A day in the life of a product designer at Uber

Summary

Finn Kerr, a product designer at Uber, takes us through a day in his life while working from home during the 2020 pandemic. He shares his morning routine, from making smoothies to checking his calendar for a busy day of meetings and design work. Finn emphasizes that product design isn't just about working in tools like Figma; it also involves collaborating with teams, aligning on priorities, and providing feedback to engineers. Despite multitasking during meetings, he focuses on deep work, QA tasks, and project progress, offering insights into the challenges and rewards of being a product designer.

Takeaways

• 😀 Finn Kerr is a product designer at Uber, sharing a day-in-the-life during the COVID-19 pandemic when working from home.
• 🍊 His morning routine includes taking vitamins, making a smoothie, and checking his calendar for the day's tasks.
• 🏠 As it's a work-from-home day, he skips the commute to the office and heads to his home office to begin the day.
• 📅 His day starts with a usability testing session, followed by a product working session, design collaboration with an external company, and a checkpoint meeting (CP4) before going live with a product.
• 💻 In the morning, Finn engages in deep work sessions, focusing on finalizing concepts and updating designs based on feedback from his team.
• 🍵 He enjoys a tea ritual in the morning, drinking lemongrass and ginger loose-leaf tea to help him focus and stay energized throughout the day.
• 🗣️ Meetings are a big part of his day, with frequent check-ins and discussions with product managers, engineers, and external vendors.
• 🍴 During lunch, he takes a quick break to grab some food and then returns to his desk to join another meeting.
• 🔄 He emphasizes that being a product designer involves much more than just using design tools like Figma; a significant part of the job is attending meetings, aligning with teams, and discussing strategy.
• ✅ Towards the end of the day, Finn performs Quality Assurance (QA) work, reviewing the progress made by engineers on the designs he's handed off, making sure everything aligns with his vision before the launch.

Q & A

What is Finn Kerr's role and where does he work?

Finn Kerr is a product designer currently working at Uber.

How does Finn start his workday when working from home?

Finn starts his workday by taking some vitamins and making a smoothie, which he has been doing for the last two years. He usually exercises before this, either by running or doing yoga, but on this particular day, he did not.

What is the first thing Finn does when he arrives at his desk?

The first thing Finn does when he arrives at his desk is check his calendar to see his day's schedule, including meetings and tasks.

What kind of meetings does Finn have throughout the day?

Finn has several types of meetings, including research sessions for usability testing, product working sessions with counterparts, design working sessions with external companies, and checkpoint meetings like cp4 before a product launch.

What is the purpose of the research session Finn attends?

The purpose of the research session is to gather insights from users by testing the product. In this session, they use Mural to create scenarios for users to fill in, helping the team understand user preferences and expectations.

How does Finn approach focused work sessions?

Finn approaches focused work sessions by minimizing distractions, turning off notifications on his work computer, and working in blocks of deep focus. He uses tools like Figma and Google Slides to work on concepts and align with the team vision.

What role do cross-functional meetings play in Finn's work?

Cross-functional meetings, like the product working sessions, allow Finn to align with product managers, engineers, and other stakeholders to discuss outstanding requirements, priorities, and challenges in the project.

How does Finn handle multitasking during meetings?

Since working from home, Finn multitasks during meetings by sometimes doing light work in the background while participating in discussions, especially in meetings where he's listening more than presenting.

What does Finn do in the QA (Quality Assurance) process?

During the QA process, Finn reviews the engineers' progress on designs, taking screenshots of their implementation, and comparing it side by side with the original design in Figma. He provides feedback on any necessary tweaks or adjustments.

What does Finn do to wind down at the end of the workday?

At the end of the workday, Finn spends time tidying up his inbox, chatting with team members, and handling smaller tasks on his to-do list. He ends the day in a relaxed manner, without any major tasks remaining.