Jehan Cowan Resume
Profile Summary
DESIGN
Expert knowledge in visual design, interaction design, and information architecture skills
Experience in planning user-centered design research, developing methods for design analysis, gathering and interpreting business requirements and transforming them into iterative design concepts and artifacts
Detail-oriented in producing creative solutions for complex design problems
Strong visual design background, including branding, graphic design, typography, and photography
Proficient in ideation sketching and conceptual prototyping
LEADERSHIP
Possess analytical skills for framing strategic opportunities
Effective communication and presentation skills with clients
Proven ability to manage and motivate creative and front-end development teams
Experience in agile and lean processes
Enthusiastic in defining workflows and processes that enable innovative thinking and efficiency
Firm believer in personal accountability and performance that is based on respect, integrity and passion
Experience
VSA Partners | Creative Director, Digital Design
Apr 2019 – Present
As a Digital Creative Director, I am responsible for bringing our clients’ brand stories, visions, and voices to life through digital channels and applications. I lead the creative course of projects and am responsible for the work flow of design teams.
Design Leadership — Establish vision for projects and lead teams to explore, produce and implement these points of view. Analyze problems, anticipate consequences and eliminate obstacles to successfully complete projects. Demonstrate knowledge and advocate for design principles to create intuitive and elegant interaces to drive user adoption. Lead and facilitate multi-disciplinary team efforts to ensure collaboration and cohesion. Plan and manage project scope, milestones, resourcing, timelines, and deliverables.
People Development — Work with designers to develop their conceptual and design skills through effective mentoring. Educate and train company on digital topics and practices.
Process Improvement — Establish efficient and collaborative workflows for designers, clients, development teams.
Major Projects & Initiatives
Delivered a corporate website redesign for a large financial organization; Worked with multi-disciplinary team of UX designers, visual designers, content strategists, copywriters and provided oversight across efforts; Collaborated with client stakeholders across the organization including marketing, corporate communications, IT, and department leads and SME’s
Led the design of a responsive website for a new brand for a global consulting firm; Facilitated discussions with client stakeholders to gather business, user, and technical requirements, Defined UX and applied new brand visual system; Created MVP design system; Coordinated with development team to ensure feasibility of design for tight MVP timeline; Collaborated on post-MVP website roadmap
Designed high-fidelity visual comps for a mobile app that controls smart home products; Ensured usability through effective app architecture, affordance cues, and connection of UI and physical product
Created framework to assess accessibility and usability issues for responsive website for an industrial vehicle and transportation client; Educated client on web accessibility to ensure ongoing advocacy for company’s website properties
Redesigned company website; Created production asset templates
Produced material and led company-wide digital training sessions. Topics include: accessibility, responsive design, design systems, designops, and design delivery
Create proof-of-concepts to demonstrate untapped practice capabilities
Fjord / Accenture | Experience Design Lead
Mar 2015 – Apr 2019
Led multi-disciplinary teams of researchers, interaction designers, content strategists, and visual designers, providing strategic direction to deliver services and products through well-crafted work for Fortune 500 clients across various industries.
Major Projects & Initiatives
Launched a new direct-to-consumer digital product for new business and consumer market for a global insurance broker; Helped enable organizational digital transformation and define test and learn processes
Redefined user experience and redesign public-facing responsive website for Accenture marketing and recruitment
Crafted thought leadership and go-to-market sales material for scaled design systems and designops
Designed multi-channel customer self-service experience for a utility company
Prototyped disaster relief mobile apps for two utility companies
Designed communications iOS app for market and industry analysts for a financial services company
Designed remote healthcare management app for medical device manufacturing company
Develop northstar vision for the supply-chain and maintenance process for a global mining company
Accenture | User Experience Consultant
May 2013 – Mar 2015
Designed digital experiences and products for several Fortune 500 clients across various industries. Responsible for activities and deliverables throughout all phases of the design process.
Columbia College Chicago, Art Director / Senior Graphic Designer
2003 – 2005, 2006 – 2013
Designed print, publication, environmental, web, and other online communications to support recruitment, retention, and fundraising initiatives as part of the in-house design department. Served as the lead digital designer for over 40 web projects.
Jehan Abon Design | Owner, UX/UI Designer
2004 – 2013
Jehan Abon Design was a 1-person design studio specializing in identity design, print design, and web design. Other services include information architecture, content organization and strategy, prototyping, and front-end development. Clients have included Harris Theater for Music and Dance, Newberry Library, University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine, Illinois Arts Alliance, Chicago State University, and Grambling State University.
Royal Office Products | Web Designer
2005 – 2006
Principal web designer for a nationwide office products company looking to expand from a primarily B2B customer base to B2C base.
Education
Bachelor of Fine Arts, Graphic Design
Columbia College Chicago
2000 – 2004
Major in Computer Engineering
University of Illinois at Chicago
1998 – 2000
Achievements & Public Speaking
Scrum Alliance®, Certified ScrumMaster®, 2016 – 2020
Northwestern Kellogg School of Management Guest Lecturer, Introduction to Design Research, 2017
Fjord Global Training Speaker, Scaled Design Systems and Design Ops, 2017
Fjord Chicago Rock Band, Fjordinary Heroes, 2017 – 2018
Back of the Yards College Prep High School, Career Day Speaker & Volunteer, 2016 – Present
Fjord North American Conference Speaker, Data & Design Visioning and Prototyping, 2016
Interaction Design Association Member, 2013 – Present
AIGA Professional Member, 2004–2016
American Inhouse Design Award Recipient, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011
CASE Council for Advancement and Support of Education Award Winner, 2008, 2009, 2011
Tools & Languages
My UX skills are represented in my process.
Tools
Sketch
Invision
Zeplin
Abstract
Principle
Axure
Photoshop
Illustrator
Indesign
Acrobat
Microsoft Office
Keynote
Languages
HTML/CSS
PHP
MySQL