Interview
Qian Wan
AWDesign, United States
Qian Wan (Alex) is a product designer with a fulfilling 4-year experience and has worked with renowned companies including Penn Medicine, GEICO and VMware in hopes to bring joy, innovation and social good to the world.
1 Please give us a brief bio of yourself and your background.
My name is Qian Wan (Alex) and I am a product designer with a 4 year-experience. I bring a user-centered product/interaction design approach to Healthcare, 2B, and E-commerce areas. I have worked with many companies that have distinguished reputations such as Penn Medicine, GEICO, and VMware. My hope is to bring joy, innovation, and social good to the world.
2 What made you become/why did you choose to become a digital designer/artist?
I enjoyed observing the world and drawing objects since I was a kid, so I decided to learn industrial design through my undergrad. Then I observed the digital transformation happening in the world: the evolution of the internet, the IoT, etc. I realized that there was great potential in the digital world. That uncharted area made me excited and encourage me to make the career transition to be come a digital product designer.
3 Tell us more about your business/company, job profile, and what you do.
Qian Wan is currently playing an important product designer role in VMware, a leading provider of multi-cloud services for all apps. She plays a leading role in many critical projects that made a great contribution to the company strategy such as VMware Aria Insights.
4 What’s your favorite kind of digital design and why?
I appreciate the design that can enable people and improve their life quality
5 To you, what makes a “good” design?
A good design should care about accessibility, and make all the efforts to bring equally good experience to all the demographic group
6 Describe your design style and its main characteristics.
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7 Tell us about your design process.
I started with research to understand the target users first, and I won
8 Where do you draw inspiration from?
I like connecting with local design communities such as IXDA. I had a few chances of being invited to the panel discussion. Meeting with other amazing designers never failed to inspire me.
9 What current trends in digital design (or really anything digital related) are you most excited about?
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10 Congratulations! As the winner of the 2022 Vega Awards, what does it mean to you and your company and team to receive this award distinction?
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11 Can you explain a bit about the winning work you entered into the 2022 Vega Awards, and why you chose to enter this project?
Ling is a mobile-based educational purposed chatbot that provides real-time inquiry functionality and learning resources about equity, diversity, and inclusion to help Chinese international student to identify and prevent discrimination and harassment that happened to them. The reason I chose this topic is that COVID-19 has driven racism and violence against Asians. Chinese international students who are coming from a very distinct culture study abroad, and are new to a culture. They are less sensitive to racial discrimination when it is happening to them. Although those aggressions are often subtle, they can be just as harmful to health and well-being.
12 What was the biggest challenge with this project?
It was hard to initiate such a difficult topic with people who experienced racial discrimination. Sharing my own stories that resonate with people helped me drive the conversation. I also found that much existing research has been done only on post-discrimination experience, but it doesn't cover all the needs. People often didn't realize when things happened, not to mention to look for help in time. After mapping out their journey, I realized that lack of knowledge leads to those consequences.
13 How has winning an Award developed your practice/career?
It is a great platform to increase design visibility and the designer
14 What are your top three (3) favorite things about the digital industry?
User-focused, inclusive, connected
15 Where do you see the evolution of digital industry going over the next 5-10 years?
I strongly believe that AI would bring a great opportunity to the creative industry. It increases efficiency and works as a new tool for the design community. It also shapes the role of UX.
16 If you were a student entering this industry or an aspiring Vega Award submitter, what advice would you give them?
Always put your users in your mind.
17 What resources would you recommend to someone who wants to improve their skills in the digital industry?
Hands-on experience is always the best practice.
18 Tell us something you have never told anyone else.
Sometimes jumping out of your focused area could fresh your mind and inspire you
19 What is your key to success? Any parting words of wisdom?
Quantify your success and learnings, but also think about the impact you can make at the societal level
20 Do you have anything else you would like to add to the interview?
Embrace your personality and the characteristics that make you a great designer.
