Guilherme Penalva
Verified Expert in Design
Designer
Porto Alegre - State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
Toptal member since May 10, 2023
Guilherme is a UX researcher and product designer who has worked on 40+ design projects in his 10 years of experience. He has collaborated with startups and worldwide billionaire corporations, handling deliveries in ideation workshops, new product discoveries, UI/UX improvements, and new business strategies. Guilherme has multidisciplinary knowledge in art, business, data analytics, marketing, media production, psychology, tech, and AI tools.
Portfolio
App Accessibility and Screen Voice Reader – Heineken
Work Experience
Founder | Independent Consultant | UX Researcher and Product Designer
Guip.XYZ
- Worked in multiple industries, including agribusiness, entertainment, education, SaaS, health, law techs, media, NGOs, philosophy and religion, food and beverage, and AR technology.
- Lectured on UX design, UX research, UI design, design systems, product analytics, and user-centered design process in three MBA courses: Full-stack Development, Digital Solutions Architecture, and Software Engineering.
- Acted as an instructor for a tech school, Converge You, developing a practical methodology and running a workshop class on UI design fundamentals for non-designers and designers with a CSAT from students of 95%.
- Offered mentorship to junior, middle, and senior designers as a design mentor at ADPList, becoming a top achiever in Brazil, with 50 sessions in ten different countries.
- Developed two educational web apps for designers and PMs: "UX English Guide" with 32 guides for the UX team and "Cards for Product Arena" with six sections and a glossary written by product community experts for PM roles.
- Designed a project app guide for COVID-19 alongside a team of ten people. I delivered mentorship career and educational workshops, and, as a result, four volunteers got a job after this first portfolio project in their careers.
- Built a prototype app for the UN using UX research and design methodologies. The app aims to raise awareness and save the Amazon rainforest and other regions of Brazil from human and environmental crimes.
- Delivered five UI/UX audits to improve the UI/UX design for early-stage startups and mid-level and billionaire companies. The methodologies used included heuristic analysis, usability testing, UI/UX fundamentals, and the laws of simplicity.
- Handled seven product discoveries with a critical eye for product validation and product-market fit. The methodologies used included desk research, user interviews, field studies, value proposition, Google's design sprint, and social media ads.
- Presented 15 ideation and business workshops for new ventures alongside CTOs, CEOs, and entrepreneurs. Testimonial: "Amazing workshop; never saw anything like it. I want this for me!" – an expert consultant from one of the biggest VCs in LATAM.
UX Researcher
Carrier Global
- Conducted 33 experiments and approved 12 features. We listened to 3,360 users, achieving a "Very Satisfied" customer satisfaction score (CSAT). The usability system scale (SUS) is above average, and the customer effort score (CES) is "Very Easy."
- Improved UXR Ops with templates on User Zoom for 11 different project scenarios: user feature prioritization, monetization hypothesis, A/B testing, card sorting, DS look and feel, iconography recognition, user flows, and new UX writing.
- Enhanced UXR Ops with a Confluence datasheet with all studies and 15 articles from each research study.
- Discovered a subscription rate from prototype usability testing and improved the subscription rate by 15% by addressing qualitative insights into a new UX writing for a call-to-action button.
- Uncovered roadmap feature development for Q3 and Q4 and five monetization hypotheses through quantitative and qualitative studies.
UX Researcher
Pfizer
- Led ResearchOps and secondary projects on the Miro board with project Canva, research operations, product analytics frameworks, educational materials, and checklist.
- Analyzed 66 product pages websites for information architecture and found 47 UX/UI design inconsistencies.
- Performed design critique for the internal UX/UI design team, resulting in feature adoption that showed higher success on first-click test analysis (95% of users got first-click task right).
- Compared data analytics between five Pfizer websites and five competitor's websites to uncover user needs or strategies for successful UX products.
- Conducted UX audit for 16 inconsistencies between the product portfolio page and results on navigational components (search and filter).
- Gathered information architecture and user flow for two different mobile apps aiming to support UX research team on card sorting, tree testing, usability, and first-click test (quantitative analysis) on the UserZoom platform.
- Helped UX research manager with data consolidation and file presentation report from UserZoom results.
- Collaborated with the DesignOps Manager and team by reading reports and sharing insights with the atomic research framework for specific user personas.
- Helped DesignOps Manager in conducting user journey and product analytics audit for a user journey.
- Provided support to the DesignOps Manager, Associate DesignOps Manager, and ResearchOps Manager by offering feedback, materials, consultations, and deep interviews to address daily challenges, questions, or strategic needs.
UX Researcher | Product Designer
AgileEngine
- Recruited team members with C-level directors, conducted online user interviews, and helped discover actionable findings with real customers into two different software products.
- Led UX research for clients to inform and prioritize the development of two software products by triangulating data from workshops, analytics, user interviews, and usability tests.
- Assisted clients with user research—interviews, usability testing, personas, user journeys, and design workshops—to better understand the voice of their customers and build products and services with input from real people.
- Helped clients with problems such as conversions, analyzing users' concerns and needs, and the UI/UX enhancements required to improve metrics.
- Conducted a UX research project to integrate or develop new features of two similar products with the same user group. One product concerned eCommerce and booking for camping, and the other was a community app for RVs.
- Prioritized and delivered 15 product high-fidelity prototypes for desktop and mobile devices from 20 user interviews and 65 user research insights.
- Created a library of 16 new icons for the travel and camping industry.
- Delivered studies and high-fidelity prototypes for mobile and desktop screens with dark mode options, art direction with glass effect, and 3D iconography for a worldwide tech agency.
- Adjusted the UI/UX on the sales pitch presentation for a worldwide tech agency.
Senior UX Designer
R/GA
- Redesigned the Heineken mobile app's information architecture, navigation, and user flow, working on 367 screens and eight functions.
- Led a three-member design team on each Agile sprint using "How Might We" statements, research on product benchmarks, dot voting, design critique, and prototypes from wireframes to high fidelity.
- Assisted my design team and a third-party developer team with all Figma product annotation for user flows, UX functionality, interaction design, accessibility speech text, and UX writing.
- Helped my design team identify one major concern and other red flags on the project for improvements by using UX audits, sitemaps, and user flows.
- Handled the design team's kick-off UX documentation, Figma files, and design system workshops to empower our team with essential UI components for future design sprints.
- Facilitated design sprints using Zoom with our remote team of three designers, encouraging a unified team, good delivery performance, high-level innovation creativity, and no pain frictions through the six months of the project.
- Created a reward and ranking system feature for the entire client system, documenting all UX interaction functions and SLA rules.
- Performed QA analyses for UI/UX and conducted UX writing from staging environment version prototypes from developers.
UX Researcher | UI/UX Designer
Sapient AG2
- Discovered a millionaire innovation project failure from a billionaire private bank through UX methodologies and principles: UX audits, field research, and qualitative and quantitative UX research with users.
- Created new design system components using in-depth analysis and studies for new UI/UX components on ID and contract validation for a billionaire private bank.
- Improved six mobile flows for a private bank using new components and methodologies, including paper prototypes, wireframes, user flows, and UI/UX benchmarks.
- Found UX reasons behind qualitative research for improving the ATMs' UX. I also analyzed how to improve the CX and UX on bank branches.
- Delivered an ethnographic and in-depth UX analysis from ATMs and bank branches in three neighborhoods, analyzing the UX from Brazil's top three private banks.
- Prototyped and adjusted the latest categories on the ATMs' information architecture and menu navigation.
Partner and Head of Design
We Drive Growth
- Translated data into a product and service strategy from 60 qualitative surveys of non-moderated usability tests. We learned about actual problems, actual needs, and future service expectations.
- Led a strategy consultancy for a billionaire company. I delivered information about emerging technology, product planning, user research results, and concept design. As a result, all institutional websites shifted to eCommerce.
- Delivered essential documents for two new customers using my bundle of workshops on design, project, and business ideation. I received outstanding feedback from ACE, a top VC in LATAM.
- Helped an early-stage startup to recover their investment money on third-party developers by using heuristic analysis, user journey, usability analysis, and user usability tests on its MVP version.
- Assisted an early-stage startup aiming to become a corporate venture spin-off of a billionaire beverage company. I addressed 32 UI/UX inconsistencies by redesigning 102 screens from the mobile app concept.
- Conducted heuristic analysis on three systems for a billionaire food company. As a result, we uncovered several issues in the usability of mobile devices.
UX Researcher | UX Designer
Dux Coworkers
- Conducted user interviews, usability tests, and quantitative and qualitative research to help clients rapidly implement UI/UX improvements based on actual and competitor customers' findings on the mobile banking experience app.
- Improved the mobile app by delivering a UI/UX prototype with factional findings from a participatory design session with actual and competitor customers evaluating their mobile bank app and the competitor's app.
- Created a mid-fidelity concept prototype with ten key UI/UX insights for improvements from user interviews.
- Implemented four key UI/UX insights in information architecture, navigation, and usability for a billionaire bank in Brazil using a card sorting methodology and conducting 30 user interviews.
Head of Product | UX Researcher | Product Designer Consultant
TheVelops
- Led qualitative user research with the company founder, gathering information about market constraints and opportunities, competitors, personas, user needs, business goals, challenges, and the founders' "why" according to Simon Sinek's theory.
- Wrote a business mission statement with value proposition design methodology, framed the founder's qualitative interview for the CTO, and guided a development team's strategy.
- Assisted a development team in kicking off the development of a new software version by leading a workshop on an atomic design concept with front-end component language through mobile and web prototype screens.
- Helped stand down two personas on a product-market fit for a marketplace startup project by using user research methodologies.
- Designed an agile development process to deliver applications in two-to-four-week cycles.
- Redesigned a mobile and web product using user research and value proposition design methodologies.
- Led and implemented user-centered design methodologies, including founder and user interviews, ethnographic research, UI/UX audits, task analysis, usability testing, personas and profiles, competitors' analysis, and product benchmarks.
- Redesigned a government tech platform for water analysis using Google Material Design components from a client incubated at the University of São Paulo.
Service Designer | Brand Designer | Content Strategy | UX Researcher | UI/UX Consultant for Apps
Fábrica de Aplicativos
- Created a service for publishing web apps into native apps. This grew monthly revenue significantly for LATAM's most prominent SaaS app builder.
- Redesigned the customer service system using 200 user stories from ticket support. After three months, all support internal and external KPIs from ZenDesk benchmark numbers were beaten.
- Handled the user-centered redesign of four core support departments, including general problems, general doubts, financial issues, and art direction and information architecture consultancy for customer app creations.
- Led and answered 1,666 support tickets from SaaS web app creators with architecture and art direction tips from 15 different industries' expertise.
- Planned and created the architecture and content for blogs, YouTube channels, workshop classes, tooltips inside the app builder, and all help desk articles support.
- Created a client case documentary, 48 help center articles, 27 tooltips for the UX app builder, 16 blog articles, and eight workshops on building applications.
- Discovered the churn cancellation reason by triangulating data from customer surveys, business analysis databases, and service/content strategy projects. As a result, I improved app creation and grew the annual plan subscription by 56%.
- Performed product improvements and roadmaps, improved customer support content, provided consultancy for successful web app creation, assisted in content strategy and educational webinars and workshops, and created web app prototypes and templates.
- Learned 15 industries from app client creations, including adult movies, agencies, companies, entrepreneurs, government, niche market groups, NGOs, public figures, media, religious institutions, retail, services, and sports.
- Developed the new animation and sound for the logo of the SaaS app builder in LATAM.
Education
Postgraduate Degree in UX Design and Leadership
Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS) - Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
Foundation Course in Digital Marketing
Digital House - São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Foundation Course in Mobile Application Design
British School of Creative Arts and Technology (EBAC) - São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Bachelor's Degree in Social Communication on Radio and Television
Fundação Armando Alvares Penteado (FAAP) - São Paulo, SP, Brazil
Certifications
Usign AI in Research Projects
UserZoom Essentials Certificate
User Testing
UserZoom Advanced Certificate
User Testing
DesignOps and UX ResearchOps – Advanced
DesignOps Lab
Product-led Growth
ADPList
Produtividade Inteligente (Smart Productivity)
Conquer Business School
UX Research Ops
How Education
Design Workshop – Facilitator and Co-creator
How Education
Product Discovery
How Education
UX Strategy
Product Arena
UX Research
How Education
Product Manager
Product Arena
Product Metrics and Analytics
Product Arena
Product Owner: Papel, Artefatos e Cerimonias
Wildtech
Product Owner
Wildtech
Information Architecture
Product Arena
User Journey Mapping
Product Arena
Growth Hacking
Growth Team
Design System – Advanced
Glauber Laender (Nubank)
Design Ops Bootcamp
How Education
Product Owner
Instituto Vereda
Video Optimization Strategies
Double Play
Accessibility for Digital Products
UXConf BR
Design Leadership
How Education
Agile UX Design
Meiuca Design System Studio
Angel Class – Training for Angel Investors
StartSe
Legal Class – Legal Aspects Involving Innovative Business Models
StartSe
Design System and Ops
Meiuca Design System Studio
Cross-device Design Workshop (ATMs, Smartwatch, Mobile, Desktop, and SmartTV)
UXConf BR
Fundraising for Startups
StartSe
Introduction to HTML, CSS, and JavaScript
Recode
Executive Immersion in Digital Business Transformation
Martha Gabriel
Skills
Tools
Miro, Figma, InVision, Google Analytics, Trello, Wix, Google Docs, Microsoft Word, Sketch, UI Grid, Jira, Principle, Adobe Experience Design (XD), Hotjar, MURAL, Tableau, Adobe Analytics, Zeplin, Google Workspace, Confluence, Usertesting.com, FigJam, Figma Plugins, Adobe Creative Suite, SharePoint Designer
Platforms
Dovetail, iOS, Android, Mobile, Web, Webflow, WordPress, Webflow CMS, Mixpanel, KISSmetrics, Firebase, AppsFlyer, Desktop, YouTube, Zendesk, UserZoom, Salesforce, SharePoint 365, SharePoint
Industry Expertise
Healthcare, Government, Education Technology (Edtech), Information Technology, Professional Services, Hospitality, Hotels & Lodging, Real Estate, Health & Wellness, Audiobook Narration
Languages
HTML, CSS, JavaScript, SQL
Other
Accessibility, Product Design, Business Design, UX Strategy, UX Research, UX Design, UI Design, Social Communication, Cinema Design, Business, Project Management, Theater & Performing Arts, SEO Content, Content Strategy, Web Marketing, Web Analytics, A/B Testing, Mobile Design, Product Analytics, UX Documentation, Material Design, Product Benchmarking, Design Systems, Agile, Mobile UX, Mobile UI, Design Leadership, User Journey Maps, User Journeys, Key Performance Metrics, Metrics, Product Discovery, Information Architecture (IA), Design Workshops, Ideation Workshops, Discovery Workshops, Workshop Facilitation, UX Analysis, UX Prototyping, UI Prototyping, Rapid Prototyping, Mobile Prototypes, Animated Prototypes, Service Design, Ideation, UX Process, Project Design, Low Code, Google Design Sprints, Atomic Design, Usability Testing, Web Usability, Interviews, User Workshops, Workshops, Analytics, Value Innovation, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Legal, New Business Development, Research, WCAG 2, Strategy, eCommerce, SaaS, B2B, Qualitative Research, Quantitative User Research, User Interviews, Client Interviews, User Personas, Usability, UX Testing, Product Growth, UX Wireframes, Web UX, Startups, Dashboards, UX Audits, Pitch Decks, Wireframing, Design Thinking, Quantitative Research, User Interface (UI), Mobile App Design, Mobile App UI, Mobile App Development, Skeleton Prototypes, Low-fidelity Prototypes, High-fidelity Prototypes, Interaction Design (IxD), Business Intelligence (BI), Lean Startups, Accessible Design, User Flows, User Research, Market Research, Prototyping, App Design, MVP Design, Layout Design, Communication, Research Reports, Stakeholder Management, User Experience (UX), Web App Design, Responsive Web Apps, Web Design, Responsive UI, Landing Page Design, B2B2C, B2C, User Stories, User Experience Strategy, Roadmaps, User Validation, Loyalty Programs, Loyalty Applications, Discovery, Web App UX, Landing Pages, Style Guides, User Testing, Modular Design, Human-computer Interaction (HCI), Strategic Design, User-centered Design (UCD), Leadership, Design Strategy, Team Leadership, Data Analytics, Conversion Rate, Customer Journeys, Journey Mapping, Layout, Software as a Service (SaaS), Nonprofits, Responsive Web Design (RWD), Component Libraries, Enterprise SaaS, Interdisciplinary Collaboration, Progressive Web Applications (PWAs), Web Applications, Edtech Design, Mockups, AI Design, Enterprise, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Web App UI, Image Generation, Visual Design, Marketplace Design, Websites, Healthcare IT, Data, Data Strategy, Qualitative Analysis, Design, Stakeholder Engagement, CX Strategy, Executive Presentations, Presentation Design, UX Leadership, Findings & Recommendations Reports, Design Reviews, UX Review, Intranets, Metadata, Material UI, Design Guidelines, Template Design, Accessibility Testing, Web Accessibility, Proof of Concept (POC), Mobile Apps, Requirements, Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO), UI Testing, Feature Analysis, Project Discovery, User Engagement, Wellness, Proposal Design, Content Management Systems (CMS), Squarespace, Market Insights, Stakeholder Management, Research Analysis, Market Research & Analysis, Project Management, Waterfall Methodology, Presentations, Customer Insights, Consumer Insights, Digital Marketing Strategy, Digital Marketing, SEO Tools, Marketing Analytics, Information Design, UI Style Guides, Agile UX, Benchmark Analysis, UX Workshops, UX Writing, Paper Prototyping, Data Visualization, Card Sorting, Cross-platform UX, Cross-functional Design, Surveys, Interactive Prototypes, Web UI, Fintech, Finance, Social Networks, Dating Apps, Dashboard Design, Branding, Artificial Intelligence as a Service (AIaaS), Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI), OpenAI, Storyboarding, Online Shopping, Visual Brand Guidelines, Brand Guidelines, Public Relations (PR), Fashion Design, Voice Chat, Design Ops, Lean UX, TV, TV UI, Smartwatch Design, Design Management, User Metrics, Voice Interface, Product Management, Fundraising, Startup Funding, Angel Investing, Design Sprints, Social Media, Speech to Text, Data Architecture, Design Thinking Facilitation, Product Development, Guerilla Usability Testing, Product Strategy, Business Analysis, Value Proposition Design, Amplitude, Blaze, Metabase, Crazy Egg, Industry, Engineering, Content, Marketplaces, APIs, Data Analysis, Organizational Design, Design Research, ResearchKit, Focus Groups, Remote User Testing, User Surveys, Cross-functional Collaboration, Product Roadmaps, Digital Product Design, Ethnographic Studies, Ethnographic Interviews, In-depth Interviews, Customer Interviews, User Requirements, Quantitative Analysis, Human-centered Design (HCD), Design Validation, Personas, Technical Design, Web Components, Mind Maps, Labeling, Web UI Design, Color Schemes, Color Theory, Technical Product Management, Technical Project Management, Operations, Operations Tools, Agile Sprints, Agile Leadership, Product Delivery, Agile Delivery, Team Management, Interpersonal Skills, Project Design & Management, Operations Management, Wireframe to Product, Smart TV, Desktop App Design, Desktop Web Design, App UX, Mobile UI Design, Typography, Images, Teamwork, Startup Consulting, Early-stage Startups, High-tech Startups, Video Marketing, Growth Hacking, YouTube SEO, YouTube Marketing, Growth Strategy, Growth Marketing, Product Owner, Delivery Management, Business Administration, Storybook, Whiteboarding, UI Audits, Elevator Pitches, Value Proposition, Field Research, UI Research, Lean Canvas, Lean Research, Qualitative Reports, Heuristic Review, Usability Analysis, Remote Usability Testing, Usability Heuristics, Unmoderated Remote Usability Testing, WebApp, App UI, Apps, User Validation Testing, Reports, Recruiting, Recruitment, Heuristics, Heuristic Analysis, Heuristic Reports, Heuristic Evaluation, Product Research, Field Studies, Field Recordings, Sitemaps, Navigation Design, Mobile Navigation, Navigation Redesign, Text to Speech (TTS), Quality Assurance (QA), UI Components, Mobile UX Design, Brand Design, Sound Design, Customer Success, Databases, Educational Videos, Webinars, Blog Design, Documentaries, User, AARRR, Business to Business (B2B), Innovation Labs, Digital Innovation, Ads, Validation, Venture Design, Venture Philanthropy, Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs), SaaS Design, UI Motion, Mobile Web, Growth, Motion Interaction, Interactive UI, Native Mobile Apps, Rapid Sketching, UX Wireflows, Voice, Speech Recognition, Gamification, Rewards, Rewards Programs, Rapid Interactive Prototyping, Rapid Development, Business Rules, Annotations, Voice Over, Task Flows, Task Analysis, Survey Design, Design Evaluation, Innovation, Innovation Strategy, Disruptive Innovation, Desktop App Development, eCommerce UI, eCommerce Design, eCommerce UX, Mobile eCommerce, Web UX Design, Holistic UX Design, Responsive UX Design, UX Pattern Design, Heuristic Ideation Technique, Mobile App Testing, Mobile Applications, Product Vision, Internet of Things (IoT), Legal Counsel, Legal Research, Business Law, Cross-platform, Digital Transformation, Business Transformation, Open Innovation, Productivity, Sprints, Online Surveys, Database as a Service (DBaaS), Tree Testing, First Click Testing, ResearchOps, Screeners, Discord, Microsoft Dynamics, SharePoint Online, SharePoint UI, AI Research
Experience
- Qualitative Research - 10 years
- Stakeholder Engagement - 10 years
- Presentations - 10 years
- Customer Insights - 10 years
- Quantitative Research - 10 years
- Workshop Facilitation - 9 years
- UX Research - 8 years
- Product Analytics - 7 years
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