Ryan Brooks

Ryan Brooks Email and Phone Number

Tired of guessing what customers want? Product discovery for complex SaaS @ Northwestern University School of Professional Studies
Chicago, IL, US
Ryan Brooks's Location
Greater Chicago Area, United States, United States
Ryan Brooks's Contact Details

Ryan Brooks personal email

About Ryan Brooks

Inspired by the transformative power of creativity and learning, I've dedicated over a decade of my career to the Design & Research space, with a keen focus on UX Design. My mission is to turn obstacles into opportunities, promoting richer, more fulfilled lives and a fairer society.Currently, I serve as the Design & Research Manager at Truss Works, where I steer a dynamic team of UX Designers while also being involved in hands-on design and research projects. My expertise spans from design strategy and service design to business model design, grounded in a robust research-driven approach. I embrace the principles of design thinking to fuel strategic initiatives that extend beyond conventional UI design.My career has been marked by successful roles as a Senior Product Designer, UX Designer, and freelance consultant. Each of these positions fortified my ability to deliver innovative design solutions, foster learning, and drive project success.Recently, I launched Hard Knock Labs, a venture committed to assisting entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs of color in building scalable, impactful businesses. As the founder, I aim to use my design thinking approach to create real change in our entrepreneurial landscape, promoting diversity and inclusivity.I am a steadfast advocate for experimentation, rapid learning, and embracing failure as a stepping stone towards success. By adopting the double diamond approach to problem-solving, I maintain a state of continuous growth and evolution, both as an individual and as a leader.Speaking of leadership, my style is an amalgamation of Transformational, Servant, and Charismatic. I endeavor to inspire my team, encourage personal and professional growth, and foster an atmosphere of mutual respect and admiration. My focus is on challenging my team members and myself to explore, experiment, and reflect on our journey, leading to better solutions and greater innovation.Whether you're a colleague, client, or fellow professional eager to exchange insights or embark on new collaborations, I'm always open to connect.

Ryan Brooks's Current Company Details
Northwestern University School of Professional Studies

Northwestern University School Of Professional Studies

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Tired of guessing what customers want? Product discovery for complex SaaS
Chicago, IL, US
Employees:
207
Ryan Brooks Work Experience Details
  • Northwestern University School Of Professional Studies
    Northwestern University School Of Professional Studies
    Chicago, Il, Us
  • Hard Knock Labs
    Founder & Product Discovery Consultant
    Hard Knock Labs Aug 2022 - Present
    Customer research consulting to help founders and product teams validate ideas with real, unbiased feedback, ensuring higher retention and growth.
  • Truss
    Design & Research Manager
    Truss Jun 2022 - May 2024
    San Francisco, Ca, Us
    - Lead and mentor a diverse team of 5 UX designers, fostering professional growth and skill development across junior to senior levels.- Conduct skill gap analysis to align team capabilities with company needs and individual growth ambitions, crafting personalized development strategies.- Coach team on strategic planning, conflict resolution, feedback delivery (radical candor), productivity enhancements, and applying design thinking to solve complex problems.- Navigate the team through change management, ensuring adaptability and resilience within fast-paced, evolving project environments.- Represent the company at industry conferences, enhancing brand visibility and thought leadership in the GovTech space.- Play a pivotal role in sales proposal support and lead technical challenges for new business acquisition, demonstrating exceptional versatility in technical and commercial domains.- Develop a comprehensive guide on conducting technical challenges, standardizing best practices to empower practitioners at all levels to contribute effectively to business growth.
  • Truss
    Ux Designer - Level 4
    Truss May 2021 - May 2024
    San Francisco, Ca, Us
    - Led a distributed team of 6 designers and researchers (levels 2 through 4) to design and assist in building a large-scale MVP for one of America’s largest government agencies.- Utilized the SOON coaching framework to mentor Level 2 (junior) to Level 4 (senior) Designer Researchers, fostering professional development and enhancing team capabilities.- Facilitated collaborative workshops with project team members and client stakeholders to prioritize extensive roadmaps, ensuring strategic alignment with long-term goals.- Developed and implemented a research-based DesignOps roadmap, employing design-thinking practices to streamline processes and maximize team efficiency and creativity.- Supported the integration of lean & agile UX practices within project design and research efforts, optimizing feature delivery and achieving ambitious client milestones.- Led product strategy during the discovery phases, using workshop design to swiftly convert user insights into actionable product strategies and roadmaps, demonstrating a strong capacity for strategic leadership in product development.
  • Truss
    Ux Designer - Level 3
    Truss Mar 2020 - May 2021
    San Francisco, Ca, Us
    - Spearheaded Design & Research as an individual contributor on a significant government project, collaborating closely with a design team and cross-functional agile team.- Led discovery and framing efforts for multiple product outcomes, setting the foundation for successful product development and strategic direction.- Designed comprehensive user-flows and screens for five distinct user types within a complex product ecosystem, enhancing user experience and satisfaction.- Directed and facilitated extensive user research activities, including user interviews, usability testing sessions, and stakeholder interviews, to gather critical insights for product refinement.- Led and organized both client and internal workshops, driving collaborative problem-solving and aligning project objectives with user needs and business goals.
  • Ryan B. Designs
    Freelance User Experience Designer
    Ryan B. Designs Nov 2013 - Aug 2022
    - Specialized in crafting informational and creative mobile app, website, and blog designs, tailoring each project to client specifications with a focus on modern technologies like ReactJs.- Designed and developed e-commerce sites, landing pages, and mobile applications, primarily for consumer-facing platforms, enhancing user engagement and client revenue.- Built low, mid, and high-fidelity prototypes to effectively communicate design concepts and facilitate iterative feedback.- Conducted user research to evaluate and enhance the content, functionality, and user experience of projects, ensuring the delivery of valuable and user-centered solutions.
  • Rise Interactive
    Senior Interaction Designer
    Rise Interactive Nov 2018 - Mar 2020
    Chicago, Il, Us
    - Collaborated on a geographically distributed agile team to enhance Connex, an internal enterprise digital marketing platform that doubled as a B2B SaaS offering, driving significant overhead cost reductions and supporting major brands like Ulta, Stanley Steamer, and Clorox.- Established research-based User Personas, facilitating smarter design decision-making and enhancing the platform's usability and client satisfaction.- Standardized a Design Discovery process, aligning UX strategy with user testing and providing clear documentation for engineering team delivery, streamlining development and deployment cycles.- Engaged in rapid prototyping using pen and paper, Sketch, Invision, and FramerX, encouraging continuous feedback from users and engineering, leading to faster iterations and improved product features.
  • Blue Chip Marketing Worldwide
    User Experience Architect
    Blue Chip Marketing Worldwide Feb 2018 - Nov 2018
    Greater Chicago Area, Il, Us
    - Collaborated with digital project management, account teams, digital creative, analytics, social teams, and strategy to deliver top-tier user experience solutions, always prioritizing client interests.- Established a standardized method for documenting usability test findings, enhancing the clarity and applicability of insights across projects.- Developed a methodology to evaluate existing websites, identifying Business/UX Goals and their KPIs, ensuring projects were aligned with strategic objectives.- Introduced fully documented wireframes, streamlining the web production team's implementation process and improving project efficiency.- Implemented guerrilla usability testing methods, enabling early user feedback acquisition at minimal cost, thus optimizing the design process and budget efficiency.- Pioneered the use of Framer and Atomic.io for demonstrating micro-interactions to developers and for prototyping, facilitating early feedback and enhancing prototype fidelity.
  • Blue Chip Marketing Worldwide
    Digital Project Manager
    Blue Chip Marketing Worldwide Jan 2016 - Feb 2018
    Greater Chicago Area, Il, Us
    - Led cross-functional teams including UX Designers, Web Designers, Copywriters, Developers, and Content Strategists to successfully execute digital campaigns for high-profile Health & Wellness clients, including AbbVie, Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb, Novartis, and others.- Managed projects from concept through completion, ensuring deliverables met client expectations for innovation, quality, and impact within the highly regulated Pharma sector.- Fostered collaborative team environments, aligning diverse skill sets and expertise towards common project goals and client satisfaction.- Acted as the primary liaison between the agency and key client stakeholders, navigating complex requirements and regulatory landscapes to deliver compelling digital experiences.
  • Barcodesinc
    Account Manager
    Barcodesinc Jul 2014 - Jan 2016
    Chicago, Il, Us
    - Managed relationships with around 200 client companies, delivering strategic information system solutions across field mobility, healthcare, retail, and warehousing sectors.- Served on the Strategic Information Systems team, focusing on understanding client needs and ensuring satisfaction with tailored solutions.

Ryan Brooks Skills

Marketing Social Media Customer Service Strategic Planning Social Networking Online Marketing Microsoft Office Entrepreneurship Strategy Leadership Event Planning Training Social Media Marketing Account Management Team Leadership User Experience Design Client Management Digital Project Management Market Research Creative Problem Solving Networking Public Relations Market Planning Effective Communications Web Design Wordpress Research Html Css Business Strategy Professional Networking Negotiation Cascading Style Sheets Content Marketing Adobe Creative Suite Design Thinking Client Relations Skills Team Building Relationship Building Jira Scrum Windows Multicultural Marketing Crm Business Process Improvement Confluence Patient Recruitment Spss Basecamp

Ryan Brooks Education Details

  • Depaul University
    Depaul University
    Human Computer Interaction
  • General Assembly
    General Assembly
    User Experience Design Bootcamp
  • University Of Cincinnati
    University Of Cincinnati
    Entrepreneurship/Entrepreneurial Studies
  • University Of Cincinnati Carl H. Lindner College Of Business
    University Of Cincinnati Carl H. Lindner College Of Business
    General
  • Hondros College
    Hondros College
    Real Estate
  • Miami University
    Miami University

Frequently Asked Questions about Ryan Brooks

What company does Ryan Brooks work for?

Ryan Brooks works for Northwestern University School Of Professional Studies

What is Ryan Brooks's role at the current company?

Ryan Brooks's current role is Tired of guessing what customers want? Product discovery for complex SaaS.

What is Ryan Brooks's email address?

Ryan Brooks's email address is ry****@****ail.com

What is Ryan Brooks's direct phone number?

Ryan Brooks's direct phone number is +151332*****

What schools did Ryan Brooks attend?

Ryan Brooks attended Depaul University, General Assembly, University Of Cincinnati, University Of Cincinnati Carl H. Lindner College Of Business, Hondros College, Miami University.

What are some of Ryan Brooks's interests?

Ryan Brooks has interest in Children, Economic Empowerment, Civil Rights And Social Action, Environment, Education, Science And Technology, Disaster And Humanitarian Relief, Human Rights, Animal Welfare, Arts And Culture.

What skills is Ryan Brooks known for?

Ryan Brooks has skills like Marketing, Social Media, Customer Service, Strategic Planning, Social Networking, Online Marketing, Microsoft Office, Entrepreneurship, Strategy, Leadership, Event Planning, Training.

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