My final semester in the UX program at Purdue, I acted as a Team Lead and oversaw a team of eight as we completed a sponsored project from P&G.

The goal of this project was to increase the ease and awareness of buying diapers from the Amazon baby registry for both registry Creators and Gifters.

As a team, we conducted qualitative research and design iterations for the purposes of making diapers a more integral part of the Baby Registry gifting experience by creating opportunities for practical/emotional appeal around purchasing necessities

Team Lead: I implemented UX strategy and project planning to communicate project goals, milestones, and final deliverables to our industry sponsor. I also delegated appropriate tasks between team members to complete research and design deliverables while adjusting project goals and strategy as necessary.

Storyteller: Communicating copious amounts of project work required me to work diligently as a storyteller. I had to decide what information needed to be expressed and communicate that information from the viewpoint of our user groups both in presentations and in reports.

Mentor: As the more experienced of two Team Leads, I championed the majority of the project strategy, planning, and delegation. I mentored my younger Team Lead and Team Members, encouraging them to take ownership and pride in the project.

Research Findings: Included in our project documentation was a breakdown of our research findings. We completed several user interviews for the purposes exposing motivations and pain points around purchasing gifts, and analyzed an existing study’s findings to inform the project goals.

Informed Design Recommendations: The team created a variety of feature recommendations which we implemented into high-fidelity prototypes of the Amazon interface. These recommendations focused on created moments for emotional/practical appeal when purchasing necessities and were informed by our research. We evaluated these designs with a user survey and iterated accordingly.

During my fourth semester in the UX program at Purdue, I acted as a Project Owner and oversaw two teams as they worked on two sponsored projects.

One project was a cross-cultural effort between my team in the US and a team in China. This one dealt with blue-sky ideation in the autonomous vehicle area.

My other team worked with a company to and develop a new platform for Purdue students to help them learn UX skills, and then connect them with interested employers based on their skillset.

Project Owner: I met with my two teams weekly to conduct stand-up meetings and check in on their progress. I also took notes during meetings with sponsors and gave feedback on documentation and presentations.

Mentor: As part of my role, I conducted 1 on 1’s with each member of both teams. These meetings were used to check in on the indivudal’’s progress and goals, as well as to talk about them as an individual. I had multiple conversations with younger students where I was able to share some of my experiences and knowledge. One of my team members even dubed our sessions as “UX therapy sessions.”

Meeting Notes: I attended my teams’ weekly and biweekly meetings and took notes over feedback from sponsors and our professors. I then discussed their feedback with my teams to formulate action plans.

Feedback: As my teams developed their project documentation and gave presentations, I went over their documents and gave feedback. I helped them develop their narratives and make plans to address feedback.

Leadership Recommendations: By observing my teams, I was able to mentor and encourage those who were interested in taking leadership positions. At the end of the semester, I assessed each individual’s strengths and areas of growth and gave recommendations on where they could be the greatest asset on teams in the future.

This Purdue UX project was sponsored by PEAKmind LLC. They are a mental health advocacy company focused on creating a platform for companies to use to increase employee mental health and overall well-being.

My team was tasked with analyzing the current web platform and offering suggestions on how to make it more competitive in its current market. The project was largely research-based with findings synthesis and recommendations offered at the end.

Team Lead: I acted as a lead for this team where I was in charge of planning, delegation, and execution of every part of the project process. I focused on aligning my team around a common narrative and challenged them to constantly ask questions to move the project forward.

Project Documentation: Outlines the process and findings accumulated during the project

Structured Sketches Document: Though primarily a research-based project, our team did complete some low-fidelity sketches that we handed off with recommendations and rationale from our research

This project was an assignment that challenged me to think about design and UX from a critical, ethical lens. My team’s goal was to create a supportive resource for Asian and Asian-American students to utilize during a time when Anti-Asian sentiments and microaggressions have increased in light of the coronavirus pandemic.

As a requirement for this project, we practiced collaborative design in the form of a co-design workshop with Asian American students.

Learning Point: The collaborative design process and focus on advocacy turned this project into one of the most eye-opening and truly rewarding projects that I completed during my time at Purdue.

Collaborative Researcher: The aim of this project was to get us to think about designing with people. I was a major contributor to my team’s co-design protocol. A major focus for me was to make participants feel comfortable sharing their stories on such a sensitive topic.

Practicing Web Development: A requirement for this project was that we produce a functioning website the fit our goal. This was my first time practicing coding languages like CSS, HTML, and JavaScript.

Learning Point: UX designers need to be aware of the process of creating the experiences that they design. The value that I got from learning these coding languages was that there are definitely limitations to what can be done.