Associates y Amigas: Insights from Lyft’s 2022–2023 UX Associates

Published in

Lyft Design+

10 min readMar 13, 2023

Guided by quotes from managers and mentors + one of last year’s associates, Miri and Tisha, Lyft’s PD+ 2022–2023 UX Associates, share general insights and advice that helped them on their journey.

In 2022, Mirianna Acevedo (User Experience Researcher) and Tisha Woods (Design Program Manager) joined Lyft as the second cohort in Lyft’s UX Associate Program or LUX-AP. Though they worked in different disciplines, they made time for weekly check-ins throughout the associateship, and those check-ins turned into texts + audio messages and evolved into a friendship built on a shared experience. Halfway into their associateship, they thought, what better way to wrap up the shared experience than a shared project? Combining their love of pop culture and design, Miri and Tisha created a project plan to produce content with two goals: inform anyone interested in the LUX-AP experience and reflect on their journeys. They involved their core program guides and created written + video content to spotlight the program and their growing friendship. These are their insights.

2022 LUX-AP insights

“My lack of experience and credentials were blocking me from getting my foot in the door transitioning into UX Research. A recurring question in my mind was “How do I get experience and develop skills when no one is willing to give me a chance?” Fortunately, this frustration did not last long because Lyft announced their new program for professionals with non-traditional backgrounds. For the first time, I felt like there was finally a role for people like me- interested in UX Research but just needed an opportunity to develop skills and build experience. LUX-AP is close to my heart because it broke down barriers, creating a space in tech for career switchers who are passionate and eager to learn. ”
— Jade Searchwell, Previous Associate, now UX Researcher

What parts of your previous career do you bring to your current role?

Miri: I come from a sales/customer service background, and thankfully, I could pivot and take many transferable skills and put them to use during my associateship. Customer service usually involves a lot of customer-facing interactions, asking open-ended questions to uncover any pain points or expectations, analyzing customers’ behaviors to increase sales, and working in fast-paced environments. Those are some of the typical day-to-day of a sales/customer service job and are also core tenants of UXR. I could take those exact skills and immediately put them to work on the projects at Lyft.

Tisha: My career pivot led me to unpack a lot of what was unique to Teacher Tisha and what could be valuable to DPM Tisha. Turns out, there’s so much overlap in education and design ops — benchmarks, planning, retros, efficiency, adaptability, and team support, to name a few things — and what’s innately me. Thinking broadly, emotional intelligence is the biggest and most useful skill set in both careers. Strong emotional intelligence and a growth mindset helped me navigate the big and unexpected feelings that come with change.

“Personally, I believe the benefits of a program like LUX-AP extend outside of Lyft. Design Ops is a small discipline, and there are only a few opportunities for formal training. (It’s worth calling out that there are groups like Design Ops Assembly trying to change this). This means that many practitioners come into Design Ops from tech or design roles and have similar backgrounds. Programs like LUX AP help expand our discipline by creating new pathways into the field. The more voices and experiences we include, the more impactful our discipline can become.”
— Julie Celia, Staff Design Program Manager

What do you love the most about your role, and how does it connect/relate to who you are?

Miri: Naturally, I’ve always been a curious person since diapers, and I have to be honest and say that I have always been a “people pleaser,” I always want to help and support people in the best way I can. I also love design and creating an effective but good-looking experience for users, as someone who has worked in the Retail, Sales, and Customer Service industries for almost ten years. I have always noticed and heard from customers things that could be different or would optimize a client’s experience with a company. As a UX researcher, I get to work directly with that pain point and improve the user experience by practicing various research methods. This is the most satisfying for me as I analyze users’ concerns and problems and work directly on them with a team that all share the same mission. I am extremely passionate about it and grateful to do it.

Tisha: I love all aspects of the role because each piece gives me a new perspective on my skills and how to apply those skills in different contexts. I’m always in my head and thinking, so I think the ambiguous space — the Mind Palace stage, as I call it — is one of my favorite parts because it gives me the opportunity to consider + process information and investigate, in whatever form that takes — observation, active listening, 1:1s, reviewing projects, reflecting, or taking notes. I can also let my mind wander and make noise with purpose and find unique connections. Creative thinking is fun.

“It has been exciting to see someone brand new to a field learn skills and gain confidence in those skills through practical application and project work. Unexpectedly, the thing that has been more rewarding for me has been seeing someone challenge their mindset by focusing on the process of learning and not just the outcome. I think it was key to unlocking growth.”
— Dylan Trow, Staff Researcher.

What did you do to get comfortable in the role?

Miri: When starting my UXR journey, I knew having a growth mindset muscle Is something I would exercise daily. Questioning myself all the time helped me reach the core of those amazing recommendations and insights for my stakeholders. Things I did to feel comfortable in my role were to seek feedback, look at my improvements, work on things I need to improve, and see my growth as a constant reminder that it’s a marathon, not a sprint. Allowing myself some grace, being kind to myself, making mistakes because with those, I learned something new, and lastly, setting realistic goals (those that applied to me and where I was in my journey). It’s amazing to aim big, but smaller realistic goals help us achieve more and give us more confidence when hitting those milestones that lead us to our dreams.

Tisha: I cannot stress enough how important and impactful my core team + PD+ buddies were to my success and comfort. I had so much external support that I pushed myself to reflect internally and grow. I embraced my internal spirals and acknowledged (and accepted!) all the good things taking place. I carried that vulnerability with me and shared my feelings in safe spaces because saying them out loud made them and gave me an opportunity to own them, and whatever solutions or strategies felt authentic or appropriate. I also adopted two guiding mantras and affirmations to ground me on this epic adventure — “I’m doin’ cool shit.” and “I’m leveling up.” (Credit for the last one goes to Anna Judd, who helped me reframe my confused feelings in a relatable way.)

“When you’re teaching someone, it forces you to reflect on your own practice and become more self-aware around the ‘why’. Being a manager on this program helped me document and refine my own process, and is a great reminder that the UXR is a process of continuous growth and iteration no matter where you are in your career”
— Karuna Harishanker, UX Researcher.

Did you have any expectations of the associateship before coming into the program? And how has it been different or the same?

Miri: I knew I would learn, but I didn’t know how in-depth it would be. It’s made me love research even more. With the projects that I worked on, it didn’t seem like there was an expected outcome. The studies could and did go in so many different ways, and that’s what I love the most about the program. There were so many unexpected things that happened that I said to myself, “Okay, I’m glad this happened. This may seem like a negative, but this is a positive because I’m actually learning. This could happen to me later in my career, and I’m learning now.” Overall, I do think it was a really good experience, and it definitely exceeded expectations in terms of the things that I learned about research, Lyft, and my skills.

Tisha: I had zero expectations beyond learning. That was my only expectation. I learned a lot, and I learned more than I expected. Not just about the role but about Lyft, the people, myself, how I work, what feels natural to me, what makes me uncomfortable, and how to best approach that discomfort. I also learned how to ask for and receive help. It’s such a beautiful thing to be supported and nurtured like this at any career stage, but especially in a foundational role.

“I cannot express how much I appreciate being part of an organization — in the Product Design+ team at Lyft — that allowed us to take the space to think about and build an associate program. To me, LUX-AP paired with our internship program, creates a richer environment of experience among our early talent design team members. It’s been a real joy to get to watch Miri, our UXRA this year, build her skills and confidence in conducting and presenting UX Research at Lyft. I’m eager to continue to evolve this program in a way that allows even more opportunity and perspective.”
— Kat Murray, Head of Research.

Outside of the resources shared in LUX-AP, where else did you find inspiration related to your role?

Miri: I am a hands-on learner, but for this role, I needed a lot of background knowledge before even practicing the research steps. It always helps to know a little bit more about a topic or method before going out and trying it; it can also save you much time to focus on your research. Some resources I found were articles from Nielsen Norman Group. I looked at many Medium blogs, like Top 5 Blogs UX Researchers Can’t Miss. Lastly, I joined many UX Research groups where people share a lot of their work or inspiration; every researcher is different, so it’s nice to see those perspectives and apply them to your own. Remember to take notes and be in charge of your learning, don’t be afraid to ask questions and constantly question yourself. Answering “Why?” is why research exists!

Tisha: In general, I found inspiration from creators and their relationships with creativity, which led me to better understand my relationships with creativity and design as well as how I can fit in a design role. I also used my 1:1s and meetings to find themes in what sparked my interest in something and followed the trail with follow-up questions or Google spirals. They’re also super helpful in gaining insight into how others work. Applying the learnings was the best and coolest part, though. I felt safe to try something and see if it worked or to see how I could improve my process. I kept my mind open at all times and documented any useful thoughts to dig into, share, or apply at work. I also directed my own creative energy toward writing — reflections, random notes + thoughts, and even short stories helped me understand when and how I express my creativity. I read and listen to podcasts a lot, and the following books and podcasts helped me on my inner and professional journeys throughout the associateship.

Memorable Lyft ride?

Miri: Haha, this is a good one. My most memorable Lyft ride was late at night, I’ll say 3 am. It’s already a sketchy time in New York, and as a woman, you always fear potential dangers. I was going home from having drinks with friends and requested my ride. The driver arrives and asks me about my night! It makes me extremely comfortable and lets me take control of the music. We listened to Bad Bunny the whole ride and sang our hearts out. It felt like I got into the car with a friend. I remember getting home and thinking, “Wow, what a way to end the night.”

Tisha: Eight years ago, I hurt my foot in the most characteristically Tisha way imaginable and needed to have a cool surgery to heal it properly. (I called it my Adamantium Transformation because it involved temporarily fusing two toe bones with a long surgical screw, which I still have in my Core Memory Box.) My usual chauffeurs were out of town or locked into obligations I didn’t want them to cancel, so my then-brother-in-law sent his Lyft referral code. I’d always seen the cool mustache cars but, for some reason, never tried the service before hurting my foot. I booked the ride and let my driver know ahead of time that I used crutches and I’d try my best to meet him outside. He told me to wait, sent a message that he was heading upstairs, and helped me down the stairs to an already-reclined front seat. First and kindest ride-share experience.

“…onboarding our Associates and benefiting from their analyses, questions, and ideas forces us to question what we do and how and why we do it. We can then improve and change together. I have had the pleasure of mentoring Tisha Woods, our 2022–2023 LUX-AP for Design Operations. She has brought fresh ideas informed by her extensive experiences outside of Design Ops that have helped inform how we want to approach our craft moving forward. I don’t think we can achieve the same injection of perspective by hiring people who exclusively come from within the discipline. Ultimately, no craft or discipline lives in isolation (or at least it shouldn’t). There is no reason why Associates with backgrounds outside of a certain discipline cannot meaningfully contribute to our field and become valued and central practitioners– and in fact, we’ve seen that overwhelmingly, they do.”
— Amanda Schwartz, Staff Design Program Manager.

Thank you to everyone who participated in the 2022 LUX-AP workstream. Your work brought us here. Thank you to our respective teams (Design Operations + Design Foundations and UXR: Transit, Bikes, and Scooters + Fleet) for guiding and supporting us on this journey. Thank you to our core LUX-AP teams, quoted in the article, for the opportunities to impact Lyft and the design industry. Our work and this article are reflections of you and your fantastic work.

— Tisha and Miri