Meet Betty Moges: Building UX from the ground up at Xurrent
The following is part of our Xurrent Employee Spotlight series.
Betty Moges joined Xurrent in September 2024 as our first UX Designer. We sat down with her recently to learn more about what brought her to Xurrent, her background in design, strategies she’s implementing to establish a strong UX culture at Xurrent, and more — including her love for spicy food.
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Xurrent: What about Xurrent attracted you to this role, and what has your experience been so far?
Betty: Based on my research, I got the sense right off the bat that Xurrent had a really innovative mindset—very user-focused and customer-focused, which aligned with what I was looking for in a company as a user experience designer. Also, having the ability to build something from the ground up really caught my attention. Being the first UX Designer feels like you are almost stepping into a blank canvas with endless possibilities. What designer wouldn’t want that?
So far, my experience has been interesting and fun. There have been many challenges, victories, sticky notes, and ideation. The company’s enthusiasm for UX has been exciting, and since it’s new, it’s been exciting to see how design can make a meaningful impact here.
Xurrent: As a self-proclaimed creative problem solver and user advocate, can you describe a particularly challenging design problem you’ve faced and how you approached it?
Betty: One of the most challenging design problems was working without traditional documentation. I had a project where the requirements came from reading and translating JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) code.
I started my career thinking I wanted to become a software engineer, so I had some background in understanding and reading code. Thanks to this, I could understand the functionality and workflows. From there, I translated the technical details into a user-centric design, started creating wireframes and prototypes, and began bridging the gap between what the system could do and what users needed.
Overall, this challenge was unique, reinforcing the importance of technical aspects and design thinking in solving complex problems.
Xurrent: As Xurrent’s first UX Designer, you’re likely shaping many foundational design processes. What key strategies are you using to establish a strong UX culture within the company?
Betty: When I started, Tina van Schelt, Senior Front-End Engineer, had some excellent documentation, but there were no designs. My main priorities were building a good design foundation from scratch, creating reusable components, and establishing a design system used consistently throughout the application. This process will ensure scalability as the product grows.
Collaborating with developers — new to this team — was also a huge priority. Before my arrival, the dev team designed and developed. The relationship with this group has been one of the key processes we’ve implemented — bridging the gap between design and development. Getting their feedback, making sure designs are feasible, and making sure designs are developer-friendly. We conduct design reviews and have regular feedback loops. Customers can view work-in-progress designs before they go live. Ultimately, this fosters a solid collaborative design culture.
Xurrent: User research is a key part of your process. How do you typically gather user insights for a project at Xurrent and ensure that feedback is translated effectively into the design?
Betty: Xurrent customers are very active. They are not shy about sharing what is working well (and not so great) regarding User Experience. Our process now includes sending low-fidelity designs to customers weekly to solicit feedback, ensuring they translate into what they want the application to look like.
The weekly feedback loops encourage honest customer reviews, which have been very useful in understanding customer pain points. The feedback process is our user research process.
Xurrent: You love pushing the boundaries of what’s possible. What’s one UX project or feature at Xurrent that you’re particularly excited to work on (or have already worked on) that exemplifies this mindset?
Betty: The “Specialist Redesign” project, for sure. The goal is for it to be functional to use but also … enjoyable to interact with and visually appealing.
This is super exciting because I get to reimagine how the application will look. It’s very complex, and some clients aren’t even aware of some extremely valuable features and functionality because they’re hidden. As I begin using the platform, I’m constantly learning new things. I am trying to reimagine the specialist interface, ensuring it’s intuitive and visually stunning, which has been exciting.
Xurrent: What role do wireframes and prototypes play in your process at Xurrent, and do you have a favorite tool or method you like to use to create them?
Betty: Wireframes and prototypes are the primary tools for UX — the secret sauce to incredible design, taking abstract ideas and turning them into tangible concepts.
Initially, I go through user research to ideation. When I start the ideation process, I begin with low-fidelity wireframes — limited content and colors (often gray). We then move to high-fidelity — expanded content and more color. Then, clickable prototypes. All are shared with users for feedback.
Figma is my go-to for wireframes and prototypes, as it allows for design collaboration. I love doing rapid prototyping to get quick feedback, and Figma shines in this area. The developers and product managers have access to Figma. Designers to design products; developers to see the code in “dev mode.” Everyone within R&D has access to Figma, and all use it differently.
Xurrent: As part of the upcoming UX changes at Xurrent, can you give us a sneak peek into some exciting UX changes and what users can expect to experience moving forward?
Betty: One of the most significant application changes is our move from a 2-pane to a single-pane view. The current view is too cluttered — lots of “cognitive overload.” Our goal is to ensure all interaction is very intuitive.
We are considering eliminating the list view in favor of a table view, driven mainly by existing user behavior. However, we also don’t want users to spend too much time looking for specific things. It’s the “Easy” in our “Easy. Advanced. Complete.”
Xurrent: Okay. Let’s get a bit more personal. You are originally from Ethiopia, and some of your closest family members live there now. What has shaped you the most about your culture, and what do you miss most about living there?
Betty: I miss a lot of things. Ethiopian culture taught me the importance of community and storytelling. You know your neighbors; you invite them to have coffee with you. In my design process, I always think about improving the story.
I really miss the food. There are a few Ethiopian restaurants in Austin, but the food doesn’t really taste like home. I try to learn Ethiopian and family recipes and make them at home.
Finally, I’m not a big coffee drinker, but I miss the coffee ceremony. My mom does a coffee ceremony every morning, inviting friends to our house to chat. It’s really not even about the coffee; it’s more about the experience. There is a whole process of coffee making. You see the beans, crush the beans, etc. You see the entire process; everyone is talking about drinking out of this tiny cup. I love sitting with my mom and enjoying the process or listening to the talk of the town.
Xurrent: You love spicy food! What’s your go-to spicy dish, and does your passion for bold flavors translate into your design style or work ethic in any way?
Betty: Ethiopian food has a lot of spices. I love the spicy flavors. Before big holidays, people fast. We eat vegetarian, and then during holidays, we celebrate by eating a lot of meat, spices, and this butter we make at home. My favorite food is called Firfir, a traditional Ethiopian dish of shredded injera (spongy flatbread) mixed with spiced berbere sauce and a ton of spices. Some people add boiled eggs, meat, etc. We add turmeric a lot if we are not looking for something spicy.
Xurrent: You enjoy exploring the great outdoors and trying new recipes. How do these hobbies influence your work as a designer? Do you draw any inspiration from your experiences outside of work?
Betty: I do love exploring the outdoors. Nature inspires me to keep things simple and intuitive. The best UX you have with a product is usually the simplest: clean, simple, easy to understand, and visually appealing.
Cooking new recipes reminds me of UX design. You start with raw ingredients. In UX translation, that would be the ideation; then, you follow up with a process. For cooking it’s adding onions, etc. For design, it’s the iteration process. Hopefully, the result is something delicious … or a great design.
Xurrent: Thank you so much for your time, Betty. We look forward to seeing how your career at Xurrent continues to evolve.
Betty: Thanks. Me too!
Stay tuned for next month’s Xurrent Employee Spotlight.