Chris Austin
UI/UX Product Designer
Location
London, United Kingdom
Toptal Member Since
August 13, 2020
Chris is a full-stack UI/UX product designer and art director with 15+ years of international experience. His expertise includes UI, UX, mobile (iOS and Android) and web design, advertising, and branding. Chris has planned, designed, and shipped B2C and B2B products for startups like Curve and multinationals like Meetup. His industry experience includes fintech, gaming, real estate, and transportation. Originally from Australia, Chris has spent time in New York and is now based in London.
Chris is available for hire
Hire Chris
Work Experience
2019 - PRESENT
Head of Design
Allstar
- Collaborated with the CEO and COO to build out their web and desktop app presence.
- Built out the design system that enabled us to build out our homepage, onboarding, and consumer clip and profile view pages.
- Designed the UX and UI for the Windows desktop application.
Technologies: User Interface (UI), User Experience (UX), Responsive Design, Web Design, Landing Page Design, Email Design, Figma, React, Desktop App Design, Windows
2020 - 2020
Lead Product Designer
University of New South Wales
- Designed a student portal to assess their progress across their course.
- Worked with a front-end engineer to implement the CSS for the application.
- Created animated interaction design, front end CSS, and UX design.
Technologies: CSS, Figma
2019 - 2020
Lead Product Designer
Curve
- Assisted the Curve customer experience team to identify pain points and opportunities while serving as the lead designer on the growth and retention team.
- Found solutions to help Curve achieve strategic objectives, stem the flow of customer support tickets, and help make its product scalable.
- Led several data-driven initiatives, such as integrating the card authentication and the 3-D Secure implementation for iOS and Android.
- Created a feature called the "Fallback Card" with my product manager. Spanning research, ideation to beta, and final release, we shipped a core feature in under three months, which reduced churn and increased retention among monthly active users.
- Rolled out a new design system in Figma with a light and dark mode for iOS and Android.
Technologies: iOS, Android, Figma, Sketch
2015 - 2019
Lead Product Designer
Meetup
- Participated in the small team that redesigned and reimagined the iOS and Android mobile applications alongside the rebrand of the company.
- Led the design of the enterprise product called Meetup Pro, from the initial seed idea to a full-fledged business unit within Meetup, generating 10% of the company's revenue within 18 months.
- Spearheaded the design of a completely rebuilt web experience with full responsibility for the UI, UX, and creating a new design system. I did this while serving as the lead designer for the web platform team.
- Increased synergy between product design and brand by serving as a design liaison while working on a series of sales funnel and first touchpoint experiences.
Technologies: React, iOS, Android, InVision, Sketch
2013 - 2015
Senior Product Designer
Realestate.com.au
- Served as the lead product designer for the homepage and redesign of account creation. Because these generate millions of dollars of revenue, it was critical to align stakeholders throughout the company during the project.
- Helped shape the implementation of iOS 7 for iPhone and iPad applications and collaborated with a team of talented engineers on a complete overhaul of the design language.
- Pitched and gained approval from the C-team to create the company's first native Android app. Collaborated with team members in Australia and China to create a Material Design-focused application that increased the Google Play rating from 2.3 to 4.3.
- Led the design of reagroup.com, the parent company's corporate website.
- Collaborated with the brand and administration teams to create a home for REA Group's suite of 12 companies.
Technologies: Sketch, Adobe Photoshop
2011 - 2013
Senior Digital Designer
Emote Digital
- Developed concepts, wireframes, and designs for websites, mobile applications, emails, web banners, and more.
- Collaborated with the web and mobile developers to deliver polished designs to a wide range of clients.
- Designed consumer-facing and B2B products for companies of different sizes—from small, family-run businesses to multinationals—across multiple industries.
Technologies: Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop
2006 - 2011
Co-owner and Graphic Designer
Woof Creative
- Grew the company from the initial two employees to a staff of twelve, focusing on everything design.
- Designed websites, print publications, and branding for clients, including Kookai, Smiggle, and Bolle.
- Focused on brand development, advertising, digital design, and publishing.
Technologies: Photography, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop
Education
2001 - 2005
Bachelor's Degree in Communication Design
RMIT University - Melbourne, Australia
Certifications
NOVEMBER 2001 - PRESENT
Certificate IV in Design
Brighton Bay, Art Design & Photography
Experience
Web Design - 14 yearsUser Interface (UI) - 12 yearsUser Experience (UX) - 11 yearsProduct Design - 10 yearsUser Research - 10 yearsMobile Design - 9 yearsInteraction Design (IxD) - 7 yearsDesign Systems - 5 yearsLocation
