About

Hey! That’s me.

Hi, I'm Janet Gonzales (she/her). I'm a UX Designer, originally from New York, now spending most of my time in Salt Lake City, Utah and Portland, Oregon.

I got my start working for Start Studio designing for Silicon Slopes startups, and now I am a Freelance UX Designer and Senior Designer at NICE on their Illuminate AI team. I thrive on learning new technology and helping startups succeed.

Prior to my start as a UX Designer, I worked in finance (Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, UBS, Fidelity), and also completed my MBA in entrepreneurship at Westminster College. I love talking business, strategy + design!
‍

A few cool things I've done lately:
‍
- Co-creating the first month-long design festival in Portland.
- Started my Masters in Graphic Design at Arts Uni Bournemouth
- Speaking about UX for Self Sovereign Identity Products at IIW.
- Driving from San Jose to Los Angeles to see LCD Soundsystem (worth the trip!)

Design services

My varied background gives me range. I love taking on projects with all kinds of unique needs and requirements.

Mobile Design

UX & Product Design

Self Sovereign Identity

Design Strategy

Web Design

Community Building

Digital Solutions

My working process.

I have a strong background in operations, managing people and finance, as a result, my process tends to be detail-oriented and collaborative. I also work hard to make sure I'm not only dedicating time on the day to day, but I'm also getting into future, long range and strategic goals.

Something I often say is I'm "not attached" to my work. I take great pride in my work, but in the Zen Buddhist tradition, I remove ego and attachment from my end work so that we can focus on getting to the right solution. I love any and all open and honest feedback.

I've been told my superpowers are empathy, operational expertise and building relationships. You'll get to know me and feel that I'm embedded within your team, even if I'm only a part-time contributor.

Learn More

01.

Research & Ideation

When I get into a new industry, especially when working with difficult technology, I want to know it all. I deep dive into industry knowledge and sometimes will do user research to make sure I fully understand user needs.

02.

Concept Development

In my concept design process, I work collaboratively with developers, sales and other stakeholders to make sure that my concepts address core user needs and also take into account any existing code.

03.

Prototyping & Testing

In the prototyping and testing phase of design, ideally I'm able to concept test with core users to make sure they understand how to use the product and then take their feedback into account. I will try hard to make sure that we don't just get a finished product, we get the right solution.

04.

Finalize Product

In the final stage of design, I document thoroughly and make sure that a company feels totally prepared. Whether I'm handing off to another designer or saving it for a future collaboration, I make sure everything is seamless.

My experiences

I have had the pleasure of working with with companies across a variety of industries. I'm always interested in new and exciting adventures.

Oct 2022 - Present

Senior UX Designer / Design Lead

Nice cxone + others

I am currently a Senior UX Designer on NICE's Illuminate
AI team, designing for the agent persona.

Some of my other design highlights include taking on
self-sovereign identity and new startup clients.

Oct 2021 - May 2022

Senior UX Designer

Start Studio

Learned the craft, worked with Silicon Slopes startups.

Learned all about Self-Sovereign Identity and worked
with Sam Smith and the KERI team.

Aug 2013 - May 2022

Financial Services

Fidelity / morgan stanley / ubs / goldman sachs

Started in Customer Service, worked my way up to Director of Operations.

Worked alongside developers and QA to help create better internal software, and found out all about UX Design

Check my Resume