Ux/Ui functional lead
My Role
Within a year of joining Silicon Mountain Technologies, I was promoted to UX/UI Functional Lead, becoming the senior UX/UI professional within the company. In this role, I was responsible for mentoring, training, and leading a team of UX Designers across multiple government contracts. My focus was on fostering a strong UX/UI practice within the company, equipping designers with the skills and resources to excel in their roles.
Homepage
Example training page
Building the UX/UI Toolkit
To ensure consistency and efficiency in our UX/UI processes, I developed a comprehensive UX/UI Toolkit—a structured knowledge base designed to document best practices, workflows, and training materials, built in Confluence.
I conducted training sessions three times a week, covering every phase of the UX/UI process, from initial research to final launch. This Toolkit, created in Confluence, became a go-to resource for both existing and new employees, providing detailed guidance on design methodologies, tools, and industry best practices.
Toolkit Highlights
📌 Centralized resource for UX/UI methodologies
📌 Step-by-step guidance on research, design, and implementation
📌 Continuous updates based on industry trends and team needs
Every section within the Toolkit included:
✅ Templates – Ready-to-use frameworks for UX deliverables
🎥 Videos – Recorded walkthroughs of key UX/UI processes
📖 How-To Guides – Step-by-step documentation for tools and methods
🧑🏫 In-Person Training – Interactive sessions to reinforce learning
Mentorship & Leadership
One of the most rewarding aspects of my role is mentoring my team members on both their projects and career development. Since each designer works on different contracts, I maintain regular one-on-one meetings to offer guidance, troubleshoot challenges, and ensure they have the resources they need to succeed.
This mentorship program has led to increased confidence, stronger design skills, and greater collaboration among team members, fostering a culture of continuous learning.
UX/UI Design Challenges
Since many of our designers work within government contracts, their projects often come with strict constraints and limited design flexibility. To keep our creative skills sharp, I introduced UX/UI Design Challenges as part of our training sessions. These challenges encourage designers to step outside their usual project work and experiment with new ideas, tools, and techniques.
Design Challenges We've Tackled
🎨 Brand Identity – Developing a visual identity for a product or service
📊 Competitive Analysis – Researching industry trends and competitors
👤 Personas – Creating detailed user personas for target audiences
🔍 Iconography – Designing custom icon sets
📱 Mockups & Prototyping – Translating wireframes into polished designs
🌓 Dark Mode Design – Adapting interfaces for a dark mode experience
🤖 AI Design – Experimenting with AI-driven design tools
Tools & Technologies
As part of our ongoing learning, I introduced and trained the team on various industry-leading design tools, ensuring they could work efficiently across different projects.
🛠 Design & Prototyping: Figma, Adobe XD, Illustrator
🤖 AI & Automation: ChatGPT, Midjourney, Recraft
🎨 Inspiration & Ideation: Pinterest
Projects I’ve Led to Success
As the UX/UI Functional Lead, I have guided my team through a variety of complex and high-impact projects, ensuring that our designs are not only user-centric but also aligned with mission-critical objectives. From large-scale design systems to AI/ML tool development, my leadership has helped drive innovation and usability in high-security environments.
Large-Scale Design Systems for NGA
Developing a comprehensive design system for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) required a deep understanding of both usability and scalability. I led my team in:
Standardizing UI components to create consistency across multiple applications
Ensuring accessibility and compliance with government regulations
Collaborating with cross-functional teams to integrate the design system into mission-critical tools
Implementing a scalable design library that improved efficiency across development teams
This project resulted in a more cohesive and efficient workflow, reducing design inconsistencies and accelerating development timelines.
Weather Simulation & AI/ML Tool Development
We worked on an advanced weather simulation tool that leveraged AI and machine learning to provide real-time forecasting and analysis. My leadership in this project involved:
Conducting user research to understand analyst needs and workflows
Designing intuitive data visualizations for complex meteorological data
Optimizing the UI for AI-driven insights, making information digestible for decision-makers
Iterating based on feedback from subject matter experts
Our work ensured that end-users could effectively interact with AI-generated insights, improving decision-making accuracy in critical operations.
Website Development & Digital Transformation
As part of our modernization efforts, I led a team in revamping multiple websites to improve usability, branding, and functionality. This involved:
Conducting competitive and user research to align designs with industry best practices
Redesigning information architecture to enhance navigation and accessibility
Developing responsive UI frameworks for seamless multi-device experiences
Collaborating with developers to ensure smooth implementation
These efforts significantly improved user engagement, reduced friction in customer interactions, and strengthened brand identity.
Managing in a Classified Space
Working in a classified environment presents unique challenges in UX/UI design, requiring careful consideration of security, accessibility, and compliance. My approach to managing design teams in these spaces included:
Establishing secure design workflows that adhere to classified environment protocols
Training designers on best practices for working in high-security settings
Ensuring usability within strict regulatory constraints, balancing security with functionality
Advocating for user needs despite limitations on data access and testing
Navigating these constraints, my team successfully delivered intuitive and efficient interfaces while maintaining strict compliance with security requirements.
