Hi! My name is Melinda and I am a product designer.

My specialty is defining UX and UI from imperfect and rapidly changing information. I can design the full stack from primary user research all the way to final design.

I start by forming patterns from user complaints.

At CBS Interactive, I conducted user interviews across multiple business units to kick off a new content management system. Each brand had its own pain point, and I found the themes that emerged for everyone.

Primary user research for new internal CMS tool - CBS Sports, CBS News, CBS Interactive, CNET.

After identifying problem statements, I form personas, patterns of insight, and research deliverables.

This particular client (Kespry) had two main personas that intersected in key ways along their respective journeys.
User journey map for data analytics tool, client BP - Kespry

I create rough thumbnail sketches and wireframes to solve the largest problems first.

They aren’t always pretty, but they steer away from details that are not yet needed.

Above - Initial thumbnail sketch for a new iOS app - Viator/Trip Advisor; A polished wireframe for a timesheet desktop app - CBS Interactive

OTA upgrade feature prototype - Turing Video

Click-through prototypes resolve UX questions and help stakeholders evaluate a feature.

Sometimes you just don’t know until you experience it. If stakeholders exist outside of design tools, I will also share Quicktime videos of feature click-throughs.

I test both low and high-fidelity prototypes with users.

After internal approval, focus groups and design validation is the necessary next step.

Design components are reused as often as possible.

Creating and adhering to design systems and system documentation makes life easy for myself and everyone else.

I add visual delights when needed.

My focus remains on the interface experience, but a few visual delights can round out the process nicely.

Internal CMS tool, front-end illustration and design- CBS Interactive

Design and illustration for company-wide pdfs distributed for CMS release - CBS Interactive

I’m an easy part of any team.

(Say team members, stake-holders and developers)

“…I always want to have you to take a final look - it makes me feel secure.”

- Summer - Technical Product Director - Turing Video

“Melinda is able to see both the forest and the trees, and as a result often does much of the required project management herself. She communicates well with creative, business, and engineering types alike, and is a lot of fun to work with.”

- Margaret - Marketing editor - CBS Interactive

“I admire your leadership with the team in your cross-functional meetings”

- Karen - Product Manager - Turing Video