Meet Karlstad's new UX Lead – Adam Janäng Smideborn

With his childhood in Värmland followed by a few years in Gothenburg, Adam is now back in Karlstad with his family together with a backpack full of experiences and lessons learned from the big city.

– I was happy when I saw that Consid would open an office in Karlstad! Somehow it felt like a receipt that we did the right thing by moving.

"It will be exciting to be able to offer our services locally"

Consid celebrated 1 year in Karlstad in May and at the time of writing has 20 employees locally. Now they have also got their first own UX designer in the form of Adam, who takes on the role of UX Lead. He will play an important role in Consid's continued journey in Karlstad. We hear from Adam what he is most looking forward to.

- It feels great to finally be there! I look forward to being part of the continued journey here in Karlstad. It will also be exciting to be able to offer our services locally here in Värmland. My view is that there are many companies here that need the kind of competence that we possess in order to succeed in their digitization and further development.

How did Adam get into the UX track? He says that his interest in UX was aroused long before he was even aware of the concept.

- For as long as I can remember, I have thought about the appearance and function of things and pondered over alternative solutions, who is the user or recipient and how it does and thinks. After several years of treadmill-like production of websites, banners and ads, I grew tired of the lack of evidence for design decisions. I realized that I was trying to accommodate everyone and listened to what different decision makers thought and thought all the time. The one who shouted the loudest was the one who got to decide and I was the one who executed. I wanted to be able to derive decisions about something and have the opportunity to argue for one or the other - preferably with benefit for the end user in focus. I started reading more about interaction design and UX, took some courses in the field and started working as a UX designer in 2015.

"My goal is for us to have an open climate where everyone can thrive"

Consid in Karlstad is growing so fast! To meet the great demand that exists, we need to become even more. Not least on the UX front. The goal is for us to become a team of at least 5 UX designers in the area within the next few years, and we already have 50+ UX designers spread out in Consid's offices around Sweden. What goals does Adam have for the time to come?

- It is luxurious to have such a network of colleagues to develop with, brainstorm ideas with and have fun with. I also want this locally in Karlstad. That's why I want more wonderful people here who, together with us, want to have fun at work and at the same time create value for our customers. I am really looking forward to building a strong team. My goal is for us to have an open climate where everyone can enjoy themselves and feel at home - that has always been important to me. It also feels important that there is room for a little nonsense in everyday life, then I feel at my very best! Having fun with your colleagues and feeling your gut when you go to work; these are perhaps the most important parameters for a sustainable and successful collaboration.

"Basically, it's about understanding the users' needs and situation"

What is UX for Adam? He believes that there are many different things to focus on and that is precisely what makes the professional role so fun and exciting.

- Firstly, I think it's fun that more and more companies realize the value of UX; that in the end it pays to invest a little extra in creating something that is tailored to the goals and needs of both the business and the customers. UX is a fairly broad term. I think many people have the image that it is mostly about surface, but a nice surface is not everything even if it is a big part of the experience. However, there are ugly designs that work great and beautifully designed solutions that work poorly. There is a lot you need to keep track of to create a user-friendly solution and the desired effect. Basically, it's about understanding the users' needs and situation and giving them the best possible conditions to be able to do what needs to be done - of course with just as much focus on the business's goals and needs. There has to be a balance there.

Adam's 3 best tips for people with the same professional role

• Make sure there is an understanding and consensus, sync so that you understand each other and mean the same thing. A word or description can mean completely different things to two different people. Ask questions, ask each other to show examples, compare different solutions and try describing with metaphors.
• Be humble and open to what insights may arise in your research work. It is easy to have preconceived notions and become limited in thought.
• Try to talk to end users as often as you can. There is a lot to gain from it! Let them open up and talk. Be curious and feel free to ask "Why?" an extra time.