Jeremy D. Young

User Experience Leadership and Design

I create compelling, usable experiences on any platform. I am inquisitive and genuine, with a deep background in web technologies and touch screen interfaces. I have both a development and design background, which means I can speak fluently to multi-disciplinary teams to shepherd ideas with the best combination of practicality and delight. I approach every new task as if I can learn something new, even if it seems familiar at first. I advocate for my users to ensure their needs are met. And above all else, I strongly believe in an Agile process that measures success and learns quickly from failure. I believe that small, incremental changes with a solid but malleable long-term vision are the way to build the best products for all stakeholders. Start with your team's experience, do your research to fill the gaps, learn as you go, and smile along the way.

Design Motivations

My thoughts on User Experience design that sum up who I am as a professional:

  • Understand your intuition as a designer. Intuition is not just whim, it is the summary of your experience, the driver of vision, and the instigator of breakthroughs.
  • If you only design by example, you will only design to the status quo. You must be willing to think for yourself and take a calculated risk to make a breakthrough.
  • I have empathy for my users and my team. The deeper this idea drives into a company, the more time everyone has for real work.
  • Know when to deprioritize a feature, even a pet idea.
  • Listen. Carefully.
  • Measure user intent with A/B testing whenever possible, because it will create the most familiar environment for user feedback.
  • Articulate your ideas the fastest way possible, so you get feeedback as fast as possible.

Management Style

I am a nurturer who looks for ways to show off team member strengths, so they may shine and build confidence. I give credit not just because it's the right thing to do, but to build solid cross-departmental relationships. I take pride in being an effective Mentor. That not only means positive reinforcement, but also constructive critique when something does not sit right with me. With senior team members, I want people that are better than I am at some aspect of the job, because we should all be learning from each other. I am practical and will defer to cross-functional experitise, but I always push for the best possible outcome for the user.