Newly revised! This is one of my favorite talks that I give to Laura Ruel's UX class at the University of North Carolina. I've updated this with more top tips! The talk covers how to prepare for the different phases of the interviewing process.
MICHELLE CHIN / @SOYSAUCECHIN PORTFOLIO – TOP TIPS: BREAKING THROUGH • Show your process - even the messy stu ff ! UX is messy and we want to see your approach.
• Include an “about me” section - we want to see that you’re a real human.
• Only include relevant work
• Don’t copy your colleagues even if you collaborated
• Represent your work honestly
• If you don’t have real-world experience, get creative
(Volunteer, create projects that go through your process, etc.)
MICHELLE CHIN / @SOYSAUCECHIN RECRUITERS: WHAT THEY WANT TO KNOW INTERVIEWING When recruiters say: They want to know: Tell me about your UX process. Do you really know what you’re talking about? Logistical questions
(visa, salary, relocation, remote working) If you meet some basic needs What kinds of tools do you use? Do you really know what you’re talking about? Why do you want to work at the company? Have you done your research?
MICHELLE CHIN / @SOYSAUCECHIN HIRING MANAGERS: WHAT THEY WANT TO KNOW INTERVIEWING When hiring managers say: They want to know: Tell me about your UX process. Do you really know what you’re talking about? What’s a UX challenge you faced and how did you resolve it? Are you capable of critical thinking? Are you someone who will help the team? Tell me how you’ve worked with other designers. Are you collaborative with other designers? What are your career next steps? Will you be staying with us for at least 3 years? What’s your hando ff process like with engineering? How closely do you work with cross-functional partners? What aspect of UX are you strongest / most passionate about? Do your strengths f it with what the team needs?
MICHELLE CHIN / @SOYSAUCECHIN DESIGN TEAMMATES: WHAT THEY WANT TO KNOW INTERVIEWING When design teammates say: They want to know: What tools do you like to use? What’s your UX process like? Do you really know your stu ff ? Tell me how you’ve worked with other designers. Can you work well with us? How do you stay current with UX trends? How passionate are you about UX? Tell me an example of when you had an idea that others didn’t like. What happened? Can you articulate your design decisions? Can you compromise when necessary? Tell me how you’ve used research to inform your decisions? Are you data driven?
Are you making objective design decisions? What are you looking for when joining a team? Do you share the same company/team values? Do you have questions for us? Do you really want to be part of this team?
MICHELLE CHIN / @SOYSAUCECHIN SOLVING DESIGN CHALLENGES Candidates can look really good on paper. Hiring managers and teams want to validate that you’re able to critically think through solutions and articulate your ideas.
Design challenges are a great way to assess this. Challenges can take the form of:
MICHELLE CHIN / @SOYSAUCECHIN NAVIGATING THE “IN BETWEENS” Each phase of the interview process is important, but so are the “in-between” times. De f initely take advantage of them.
MICHELLE CHIN / @SOYSAUCECHIN LEVELING UP As with any process, there’s always room for improvement. Once you get through the basics, you can try a few more things to “level up” your game.
soysaucechin
cyberagentdevelopers
keroyama
uxaustralia
akwkm
mewmo
aicocco
lovchikov
dieckg
afnizarnur
cassininazir
destraynor
samanthasiow
dotmariusz
revolveconf
rasmusluckow
tammielis
samlambert
bluesmoon
deanohume
lara