Hi! Welcome,
My names Kathryn (or Kat) and I've been in the design world since sophomore year of college when I decided to major in entrepreneurship. Often times, people think of entering into entrepreneurship when they want to create a business, something new that will leave an impact. I ended up majoring in entrepreneurship because I liked the process of how an idea came about. I loved thinking of ideas, realizing they were bad and then pivoting to something new. I loved having to compromise between business values and creative missions all while being on a team that collaborated and built together. Majoring in entrepreneurship is why I ended up in UX and has contributed greatly to the process that I have today.
My process is a skillset that I have grown to be proud of. I ensure that it's adaptable and thorough while being fun and creative to move through. I know portfolios tend to be skimmed, so I'll lay this part out in steps with the goals and focus points that I have for each part.
Step 1: Discover
Discovery for me is all about asking questions. I like to figure out what the real ask is and determine if it's different from the need. During this stage, I like to dig into data, analyze current experiences and figure out what questions need to be asked. I also like to think about the future, where do we need to be now, in order to get where we want to go?
Step 2: Define
This step is all about clarifying the problems determined in step 1 and learning how to communicate them. I like to fill in knowledge gaps during this stage and rely heavily on maps like service blueprints or user journeys to understand the experience. Communication is crucial during this stage and it's important to determine which techniques work best to build trust and collaboration with varying audiences.
Step 3: Develop
When I'm designing I like to keep 3 things in mind. The first one involves making sure that the need (not necessarily the ask) is being solved for in a thoughtful and sustainable way. The second thing is making sure that I am capitalizing on my creativity which I like to do by going on walks and taking time to reset. Finally, I make sure that my work is always building something up. Maybe it's a small feature but I can host brainstorming sessions to build relationships with the team. Or maybe its a feature where money is involved so I can make sure I'm building trust by prioritizing transparency.
At the end of the day, design is all about making something so I like to make sure I'm making something that does good and works well.
Step 4: Deliver
Documentation and compromises, thats what I prioritize during the delivery phase. While I like to pull in developers in the previous 3 stages, sometimes information comes out at the end or sometimes the timeframe changes. As a result, I find that it's important to put boundaries around the design and label some parts as crucial, and others as enhancements for later. Having the ability to be patient, collaborative and provide thorough documentation is what I find works best during this stage.
Now, some other fun things about me
While I really like my process, I also really really like dogs and coffee. I enjoy skiing, I've learned to make bread and Duolingo constantly reminds me I need to keep up with my german. My favorite color is orange, I think Hydroflasks are better than Yetis and halloween is my favorite holiday 🎃
If you think we'd work well together, and you love (or maybe hate) some of my fun things, please reach out! I'd love to meet you.
Check out some of my other work here
Articles
Affinity mapping: bridging the gap between research and UX design
How to conduct a UX audit
How to create an affinity map for research
Affinity mapping: bridging the gap between research and UX design
How to conduct a UX audit
How to create an affinity map for research