Riley Ren

Riley Ren

Interaction designer in Pittsburgh, She/her

About

Grad student at Carnegie Mellon here, excited to find a UX/UI design or research internship for Summer 2024. Let's chat about possibilities!

Education

2023 — Now
Pittsburgh, PA
  • QPA 4.0 / 4.0

  • Classes: MDes Graduate Studio, Communication Design Studio, Interaction Design Lab, MDes Seminar...

2021 — 2022
Atlanta, GA
  • GPA 4.0 / 4.0

  • Classes: Human Centered Design, Visualizing Interaction, Interactive Product Studio, Service Design, Brand, Value Creation...

2014 — 2018
Xi'an, China
  • GPA 3.5 / 4.0 (top 5%)

  • Classes: Interaction Design, Foundation of Mechanical Design, Product Design and Development, Engineering Foundation of Product Design...

Work Experience

2023 — 2023
Shanghai, China
  • Performed a comprehensive design audit across multiple platforms, identifying key issues and crafting strategic proposals for future improvements.

  • Developed a high-fidelity prototype for the “Lighthouse” (a risk management platform) video detail pages, specifically designed for user testing to enhance user experience and functionality.

  • Led the redesign of various platform features based on product team requirements, including optimizing the novice guide, reimagining the risk policy label, and refining the grayscale release flow.

  • Conducted in-depth exploration and redesign of the Lighthouse information card, reorganizing its information structure and visual elements, and enhancing user interactions within the card for better usability.

  • Redesigned the GPT Web platform, focusing on improving the feature list's design and introducing a light mode.

2022 — 2023
Louisville, KY
  • Designed the “Shortcuts“ feature for the SmartHQ App, GE Appliances‘ smart home control application, leading to 3,700 users creating 10,000 shortcuts and 27,000 interactions within two weeks of launch.

  • Revamped the design system for SmartHQ, focusing on the home and control pages. Led workshops for testing new design components, enhancing the overall user interface and experience.

  • Headed the design and user testing for ROUX's ambient screens and widgets, a new operating system for GE Appliances. Conducted 3 rounds of user testing, making iterative improvements based on feedback, which led to a 50% increase in task pass rate.

  • Led the accessibility research and design initiative for ROUX, developing inclusive features and conducting user tests to ensure a comprehensive and accessible user experience.

Projects

2023

The WarhoLens is a mixed reality experience aimed to enhance the understanding of Andy Warhol as an artist and his artwork. The project reimagines how art can be perceived and appreciated in an immersive manner. We provided multifaceted experience for visitors to learn from, including artist’s life, inspiration and techniques, using mixed reality to immerse them, so they can explore the depths and various dimensions of his work.

2023

Designed CODI, an advanced voice-activated assistant, to elevate the shopping experience at Home Depot. This intelligent system streamlines in-store navigation by assisting customers in locating products and store associates. CODI also simplifies project planning by offering diagnostic support and tailored solutions for construction projects, enhancing both the in-store and online customer journey with its intuitive conversational user interface (CUI).