My process begins with concept and ideation with focus on user-centered design. I start by gathering inspiration from competitor and comparative analysis. Building upon proven conventions, I create low-fidelity wireframes and user journeys to balance business and user needs, leading to delightful experiences.

With the product thinking established, I use Figma to craft high-fidelity designs. Leveraging shared components and design libraries, I build out each screen using master frames. My goal is to create pixel perfect specs that provide clear direction for my front-end team to follow.

Once my high-fidelity user journeys are complete, I string together a sharable prototype. This step establishes clear context for how the product will be experienced by the end user. The sharable prototype is also used to validate the experience through user testing.

The heart of every great design system is a solid Style-Guide. This establishes atom level elements like typography, color palette, grids, icons, effect styles and interaction settings. I have helped lead visual language design sprints that define tone, mood and aesthetics which set a cohesive direction that marketing and product design teams can follow and learn to expand.

I have expertise for setting up component libraries that facilitate cross-functional teams to build with shared components. By leveraging component libraries, organizations can reduce design and engineering debt. The shared specs also provide holistic consistency across domain teams and products while setting clear directions for front-end engineers to craft their own versions in coding tools like Storybook.

Once component libraries are expertly crafted using auto-layout and shared styles, I then write supporting documentation for dos and don’ts. These guidelines outline proper and improper ways to use each component through lists and visual examples that put each component into greater context. These guidelines become key in helping new team members quickly gain understanding for their usage.

I first begin with a research plan that outlines participant demographics, user tasks and required insights. In cases where we seek qualitative feedback, in-person interviews are ideal. This type of interview allows me to conduct in-depth analysis of user psychology for likes and dislikes of various topics. After testing sessions complete, I gather insights and note themes which guide optimization of usability pain-points and refine copy writing.

For instances where quantitative feedback is required, unmoderated tests is ideal. I start with a screener that permeates users that match my demographic needs. I then build out tasks that can be completed through the shared prototype. Along their journey I ask for participants to talk us through their decision making, answer questions and rate each step of the experience. I save quotes and tag video clips that speak to the insights we are looking to validate.

To understand who our target user base is, I create persona maps that outline the most common product users. These maps include their age, device preference, likes, dislikes, needs and pain-points. Having clarity for who is using the product helps curate an experience that addresses the most common user needs. Personas also help give clear direction for how to build a screener that yields the most relevant participants.