This Thursday will be my last day at Yahoo! After three and a half years, I’ll be packing up my design books, dismantling my forest-cube, and turning in my purple badge. And then, after a very short break I’ll be joining the small but formidable UX team at Belkin.
I’m really excited about this new job. I’m excited to get my hands on the UX and interaction design of physical products, something I’ve been passionate about since my product design days at Stanford. I’m excited to work for a company that understands the value of UX, that wants to build products whose enjoyment and ease of use is a core differentiating feature. I’m excited to work for a company that is going to be a part of the future of green technology. And I’m excited to work for an innovative company that digs design.
My time at Yahoo has given me invaluable experience, inspiration, and friendships over the last three years. I’ve learned so many things, like how to design for global audiences, what it’s like to launch a product to millions of customers, the difference between designing for entertaining diversion versus specific tasks, and so much more. I will miss all of the incredibly smart and talented people I met there, and sincerely hope I’ll get the chance to work with them again in the future.
Hopefully once I get into the swing of things at the new job, I’ll be able to resume posting here on a reasonable schedule, now that I’m done with all of the time and effort of interviewing. (By the way, I have a lot of ideas for posts based on my experience interviewing as a UXer, so let me know if you might be interested in hearing about the things I’ve learned.) In the mean time I’ll be packing boxes, spending a few days outdoors away from the computer, and generally getting myself psyched up and ready to dive in to my new adventure. Here’s to new beginnings!
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
Congratulations Sarah!
Can’t wait to hear all about the new job.
I think some UX interview insights would be valuable. I myself have recently changed jobs and the interviewing process for that was definitely interesting.
Enjoy your time off.
Sorry to see you go, it’s been a wild ride over the last 3 years.
Glad you’re taking some time off. Sounds like the new gig is going to be a fun one! Best of luck and stay in touch!
Having discussed Belkin’s research and product design process with its employees during my trips to CES, this is a great opportunity for the company to learn from your expertise and for you to apply that expertise in a holistic way at a company that values what we do.
Exciting news, Sarah! Congratulations!
I can’t wait to buy the first product that you design!
Strangely enough, I took a set of Belkin Powerline AV units back to a store today as I simply couldn’t get them to work after four hours of trying everything I could think of. Part of the problem was the encryption setting that required pressing a button on each unit for more than half a second but less than three… I guess what I’m saying is that they really need your help – and I may look at purchasing another Belkin product once you’re settled in. Good luck!
Congrats, Sarah! Best of luck in your new adventure.
I’d be very interested in posts about interviewing for UX positions. I’ve got some thoughts on that topic myself, and it would be interesting to see if you came to some of the same conclusions.
So excited to hear you’re taking the next step. Belkin is lucky to have such a smart designer and writer.
I’m still waiting for the day we can get you to move to Norcal
Congratulations Sarah! Change is good and it sounds like yours will be exciting and fulfilling. I wish you luck and happiness in the new job! Cheers.
Very excited for you Sarah! We’ll really miss you here.
Best of luck. As Loren said, Belkin is very lucky.
Nothing beats working “out in the real world” with “real products”.
When I moved from the web to Philips, I expected a moderate learning curve. Alas, the usability principles and UX skills I used were by and large the same; just needed to learn and adapt to the constraints and limitations of the domain.
Since then, having moved from Philips to my own consultancy, I get to do a mix of web work and products, and product work is still so much more exciting to me. Product wise, you use a whole lot more ergonomic principles, yet there are still info design aspects when you work on the product documentation.
Have fun at Belkin, and I’m looking forward to trade stories (:
Tim..
Thank you guys so much! I hope you’ll all give me (and Belkin) a little while to get all ramped up on bringing great experiences to market. But all of your support and well wishes mean so much to me, so thank you!
Fantastic Sarah! Sounds like an exciting adventure
Regarding product design, I just picked up a copy of Kenya Hara’s “Designing Design.” Have you heard of/read his book? If not, I highly recommend you check it out.
Congrats!