When I took over user engagement for the mobile app, I realised the need for a better way to design in-app messages.

I wanted communications to be clean and consumable, with a good balance of text, illustration, and negative space. Unfortunately, the team didn’t have a designated designer.

So, I thought myself Figma, I began creating layouts with design elements that were consistent with brand guidelines. That little endeavour ended up becoming a sort of mini design system for the team. It wasn’t perfect, but it was a start.

In my product management capacity, I began to get more involved with design. I transitioned from quick napkin sketches to low-fidelity wireframes in applications like Balsamiq and eventually, to using Figma to convey my thoughts and ideas.

Conversations with designers became deeper and design directions were debated so that our users ultimately benefited from our collective decisions.

That led me down the path of taking up a few courses in UX. I think it adds a lot of value to my role, helping me have more consequential collaborations with designers.

I’m currently in my final leg of Google’s UX design professional certificate. In fact, my first project is displayed on this website. Do check it out.