About Ryan

I'm Ryan (he/him), a designer from Des Moines, Iowa. I like to nerd out about many UX-related topics, like behavioral psychology and color constancy. I'm a certified Object Oriented UX (OOUX) strategist, which is just one tool I use to unite cross-functional teams during projects.

Design coaching and mentorship has been a consistent thread throughout my career. I have headed committees, spoken at events, co-organized meetups, and reviewed applicant portfolios. One of my proudest career accomplishments has been helping a past employer institute a new hybrid design and front-end role.

I am an advocate for accessibility, driven by the empathy required for user-centered design. I don't shy away from user feedback and prefer to be an active participant is usability testing sessions.

I have extensive working experience with HTML and CSS, in addition to CSS pre-processors like Sass. I also know enough JavaScript to be (harmlessly) dangerous. Though these front-end skills serve me well in striking a balance between feasible and innovative experiences, design is first and foremost my one true love.

My Top 5 Strengths

• Learner: A desire to learn and continuously improve. The process of learning can be more exciting than the final outcome.
• Achiever: Enjoys being busy and productive. Works hard and possesses a great deal of stamina.
• Deliberative: Careful and vigilant. Anticipates obstacles. Takes care in making decisions or choices.
• Consistency: Keenly aware of the need to treat people the same. Sets and follows clear rules and procedures for everyone.
• Restorative: Adept at dealing with problems. Good at figuring out what is wrong and resolving it.

Experience

Director of Product Design, P3+Uplift

I coach a small team of User Experience & Product design consultants, in addition to serving as an individual contributor within various cross-functional teams that deliver innovative tech solutions for clients in the agricultural, insurance, finance, and healthcare industries.

Senior UX Designer, Two Rivers Marketing

I led the User Experience practice for a full-service B2B marketing agency. Primarily focused on developing UX, discovery, and design thinking offerings for a variety of clients, mainly in the industrial, construction, and technology industries. I led discovery projects and proof-of-concept initiatives for new business, and worked with other agency disciplines on journey mapping, service design, user experience design, accessibility standards, and UI design activities.

UI/UX Designer, Hy-Vee

Shepherded design and accessibility efforts for a united company design system that prioritized accessibility, fostered collaboration, and increased efficiency for teams building digital products. Also led UX and design for a universal navigation header on all customer-facing websites.

As a UI/UX designer on cross-functional teams at Hy-Vee, I created and tested wireframes, interface designs, and interactive prototypes for features and products — spanning early stage concepts to official launch. I worked closely with developers to ensure quality and accessibility, strictly adhering to WCAG standards. I also planned and conducted qualitative and quantitative user research to identify areas for improvement and refine problem statements.

Experience Designer, Accenture

As a UI & UX designer on cross-functional Agile teams, I translated broad ideas and business requirements into design flows and practical user interfaces, adhering to accessibility best practices and WCAG standards. Through quick prototypes, I gathered feedback on ideas and concepts in order to align everyone on goals and inspire stakeholders. Collaboration with developers and project managers was fundamental, as well as being able to execute within unknown or vague boundaries.

Project Lead, Visionary Services

Worked as designer, front end developer, and project manager for roughly 3-6 concurrent small business projects at any given time. On larger team projects, duties relegated to specifically design or front end development.

Oversaw projects from start to finish, including pre-sales pitch meetings and final project launch, focusing on accessibility and performance. Frequently collaborated with developers to clarify and enhance design of final product.

Design duties include facilitating design meetings and brainstorm sessions with team or clients, wireframing important tools and user flows, user interface design, creating HTML prototypes, and designing to WCAG standards. In many cases, responsible for turning finalized design into front end code.

Graphic Designer, ABC Sign & Display

Created designs for a variety of client projects, including apparel, marketing materials, building signage, vehicle wraps, and commemorative coins. Also designed logos for startup and rebranded businesses. Worked closely with sales staff to understand full scope of design needs and collaborated with production crew to fulfill vision for design concepts.