written reflection
written reflection
When I accepted the design internship offer on the Yext Consulting team in December of 2019, I never expected the world to change so drastically. I expected to work inside the Rosslyn, VA office over the summer, but as Coronavirus spread across the globe, it became clear that the internship would be virtual. Initially, I was concerned that it would be challenging to stay engaged and feel like a part of the team due to the physical distance. Looking back, the virtual aspect of the experience made me a more adaptable, patient, and disciplined individual.
On my first day as a design intern, I remember receiving direct messages from everyone on the Consulting design team, welcoming me and offering support before my first meeting. Joining new teams can be overwhelming; however, I felt welcomed and valued from the start. Yext values a collaborative and ambitious culture, and the best way to describe my design internship experience is through the company’s core values of learning fast, thinking big, and getting stuff done.
For the first two weeks of the internship, I received an organized spreadsheet of training modules to complete. The format varied from one-on-one sessions to self-guided learning and exercises. Throughout the training, I learned about the Consulting design team’s meticulous design process, atomic design system, naming conventions, and best practices when designing client web pages. It was fascinating to design pages with complex nested symbols in Sketch, including layouts, sections, units, elements, and atoms. For instance, if a client wanted to create a store location web page, the open hours, contact info, icons, buttons, product cards, etc. are designed individually and connect to form the complete layout. The Consulting design team has a pixel perfect mentality and instills the belief that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
After completing all of the training modules, there was a client training project to combine all aspects of the process. Specifically, my task was to design a responsive store location page, directory, and intent page for a Fortune 500 company. I received a specified content strategy document with details about the required content and order of priority. The goal of the location page redesign was to increase store traffic and customer loyalty. The current store location page has one section that includes the hours, contact, address, and services. I saw an opportunity to establish a better call to action hierarchy, visualize concepts, and expand offerings with an events section. To mark the project’s completion, I crafted a presentation to showcase the final designs and process. My manager, mentor, and team members sent me messages with positive feedback after the presentation. It is truly a great feeling to work with a supportive and encouraging team.
“That was so good! Extremely impressive, and a great representation of all the effort you put into putting these pages together. Also great to see you keeping the team engaged as you ran your first meeting. Thoughtful answers to people’s questions and great follow-up questions. I’m smiling big because I’m so proud of what you created!” — My mentor
Outside of Fortune 500 client work, I engaged in a BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) project with three other interns — including two Technical Engagement Manager interns and a Software Engineering intern. Our task was to create an internal company-wide website portal for onboarding. I designed the interfaces and created animated interactions to make the experience more delightful. It was enjoyable to work with a small team who had diverse disciplines. We presented our solution to the leadership team, and it was well-received; leadership is taking the next steps in its implementation.
The Consulting design team also dedicated meetings to brainstorm ways to improve processes, expand services, and create new initiatives. Yext values feedback and adapts quickly to create a better environment and workflow. As the design process and system become more streamlined, it provides more time to develop innovative initiatives.
At Yext, getting stuff done means setting actionable goals. Each Monday, we had an all-hands design meeting to reflect on the previous week, including the positive, interesting, and needs-improvement events. These discussions would help inform areas to improve in the coming week. Then, everyone would review their weekly sprint and create an action plan inside a shared document. We presented our schedule to the team to establish accountability. Every following morning, we reported our sprint status as green, yellow, or red. This system provides a clear vision of where everyone is and offers the opportunity to receive support before getting too far into the week. As an INFJ personality type, I value a structured, accountable, and harmonious environment.
During a meeting with my mentor, I suggested that it would be great to receive the sprint assignments on Fridays instead of on Mondays. Mondays tend to be less productive because we spend time planning the week before starting work. Within a couple of days of the suggestion, the design team scheduled meetings on Friday to assign the sprint for the coming week. Not only is this great for planning purposes, but it enables design members to have input on which assignments they want to take on. This scenario shows how Yext is open and values everyone’s feedback at all levels to enhance the workflow.
On a personal level, I received specific feedback from my manager and mentor in weekly Zoom calls to grow as an individual. They both acknowledged and appreciated my work ethic and quality. However, my manager and mentor wanted me to be more confident in expressing my voice and learn more about me as a person. Upon reflection, I know that it can sometimes be hard to get to know me because I feel uncomfortable with being vulnerable. In one meeting, I remember repeatedly saying, “if it would be possible” when sharing new ideas. Even though it is a simple statement, it dismisses the ideas immediately before presented. Ideas are already fragile, so it is vital to express them with conviction.
To make deeper connections with everyone on the design team, I scheduled one-on-one Zoom coffee chats. I loved getting to know everyone and sharing more about my background. Overall, I appreciated the opportunity to intern at Yext and learned more about myself and design systems.