UX Designer · Toronto
Hi, I'm Zahra. I help make complicated things feel simple.
I start by listening to the people who'll use it, then design, test, and work alongside developers until it ships.
How I work
From the first question to the final build
Five questions I ask on every project. Open one to see what it means in practice.
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I talk to as many people as I can, ask to see how they work today, and dig into where it hurts. The goal is to hear what people actually want to use, not what we assume they need.
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Before any screens, I turn what I heard into something the team can act on: analyzing the interviews, writing user stories, and mapping task flows. That's how we make sure we're solving the right problem before we start solving it.
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I design it, then put it in front of the people who'll use it. It's humbling, in a good way: they'll tell you honestly whether they can use it and whether it's what they actually need. Then I go back and make it better.
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Developers, product managers, and stakeholders, early and often. I share work while it's still rough and bring real user feedback into those conversations, so decisions get made together instead of handed over.
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Handoff isn't the finish line. I work with developers through QA and check the build against what users needed. I'm also not afraid to take on a different role when the team needs it. Writing Jira tickets wasn't part of my job, but when the opportunity came up, I jumped on it.
How AI changed the way I work
I've been designing through the whole shift to AI. Here's how my day-to-day has actually changed.
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Before AI
Doing it all by hand
Sketching wireframes on paper, writing up interview notes, and building specs by hand. Figma, FigJam, and a lot of sticky notes.
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ChatGPT
A brainstorming partner
I used it for UX copy and to draft interview questions. When I had one or two design directions, I'd ask what other variations I could try.
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Figma Make
Testing ideas faster
It made it easy to put a working concept in front of a client early and check we were on the right track, before spending time on polish.
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Claude & agents · now
Part of my everyday work
I use Claude to brainstorm design ideas, and connected to Confluence and Jira, to write tickets. Right now I'm exploring how Claude agents can help govern our design system.
One thing hasn't changed: I still start by talking to people.
Teacher first, designer second.
Before UX I spent eight years in classrooms, the last two leading 15 teachers. These days it's horse riding, Sunday pickleball, antique shops, and trying very hard to keep a plant alive.
More about meThe work lives behind a password.
Most of it is under NDA. If you were sent a password, step right in. If not, ask me and I'll send one.
Got a messy problem? Let's untangle it.
Get in touch →Toronto · Eastern Time · © 2026 Zahra Alvandi