Why I Work at WGU Labs: Amanda Johnson, Senior Design Manager
We asked our Senior Design Manager, Amanda Johnson, to talk about why she works at WGU Labs.
Three years ago, I had just finished graduate school, and I was looking for the next step in my career. I had been exposed to Western Governors University (WGU) from my work in school and was compelled by their competency-based education model and mission. When the Executive Director of WGU Labs (Labs) approached me about an opportunity to work at Labs, I was immediately intrigued.
WGU Labs is a separate organization from WGU and is able to focus on expanding the mission and impact beyond the WGU student population. We work on a diverse set of projects and products within the higher education and EdTech space.
There are three main reasons why I love working at Labs:
We’re Mission Driven
All of the projects and products that we work on at Labs have an impact on how students learn or navigate through their learning or education. Our team works to create the best experiences and environments for learners. The mission to improve outcomes for learners is what drives us to design and develop the best products and services.
We Value and Incorporate Student/User Feedback
One thing that I enjoy about working at Labs is the constant feedback loop we get from our learners. Getting feedback by conducting interviews or doing usability testing is not just something that we do to check a box, but it is something that we constantly make time for throughout our design process. Being able to incorporate feedback from the people we are designing for throughout the design process is one of my favorite things about working at Labs.
We Support Each Other
When I’m having trouble coming up with ideas or ways to solve a problem, I know I can always come to my team to ask for ideas or suggestions. We have stand-ups every Monday and Friday to help us stay on track and unblock anything that might come up during the week. Every Thursday we have our team meetings, lovingly called Design Parties 🥳 , where we talk about our challenges and wins and get more in-depth feedback on things we are working on. We also build on our professional skills by holding workshops and discussions with each other to help us become better designers — earlier in the year we had a fun workshop to help us become better presenters. These touch points offer a way to support and motivate each other and get different perspectives on things we are designing.
About Labs
WGU Labs invents, builds, and enables innovative education products and offerings that multiply the effects of WGU’s mission to have a transformative impact on higher education: to expand access, improve quality, and optimize student outcomes. Click here to visit our webpage to learn more about our team, the projects we’re working on, and our expanding list of partners.
Work with Us!
You can check out our open positions here. We’d love for you to join us!
