The Lucid UX Intern Experience: Pandemic Edition

Every summer, we greet a new cohort of user experience and product designers who will spend twelve weeks as members of the UX team here at Lucid. The goal of this program is to recruit talented, early career designers by providing an opportunity for structured professional development through mentorship and ownership of impactful design initiatives.

As this year’s cohort winds down, our 2020 UX interns, Vishaka Nirmal, Jae Hyuk Kim, and Vignesh Kannan agreed to answer some questions about their experience interning with Lucid during a pandemic.

Thanks so much for your willingness to share your experiences. Let’s start from the beginning. Of all the places you interviewed, what stood out about Lucid and how did you decide this was the right place for you to spend your internship?

[Vignesh] The thing that drew me to Lucid was the importance placed on the anybody can contribute philosophy. Right from my initial interactions, this aspect was made clear.

[Vishaka] Through most interview processes, I felt like I was being tested and companies looked for what I could bring to the table. This was true for Lucid, but I was also really impressed that I got the opportunity to learn more about the company. The entire process gave me time to ask questions, learn about the work that’s being done, and learn about how I would fit in. I felt respected, valued, and supported during the entire process — and this led to my decision to join the team here!

[Jae] I really liked that there were a few different rounds in the interview process. I was able to showcase my work in portfolio review, so interviewers can get to know me as a designer. More importantly, I had a few other sessions with people at Lucid to talk about Lucid’s culture and how the team works. That really excited me to work at Lucid. I was very intrigued by the projects and the team culture. I think the team play aspect of Lucid’s culture was the most significant factor for me to decide where I should intern.

It’s great to hear you felt valued during the interview process, that’s something that’s very important to us: that you have a good experience interviewing even if you never join our team.

But you did join our team. Once here, what kinds of projects did you work on? What tools did you use?

[Jae] I worked on a total of three projects: An auto-expanding swimlane in Lucidchart which helps users efficiently work with complex diagrams, a template gallery for Lucid Suite, and account settings to build a universal platform for multiple Lucid products. During research, I used Airtable, Lucidchart, Confluence, and Google Docs to compile and analyze data. For design delivery, I used Figma to design UI and make interactive prototypes.

[Vishaka] I got to work on several different projects throughout my time here. A few notable ones included improving shortcuts for users, improving a dynamic shape library, and improving a paywall for free users. These projects were in different spaces of the product, and catered to different user groups as well.

In the process of discovery for each of these projects, I used tools such as customer calls and Maze tests. When ideating and converging, I relied on traditional design tools such as whiteboarding and sticky notes. I used Figma for delivery, and Jira to outline the specifications for each solution for engineers.

[Vignesh] I worked on two projects during my internship, the Integration Marketplace redesign and discovery work for the Jira — Lucidchart integration. I also participated in Lucid’s Hackathon!

What was the UX team like, and what kind of mentorship was available to you?

[Vishaka] Lucid’s UX team is embedded across scrum teams responsible for different problem spaces. However, that didn’t mean the designers weren’t collaborative. I owned each project I worked on, but received valuable feedback from designers across the team. When we couldn’t be in the office together, I relied on the Virtual Design Collaboration sessions to gather feedback and learn from more experienced designers.

I valued having a mentor that I could reach out to at any point for help or feedback. My mentor was involved in my projects and helped me to learn along the way, whether it involved Lucid-specific processes, or pushing me to further my design thinking. I also was able to set up some coffee chats with other Lucidites throughout the company, and got some really great insights from them about my career path and development.

[Vignesh] The UX team was great! I had great mentors who would reach out to me frequently and help me connect with the right person within Lucid. They guided me every step of the way but yet managed to let me do the project my way.

[Jae] There were two different ways I received mentorship. There was structured mentorship with my pathfinder and my manager. We had 1:1 meetings on a regular basis where I could get feedback on my work or have conversations about personal growth. There were also scheduled sessions where other designers shared their experience and advice about design careers with interns. Secondly, there was the informal mentorship from the design team. I often just sent messages to other designers on the UX team to get feedback on my design iterations or career advice. Everyone was very open to have a discussion with me, and I thought it was a good opportunity for me to get to know other designers on the team.

2020 was not a typical year. What was it like interning during a pandemic? How did you and Lucid make the best of a remote internship?

[Vishaka] Given all the chaos surrounding the world in a pandemic, I was really glad that I had a source of steadiness from Lucid. From my perspective, Lucid did a great job of making sure I felt welcome coming into a remote environment, and supported me throughout the summer. The interns got to spend some time getting to know each other through remote, intern-specific activities.

Although I would have rather been in the office, I think this experience was made the best it could be with joint effort. Everyone I met made it clear they were available to chat, or help out with anything. On the other hand, that meant I needed to take the step to reach out if I needed help.

[Jae] When the pandemic hit, I was a little frustrated that I would experience an internship just through video calls. I was scared that my entire internship would feel like a three-month, continuous job interview! However, the people I met at Lucid, especially my mentor and manager, greeted me on the first day and were so welcoming. Every time I talked to them, they made me feel more comfortable. 1:1 meetings on a regular basis helped me get used to this remote internship format as well. I just felt like part of the team.

[Vignesh] It was sometimes hard to stay motivated from home. However, the interactions I had with people, the activities, and most importantly, the work itself was very interesting and challenging. I felt like I could reach out to anyone and get their opinion, too. My favorite aspect of the internship was the accountability they placed on me.

What do you wish would have been different?

[Jae] It was the perfect learning opportunity! I can’t think of anything particular that needs to be different. Maybe I’d have liked to spend time in person with other design interns to share thoughts and skills (or just some social events), it would have been more fun! There were some intern gatherings in Zoom, but it was hard to initiate smaller group interaction.

[Vishaka] Honestly, my only qualm about my intern experience was it being remote! I do believe that I would have made some closer connections through in-person working, and would have had more organic design critiques and working sessions. However, I thought Lucid did a great job of making all the ‘in person events’ work as remote ones.

Anything else you’d like to add?

[Vignesh] I appreciated the opportunity to sit in many strategy meetings — this really helped me grow.

[Jae] I really liked that my internship was very structured from the beginning and that I got all specifications before I started the projects. I was grateful that the UX team was well prepared to bring new design interns and provide opportunities to get more exposure on the real projects.

In closing, what are the most important things you learned during your internship?

[Jae] Ownership, communication, and confidence:

1. I learned it was so important to take ownership of my own projects. I learned that I have to be the project owner and the expert in the problem space, so I can lead the discussion with multiple stakeholders. But at the same time, to take the ownership, I have to make sure I research and explore enough to be the expert.
2. I learned communication is even more important than just creating a UI screen. I spent most of my time scoping down the problem and discussing pros and cons about ideas with people. I learned it’s such an important skill to listen to other people and sometimes strongly justify my thoughts with evidence.
3. I learned confidence with a humble mind an important characteristic for a designer. I was intimidated by my lack of work experience and my English language proficiency before I joined Lucid. I worked really hard for 3 months to digest my coworker’s working styles and skill sets. In the end, I felt more confident both in presenting my work and approaching anyone at the company just to chat.

[Vishaka] So many things, but I’ll keep it to three:

1. Be flexible with your solutions. It’s really easy to choose the MVP and run with it. Lucid’s UX process of continually testing and iterating on designs while talking with users really taught me to be flexible with my solution. Through user testing and validation, you can learn a lot and can even pivot your solution entirely!
2. Pay attention to detail and communicate openly. On all my projects, I worked with other designers, developers, and product managers. I had the opportunity and responsibility to explain my process and findings in multiple formats to multiple stakeholders. The biggest takeaway from this experience was knowing how to get the information I needed from all stakeholders to deliver thorough and detailed solutions, and how to communicate my thinking to others.
3. Accept that I’m still learning. I learned a lot throughout this internship, and have continued learning how to improve my design process and thinking. This is definitely something that’s accentuated by being early in my career, but I was also able to see my coworkers learning alongside me at times. I think this goes along with Lucid’s core value of individual empowerment, and this was a highlight for me.

Thank you, Vishaka, Jae, and Vignesh for your thoughtful answers and for your valued contribution to our team. For more information about careers at Lucid, including internships, please visit our careers page.