Understand

I first aim to understand the problem we're trying to solve and why it's worth solving, usually from stakeholder interviews, discovery research, and working sessions.

Brainstorm

I write "How Might We" statements around specific pain points so the team can focus on brainstorming around what will make the biggest positive impact.

Prioritize

I work closely with product and engineering to map ideas to customer and business value, then prioritize the high value ideas by technical feasibility.

CONCEPTUALIZE

Creating sketches or conceptual wireframes of the core experience helps align teams towards a common vision and get early feedback from users and peers.

WIREFRAME

I work closely with UX Writing on wireframes, designing just enough for users to react to so I don't waste too much time going in the wrong direction.

Validate

At this point the design is more than a concept but not yet pixel perfect—a great time for users to tell us how well the experience helps them complete a task.

ITERATE & Prototype

I work through dozens of iterations, get peer feedback that reframes my whole approach, then rework some more until I'm left with an ultra simple experience.

TEST

There’s nothing quite like the real thing, so my goal is to get in depth feedback on a design that’s nearly user-ready, as to limit surprises later.

REFINE

Now comes the polish. I make updates based on user feedback and ensure all my design patterns are up to date. As designs are dev ready, I hand off to engineering.

"We can't get this in for MVP."

I make sure we’re not too lean by trimming out the parts that help users successfully complete the core task.

"We can’t wait for requirements."

Requirements are critical to the success of a project; this usually means it’s time to weigh goals against risks.

"There's no time for research."

I find ways to understand user needs through a remote testing, surveys, or reading competitor reviews.