Today we’d like to introduce you to Elena Liakou.
Hi Elena, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I am an LA-based UX & UI Designer originally from Greece with over ten years of experience and I specialize in designing user-friendly interfaces and digital products. I have been working for over ten years, where I have progressive growth and had the opportunity to try new challenges and positions.
I have a BA degree at Visual Communication in Athens, Greece and then I moved to LA to study User Experience Design at General Assembly in Los Angeles. Design is a way of life, and visual communication is the universal language that everyone in the world can understand, regardless of their nationality, age, or background. Essentially, I observe the UX things in real life. I find awesome inspiration when I travel, as I’m always looking for good design around me from buildings and art forms to jets. I am so lucky to have found a job that allows me to integrate my two passions, art and technology.
My career started as a graphic/web designer, but when doing UX/UI Design I took this route because I enjoy studying customer behavior and finding new ways to reach the target market. I love finding new, creative ways to address challenges and solve complex problems with simple solutions.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I feel blessed that I had this excellent collaboration all of these years with such successful companies in Europe and in the US. Technology tremendously changed from the beginning of my career, while we are living in an age of unprecedented technological change. As a tech enthusiast, I like staying on top of new technological trends, but it is also essential to staying up to date on the world and how it’s changing. Often, a designer’s role is central to how people experience new technology and can be challenging; We need to define interfaces and interaction models such as chatbots, voice interaction, gestures, and AI-driven products requiring both technical and creative skills.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am UX/UI and Visual Designer. Specializing in the fields of product design, web design, information design and branding. Detail-oriented with a love for crafting pixel-perfect UI. I love designing elegant and engaging product experiences for humans. I have worked for many international clients and organizations like Uber, Apple, Europol, EIGE and more Fortune 500 Companies and European organizations. I create all UI/UX deliverables to redesign many heavy structured websites & apps, including brand identities, flow maps, wireframes, prototypes, graphic assets, style guides, design systems, and more.
The first company where I worked, Eworx, trusted me and assigned me more than 50 complex websites, applications and digital products from the initial stage in European and national public and private sector projects such as the Gender Equality Index, which is the official tool to measure the progress of gender equality in the EU. The Gender Equality Index has been widely recognized for its contribution to monitoring progress on gender equality in the EU.
In addition, I have been working with the Feedback Loop Company, based in New York.
Some of my duties there included rapid iterations in the development of prototypes based on input from user testing findings and creating functional prototypes for popular apps and websites like Uber, Facebook, Comcast, Hulu and NBC and more.
One of my projects that I am proud of is the app Exerply. Experly is a demand-driven experiences marketplace. It’s designed to revolutionize the way you find and book experiences. Our team developed an AI-based system for generating personalized experiences based on user expressed needs, enriched profiles, and lifestyle patterns. The platform is in the development phase and will be available soon.
Currently, I am working at fabric.inc, a headless e-commerce platform, as a Lead Visual Designer. I am passionate about design that works with a focus on the user and I provide strong attention to detail and design quality.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
My love for art and tech started from early childhood. I started drawing before I could speak. A few nights, I woke up during midnight and began drawing. As far as I remember, I would like to be an artist. At the age of four, I created my first piece of digital art on my grandfather’s computer. My parents encouraged my creativity, I attended drawing classes and architectural design to enhance my skills. However, developing a sense of aesthetics cannot be taught in schools or training programs. It is something that a person cultivates over a period of time.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://dribbble.com/elliakou
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elliakou/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/elena.liakou.2
- Other: https://www.behance.net/elliakou
