My Process

  • Empathize and discover

    I like to dig deep to get to the source of current user pain points and user needs. In my previous experience, I have done this by interviewing stakeholders, analyzing current data findings, and reviewing customer feedback comments. Through course projects, I have conducted observational studies, interviews, card sorting, and surveys to gather user input and establish themes. If redesigning a current product, I may perform a Heuristic Evaluation or Cognitive Walkthrough. All of this information combined assists in narrowing down the problem scope and ensuring requirements align with both the stakeholder and user needs.

  • Define

    Once discovery is complete, I am able to define the problem being designed for. Because of my Business Analyst background, I like to map out user flows and formulate user stories to get a holistic understanding of what I am solving for. Each user story is associated with the requirements at hand. By defining the problem prior to starting the design, I am able get a broad view of all problems needing to be solved before beginning my solutioning.

  • Ideate and design

    When working through my design, I continue following my human-centered design beliefs by always keep the user at the forefront. In my experience, I have started ideation in a team setting with competitive analysis and sketching. I strongly believe collaboration early in the process is essential for gathering a variety of possible solutions. After sketching, I like taking my strongest ideas into low-fidelity wireframes. While working at the low-fidelity stage, I’ll establish the information architecture of the page and ensure proper hierarchy in semantic order. Following low-fidelity wireframes, I will move into mid-fidelity designs that will be used to prototype.

  • Test

    After the first phase of design is complete, I test the prototype with users to gather initial feedback. Generally, I like having 2-3 main scenarios I would like the user to complete. When conducting usability testing, I follow a test protocol to ensure each participant receives the same questions. Through my coursework, I have conducted A/B testing as well when appropriate for the use case.

  • Iterate

    Once feedback has been gathered from the initial prototype, it’s time to analyze what worked and what needs improvement. I’ll take my mid-fidelity prototype back to the drawing board to make adjustments where needed. If time permits, a second round of testing will be conducted before a final design is settled upon.

  • Deliver

    When UX/UI and user stories are handed over to the development team, my work does not end there. Through my previous experience, I follow an open-communication approach through the delivery of the UX/UI. I believe agile works best when all team members can quickly dissolve any problems and have constructive feedback in helping the process achieve an on-time release.

  • Reflect

    As I mentioned previously, I am a strong believer in iterative design, and I believe an experience is never fully done. There is always room for improvement. After release, I like to spend time reading customer comments and analyzing where future enhancements can be made. With my product management background, I follow a “Now, Next, Future” roadmap approach with placement of enhancements.

My Principles

  • Human-centered design

    As shown in my process, I strongly believe in following a human-centered design approach. Human-centered design allows the user to be at the forefront, and human perspective is taken into consideration at every step along the way. All of my principles are rooted in this value.

  • Accessible for all

    If it can’t be used by all, then it is not universally accessible. Let me say that louder for those in the back – if it can’t be used by ALL, then it is NOT universally accessible. I design with accessibility in mind throughout the entire process; accessibility should never be an afterthought. I have an understanding of WCAG and have assisted in creating semantic order to assist developers with how to announce the page.

  • Intuitive and simple

    Simplicity is key. So often designers over-engineer a problem with more features than needed or by making the product unnecessarily complex. I’ve worked with complex projects and understand the importance of making a product as simplified as possible.

  • Agile methodologies

    Both my current and previous work have been in agile environments. On the product management side, I have seen the added value of agile design and have worked side-by-side with a Principle UX Designer to iterate and keep open communication with the development team to rapidly release.

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