Julia Elman is the Design Team Manager at Zapier. She has 13 years of experience in design and technology. Known as a leader in her field, her most recent work includes the U.S. Web Design Standards project, Pulse and developing the project scoping and evaluation process for 18F Experience Design.

Prior to Zapier, Julia published a book called Lightweight Django with O’Reilly Media. She also wrote curriculum and tutorials about design and development as the Front end Engineering Instructor at the Iron Yard Academy. She has also worked with clients such as Mozilla, the Python Software Foundation, University of Chicago, Hallmark Cards and Product(RED).

In 2012, Julia co-founded Girl Develop It RDU, a non-profit organization that provides affordable programs for women interested in learning web and software development in a judgment-free environment. The organization has grown to over 2,200 members and has taught over 100 classes within the Triangle area.

Julia lives in “the sticks” in Durham, North Carolina with her partner, two kids, and a fluffy mutt named Digby. She enjoys hiking and camping and enjoys being in nature as much as possible. Her ideal day would be on top of a mountain somewhere with a picnic lunch.