EDUCATION
- University of Illinois - Urbana Champaign
- Business Administration, M.B.A.
Strategic Management Focus at Gies College of Business
2024 – 2027 (Expected) - Virginia Tech
- Industrial Design, B.S.
Entrepreneurship Minor at Pamplin College of Business
GPA: 3.86, 2015 – 2019
CERTIFICATIONS
- UX Certification
- Nielsen Norman – 2022
- HTML Basics
- CodeAcademy – 2020
- CSS Basics
- CodeAcademy – 2020
AWARDS
- Industrial Design Studio Excellence
- Virginia Tech – 2019
- Academic Excellence Recognition
- Virginia Tech – 2019
DESIGN SKILLS
- User Research
- UI / Interaction Design
- Information Architecture
- Design Thinking
- Rapid Prototyping
- Product Development
SOFTWARE & TOOLS
- Figma
- Adobe XD
- Axure RP
- Adobe Photoshop
- Adobe InDesign
- Adobe Illustrator
- Adobe Premiere Pro
- Fusion 360
- Solidworks
- Jira
- Miro
RELEVANT SKILLS
- Stakeholder Management
- Agile Methodology
- Business Strategy & Analysis
- Data-Driven Decision Making
- Responsive Web Design
- ADA Compliance
- HTML/CSS
- JavaScript (Basics)
PENSKE
USER EXPERIENCE DESIGNER
August 2023 – Present, Reading, PA (Remote)
- • Orchestrated the UX design efforts of the new Penske Consumer Rental website as a key member of the product team, contributing to its successful development, completion, and launch in August 2023.
- • Supervised UX research, design, and development of the Rental Digital Transformation project’s product cycle, helped manage Kanban boards and story/bug progression, assisted developers with tasks and QA testing, and ensured communication between various internal and external stakeholders.
- • Worked collaboratively with product and development teams to align UX design goals of Consumer Rental with business objectives, user needs, and technical requirements.
ASSOCIATE USER EXPERIENCE DESIGNER
November 2020 – July 2023, Reading, PA
- • Collaborated with the Interactive Marketing team, focusing on enhancing the Truck Rental experience across web, mobile browsers, and iOS/Android applications.
- • Employed Agile Methodology to address UX Design challenges alongside developers and stakeholders, ensuring ADA compliance for accessibility.
- • Led the design process of the rental web application features through user research and wireframes for both web and mobile interfaces.
- • Conducted user tests through third-party platforms, gathering valuable data for research and project iterations.
- • Provided user-experience insights for a multi-million-dollar digital transformation research project aimed at re-envisioning the consumer truck rental experience.
NICHE
PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT LEAD
February 2020 – August 2020, Beacon, NY
- • Led Product Development department, overseeing tasks and workflow.
- • Managed vendor correspondence for supply and material purchases.
- • Supported marketing goals with product guides, tear sheets, and website design.
PRODUCT DESIGNER
October 2019 – February 2020, Beacon, NY
- • Produced CAD drawings from sketches and managed the production process for final products.
- • Conducted competitive analysis, created mood boards, and analyzed industry trends and pricing.
- • Collaborated with marketing and graphics departments to create visuals and content for social media accounts.
VIRGINIA TECH
WEBSITE DESIGNER | VIDEOGRAPHER
May 2018 – June 2019, Blacksburg, VA
- • Engaged in a pivotal role as a Student Assistant, dedicated to advancing sustainability initiatives through video production for Timothy D. Baird, Assistant Professor at Virginia Tech.
- • Functioned as a design consultant, providing expertise in design decisions spanning video production, branding, and website design.
- • Demonstrated proficiency in creating and refining compelling videos aimed at promoting the Pathways Sustainability Minor and a range of educational and professional projects.
"I had a fantastic experience working with Defne on my logo design. She was highly sensitive to deadlines and genuienly cared about bringing my vision to life, while offering her professional perspective. I appreciated her honesty in pointing out potential concerns while ensuring my ideas were always respected!"
Deniz Sozer, Clinical Psychologist
"Defne applied her strong intelligence and capability in helping us establish a website, where she not only took the initiative in crafting an effective design but also ensured that the end result was beautiful. Her attention to detail and ability to meet project goals made a significant impact on the overall success of the design."
Fernando Torres, Business Manager