Who are the User Wizards?
User Wizards are the anti UX unicorn. They are experts in specific domains and build their careers on their assets rather than on a catchline.
Why User Wizard?
In the software industry, a wizard is a setup assistant which guides users through different steps. But the word wizard finds its roots in the technical world as a synonym for an expert—some would even compare the term with hacker.
So UXlers, owning their expertise in many different domains, are hacking the system to create a better experience for users. It is with this mindset and based on my own experience that I created this program. I hope this program will empower many others to trust their ability to succeed.
What is a UX Unicorn?
The UX unicorn is this expert profile that populates the recruiting industry, this hybrid almighty expert, who can design, code, prototype, manage, research—you name it.
There is barely anything the UX unicorn cannot do. This creature earned a PhD while working for leaders of the industry, gaining a hands-on experience in a product team. It’s a scrum master or at the very least an early adopter of the Agile methodology, versed in the latest development languages and is able to animate workshops like no others. Does this sound familiar to you? Well, this has been and still is one of my biggest frustrations as a UX professional and a career transitioner.
What Is the Story Behind User Wizard?
To understand the idea that led to User Wizard, you need to understand the magic of UX in today’s job market.
User Wizard is based on my own experience. Transitioning to UX was not my first career change, and I was fairly aware of the difficulties and challenges such a move would bring. However, I was not prepared for the ambiguity of the job market . Most job offers I came across were simply an aggregate of buzzwords and would not reflect the actual needs of the business.
Later, as I was working on setting up a UX Research community, I realised that my story was not an isolated case. That’s when I came up with the idea of User Wizard. UX careers stand for inclusion and accessibility. It is time to reflect these standards in our hiring processes. Your skills are what make you unique: make them your strength and design your very own career path within the UX industry.