#WCW January with YiYi Liu
Welcome, YiYi! Thanks for joining us in our first publication of 2019!
Tell us a little bit about yourself.
Hi! I’m YiYi, a senior design researcher at ezCater. At ezCater I work with incredible researchers, designers, PMs, and engineers to solve problems on bringing food to a group of people. This job has three of my favorite things: listening to people’s stories and making them feel heard, creative problem solving, and food. When I’m not doing research, I enjoy being outside, trail running, skiing, and traveling.
How did you get involved in the tech industry?
For the longest time, I wanted to pursue a PhD in cognitive psychology. However, after doing academic research for a couple of years, I realized that it wasn’t my path. I wanted to work in a team where everyone brings in different expertise, and I was interested in something that combines understanding human cognition and technology. A friend of mine introduced me to human-computer interaction. While I was learning about HCI on my own, I worked in a startup of five people. That’s how I first got into the tech industry. Later I got a master’s degree in HCI from Carnegie Mellon University and landed in UX jobs afterward.
You recently changed your career from UX Designer to Design Researcher. Tell us why and how you did it?
When I was in graduate school, I learned both design and research. I really enjoyed both and didn’t want to give up either. On the realistic side, there were more designer roles in the market than researcher roles (and it’s still the case today). When I was looking for UX designer roles, I picked the ones that had research components in it. And my previous job was exactly like this: research and design, almost half and half.
For me research is more about understanding the problem space, who our users are, what problems we are solving for them, and why it matters (or doesn’t matter) to their life. Design is more about framing the problem, then coming up with optimal solutions. And I enjoyed the research part a bit more. Later I realized that to advance my career, I should have a focus, so I chose to be a dedicated researcher. I have to say that design skills are still very useful and relevant for my work and life. For example, recently I became a manager of 2 researchers. To create the hiring process was like solving a design problem.
How important do you think Design Research is in product development (digital or physical) and why?
It’s extremely important. Currently, the tech industry is fully aware of how important it is to understand users and customers, and build products and services that tailor to their needs, motivation, and behavior. It is the design researcher’s job to understand the what and why about users, and share the understanding. But design researchers are not the only people conducting research. PMs, designers, and other departments talk to users as well. And the more people in the company understand the key users/customers, the better. The difference is that researchers not just talk to people, we methodically understand users. We help the team better frame the research questions and gain insights in an effective way. I think design research is so important, that in the ideal world, everyone should know how to ask good interview questions.
What do you love the most about your job?
The majority of my job is to understand our users and to share the understanding with other people. Being able to generate business value from building empathy with other people is definitely my favorite part. Also, I’m very fortunate to work in a very collaborative environment, with very talented people. I’m learning from them every day.
What is the hardest part about your job?
Finding time to do heads-down work from having too many meetings :(.
What type of publications do you read that keep you informed on the latest trends in UX and Design Research?
I follow many designers, design teams and studios on medium, but a lot of them don’t write that regularly now. I pay close attention to what Studio D, IDEO, Designit and Fjord are working on as well. NNgroup and Epic are my go-to sources for research. Mixed Methods is a really great podcast. I’m also in a few design and research chat groups (such as mixedmethods Slack group and WeChat slack group called uxren) and people there actively share great stuff.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
I want to work on using design, tech, and business to address social issues, such as education and mental health. The problem-solving part of me always wants to tackle more complex and wicked problems.
What’s the biggest career advice you’ve ever gotten?
“Framing the problem differently when you get stuck.” As a researcher, a big part of my job is to frame problems. Sometimes we don’t get what we were looking for, because we didn’t frame the problem in the right way. The same applies to work (and maybe life in general). When we feel stuck, and couldn’t find a resolution, maybe because we asked the wrong questions to ourselves, and to other people. Framing the problem differently helps.
What brought you to Boston and what do you love the most about Boston?
A job brought me to Boston. I had a summer research internship in Boston when I was in college, and loved the city. Therefore when I had the opportunity to come back, I was very excited to take it.
The city has a lot to offer. I love the culture scene, the public trans (though not very reliable), easiness to bike/walk around, and the atmosphere. Boston is a major city, but not as intense and stressful as New York.
Favorite brunch spot in the area?
Brunch is my favorite meal! I can’t pick just one :)
3 Little Figs in Somerville is my recent favorite.
Sofra Bakery & Cafe was my favorite when I lived in Watertown.
I love having dim sum for brunch as well, and my favorite is Sun Kong in Malden.
Thanks for sharing your story, YiYi!
Follow YiYi on LinkedIn.
