HERpower shines a spotlight on the inspiring stories of women making strides in the tech industry.
Today, we have the pleasure of chatting with Laura, Lead Designer at Deiser.
Laura shares insights into her career journey and transition from journalism, her perspective on why representation matters, and her passion for creating impactful user experiences.
Let's dive in!
Bio
Laura Rubio, Lead Designer for Deiser Apps, is an experienced UX designer with a communications background. She has lived in England and Italy, where he has kept a part of her heart. She seeks to make the world a better place through user experience, loves to travel, and spends time with her labrador dog.
The Conversation
Question: Hi Laura, welcome! Can you please introduce yourself?
Laura: Hi, I’m Laura Barreales, speaking from Madrid, where I’ve lived for almost 20 years. I’m a lead product designer at Deiser. I switched careers after studying journalism. Now, I’ve been with my current company for seven years, and I’m very happy there. Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my family and my Labrador, exploring new places, and learning about different cultures.
Question: That’s a big shift! Why did you transition from journalism to product design?
Laura: I worked in journalism for several years but didn’t feel specialized. Journalism taught me the value of storytelling and understanding people’s perspectives, but I felt I needed a more specialized field where I could have a deeper impact.
I wanted to improve my skills and found the UX field fascinating, especially the research part. It’s similar to journalism in terms of discovering and interviewing. I started attending meetups and events, then took specialized courses. That’s how I got into product design.
Question: Can you tell us more about your responsibilities as a product designer?
Laura: My main task is to understand our users’ needs through interviews, surveys, heat maps, and analytics. With that data, we design solutions for their problems. This involves collaborating with product managers, marketing, and developers to ensure the solution fits well. Once a product is developed, we continuously gather feedback to improve it.
Question: It sounds like a dynamic process. What are some common challenges you face in your work?
Laura: One of the biggest challenges is decision-making. Design involves a lot of subjective choices, and there’s rarely a one-size-fits-all solution. Balancing user feedback with technical constraints and market demands requires making tough decisions, sometimes even deciding to remove features that were extensively developed but aren’t used by the majority of users. It feels like a failure, but it’s necessary to focus on what truly benefits the user.
Working closely with technical teams, especially in a field like ours where the products are often geared towards technical users, can indeed be challenging. My team has been incredibly supportive, providing me with the space to learn and contribute without feeling excluded. They appreciate my perspective as a user advocate, and I value their expertise in ensuring our designs are not only feasible but also scalable and efficient.
Question: How do you handle these challenges?
Laura: Confidence and team support are essential. When I joined, I was the only woman, but the team welcomed me and valued my input. They gave me space to make decisions and to fail, which helped me grow. Having a team that believes in you is crucial.
Question: What qualities do you think are essential for your role?
Laura: You definitely need autonomy, self-confidence, and a strategic mindset. You need to be able to make hard decisions and sometimes go against the majority if you believe in your solution. Plus, having a supportive team makes a huge difference.
Question: How important is the work environment to your success?
Laura: It’s very important. A supportive team that gives you room to grow and learn from mistakes is key. Feeling valued and respected, no matter your gender really makes a big impact. I owe much of my positive experience to the team’s openness and encouragement.
Question: What can be done to improve diversity in tech?
Laura: It starts with education. We need to encourage girls to explore STEM fields from a young age and provide them with role models. Representation matters because it expands young girls’ horizons, challenges gender norms, and encourages them to dream big.
Companies should support women through maternity leaves and career advancement opportunities. We need to keep building inclusive environments where everyone feels valued.
Question: How can we encourage more women to take risks and apply for roles they might not feel fully qualified for or transition into different fields?
Laura: Confidence plays a significant role here. Women tend to underestimate themselves and fear failure more than men. Encouraging women to take risks, and providing mentorship and support networks can help build confidence and empower them to go after new opportunities.
Question: It’s encouraging to see your positive outlook despite the challenges. Any final thoughts?
Laura: Although my journey has been positive, there’s still a long way to go for the tech industry and society as a whole. Companies need to support women better, and societal perceptions need to change. More women in tech means starting early with education and seeing ourselves represented.
Question: What advice would you give your younger self at the start of your career journey?
Laura: If I could talk to my younger self, I’d say to embrace every chance to grow and learn without fear. Trust in your abilities and always speak up about your ideas and dreams.
Question: If you could switch jobs with someone for a day, who would it be?
Laura: I would choose to be a pilot.
Question: Tell us something interesting about your home country – Spain.
Laura: Spain is much more than its beautiful landscapes and historic cities. What makes it truly special is our strong sense of solidarity, for example, we are world leaders in organ donation.
We love to spend time with our family and friends around a table full of food, we have a great gastronomic variety.
Connect with Laura
If you wish to connect with Laura and learn more, seek advice, or share similar experiences, feel free to reach out to her via LinkedIn.
