UX Designer Nandi Manning is Building Community with UX HER, An Online Platform Empowering Women of Color in UX Design
DALLAS, TX / ACCESSWIRE / January 9, 2021 / As the world continues to shift digital, many people begin to seek employment in the tech industry, and often, jobs in tech are heavily dominated by men. However, UX Designer, Nandi Manning, is making sure that this reality changes as she grows a UX design community, named UX HER, that is dedicated to empowering women of color in UX and digital product design.
Manning explained UX design as "Something beyond visual design and making apps look pretty. It has everything to do with how the product feels. You have to consider essential things like accessibility and usability in designing human-centered digital products. This is why having more diverse teams in this industry is crucial. There have to be more inclusive environments while building digital experiences."
UX HER was created a year ago and is dedicated to providing women of color in UX design the tools, resources, and community to help them jump start and grow their careers. UX HER provides a supportive online network, e-learning opportunities, and a free job board to help women navigate their careers and find community in the field of UX and digital product design.
"I have been helping bring digital products to the market since 2017 and working in the digital product design and the tech industry for the last couple of years has been very isolating to say the least," Manning revealed, "I felt so alone as the only woman of color in my department, so I began to look for other women in my field online and all of them turned out to have a desire for a similar sense of community. We needed a safe place to talk about our experiences, get career advice, and learn from one another. This need is what drove me to create UX HER."
Manning offers a group mentorship program within the online platform where aspiring UX designers can access tools and resources to help them land their first UX role. The program lasts for eight weeks in total. Within the program, mentee's are taught how to polish their portfolios and garner recruiters and hiring managers' attention. "There will also be a lot of time given for discussion where everyone can talk about their portfolios, resume, or projects. We will also give our mentees access to a library filled with design challenges to use as case studies, which would be beneficial for their portfolios," Manning shared. The Founder also ensures that she is checking in with her mentees daily to keep track of their progress.
On top of providing mentorship and community regarding UX design, Manning would like to stress the general importance of women empowerment in reaching their full potential in terms of their career, "Another major reason why I created UX HER was because I had a very unconventional background for someone in my field. I don't have a college degree, and I got my initial knowledge of UX design from a bootcamp. I would love to remind other women that their dreams are attainable no matter what."
Manning's words don't only sound promising but also true as UX HER's programming has successfully helped land members roles at big companies such as IBM. "Our mentorship program doesn't focus on the basics and fundamentals of UX design, but instead, on how to help our mentees get to the next level of their career. We help them prepare their resumes, portfolio, interview questions, all the way to design decisions to make sure that they get hired and succeed in the workplace," Manning explained, "We partnered with UXD Academy, the college for career switchers, to provide our members with little to know experience a pathway to transition into the field.
Regardless of the pandemic, UX design is a field that remains relevant as countless opportunities rise in the digital world, "I would encourage everyone to at least be aware of the importance of this field as it is very crucial in our daily lives, especially for the younger generation who spends most of their time looking at their electronic devices. They're the number one users of the digital experiences like TikTok" Manning shared. "One main advice that I would give for the people who are trying to succeed in this field is to simply become a lifelong student. Immerse yourself in curiosity and knowledge. Always be willing to learn, self-study and do your research. That is the key to success."
To learn more about Nandi Manning and UX HER, click the links below!
UX Her Website: www.uxher.com
UX Her Instagram:www.instagram.com/weareuxher/
UX Her LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/weareuxher/
Written By: Alya Putri
Photo Credit: Marrica Evans
Media Contact:
Client Relations Team
Features@DendyMedia.com
SOURCE: Dendy Media
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