Meet the team: Fenella

1. What is your role at 93digital?

I’m a Digital Designer.

2. What does an average day for you look like?

An average day starts by checking my emails and Slack. I’ll then find out what project I will be working on, and familiarise myself with the client. I’ll look into what they do, and what their requirement are, particularly in respect to what they want to achieve with the rest of the 93digital team.

To ensure I deliver on project needs, I start off by researching the client and their users in the discovery stage, working towards a range of deliverables including wireframes. Following on from this, I then begin the design of a website, considering the user’s experience and best practice for both UI and UX. You can learn more about how we approach a design project here.

3. What’s the most challenging part of your job?

I think the most challenging part of my job is removing all bias and solely focusing on the user and their needs throughout the design process. Whilst doing this it is also important to balance the client expectations.

4. Any advice for those who want to do what you do?

To start with, building a strong portfolio of your best work is important in order to be able to show off your skills to potential employers. There are also many courses out there to do with UI and UX design which are great to develop your skill set further! Reading blogs or online resources is also beneficial to further your knowledge. I recommend Nielsen Norman Group who do some great research into user experience design and run various conferences throughout the year – it is definitely worth looking into! Also one that I attended myself a few months ago, following up with a presentation to our broader 93digital team during our January internal training day.

Time management skills are also crucial in order to prioritise, efficiently manage your projects, and meet client deadlines. It’s important to have great communication skills too so you can liaise with clients on a regular basis and to be able to communicate design decisions and advise them on best practices. 

5. What future design and/or technology developments in the industry are you excited about?

AI has already had a huge impact on the technology but I feel like there is still a lot more to come! AI and UX design intertwine today as they both affect how the other works. Although AI is very different to UX design which is human driven considering the users’ needs, it will be interesting to see how design will benefit from AI in the future.

Animation is becoming used more and more in the UI design so i’m also excited to see where that is heading and how this will effectively play a role in UX design – UI motion can attract a lot of the user’s attention! 

6. What are your passions/hobbies/interests?

I enjoy riding horses and compete in dressage and show jumping in my spare time. I also love playing polo and enjoy going to the gym to workout regularly.

7. What’s your favourite thing to read in print/online?

I often find myself reading articles from Medium. It is a good resource for all things design, as is Inside Design by Invision! 

8. Tell us a random fact about you…

I have played on a polo pony previously owned by Prince William.