What it's like to be a designer in the current year, what difficulties we all face and what soft skills everyone should invest in the following years so that they become future-proof in their discipline.

1. UI/UX Designer
in the year 2020
(and beyond)
D E V E L O P E R S D A Y – N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 9
L e n a L e k k o u – e . l e k k o u @ s a e . e d u - @ l e n a l e k k o u

2. Hi! I am Lena : )
Head of Web at SAE Athens
Multidisciplinary Designer
Creative Human Kind
Teaching Creativity, Visual Design &
User Centered Design Courses
Co-Organizer:
Athens Gamification Meetup
Athens Digital Design Meetup (soon!)
Angular Athens Meetup
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3. UI/UX Designer
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4. The UI / UX Designer
the obvious parts
UI = User Interface (are they all interfaces? what about conversations? what about
sound?)
UX = User Experience (it’s not just the experience with the product / interface, it’s
also what is going on before and after that experience, users’ emotions too and how it’s
changing users’ lives, for better or for worse)
Designer = a person who plans the look of workings of something
prior to it being made, by preparing drawings or plans (by google
definition)
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5. The UI / UX Designer
the not so obvious parts

6. UI / UX Designer
Web Designer
Front-end Designer
Multidisciplinary Designer
Interaction Designer
CX Designer
Product Designer
Service Designer
Graphic Designer
Motion Designer
Digital Designer
Experience Designer
(the list is endless)

7. UI / UX Designer
Web Designer
Front-end Designer
Multidisciplinary Designer
Interaction Designer
CX Designer
Product Designer
Service Designer
Graphic Designer
Motion Designer
Digital Designer
Experience Designer

8. The UI / UX Designer
that extinct wild animal

9. Who can become
UI / UX Designer?
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10. Anyone who is
Open-Minded,
Imaginative,
Creative,
Empathetic,
Resourceful.
“I can’t be a UI/UX
Designer, my drawing
skills are terrible”
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11. What’s all this
UI/UX fuzz about?
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12. Complex Projects,
Complex Users,
Various Interfaces,
Various Interactions,
New Experiences,
Rapid changes in
Technology
“We need a junior
service designer for this
new website redesign
project.”
“We seek for a UI/UX
Front-End Developer
that knows Angular”
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13. In 2017, Adobe spoke to 500 managers and department heads working in UX
design and asked them about their needs and hiring priorities.
Some 87% of those surveyed said that hiring more UX designers was the top
priority for the organization, higher than graphic designers and product
managers, and tying with software developers for the top hiring spot.
A huge 73% of managers said they planned to double the number of UX
designers in their organization in the next five years.
https://www.uxdesigninstitute.com/blog/want-a-career-in-ux/
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14. “UX is one of the most difficult roles for companies to fill,” says John
Dennehy. “There is a shortage of experienced professionals so demand is
currently outstripping supply. Many internal and agency recruiters struggle to
fill UX roles because there’s a knowledge gap in terms of what UXers do, how
do you assess them, and how do you even find them. As a result, many UX
roles remain unfilled.”
“There is a lack of ‘ready for work’ UX talent available, a notable skills
shortage. As such, competition is high amongst hiring parties who are trying
to hire UX professionals at all levels. This is most notable at the mid to
senior experience level.”
https://www.uxdesigninstitute.com/blog/want-a-career-in-ux/
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15. In Greece, the problem is even bigger.
My advice for the companies :
Invest in junior or inexperienced UI / UX Designers, invest in their on-
going learning process and help them grow and become seniors inside
your company.
And another advice:
Trust your users and involve them in the process from the very first day.
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16. Soft & Hard
Skills
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17. Soft & Hard Skills
Empathy
“The role of a designer is to be
the voice of and advocate for
the end user.”
“Empathy starts with an
awareness of others and an
ability to detect their emotions
and understand their
perspective.”
Storytelling
“Effectively envisioning ideas
and putting them into a more
strategic framework.”
“Being able to share your ideas
and bring others on board
helps designers be strong
advocates for their own work.”
Prototyping
“As they have an idea, great
designers put pen to paper, or
pixels on screen, or just start
building something as a way
of working out their process”
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The 3 Mindsets of Great Interaction Designers
that are futureproof

18. Soft & Hard Skills
Visual
Communication
Cross-Platform
Design
Information
Architecture
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that are futureproof
You need to know how to
communicate your ideas and
share information through
visual grammar.
We are not designing only for
laptops & mobile devices any
more, so that’s why we need to
have a more multidisciplinary
approach.
Information & Data are
everywhere and we need to
create more structured
experiences with them.

19. Soft & Hard Skills
Creative Thinking Collaboration &
Teamwork
Adaptability &
Fluid Approach
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that are futureproof
We need to be creative, think
out of the box and find ideas &
solutions with different ways.
What are the chances of
working alone? I will say
almost zero.
Everything is changing,
everything is fluid so do we!
Don’t get stuck on one
process, one tool, one coding
language just because you
feel safe.

20. Soft & Hard Skills
Digital Interaction Quality Control
@ l e n a l e k k o u
that are futureproof
Systematic Problem
Solving Techniques
A Design System, a Problem
Solving System, a whatever-you-
name-it system : )
You need to be methodical and
well organized when you solve a
problem.
Observe & Experiment with the
different kind of interactions
we have in our digital world.
Even if robots will do our job,
we will always need a set of
human eyes to check the
quality of the final product /
software/ interface.

21. Soft & Hard Skills
Data Analysis
& Research
Data-Drive
decision making
Curiosity &
Imagination
@ l e n a l e k k o u
that are futureproof
Learn how to find the right data
& how to analyze them.
Then learn how to take
decisions according to the data
you have collected & analyze.
That’s t he most important!
Be Curious
Be Imaginative
Be Human!

22. We need to find multidisciplinary solutions to
the great challenges of our time in order to
continue to live and thrive on this planet
“

23. Should YOU
the Developer
learn UI/UX Design?
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24. Should ME
the Designer
learn coding?
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25. Should my boss
learn UI/UX Design
AND coding?
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26. Yes YOU should!
Yes I should!
Yes HE/SHE should!
Above all we need to
learn how to work
together as a team.
We need to understand
the process and the
importance of our
disciplines.
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27. “They knew more
about technology than
their manager”
“43% of respondents
also said their
organization was being
impeded by a lack o
quality training and
learning”
S k i l l s U p S t a t i s t i c s - 2 0 1 8

28. An architect would understand the properties
of concrete, so why wouldn’t a designer
understand the properties of code? —Aarron
Walter, VP of Design Education at InVision
“
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29. Coding experience makes designers more
attractive to potential employers
UI/UX kills makes developers more attractive
to potential employers
“
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30. A Developer that knows UX will understand why the
code he/she produce should be useful, usable &
desirable.
A Designer that knows how to code will understand if
his/her designs is “doable”.
A Manager that has a spherical knowledge will
understand better his employees.
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31. The problem is that they all have to create a 360
degrees mindset, BUT that doesn’t mean that their
everyday job will be to do ALL!
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32. UI/UX Portfolio
(preparing for the real world)
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33. The UI/ UX Portfolio
your portfolio is YOU
o Find something that you are passionate about
o Go out there and talk to other professionals and other humans
in general
o Attend events, conferences and other meetups
o You have to be open to new opportunities
o Failure is the key to success
o It’s a never ending learning procedure
o Inspiration comes from EVEYWHERE
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34. Thank You : )
“Choose a job you love, and you will
never have to work a day in your life“
Confucius
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