The design portfolio that got me hired at Wealthsimple
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 17 พ.ค. 2024
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At some point during your design interview process, you’ll probably be asked to share your portfolio presentation. I recently did exactly that for my new job at Wealthsimple. Here’s a walkthrough of the portfolio presentation that ultimately got me hired. Enjoy!
This is a sponsored video.
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//LINKS
Looking for 1:1 mentorship or feedback on your portfolio? Book a session with me on Superpeer: superpeer.com/femke
Looking for a new design job? Browse my job board of fresh product design roles: pallet.xyz/list/femkedesign-j...
//TIMESTAMPS
0:00 - Intro
1:03 - Chapter 1: About Me
2:58 - Chapter 2: The Work - First case study
4:19 - Framer
5:17 - Second case study
10:45 - Third case study
13:39 - Wrapping up with the final pitch
// MORE
Website: www.femke.design
Podcast: www.designlife.fm/
Twitter: / femkesvs
Instagram: / femkedotdesign
My logo animation is done by Austin Saylor: www.austinsaylor.com/
My brand is designed by Black & White studios: www.blackandwhitestudios.nz/
Some videos are edited by Nancy Palm: nancypalm.com/
//GET STARTED IN UX
Visit this link for a list of curated UX Design resources and tools: www.femke.design/resources
Aside from sharing an effective portfolio deck and presentation, you also managed to give us learning. In the 3rd case study, instead of starting with a problem statement, you showed an opportunity statement. Framing an opportunity rather than a problem, that's very a good business-centric approach especially for stakeholders and recruiters. Now that's something I would take a look at in making my case studies in the future. Congrats on your new job, Femke! :-)
Totally! We don't always have to be solving a problem. Embarking on an opportunity can be just as valuable.
@@femkedesign Hi Femke, may I ask why you choose Framer instead of Figma to showcase your presentation? Is there any better feature on Framer that Figma doesn't have?
@@mengqihe1874 Hmm I think you may have misunderstood? I did do my presentation in Figma.
I loved that part as well. Femke is a great storyteller :)
Hey Femke, I never comment on videos, haven't done so in years. But I've been struggling in my Product Design job search so bad constantly redoing my resume and portfolio time and time again.
I'd get so many interviews from major companies and make it several rounds but NEVER passed a portfolio review. I used this template in my last review this week and to my suprise, I'm moving forward! That's wild. Thank you so much for sharing and helping me out on my career journey.
Kimberly!! Congratulations that sounds super promising. All the best for the rest of the interview process!!!
That's such a great portfolio breakdown! I'm happy to see that I'm not the only one who prefers slides over links to websites or prototypes.
Hey Femke!! Congrats on your new job and on your amazing channel. I binge watched all your content preparing for a major round of interviews and I have to say that this video opened so many opportunities for me, I just got a new job because I was able to story tell my designer profile, strengths, pillars and projects. Your content has so much value and I admire you so much!
So glad to hear it Isela! Congrats on the new job!
You're amazing, Femke!
It was super inspiring to see your behind the scenes!
Thanks Anfisa!
Your videos have been incredibly helpful as I prep for internship interviews. Looking forward to your next video :)
Glad to hear that! Good luck for your interviews :)
Congrats & all the best! I really like the way you make these things easy to understand. You are really an inspiration for many.
Thank you very much!
Congrats Femke! & all the best for your future! You really inspire me a lot!
Thank you so much!!
Thanks for walking through your design portfolio, Femke! I appreciate the transparency - really helps newer designers, like myself, understand the industry a bit better and how to grow :)
Of course :) so glad it was helpful.
This is really good! Thank you, this really spells out what I'm missing from my current presentation!
Thank you so much Femke! I have a portfolio presentation next week and this has been quite helpful 😢. Gosh! I'm so glad people like you exist on the internet 🌻
You're welcome! Good luck!
This video is so insightful! Thank you Femke! Also, I am coming back to this video after about 6 months and I am impressed how Framer pivoted so fast from a design tool to a no-code website maker!
Yeah they really did do a pivot!
Super transparent, concise and straightforward. Such a strong video. Thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
I just want to let you know-- following this formula helped me land my dream role! Thank you for sharing your knowledge and being so inspiring!
Congratulations! Thats amazing!
Excellent video! Your presentation is top notch. You helped me see so many great ideas for my programming portfolio! Thank you Femke!!!
Great to hear!
Thanks for sharing Femke. This is so helpful! I always listen to your podcast and videos and they help me to grow in my design career.
You are very inspiring! Vero from Chile :) 🇨🇱
You're welcome! Thanks for listening to the podcast :)
Congrats Femke. You inspire me and i am so happy for you.
Thanks Franco!
Amazing approach across your entire portfolio. I love what you covered in the first slides.
Cheers!
Really, really helpful. Thanks Femke!
This is incredibly valuable 🙌🏻💖
I specially loved:
- The about me with values
- Prioritizing projects that align with company values
- The way you frame problems/ opportunity areas!
Thank you so much for sharing!!
You're so welcome!
Thanks for sharing your experience and this incredible valuable information. 🙌
Wow! Once again thanks for sharing real real real examples instead just a template with lorem ipsum! You are awesome Femke! Will rewatch this video again and again!
You're welcome!! Glad to help where I can :)
Great design as well as being so clear.
Such compelling case studies, thank you for your amazing content!
Glad you like them!
Wow, those slides look really beautiful and clear, you really deserve any senior product designer role, 1000X yes.
Thanks!
Thank you for sharing this. It gives me confidence that I'm on the right track with my own portfolio.
Yas so glad to hear that!
Femke, congrats! You are my career role model! This video is super helpful.
aw thank you Kathy!!
Very intentional about job applications too!
This is so helpful. Thank you for sharing your portfolio!
My pleasure!
Thank you so much for this video Femke! I completed my 3-month UX research internship and even though I love the work of a Researcher, I realized that I truly want Product Design to be my career advancement. I am in the process of remaking my portfolio after having a bit more knowledge as to what the industry requires. However, I have been procrasting, feeling unmotivated and having fear that I might never be able to find an UX design job and your video really gets me out of all these!
You give me clear directions, expectation and motivation to make a portfolio that can actually help me land my first job in UX design! Thank youuu so much 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰 and I will update this comment once I successfully find a job :)
So glad to hear it Uyen!!!!! Good luck :)
this was so helpful for future internship interviews, thank you!
You're welcome!
Hi Femke, It was lucky to watch your video when I struggled to make the portfolio presentation.
Absolutely enjoy and find these kinds of videos very helpful. Thanks, Femke :)
Thanks Darshan!
Congrats on the new job! (A year late!) This is such a helpful video for designers at every level. I’m preparing an updated version of my deck for a new opportunity and I can already see the areas this will impact.
Glad it was helpful!
Thank you for putting yourself out there! It really elevates other designers like myself!!!
You are so welcome!
Hey Femke! I love how your videos are always so informative!! 😸 When presenting your deck during an interview, do you have some sort of script or do you read your slides?
No script or anything! I just speak naturally to the context on the slides. It does help doing a few run throughs as a practice so you can prepare what you want to say.
Amazing - thank you so much for sharing this, definitely learned alot! 🔥🔥🔥
So glad!
You are someone I have been looking for ♥️
Pure gold. Thank you!
Cheers!
Congrats! All the best!
Thanks!
Thank you Femke this is gold!
So glad to hear that!
Thank you Femke! This was uber informative!
You're welcome!
Congrats Femke on your new role !!
Thanks!
Happy to see ads manger in your presentation! 🤩
I would be remiss to not take the time to thank you. I’ve been hunting for a new job for some time now and never quite understood why I wasn’t landing anything. I recently stumbled upon your videos regarding how to structure case studies on your website, as well as this one, so I got to work. Happy to report that I recently got an amazing offer and truly believe that presenting my work in this format changed the game. Thank you for being such an amazing resource!
That's amazing Kettelie, congratulations!!!!!
Thanks for sharing! Great work and great explanations
Glad you enjoyed it!
The ad in between was a little bit of a shock! :)) Thanks for this video Femke! ❤️
You're so welcome! Sponsorships mean I can keep the channel youtube-ad free and also free for you to watch! ;)
@@femkedesign Oh no, I meant I as a viewer didn't know it was coming! I was expecting to hear about your second project and got confused for a moment. Only that. From the UX point of view ;)
This was incredibly helpful. Thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
Wow, thanks for this! Aspirational presentation!
Glad you liked it!
Thank you so much for this. A great resource.
You're welcome Emily!
hi, Femke, may I ask you if the business impact metric(namely the numbers in problem scale and final impact) comes naturally in the design process, or you have to proactively chasing the product manager to track the impact?
Thank you in advance.
Thanks so much for sharing, your videos seriously have the most tactical tips and have a true impact on my work and career! I was wondering though, when applying to a position and they request your portfolio- do you provide a link to this design deck or do you have a separate web portfolio? Thanks!
I would provide a link to this deck!
Wow, this has been one of the most valuable resources I've read/watched/listened to on this subject! Based on that portfolio presentation I would hire you on the spot! Why did you present a deck rather than a web portfolio? Just curious as to which one could be the more compelling option when presenting work.
Hi Femke! First of all, congrats on the new job ✨ I see in the video that you present the final product in a series of screens and I was wondering your perspective on walking through a final product with an interactive prototype instead. My concern is that I want the people in the presentation to follow along the solution and not get lost in screens (does that make sense?)
Makes sense! I think a prototype works fine as well, provided your giving a really clear voice over as to what's happening on the screens. I usually recommend an interactive one rather than a gif or recording, as those can be harder to "keep up with" as a viewer.
Thank you for sharing 🙏
Amazing examples, thanks you!
Glad you liked it!
Thank you for sharing! That’s going to help me for tomorrow!
You are so welcome!
Cheers from Korea! Super excited to learn more from you :)
Thank you Joonseo!
Thank you so much for the videos. Super inspiring. I’m thinking of transitioning careers from architecture to UI/UX design. Just wondering where you started learning all these skills?
How exciting! Here is a video all about my journey into design: th-cam.com/video/IngLVKGEHGg/w-d-xo.html
Thank you so much for this. While our fields are not 1:1 (i'm a Creative Director), I found some bits super useful and plan to take some inspiration! I have an interview this week for a dream job and I want to go above and beyond a normal case study deck. Thank you!
Good luck Allan!
Your videos are amazing. Thanks a lot for sharing your expertise and practices.
Regarding the structure of your portfolio deck, I noticed that chapter 2 is "The Work" and chapter 4 is "the Final Pitch". Is there a chapter 3 that I may have missed?
Also, do you tailor the deck to the company you are applying for?
Thank you! There is no chapter 3, I just mis-numbered them :) And yes I do tailor it to the company.
Hi Femke! For projects that haven’t shipped just like “Driver Micro Loans” how did you go about presenting the information at interviews?
I am in a similar situation where I’m not allowed to share projects that haven’t shipped but it is quite recent and relevant to the job I’m interviewing for.
Thanks for sharing this was really insightful.
Thank you very much Femke for this amazing video, it has so many amazing insights. You mentioned that the first project in your presentation was never shipped, I am curious how did you communicate the impact? For other projects, you had an impact slide with all numbers but the first one won't have that.
I have a video all about this coming out very soon, so stay tuned!
@@femkedesign sure, looking forward to it
Loved this. Thank you for breaking down your work. Curious to know why you decided to host your portfolio in Figma over a website!
It's better for presentation - I do have a website but keep my work in a presentation format for job interviews :)
Thank you so much for sharing!!
You are so welcome!
Hi Femke! Thank you so much for this awesome breakdown, it's super helpful. I'm wondering how you frame the first case study, since you said there wasn't any business impact. In my work as a strategist, there are many things I do a ton of work on that end up not shipping because we realize after all the discovery work that it's not viable/desireable/feasible. Do you usually just focus on what you learned through those types of projects, or how you'd do things differently? There's so many things I want to show but feel like it's anticlimactic to show all this work only for it to die in the end! Thank you :)
Hey! I have a whole video on this, hope it helps! th-cam.com/video/i-b7_acZcAg/w-d-xo.html
SO GOOD 👏
Thank you!!
Hi femke! This video is extremely helpful! Thank you! Quick question, you mentioned your first project did not ship. How did you get around showing that without violating NDA? I ask because I also work in big tech and there are a few projects I am proud of but did not ship (and will never ship) but I’m not sure if I can actually share those in presentation interviews
I only show it in private interview settings which are already under NDA's, so I don't have the work publicly anywhere.
Hi Femke, thank you so much for sharing the presentation. It's very professional and on point! I learn a lot and have better ideas to prepare my first porfolio. I'm about to start a new project as part of my self-taught journey, do you have any recommendation on how to choose a project to work on OR what kind of projects are good to create a case study if you are new and haven't had the opportunity to work with dev/stakeholders?
Hey Hang! I recommending choosing a project you are either most proud of, has strong impact or demonstrates skills relevant to the job you're applying for. Good luck!
This video has provided such good inspiration for mine. I love the confidence and how you show you stand out from the crowd. It really makes a big impact! However there is one thing I find difficult to find out and that is the business impact from your contribution. What if there was negative business impact or you can't find out about the PnL of that product? Is it even worth mentioning?
I have a video coming out tomorrow all about business impact in particular! Stay tuned :)
The About Me page is awesome and one way of doing it. I am a Content Designer and I make the About Me page not only about what I do/have done professionally, but also about my personality. I use very light humour to highlight that aspect of my personality.
Love that focus on your personality! It's a great way to differentiate yourself.
Hi Femke, thanks for sharing the presentation. Very informative! I was wondering for project under NDA, do you have any recommendation on how to present that during interviews?
Hey Cathy! Honestly, I would just still present it if it were me :)) Interviews are under NDA's anyway and it's pretty standard for work shown during that process to be kept confidential. Obviously you should do what you're comfortable with.
@@femkedesign that's good to know! Thanks Femke
i just want to know, why you piut business impact on last slide rather than on first or second slide?
Femke - thanks for sharing this! Really good insights.
Quick question: In the 3rd case study (ads), one of the goals is "Reach GA in at least 1 Market". What is GA? thanks!
General Assembly - which means 100% rolled out
I like the way you deliver your story :-)
Cheers!
Hi @femke thanks to this video I’m on on-site interviews with Facebook. Thank you ✌️
Ooh so exciting! Good luck!
Hey Femke, great presentation! I was wondering if you keep a habit of saving your design work outside of work? Usually after the employee is left, the company will immediately disable the employee's account. Is it legal / safe to save the design work (while we're still working) before we leave the company? Ty! :)
I'd refer to your employment agreement with the company :)
Awsome, I am from Mexico and OXXO had to be in all payment methods.
Woww! This is amazing🔥
Thanks so much!
Hey, Femke! Quick question: when applying to a job, would you send this exact portfolio as well, or would you present the case studies and the "about me" part in a different way? I understand this is what you presented to the company whilst doing the interview, but it got me thinking what I should send to a company when applying to a job posting.
This video is incredible! Thanks for putting time into this! X
I'd send a link to this also :)
Is this Figma presentation available to use? I have an interview coming up and it would really help with the portfolio presentation.
Thanks!
It isn't, but I have another one available you can get access to here: femke.ck.page/portfolio-presentation
As someone who’s been in the industry for a few years, this is a really interesting approach. I understand that you present this deck in the interview itself, my question is what format did you show your work to GET the interview? I have a portfolio website but it needs work and that is incredibly time consuming, so wondering whether it would be a good idea to whip up a figma presentation to use as both a cover letter and work showcase type of thing to assist in actually getting to the interview stage. Would love to hear your take on this!
I think a Figma presentation could totally work in lieu of case studies on a website! That said I think it's ALWAYS good to have some sort of website. You could just have an About page with a link to download a figma presentation.
Wow, you're so incredible, I love you channel.
Thanks!
This is great thank you :)
You're welcome!
Amazing video! Can you mention how many months it took to make each project? Your video really shows professionalism and makes me think I should change to a product/startup team, amazing projects, and process end-to-end. I have 4 years of exp in agencies and consulting big corporate finance (europe) and we aren't able to do this kind of research, iteration, flows you did. It's always to do something fast without any research, and we spend more time in validation points with other teams that actually do ux. (Example, spending weeks to validate one page website... ridiculous. Then the projects we have aren't huge problems just quick fixes (like changing button label or something). Then on the agency side, we do nice projects but are mostly re-design, so no real problem projects.
Each of these projects took anywhere from 6-12 months!
@@femkedesign amazing time length!
I have the same problem - however this "quick fix - mentality" is even stronger within startups - I guess Uber by now is much more like a corporate with projects going in depth and so on because they seem to have quite an advanced design process. In the startup I am working in its same story as yours. The design Process there is more like: Competition Research > Copy whatever they do good that fits to your project > adapt it to fit your specific needs > Ship and see through data if it worked ;) But maybe thats just how young startups work
I recently have gone through a couple of interviews and some failed, some are in progress, and important ones are coming up in a few weeks. This is great and a huge help! Thank you. This is the only video that perfectly shows how to present case studies in an interview after searching for 100+ videos and Medium posts :)
My one question here is - have you ever shared a complex product (e.g., some business-specific products that used by expert users) that needs lots of background explanation? I'm mostly working on business solution designs and feel like I spend too much time to help interviewers understand what the product is for. Should I remove this from my presentation?
Also if you present a project that was not shipped, what do you include as a success metric or user/business impact?
Thanks Youn! It is helpful to present some background context so that viewers can follow along, but i'd say you only need to communicate the bare minimum. Any gaps, they can either fill it in themselves or ask you.
I am about to release a video all about how to talk about impact for work that hasn't shipped, so stay tuned!
@@femkedesign Thank you! Looking forward to the new video too.
This is such a unique take on the presentation, excellent job and such a useful video. I'm curious what you "send over" in the application process? For example, I have recruiters reaching out all the time asking if I'm interested in a role followed with a request to send a portfolio and resume back. Your online site functions as a great placeholder for your brand, projects and so on. This portfolio presentation in the video serves as a great slide deck for the presentation stage, but what do you send when you don't have the ability to narrate or tell a story? Is your online site enough to start the conversation? It seems like the default option is to put your case studies in your online portfolio and then hope they're read or skimmed but it seems you don't do that. Any advice there?
I would send over both my website as well as this presentation link for them to dive into the work if they wanted :)
Hello! First of all, congratulations on getting the job 🥳. Femke, can you share about how to do design documentation? As a junior designer, I don’t have experience yet. Video/post/podcast would be helpful 😇
Hey! I have a video all about this here: th-cam.com/video/9pMuuzFC0FE/w-d-xo.html
Hey Femke love your videos.
When you applied for jobs did you send these case studies? Or do you have a portfolio that you send across and then present these case studies?
I didn't send them, but I did present them in the interviews.
Fantastic
Hi Femke, I'm seeking my first full-time job and this video is soooo helpful with actionable tips! I also wonder the time frame of your whole presentation? Some told me I shouldn't take more than 25 minutes in case studies while some say it's okay for 40 minutes... I'm just not sure how much time to spend on case studies, the rest of the presentation and time left for Q&A？
In my experience I’ve been given a full hour to present. This includes any intros, Q&A time etc.
wow, really an amazing and informative video!
I have a question, why have you decided on showing your portfolio in a slideshow rather than say a website? do you have any pros or cons for either?
It's more professional and organised to present you work in a presentation format during interviews.
Thank you so much for sharing Femke! I would like to include a case study in my portfolio where I demonstrate its success through quantitative or qualitative data…How can I do this? Could I reach out to companies and offer my UX services? What would you recommend? Thanks!
Hi femke awesome work 👏 😀
Was wondering if you had a portfolio website as well or you just applied to jobs with this slideshow presentation? 🤔
I have a website but no work on it, so this was it :)
@@femkedesign did you do this presentation with a recruiter? Just curious how far into the interview process you needed to wait for them to showcase your work. Usually companies vet you before you even talk to them by looking at all your case studies
Nope! Only with the design team.
very insightful thanks, would you show us a portfolio for entry level positions? or what you used that worked to get you hired?
My video on my portfolio when I applied to Uber 5 years ago to an entry level position might help! th-cam.com/video/JJk0I_jWSc4/w-d-xo.html
Hi Femke! Is it recommended to send this portfolio slide as part of your job application or it’s reserved for the interview day? 🙂 thanks
It's normal to send it in advance In my experience but feel free to ask the recruiter what's expected!
Thanks for the videos! I'm curious though I missed chapter 3... What was chapter 3?
There was none! i miss-numbered :)
When I put the 'Remind me on' alarm thing... does it take my time zone into account? I am a bit warry it is not... so next question: when is the CET time for your pesentation?
It should be localized for your location!