Suhani Ashok — Head of Design, Lyearn

A journey full of twists and turns; musician, dancer, designer, creator, and leader, yet humble and curious.

Can you describe your childhood growing up in Delhi? How did your background influence the career choices that followed later on in your life?

Picture a kid always lost in their dreamland, buzzing with energy.

At home, I shared a close relationship with my parents and my elder sister. At school, academics weren’t a challenge and I spent most of my schooling focused on extracurricular activities.

I dabbled in drawing, painting, singing, drama — you name it and I was involved. My real passion, however, was dancing. It was my daily dose of joy, and even now, nothing beats the thrill of breaking into a dance. Up until junior school, I dreamt of being a professional choreographer, you know, living the dance dream. Not so surprisingly, I was given the “this-won’t-make-you-money” spiel and reality hit. This happened to me twice.

💡 Trivia: Goes by “su” at home and work.

The second time around, I was in senior school. But let’s backtrack for a minute. Throughout my childhood, I had a constant love for art.

It started with some over-the-top birthday cards for my loved ones and — one too many watercolor sets, sketch pen boxes, and glitter pens later — evolved into a serious passion for painting. I found solace in art.

Growing older didn’t change that; I just needed a quiet moment, and the brushes came out. Eventually, that evolved into digital drawings and illustrations which made way for my interest in design school. My sights were set on Parsons in New York. My sister had gone to the States for her undergraduate studies and it was a no-brainer for me to follow in her footsteps — shoutout to my dad for working his ass off and affording us this luxury.

I was working on my portfolio, all set to apply when a last-minute conversation changed everything. Bam! The second “this-won’t-make-you-money” bomb. I was disappointed, confused, and unsure of what I wanted to pursue in life. So I decided to quickly change tracks toward a liberal arts education where I could switch majors, explore topics, and find my calling. That’s how I ended up at UCLA as a pre-business economics major. Talk about a plot twist!

Even at UCLA, somewhere between math and economics classes, the creative in me stayed alive and I, miraculously, managed to find my way back to design. All that’s to say, life has a funny way of working out!

Do you remember that crucial moment when design ‘clicked’ for you, and you wanted to get involved more heavily?

The “aha” moment phase when design truly resonated with me happened during my junior year summer break. I was interning at VICE Media in their Venice office as a graphic designer. The more I delved into crafting billboards, pitch decks, and logos, the more the realization struck — this wasn’t my calling in the design world. Eager to explore other facets of design, I dove into some reading, starting with the design classic, “The Design of Everyday Things,” and followed it up with a now personal favorite, “Design for Real Life.” These books propelled me towards UX and I found myself scouring the internet for more knowledge on the topic.

I vividly remember going through the phase many of us endure — secretly Googling the difference between UX and UI.

I started linking design with intuition, craft, and research, realizing that some aspects of it came naturally to me. That felt like a sign, right? So, I dove headfirst into personal case studies and freelance projects. It was when I got my hands dirty with real projects for clients that the true essence of product design hit me. I recall jumping into the design process head first for a basketball league app I created for the former professional basketball player Ron Artest (aka Metta World Peace). That project gave me an in-depth look at the entire design journey for the very first time. From there on, it was a gradual process of immersing myself in reading, working on projects, and continuously striving to learn more.

💡 Trivia: Learned how to ride a bike at 23.

How did your experience at college align with aspirations you had before joining college and how did college shape you up for your to-be future endeavours?

College was supposed to be my compass, helping me navigate towards a clearer career path. Sadly, the initial years of business economics made me feel stuck. It was the path of least resistance, I guess, but it left me dissatisfied and craving for something more meaningful. So, I dipped my toes into computer science classes, thinking coding might be my thing. It wasn’t. C++ made me want to take a nap — that’s how thrilling it was.

Then, by some luck, I discovered UCLA’s Design and Media Arts major. The catch? I had to reapply to the university’s Arts and Architecture College and build a killer portfolio. I knew zilch about design; my passion was in art. But dissatisfaction has this magical way of kickstarting motivation. So, I dove headfirst into the world of design.

Hours turned into days as I scoured the internet, learning to illustrate assets with Adobe, creating 3D self-portraits in Blender, making voice-controlled games with p5.js, and even trying my hand at photography while learning to hold a camera. That’s what I brought to the table when applying to the Arts & Architecture college.

💡 Trivia: Once organized a flash mob to Jealous by Nick Jonas.

Getting into the Design and Media Arts program was a game-changer. It introduced me to design fundamentals like typography and motion, along with some cool niche skills like AR and VR. Even coding became fun with design goals in mind. I was shocked to find myself building games in Unity for class projects. Suddenly, I had this solid understanding of the design universe, and it gave me the confidence to teach myself the ropes of UX/UI. College was the launchpad that set me on this trajectory of skill-building for my future.

Looking back, can you put a pin on your experiences from school or college specifically that might have helped you become the designer that you are today?

Oh, absolutely! Majoring in Design and Media Arts was a big piece of the puzzle that taught me the ABCs of design. But I think what shaped me into the designer I am today goes beyond that.

First? I immersed myself in the tech world, learned to stay in the loop, and discovered Product Design as a legit career path. Shoutout to Sigma Eta Pi (SEP), my entrepreneurship fraternity, for opening my eyes to all that.

Then came the teamwork lessons. I was working with a bunch of strong-willed, talented individuals. We were the dream team putting up LA Hacks, the West Coast’s biggest hackathon. That was like a crash course in scaling things up and making them epic. As a designer, it was my first real opportunity to lead design at scale.

The most important one? Empathy and open-mindedness. These weren’t just buzzwords people threw around to seem cool — I lived them. The friends I made in college showed me the true power of these traits. It’s like they turned those abstract concepts into real, tangible skills that stuck with me as a designer.

Now, tell us about your professional journey. Lyearn, Sprinklr, GoGuardian; tell us how you went about choosing these companies early in your career and what kind of work you were and are involved in.

Let’s start with GoGuardian — my first gig right out of college and probably the most impactful one. Back then, I was pretty clueless about the whole “choose the right domain” thing. Thanks to my SEP (Sigma Eta Pi) crew, I stumbled upon ed-tech and heard about GoGuardian. Two things drew me in — the meaningful work they did for students and the amazing people on the team. Turns out, it was the place that made me feel like design was more than a job; it was a calling.

The project that sealed the deal for me was Beacon, a self-harm and suicide prevention tool for K-12 students. The depth of research, problem-solving, and collaboration set the bar high. Plus, it introduced me to the importance of ethics and inclusion in design, thanks to Paola Mendoza, the principal designer who championed these principles.

Next, Sprinklr. Here, I took a detour into customer experience management, tackling complex B2B problems for care agents and supervisors. It was also my first taste of working in India and with a larger design team of 14 folks. It taught me lessons in collaboration and the ropes of designing for scale. Another thing it did for me was introduce me to some stellar people. Sprinklr gave me my very first and extremely talented design friends in the country and, for that, I’m eternally grateful.

Finally, Lyearn — my ticket back into ed-tech. I joined to soak in the startup vibe and learn the ins and outs of building something from scratch. My time at Lyearn wasn’t just about design; I wore many hats — hiring and leading the design team, trying my hand at product ownership, setting the remote team culture, collaborating on roadmaps, handling client convos, launches, changelogs — you name it. Looking back, I can’t think of a corner of Lyearn that I haven’t influenced. It was a crash course in everything, and honestly, I can’t believe I got to do all that so early in my career.

What does your current day-to-day look like?

As a design leader at Lyearn, my workday typically kicks off with a check on my team’s progress. I address any blockers, conduct async reviews in Figma, and keep my manager hat on.

Beyond these duties, I go on impromptu problem-solving calls with PMs and devs and periodic planning and roadmap discussions.

Then it’s lunch time followed by a much-needed break for a caffeine jolt.

Next, I catch up on any design news, find inspiration, and look up new tools to try. I also reserve this window for uninterrupted IC work since it’s when I’m most productive.

I attend any remaining meetings in the evening, including research and presentation calls with clients in Western time zones. I usually take some time at night for a workout session, which mainly consists of kickboxing, weight training, or calisthenics.

After my workout, I try to get my dose of socializing in with a quick dinner with friends.

Depending on my mood, I end the day with either some reading or some Netflix. I’m currently binging Rick and Morty. And that’s it. Sleep, repeat.

One thing that remains a constant throughout my day and gives me spouts of energy is my dog, Ruff. He’s a little ball of excitement and keeps my spirits up no matter the mood of the day.

💡 Trivia: Thinks bananas ruin all smoothies and should be boycotted.

Ruff

How has the past couple of years shaped you as a Head of Design? When did you feel like you’re ready and how did that go at Lyearn? What are your most challenging learnings?

The last couple of years have been a masterclass in leadership and personal growth. One major aspect has been discovering how to foster a healthy and successful team. This involves tailoring support for each team member based on their unique working style — whether they thrive on collaborative efforts, prefer open-ended prompts, or need a nudge with pointed feedback.

Another has to do with learning how to navigate the world of people management. When your team looks to you for guidance, not always having all the answers can be daunting especially when you’re starting out. The key revelation here has been the importance of staying honest, putting in the work, and actively seeking solutions to help the team move forward.

As for readiness, I don’t know if I can point my finger to an exact eureka moment. The evolution towards feeling ready for the role happened gradually. In my first year, I focused more on leading projects. Over the next two years, my role organically transitioned into leading people as well. It took a lot of labor and love to grow into someone the team could trust to lead them. It’s been a journey of personal and professional growth and looking back I feel super grateful for what Lyearn and its people have given me.

Now onto the challenges. Among the most challenging learnings was dealing with the quixotic idea of shared knowledge, power, and decision-making. As we built the team at Lyearn, we aimed to keep everyone on the same plane and eliminate hierarchy. This put us in a less-than-ideal situation. The lofty ideals of collective ownership and absolute transparency turned out to be hurdles in the real world. Complete transparency led to information overload, 100s of meetings, and differing opinions, while collective ownership meant no one was truly accountable. Yikes. The crucial lesson learned was finding a fine balance between being transparent but at the right time, while also empowering individuals with ownership of specific goals.

The key takeaway —

You can’t build a startup with utopian ideals for effective teamwork and productivity.

You’re a musician, dancer, illustrator as well. Anything else that we don’t know of? How have these activities played a role in your professional life?

Yep, that pretty much sums it up! Dancing’s been in my veins since childhood. Illustrating rolled in later, a natural progression from my love for drawing and painting.

As for the music, I have always enjoyed singing, so I thought, why not pick up an instrument to accompany that? A few years back, I got myself a keyboard from the local Guitar Center, mainly because of their comforting 40-day return policy. I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to play it but I figured I might as well give it a shot. It’s been pure bliss since then. Recently, I dived into the ukulele world with a budget-friendly one off Amazon. So far, so good.

One thing these creative ventures taught me is how to pick up new skills from the internet. That’s how I learned to illustrate, and that’s how I’m strumming my way through the uke.

💡Trivia: Owns at least 5 scented candles at any given time in life.

Embracing the unknown, diving into a scrappy learning process, and building the confidence to tackle it all — these lessons from my creative life have been major players in leveling up my professional life.

What differences do you see in the design space from when you started and now? How does that make you feel?

When I think about the design space from when I started to now, it’s like comparing apples to oranges given that I started my journey in the US, and now I’m deeply involved in the Indian community. These two points in my career are, literally, continents apart.

Diving into the Indian design space, what’s new is how UX and product design have become buzzing career choices in recent years. I remember the design space in the States being rather saturated when I started out. But moving here, I noticed a significant gap in talent a couple of years ago. Fast forward to today, we’ve evolved into a vibrant and talented design community. More people jumping into design has also fueled a wave of collaboration and social hangs within the community, and that’s great to witness!

It feels like the design space in India is experiencing hypergrowth and it’s thrilling to be part of the journey!

What do you think is the biggest motivation for designers in the current wave of product orgs. to switch or join (or, not join) a specific organisation? Do you see patterns, traits?

I see two big factors at play here.

The first is a reality that’s a bit hard to swallow — this trend of designers frequently jumping from one job to another, chasing bigger titles and fatter paychecks. It’s disheartening to witness a space where the focus seems to be more on the prestige or the brand name of the company than the intrinsic worth of the work or the personal growth and learnings it can offer. This is one of the reasons I make it a point to ask design candidates about any short lived gigs or frequent moves on their resumes during interview calls.

The second involves the hunger for growth. With a bunch of new and budding designers flooding the scene, everyone’s focused on speedy professional development. The mismatch here is that there aren’t enough seasoned designers in mentorship positions to go around. So what we’re seeing is a merry-go-round of folks jumping from place to place driven by a need for mentorship that’s, sadly, in short supply.

What do you absolutely wish companies knew about hiring designers?

Ooo a hot take here — I wish companies knew that designers deserve more than the expectation to whip up elaborate solutions for every take-home assignment in the interview process.

Most candidates are juggling conversations with multiple organizations during the interview process. Managing that delicate work-life balance to carve out time for additional design tasks can be a real challenge for some people. For various reasons, not everyone may have the bandwidth for it. Hiring teams should practice more of what they preach and bring empathy from their design process into their hiring process.

It gets especially tricky when design tasks directly solve problems on a company’s roadmap or within its domain. That’s tiptoeing into the realm of free labor, and we all know that’s a no-go! There has to be a more effective and considerate way to evaluate design candidates.

Instead of relying on isolated take-home assignments, hiring teams could consider incorporating live, collaborative whiteboarding sessions, brainstorms, or mini design exercises with the company’s design team. This not only provides a real-time assessment of skills but also aligns more closely with the collaborative nature of design work in professional settings.

What’s your take on the Indian product design community? What do you think are the goods and areas for improvement? Since you’ve been part of both Indian and global companies, do you have a point of view on how the communities differ?

The Indian product design community, in my view, is compact, tightly knit, and characterized by a heartwarming culture of giving back and helping each other out. Designers here are remarkably generous with their knowledge and always ready to pay it forward.

The community is also characterized by a level of competitiveness and fast pace. While that can be good, too much of it might mean missing out on other crucial stuff. What we could be doing is putting more focus on creating solutions that aren’t just sleek but also compassionate and inclusive. It takes an open mind, dedicated time, and a proactive initiative.

Now from my experience working globally. The global community’s pace often feels a bit more measured but there’s a noticeable focus on the non-negotiables — compassion and inclusivity. They seem to recognize the importance of these values even if it means moving a tad bit slower. It’s a delicate balance, and maybe there’s room for the Indian community to find that balance as it continues to evolve.

What skills do you think have become increasingly more important for designers?

Empathy, curiosity, and open-mindedness.

Switching tracks, do you have other side/personal projects that you keep yourself busy with? How do you think they influence your work?

To be honest, I find it inspiring to peek into the lives of other designers and see how they juggle side projects. The whole work-life-social-family-adulthood circus can get overwhelming.

I’m a big advocate for designers giving themselves the green light to not tackle a gazillion projects at once. It’s okay to optimize for a balance just between the job and, you know, life.

In the past — whenever I have managed to find the time — I’ve dabbled in crafting an online version of some card games, played around with an expense tracking app, and put together a fun website to showcase my art. The next thing — currently on the hush-hush — on my radar is to build a Secret Santa web app with a friend. Hoping to do this in time for Christmas!

💡 Trivia: Loves playing games & has been through a major PUBG phase, a Brawl Stars phase, and a Rocket League phase.

Any plugs you want to put in?

Some thoughts, work, and other stuff at my website. Some art at su’s lil’ art corner.

Where are you located now?
Delhi, India

Top bookmarks
https://goods.wtf/ for some fire stuff.
https://godly.website/ for web design inspiration.
https://www.producthunt.com/ for discovery.
https://minimalissimo.com/ for more good-looking stuff.

Favourite mobile apps
Flighty for its design and functionality.
Duolingo for inspiring gamification in ed-tech.
Chooser for solving a simple use case with beautiful execution.

Where can one find you online?
Website for more about me and my work.
Twitter for thoughts on design and more.
LinkedIn for my professional network.

Favourite reads? What are you reading lately?
Educated by Tara Westover.
Mismatch: How Inclusion Shapes Design by Kat Holmes.
Design for Real Life by Eric Meyer and Sara Wachter-Boettcher.

Currently reading The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams.

Favourite tracks? What are you listening to lately?
Current favorites are afro beats. Been listening to Asiwaju by Ruger.

Favourite accessories/ gadgets?
I identify as an Apple girl.
The Herman Miller Aeron chair is something I cannot recommend enough.
Mi smart lights are very affordable game changers for your room.
Anything by Teenage Engineering is drool-worthy.

Tea or coffee?
Coffee! Chai only when I’m sick.