SuperUltra | May 2026 - Current

Digital product designer and UX lead at a product and AI studio, bringing human factors and behavioural science to government and enterprise systems.

» Led the design of a provincial land expropriation platform, from discovery synthesis and flow mapping across four expropriation types to an MVP prototype handed over for build in under five months.

» Converted paper-based road condition assessments and an old progressive web app into a native field tablet app, designed around the conditions assessors actually work in.

» Prototyped directly in code with Claude Code, reviewing live previews with stakeholders and handing approved designs to the development partner through Figma.

» Helped define the studio’s AI-assisted design workflow, including the human review points that keep AI output accountable.

LifeQ Inc | February 2023 - January 2026

UX Manager at LifeQ, leading end-to-end design across multiple mobile and desktop healthcare applications, guiding products from concept through delivery.

» Led UX strategy and execution across a portfolio of digital health products spanning mobile and web platforms.

» Directed end-to-end design processes from discovery through release, ensuring alignment across product, engineering, and business stakeholders.

» Championed user-centred design practices to translate complex clinical and biometric data into usable, trustworthy experiences.

LifeQ Inc | April 2022 - February 2023

UX Designer at LifeQ, partnering with product and engineering teams to design and validate mobile experiences and responsive dashboards that translated complex health data into intuitive user insights.

» Collaborated cross-functionally to ideate, prototype, and deliver mobile app features and web dashboards across the digital health ecosystem.

» Applied user research, interaction design, and usability principles to simplify complex biometric metrics and derived insights.

» Designed cohesive, scalable experiences that supported consistency across multiple products and platforms.

Makuku Design | June 2021 - Current

Independent practice, alongside full-time roles combining human factors thinking, information architecture, and creative direction to craft clear, effective digital experiences.

» Designed and developed websites using human factors principles to improve usability, structure, and information delivery.

» Led creative direction and graphic design across digital assets to ensure cohesive and engaging brand experiences.

BirdLife South Africa | June 2019 - September 2020

Marketing and Events Coordinator, managing digital platforms, website experience, and large-scale fundraising events to strengthen engagement and organizational reach.

» Managed digital media platforms, producing multimedia content aligned to a structured social media strategy and content matrix.

» Provided human factors–informed website consultancy and maintenance to improve usability and engagement.

» Planned and delivered multiple successful fundraising events, including leading the end-to-end design and execution of The Virtual African Birdfair, a large-scale web-based conference experience.

Africa Wild Lodges and Safaris | April 2018 - June 2019

General Manager of a luxury safari lodge in the Okavango Delta, leading multidisciplinary teams to deliver exceptional guest experiences while overseeing operations, service strategy, and performance across all departments.

» Directed end-to-end guest experience delivery, ensuring consistently high service standards within a remote luxury environment.

» Led cross-functional lodge teams, aligning daily operations with broader hospitality and customer experience goals.

» Designed and implemented service practices that enhanced guest satisfaction, personalization, and repeat visitation.

ERGOnomics TECHnologies, Armscor (SOE) | December 2016 - March 2018

Expanded senior ergonomics leadership role providing strategic direction for human factors research programmes, scientific oversight across multidisciplinary teams, and operational management aligned to quality and commercial objectives.

» Directed multi-year human factors research planning, developing scientifically grounded proposals, cost models, and programme roadmaps.

» Provided scientific leadership to internal teams and diverse defence and commercial stakeholders, guiding research quality and client engagement.

» Oversaw operational performance and business sustainability, contributing to planning, resource allocation, and financial management.

» Established and maintained work systems, procedures, and policies supporting ISO 9001:2015 quality accreditation.

ERGOnomics TECHnologies, Armscor (SOE) | January 2009 - December 2016

Delivered specialist human factors and ergonomics consulting across research and development projects, combining project leadership, stakeholder engagement, and scientific analysis to produce evidence-based design recommendations.

» Led end-to-end ergonomics research activities including study design, data collection, analysis, and synthesis to inform complex system design decisions.

» Applied advanced human factors methods and research technologies to generate actionable insights across multidisciplinary R&D projects.

» Produced high-integrity technical reports and stakeholder presentations translating complex findings into clear design and operational recommendations.

van der Meulen, J. and de Grey Birch, C. 2015.

2nd South African Symposium on Human Factors and Aviation Safety, 2015

Nolte, Nolte & van der Meulen. 2015

Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 29(11): 88 – 93

van der Meulen, J. and Smith, JR. 2015

IEEE Multi-Disciplinary Conference on Cognitive Methods in Situation Awareness and Decision Making

van der Meulen, J. 2009.

Ergonomics Society of South Africa ESSA (Annual) conference, Port Elizabeth, South Africa