researching and fell in love with the field. 

In seventh grade, I attended a week-long design conference and convinced my best friend to come with me. We were the only teenagers in the audience, surrounded by professionals. Many of the speakers were well-known Italian designers who walked through their creative processes, showed the products they had developed, and explained the decisions behind them. I absorbed everything I could.
 

How has being a Brazilian and an immigrant shaped the way you work and lead?

I'm a big believer that diverse perspectives lead to better outcomes, especially in creative or problem-solving fields.

The immigrant experience has really shaped who I am. As an immigrant, you naturally develop empathy because you're constantly adapting or observing dynamics. It makes you better at putting yourself in other people's shoes. It makes you curious, versatile, and patient. These are all helpful traits when you're trying to drive change. The more you understand people, the better you lead. 

The customers we serve are diverse as well. The more people you have working on solutions for those customers who reflect that customer base, the better you will be at recognizing what matters and what you might be overlooking when making decisions.

We might look at a piece of content and think it is super clear. Maybe it's clear to someone whose first language is English or who has high financial literacy, but not to someone without that background. The more diverse the perspectives, the more helpful it is, because it brings a higher level of awareness to everyone.

 

 

What has been one of the biggest challenges of leading design at a large company?

One thing they don't teach in design school is business acumen. Because I didn’t have that background, reading financial statements or following discussions on business metrics were skills I had to learn along the way.

Now, the biggest challenge I have is helping the designers on my team develop those skills so they can speak the same language as the people they work with.

You can't just say, ‘Oh, look at this beautiful shape,’ or, ‘If we do this here, it will look so nice.’ You have to explain how the design recommendations you're making will help customers and, in turn, support the business.

What does a typical day look like for you as chief design officer at Capital One?

It's a lot of meetings. I spend a lot of time collaborating with others and reviewing projects my team is working on. We focus on every detail of the user experience to make sure it's as good as it can be.

So, a lot of my time is spent on design reviews, and the rest is usually one-on-ones with my team members or partners we collaborate with.

One of the things we oversee is the Capital One app. We think about whether customers can easily find the information they’re looking for and do what they need to, like pay a credit card bill.

We also design internal tools to make sure employees have what they need to do their jobs efficiently. It’s cool because we get to observe how people work and figure out how to make their jobs easier and better. We also think about how it looks, but if it doesn’t work well, then it doesn't matter if it’s pretty. We always say that form follows function. 

Is there a project from your career that has felt especially meaningful?

My first job out of grad school was with Kodak. It was the early days of the web, and not many companies had websites. But Kodak was doing really innovative technical work and was willing to take risks. We built a feature that allowed people to upload a photo and create a digital postcard, which they could send via email. They could add a border, stickers, and messages. There were also different themes, like Valentine’s Day. 

We started getting emails from customers sharing stories: ‘My grandmother's first email was a postcard that I created on Kodak.’ Or, ‘This is how we announced that we were pregnant to our family.’ There was an emotional connection to that work. The way we leveraged technology to bring people together and create memories has always stuck with me.
 

What advice would you give to students who hope to pursue a career in design?

One reason I chose RIT was that its projects were sponsored by companies. Starting junior year, companies would come in, present real requirements, and critique our designs throughout the quarter. I'd recommend looking for a program that has some connection to industry, so it's not just theory that you're learning, but also constraints, budgets, and real-world expectations. Take some business classes—I wish I had done that in college. And be super curious. Our field is changing so much, with AI transforming both how we create and how we work. Be a learner. Always pay attention to what's happening and how technology is transforming things.
 

How do you see AI influencing your field, and what excites or concerns you most about what’s ahead?

I think both the opportunity and the concern come down to the same question: how do we keep people at the center? We should consider not only the value AI provides, but also the consequences of using it. 

At Capital One, we're being very thoughtful about where we use AI. What is exciting to me is that AI can create hyper-personalized experiences. Today, we design for large groups, identifying common problems and creating a single solution that works for most people. It's hard to build something that is accessible for everyone but is also functional for someone with a very specific need. But with AI, you can do that. It can be much more like a tailored experience designed just for you. 

 

 

What does life look like for you outside of work?

I have two dogs that I really enjoy spending time with. They're the center of our world.

My partner is from Montenegro, and we have a house there. We go every year and explore other parts of Europe while we're there. Montenegro is a beautiful, tiny country. I think it’s just now being discovered as a tourist destination. It has the most beautiful beaches with crystal-clear water, and, as the name suggests, super tall mountains. There are medieval structures like forts and castles, as well as beautiful stone houses. You can travel by car from the north coast to the south coast of the country in just three hours. 
 

If someone were visiting Montenegro for the first time, what shouldn’t they miss?

Take a drive down the entire coast, because the landscape changes as you go from the north, near Croatia, to the south, close to Albania. I also appreciate all the walled old towns. There's Kotor, which is pretty famous and has cats everywhere. All the shopkeepers and the residents of the Old Town take care of them.

Another thing is to go on a day trip by boat. You can admire the country from the water, where you can really see the beautiful mountains and coastline.