Johanna Kollmann, BA

Did you discover your enthusiasm for UX design during your Information Design studies?

Absolutely! Thanks to Konrad Baumann, I was already able to do an internship at Siemens during my studies, where I worked in the field of user interface design and prototyping. As part of that, I contributed to a research project focused on a forward-looking, networked home (a smart home). That was incredibly exciting—especially because at the time there was no iPhone yet. I also wrote my diploma thesis at Siemens; it was about a mobile application for Siemens in the healthcare sector.

What happened after you completed your diploma thesis?

After a short period in Berlin, I moved to Vienna and worked for about a year and a half at Frequentis, a company specializing in safety-critical applications. I then decided to pursue a Master’s degree in Human–Computer Interaction in London. I have to say, it was extremely helpful that I had already studied Information Design and gained work experience beforehand, because I knew exactly what I wanted. For my Master’s thesis, I specialized in agile working—specifically, how designers work in agile environments, which was still relatively new at the time.

Was it difficult to find a job in London after your Master’s degree?

Quite the opposite. I started a UX design job at an agency right after graduating. Through that network, I still get freelance work today and regularly collaborate with those contacts. During the financial crisis, I worked at Vodafone and was fortunate to find a niche: I supported a startup that had been acquired by Vodafone and was already working in an agile way. That fascinated me, and I was able to learn a great deal from them.

You’ve been self-employed since 2014—what does your work look like today?

Today, I mainly work in user research and product management. One concrete example: I was responsible for user research at a consulting firm for about a year, led the team there, and worked on a change management project in which new products and services were developed for internal users. My role was twofold: conducting usability testing of the designs and generating insights into users’ needs and attitudes.

In another project, I work in service and user experience design and collaborate closely with developers. The service addresses a specific process: if someone wants to study in the UK and comes from a country where tuberculosis still exists, they must provide proof that they do not have TB. Currently, this process is not yet digital. As part of the digitization effort, I work on understanding the different user groups, clinical requirements, and related factors.

Do you see user experience design as a growing field?

Definitely. Developers need to speak for users, which means everything has to be fact-based. Unfortunately, especially in service design, companies still make decisions without really considering the user journey or what users actually need. Part of my job is to think through exactly these aspects and identify where the priorities should lie.

So companies hire you not only for your expertise, but also for your unbiased perspective?

Yes, as a freelancer it’s often easier to say, “I would approach it this way or that way.” As an external expert, you’re hired specifically to critically address issues and name things honestly.

How would you describe the influence of the Information Design program on your career path?

At the beginning of my studies, I didn’t know that I would go into UX—that’s something I owe entirely to the university. The broad-based education helped me a lot. For example, we had art classes with Jörg Schlick. At the time, I didn’t realize how relevant that was. Only in retrospect do I see what we learned from him: how to present work well, how to give constructive criticism, and how to handle constructive criticism ourselves. And that’s something I need in my job every single day.