Avery Kruppe
UX Design
Associate Product Experience Researcher at Kohl's
Describe your potential job duties
-Conducting customer research to understand where gaps exist in Kohl's' digital experience
-Spearheading activities including research planning, customer interviews, journey mapping, analysis, and storytelling to advocate for customer-centric design opportunities
-Supporting internal research operations by sharing best practices across departments to standardize research efforts
In what ways did the Polytechnic and/or Purdue help make you uniquely qualified for your new job?
Being able to lead industry-sponsored projects gave me the opportunity to build interpersonal skills, develop an agile mindset, and gain confidence communicating professionally. Not to mention, the emphasis on developing a portfolio gave me an upperhand that landed me my internship turned full time position.
How has the college or someone in the college (feel free to name them) helped you achieve your goals?
Nancy Rasche has been an incredible mentor throughout the years. She gives thoughtful feedback that turns abstract concepts into "aha moments." With Nancy's help, I not only started the major on a strong footing, but ended it with clarity. UX Design can be very nuanced, and Nancy has made it as approachable as possible by always explaining the "why" behind our design methods.
What specific classes (titles are more helpful than course numbers) helped prepare you for your new job?
Any of the UX Experience Studios (industry sponsored projects) have been super helpful for being able to apply learnings in a safe yet challenging environment. It was also rewarding being able to take the lead and act as a "sponsor contact" in these classes where I was able to practice stakeholder management and develop professional communication skills.
If you had a favorite class, project, experience, or professor, what/who was it, and why?
My favorite project was my sophomore year UX Experience Studio where my team and I worked with P&G to develop an e-commerce solution for two of its major brands. This was my first time being the project lead and leading a time of its size (10 people). Additionally, the focus of the project (retail) caught my attention and opened the door to what became my future job.
Being able to lead industry-sponsored projects gave me the opportunity to build interpersonal skills, develop an agile mindset and gain confidence communicating professionally. Not to mention, the emphasis on developing a portfolio gave me an upper hand that landed me my internship-turned-full time position."