Alexis Ulmanis
UX Designer
Profile
Systems-driven UX designer, skilled at designing within complex, regulated domains. Deep grasp on human cognition and decision-making, driving impact through strategic user-informed design. As a collaborator — keen to identify communication gaps, build shared knowledge, and bring out talents of others. As an individual — passionate about service and known to pivot quickly towards a challenge.
Skills
Figma
Wireframing
Design Systems
Journey Mapping
Accessible Design
User Research
Product Thinking
Prototyping
End-to-End Journeys
Component Libraries
Design Scalability
Agile UX
Usability Testing
Jira
Education
Interaction Design
Design Strategy
Cross-Functional Collaboration
Requirement Gathering
B2B Saas
UX Pattern Framework Definition
M.A. in Psychology
Villanova University
August 2020 - May 2022
B.A. in Psychology
Wake Forest University
August 2014 - May 2018
Experience
Lead UX Designer
STP Investment Services
June 2022 - Present
B2B financial technology company with initiative to release new enterprise Saas product spanning multiple financial domains. Positioned to lead UX strategy and design among a small, startup-like product team.
Steered UX design strategy: Shaped UX approach achieving business success by implementing pragmatic design standards for scaling and end-to-end process achieving MVP delivery and onboarding of 10x users than the legacy system
Built a reusable design system: Established foundational system with reusable UI components and interaction frameworks, ensuring a visual consistency and causing greater sprint development capacity
Improved user efficiency for monthly business tasks: Cut task completion time in half through user-informed designs, establishing early adoption by initial users and gaining a user base invested in providing valuable feedback
Turned friction into user trust for security-driven experiences by accounting for intricate data security requirements up front and ensuring early cross-functional alignment producing holistic solutions
Aligned Figma component library with front-end React framework for consistent design implementation, reducing later stage rework
Designed interactive prototypes in Figma for early-stage testing with clients, rapidly iterating on feedback to refine solutions, providing durable, scaling solutions
Served as primary point of contact for clients: Addressed concerns promptly and effectively to build high-quality relationships resulting in ongoing collaboration during planning of new feature
Worked closely with front-end and back-end engineers to ensure design feasibility and compatibility with the tech stack, adjusting designs based on technical constraints and influencing architectural decisions balancing optimal UX with platform realities
Establish a single source of truth for UX decisions, fostering cross-functional alignment and reducing bugs raised during testing
Utilized emerging technologies, gaining prowess leveraging of AI tools to enhance design impact, including rapid iteration, communication, and challenging initial concepts in early design stages
UX Designer
STP Investment Services
July 2021 - June 2022
Company relied on legacy software for servicing clients who outsourced middle office management. A feature-driven development culture with software rebuild on the horizon.
Demonstrated business value of user-focused design: Addressed usability issues with design principles, leading to changes that reduced service desk requests for a monthly task by 60%
Gained large-scale buy-in for UX improvements: Uncovered efficiency gaps due to UX problems through user research, illuminating potential value for user-focused design, gaining support of across the company large-scale changes
Prototyped vision gaining stakeholder buy-in for funding: Translated abstract ideas into tangible visuals and interactive experience in Figma, which were used to secure buy-in from business stakeholders to fund large-scale software redesign
Graduate Psychology Researcher
Villanova University
August 2020 - May 2022
Partnered with community organizations to address developmental roadblocks for young children in at-risk populations, leveraging cross-disciplinary expertise to develop actionable recommendations in-context, leading to improved integration of research insights into community settings
Collaborated with research teams to define study objectives, prioritize key questions, and iteratively refine research methodologies in response to emerging findings
Coded and categorized qualitative data identifying interaction patterns among parent-child dyads, deepening understanding of caregiver interaction factors influencing child outcomes
Refined datasets and conducted statistical analyses, including significance testing and interpretation of findings, providing quantitative evidence for ongoing research questions and prioritization for future hypothesis testing