I'm a dreamer, designer and tinkerer from Ohio who has been incessantly asking questions and trying to make sense of the world around me since birth. My work in Design and skills under the full umbrella of UX are an extension of that curiosity. I love the field as it allows me to ask questions, surface inefficiencies and then optimize interfaces to make them snappy, intuitive and improve people's lives.
Currently working at R.R.D as Manager of UX Design.
A little background
I never used a straight line to get any one place and my path to UX was no different. After years of trying to find a suitable career path, I stumbled upon user experience design. It was a magical combination of research and design that was directly up my alley. With a bachelor degree from The Ohio State University and no knowledge of the field, I applied and was accepted to the Kent State University master's program in User Experience Design in 2011.
Work and Learning
After I graduated I landed my first UX job at a usability lab called Metrics Marketing in Cleveland. From there, it was off to the races learning, trying, failing and trying again in enterprises, agencies and other places. Since then I have worked in UX for 10 years consistently expanding my skills and learning how to make people's lives easier through user-centered design. I have been everything from an Analyst, Senior, Lead, Principal and now, Head of UX. Onward!
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
User Experience in many contexts, teams and roles.
In my past lives I have helped redesign insurance websites and tools, led the design of a sales-based iOS application and led the design for a print-based ordering system. My career has been spent in both agency and enterprise UX which has allowed me to be a well-rounded designer who can anticipate and navigate through projects with finesse.
The numbers below are a quick scorecard of what I've been up to throughout my UX career.
Years in UX
10
Large Scale Projects
30+
Number of Teams
7
Master Degrees in UX
1
Number of Designs
1,000's
Research Sessions Conducted
100's
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
You have questions, I may have some answers.
Who is Justin Watts?
👨👩👧 I'm a family man and enjoy hanging out with my lady and daughter. 🎥 My first passion is film and media so you can catch me at the cinema quite a bit. Getting lost in story is a great pleasure and way to silence the stresses of normal life. 🎵 Music is another passion that I can't get enough of regardless of genre. I have been buying records for over 20 years and have a pretty massive collection of everything from punk, techno and metal. 💪 I'm also interested in health so I do a lot of workouts and hiking to keep fit. 🐈 I appreciate the calming nature of cats and have one named Harold who is a finicky but lovable. 🎮 I'm a devout video gamer who loves a good platformer, strategy or RPG game. 🎢 My family and I love rollercoasters and will go on any one you throw at us whether at Cedar Point or beyond.
Why did I make a UX portfolio?
There is a lot of discussion around the need for UX designers to make a portfolio showcasing their work. For me personally, it is about consolidating a handful of UX projects into an easy-to-understand format. This hopefully helps people understand my strengths as a designer and also helps me keep perspective of my career and evolution as a designer.
What types of UX work have you done?
A lot! I've been lucky enough to work in Enterprise UX, Agency UX and Startup UX for over 10 years. Each project I've been on has helped me expand my understanding and skills in UX, UI and User Research. Specifically, I have worked on a lot of traditional eCommerce websites selling products, services and goods including Westfield, Cardinal Health, Key Bank, Sundays and Puma. In addition to traditional types of B2C UX, I also seem to get lucky to get more complex and funky types of UX work such as designing an Underwriting system for Westfield, a complex redesign for a B2B / B2C website at RRD and designing apps for internal employees at Home Depot and Camping World. The truth is I really like all types of UX and appreciate the challenge involved in any type of cross-functional project. Through all of my years of UX experience I have learned how to achieve success with any set of circumstances.
Why do your case studies follow the same format?
I've iterated on the most impactful way to write case studies for years. It has been great practice and the one conclusion which has become clear to me is that 'less is more'. I lean into simplicity because every time I create an exhaustive case study my eyes glaze over when I try to read it. If you are reading a UX case study then you are probably well-versed in the daily trials that the UX team faces during each project and the drive it takes to overcome them. But if you zoom out of those details and look at the big picture - most projects typically follow a similar format. The minutiae certainly is different and requires different deliverables but the overall path tends to be similar. My strategy is to lay out the broad strokes of the case study in a simple format and fill in details, challenges and lessons when discussing or interviewing.
What is your favorite part of UX work?
The world is complex and helping people out by simplifying their tools, systems and websites is massively rewarding. I think that UX gives the chance to work with people from a lot of differing backgrounds and allows collaboration with many important roles all working together to get a job done. I also really, really like interaction design and making things work seamlessly. The other bit is I really enjoy strategy and figuring out how to work under project constraints, with resource limitations and making something concrete from an ambiguous starting point. Something that I am learning more recently is how much I enjoy helping younger designers refine their skills.
What advice do you have for people starting out in UX?
The UX world is changing in 2023. It seems juniors are having a difficult time finding their way into jobs. The backlash against bootcamps is afoot and there are more questions than answers. For me, the best way to get my foot into the door was a low-paying internship at a local usability lab. This was an incredible way to surround myself with highly-skilled professionals who would graciously donate time helping me to learn. You get on-the-job experience and also have a safe space to fail. This is massively important and can give you a real advantage before you get into enterprise level UX.
My UX Process
Though every project is different the process below outlines how things optimally work.
1. DISCOVERY
Start With The Right Perspective. Early on, the focus is on learning and understanding users, conducting research and determining business needs for the project.
2. DESIGN
Move Some Pixels. Put ideas and concepts into motion with a sketch, prototype or wireframe of the idea and collaborate to simplify and improve the design.
3. TEST
Test Concepts With Users. All designs and concepts should be usability tested with actual users to get an understanding of how it works for them.
4. ITERATE
Improve and Refine the Design. After usability testing, insights will be learned to improve and tighten up the design. This cycle is the secret sauce for UX design and helps to make great products.
