My name, as you probably already know, is Allyson Wagner. I am a Northern Virginia based UX/UI designer.
My approach to UX/UI design is simple: Design for the user. Each project I take on is a new challenge to produce a natural human-computer interaction guided by well-researched design and characterized by a series of effortless actions. In order to meet this challenge, I follow the empathize, define, ideate, prototype, and test framework. This framework allows me start and end my process with the user, and use the findings that emerge through user research and testing to drive my designs and the iterative process.
My process is human-centered as I recognize the power of interaction adaptation based on individual markets. Human beings operate off of a predictive mental framework, where expectations stem from previous experience. This means that knowing why expectations differ in each market, by researching and understanding the roll previous experience has played in those expectations, can lead to the creation of not only new and innovative, but intuitive designs.
Learn a little about me.
So what experience do I have?
I currently hold a UX design contract with IDEMIA, a multinational augmented identity company. As a contractor I work within the agile framework, with teams across the world, to develop mobile and desktop applications. Designing for multiple operating systems and platforms, has provided me with a deeper understanding of the intricacies of application and device compatibility. As a contractor, I have worked with a variety of business units within the company, providing me the opportunity create design solutions for government and commercial use. In addition to user interface design, I have conducted user research using user testing.com, and tested products and software for 508 compliance issues. Compliance testing has allowed me to design proactively for accessibility, reducing the need for retrospective iteration.
Aside from my contract work, I have held two design internships.
During the fall of 2019, I took on an internship with Fin vs Fin a direct to consumer site. My primary responsibilities were evaluating the company website, making design recommendations, and implementing those changes. Throughout this experience, I learned more about direct-to-consumer marketing and the ways in which these websites can be optimized to drive more traffic (especially in terms of call-to-action design and placement). By implementing design changes and viewing their effects through Analytic websites, I learned first-hand about the importance of design in consumerism.
During the summer of 2019, I continued to build upon my Interaction Design foundation by completing a User Experience Design internship with K12, an online education company. During my internship, I worked with the product development team to research and implement a design system. I was in charge of learning about the current design system’s limitations and researching potential solutions and best practices. Each week I presented my research to the team and received feedback that continued to further my research. By participating in daily and weekly meetings, I achieved a stronger understanding of a typical User Experience Design team’s operations in addition to backend development and other company departments. Furthermore, I learned about the significance of an effective design system in providing design consistency across platforms.
View my full resume here.