# Pinky Thakkar, Certified Usability Analyst > UX Manager/Researcher / Educator - Open to Work. Previous Work Experience-PureStorage, Amazon AWS, Cisco, JuniperNetworks, GE, Ebay, BNY Mellon, StateFarm, Allstate Location: Milpitas, California, United States Profile: https://flows.cv/pinkythakkarcertifiedusability Innovative User Experience Design Leader with more than 16 years of optimizing interactive design, and usability testing in close collaboration with stakeholders and vendors. Leading strengths include hands on design, facilitating and leading teams, applying best practices, and rolling out projects enterprise wide with a team of expert designers. Excellent written, verbal, and presentation skills. Passionate about improving user experiences. COMPETENCIES AI search and Chatbot User Experience/UX Improvement User Interface/UI Design Usability Testing Coding & Release Support Expert Review Wireframes & Prototyping Interaction Design Agile, Lean Methodologies Team Leadership Best Practice Implementation Problem Solving Project Management Team Building Verbal & Written Skills Solutions Advocate Partner Cooperation Heuristic Review Journey Map UX Architecture Accessibility and section 508 Design Standards TECHNICAL SKILLS Mac & Windows OS Morae: Manager, Recorder, Remote Viewer, Player HTML,CsS JavaScript UI TOOLS Figma, FigmaJam Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) Adobe: Fireworks, Photoshop, Dreamweaver CS3 Sketch Visio Balsamiq Axure Pro Zeplin Invision ## Work Experience ### Creative Design Manager @ Curryhub Jan 2024 – Present | Hayward, CA Delivered pixel-perfect, responsive UI for Android and iOS. Created wireframes using UX-Pilot. Created Prototype using Figma Make to display users end to end process. Spearheading UX strategy for AI-powered food ordering flows across mobile platforms. Directed design of conversational chatbot and intelligent search using generative AI. Led creation of user journeys and interaction flows in FigJam, aligning with user behaviors and ordering patterns. Oversaw cross-functional collaboration with engineering and Salesforce teams to ensure smooth deployment and performance parity on Android and iOS. ### Senior UX Researcher & Designer (Contract) @ Cognisoft Technologies LLC Jan 2024 – Jan 2024 | Milpitas, CA Led UX for case management tools within AWS Partner Central, from concept through delivery. Directed integration of AI to simplify complex partner workflows and improve task automation. Managed cross-functional coordination with product managers, researchers, and developers to ensure persona-aligned, data-informed design execution. UX Product Lead / Researcher – Apex Hub (Contract) Managed offshore design team delivering responsive web and mobile experiences via Figma. Drove the design of AI-assisted community features to enhance collaboration and self-service. Conducted stakeholder workshops and research sprints to align product decisions with user needs. ### Senior UX Researcher & Interaction Designer @ Pure Storage Jan 2019 – Jan 2024 | Santa Clara, CA Led end-to-end UX research and architecture for Pure1, Support Portal, and Salesforce-integrated applications. Facilitated usability testing with 25+ users and conducted CAB (Customer Advisory Board) meetings with enterprise clients. Managed and mentored cross-functional design teams; embedded AI-powered support and proactive service experiences. Streamlined complex billing workflows and modernized portal navigation across business units. ### Sr UX Researcher & Designer- Customer Marketing Experience -Digital Marketing Team @ Juniper Networks Jan 2018 – Jan 2019 | Sunnyvale, California Conduct usability testing, evaluate data and resolve pain points to increase engagement and improve customer satisfaction. Re-designed the survey overlay pages with 3rd party vendors to increase traffic. Designed several upgrades to website functionality including snap in chat, optimized mobile platform, finance pages and customer facing how-to-buy landing page and form. ### Senior Web User Experience Designer Consultant @ Juniper Networks Jan 2018 – Jan 2018 | Sunnyvale,CA Researched effective marketing templates for email campaigns and created four universal templates for future campaigns incorporating stakeholder feedback. Improved access to customer testimonials to reinforce positive impressions. Championed a user-centered process and shared design best practices. ### Sr. Staff UX Interaction Designer @ GE Renewable Energy Jan 2017 – Jan 2018 | San Ramon,CA Designed and deployed applications that supported hardware sales, and fleet operations such as repairs, scheduling, diagnostics, etc. Led the UX team including hiring staff, directing off-shore vendors, made on-site visits to better understand requirements, and set standards for future development. ### UX Lead Architect -Consultant @ GE Oil & Gas Jan 2016 – Jan 2016 | San Ramon, CA Improved diagnostic and repair functions for Field Vantage tool allowing both administrators and technicians to share information with just one sign on. Applied Predix UI Standard guidelines to restructure the application and optimize a layout that would appeal to users based on interviews and data. ### Project Manager User Experience- Cisco IT @ Cisco Jan 2012 – Jan 2016 | San Jose Ideated and developed an internal eStore where employees search, order, and seek approval for products. Collected requirements, defined the scope of projects and led the onboarding service team. ### Sr. User Experience Designer- CCIT ( Consultant) @ Cisco Jan 2011 – Jan 2012 | San jose Modernized the learning and development portal to enable employees to find appropriate opportunities within their region, related to their position, and included reviews. Liaised between engineers and partners to design and deploy a new API Console site. ### Sr. Interactive Design Manager @ GoldSpot Media Jan 2011 – Jan 2011 | Sunnyvale, CA Created an interactive system for designing customized ads, previewing the creative, and generating the files needed for placement. Collaborated with the system architects, developers, designers and the business team to ensure new features met or exceeded expectations. ### IXD Manager-Consultant @ BNY Mellon Jan 2009 – Jan 2011 | San Francisco Bay Area Assisted the UX Director in hiring and deploying a team of engineers to update the UX. Worked on and completed many improvements for eBay such as upsell coupons, cross-selling merchandise, customer support portal, and conducted usability testing. ### Sr. Interaction Designer - Consultant @ eBay Inc Jan 2008 – Jan 2009 | San Jose Designed My eBay Screens Participated in usability Studies Redesigned the entire Customer Service Screens for less customer frustration Designed for eBay France Designed for connection between Paypal and eBay UX lead ### Sr. User Interface Engineer @ Physicians Mutual Jan 2005 – Jan 2008 | Omaha, NE Designing User Centered Design, Usability Testing, User Profiles, Design High-Level design, User Research, Card Sorting, Consulting and Design recommendation. ### Sr. Usability Analyst (consultant) @ Allstate Jan 2006 – Jan 2006 Field research, Usability study, paper prototypes, user profiles, UI Design. ### Sr. Interactive Engineer @ CGN & Associates Jan 2004 – Jan 2005 | Peoria, Illinois Area Lead the UI team. Meet clients, collect requirements , convert them into UI design, create help tool using captivate, design high level catalogs structure for clients. Created Intranet Site for John Deer to help employees use the web application much faster and more efficiently. ### Usability Engineer-Consultant @ Statefarm Insurance Jan 2001 – Jan 2004 | Bloomington, Illinois Leading the UX function Setting UI standards and guidelines. Working with the Service team onboarding best practices Generating prototypes concepts using guidelines and standards for Service owners. Liaison between Service owners & Dev team. ### User Interface Designer @ Silverline Technologies Jan 1999 – Jan 2001 | India / United Kingdom Designed E-commerce site for Online Kitchen Equipment parts company, with the layout of catalog search, ordering online by the Agents. Designed Intranet sites for the company with more user friendly pages. ### Web Designer / Developer / Business Analyst @ Firstar Communications Jan 1997 – Jan 1999 | Chennai ## Education ### Master in Information Technology in Computer Technology/Computer Systems Technology Assam Don Bosco University, Guwahati ### Bachelor's degree in Computer Science University of Madras ### Certified Usability Analyst in Usability Human Factors International ### Postgraduate Degree in Computer Software and Media Applications Madurai Kamaraj University ### Michigan University in Usability Testing The Ohio State University ## Contact & Social - LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/pinkythakkar - Portfolio: https://www.humanfactors.com/cuaofthemonth/pinky_thakkar.asp - Portfolio: https://thakkarpinky.wixsite.com/pinkythakkar --- Source: https://flows.cv/pinkythakkarcertifiedusability JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/pinkythakkarcertifiedusability/resume.json Last updated: 2026-04-13