Video summary
Vyoma Patak, the design practice lead at MoEngage Tech, shares her remarkable journey from being the company's first designer to leading a team of twenty-five professionals across various domains. Her story highlights the significant challenges faced when introducing design into an organization where it was initially misunderstood, even resulting in her being given a "senior developer" title before her true value was recognized. She emphasizes that scaling a design practice requires not only building a talented team but also constantly proving the worth of design to clients and internal stakeholders. A major hurdle she identifies is the misconception that everyone can be a designer; therefore, a crucial skill for any practitioner is the ability to articulate their logic, defend their decisions, and convince others of the value behind their work.
As a leader, Vyoma has learned that managing a large team involves balancing creative freedom with business goals while fostering a collaborative environment where diverse personalities thrive. She describes her transition from a close-knit startup culture to a larger enterprise setting as a shift from a unified family dynamic to navigating complex verticals like Microsoft and SAP, which requires adapting communication styles for different teams. To maintain team cohesion and motivation, she implements regular sessions that encourage learning, playfulness, and open dialogue, ensuring that every member feels challenged yet supported. Furthermore, she advocates for a culture of mutual growth where leaders expect their team members to teach them something new, creating a dynamic give-and-take relationship rather than a top-down hierarchy.
When it comes to evaluating design portfolios, Vyoma argues that stunning visuals are secondary to the thought process behind the work. She warns against relying too heavily on AI-generated content, noting that while such tools can produce beautiful interfaces quickly, they often lack genuine human insight and problem-solving depth. Instead, she urges designers to showcase their unique identity by demonstrating how they understood user needs, balanced business constraints, and achieved tangible results. For hiring purposes, the most important factor is finding candidates who fit the team's DNA and bring something new to the table, ensuring that every new hire contributes to the collective evolution of the group rather than just replicating existing methods.
In conclusion, Vyoma's advice for aspiring designers centers on authenticity and strategic communication in an era dominated by artificial intelligence. She suggests that portfolios must tell a story of human creativity and critical thinking, showing exactly how a problem was solved rather than just presenting a final screen. Her rapid-fire reflections reveal a cheerful personality inspired by literature like *The Fountainhead* and fueled by the joy of interacting with creative teams over coffee. Ultimately, her message is clear: to stand out in the current market, designers must infuse their work with a personal touch, prove their ability to navigate complex organizational landscapes, and continuously evolve through both teaching and learning within their communities.
Read the full video transcript
Hello everyone. So today I am here with
Vyoma Patak. She is the design practice
lead at MoEngage Tech. And she is here
at the UX India conference to
participate in the panel for design
portfolio and mentorship. And today we
will be having a conversation with her
around the same and her design journey
so far.
So hi Vyoma. Thank you so much for
joining in and I'm really excited to
speak with you about portfolio and
mentorship and your design journey as
well.
So starting off with how are you feeling
at the conference?
>> Oh, it was great. First of all, thank
you so much for having me here. It's a
great experience.
I think this is the third time I'm
coming to this conference and it's been
amazing. Bapu is amazing as all of us
know.
It's very exciting to see so many
different people talking about AI, the
different types of perspectives that
they are giving around it.
So I'm looking forward to a lot of
insights from here.
>> Definitely, definitely. These three days
are going to be really amazing and very
very insightful with respect to
everything that we have planned over
here.
So now coming to your design journey,
right? So you are working at MoEngage
Tech, right? And at MoEngage Tech you
have set up the entire design practice
at scale. Yes. So can you tell us a
little bit about that?
>> Right. So
actually at MoEngage Tech I was the
first design employee.
When I went there, people were
absolutely not aware what design is.
Actually the title that they gave me was
a senior
developer. And I was shocked. I was
like, I don't know anything about
development, but you've given me this
title. But then eventually when I
started working, there were projects
that they handed over to me and they saw
a value, a difference that was being
created. Clients also started noticing
that something different is happening.
The customers are liking what we are
doing. And then so that's how we started
realizing the value of design. And then
slowly we started building up the team.
And now I am proud that I have 25 people
in my team. Some of whom we have
recruited from college directly, trained
while we worked, and some of them are
seniors who give a lot of insights to
build the team together. So that's how
it is right now and we are working
across different domains. People are
enjoying and it's a challenge to keep 25
people together.
Making them have fun and product give a
productive output at the same time.
>> Right. I think that's been a remarkable
journey for you since you started out as
the first designer and now you have a
team of 25 designers.
So in this process, what were the major
challenges that you faced, you know,
starting out as a designer yourself and
then scaling up everything? Setting the
design practices at MoEngage and then
setting this big office team and working
across domains. What have been your any
like one or two challenges that you
would like to share?
>> I think
the biggest challenge, and I think many
of us also face it, is that
everybody thinks they are a designer.
>> All right.
>> And everything that you've done is
challenged. That I don't like this
because people start getting personal
also. I don't like this. I don't like
why you've done that. So it's very
important I feel for a designer, like
even which was said in the talk earlier,
that we need to be able to sell
ourselves. So
along with designing something, I've
realized that being able to tell why you
designed something and attach your logic
to it and convince the person is a very
important skill. So that has been one of
the major challenges and I think now
having come at this stage, people have
started listening to me within the
company. but there's still a challenge
that when we go to clients I also
to be able to convince what we have
designed. So that's one of the
challenges and the other thing is
working together with developers trying
to understand
what we design needs to be able to be
developed as well and striking the right
balance. That's another thing that
we have we've been trying to do.
>> Definitely, definitely. Thank you so
much for sharing. So since you have been
talking about your challenges, I'm sure
that since now you are at a leadership
role right now and you must have had
situations where you had had to adopt
your you know, like adapt to different
leadership styles across the years and
across how things are changing. So how
was that transition for you?
>> Yeah, so
I think uh
the transition has been tremendous
because I started as a single person. So
it was a one-man show and then trying to
identify the people who have the same
DNA, who would work with me and have the
same goal towards designing. That was
the second challenge. Then after that
after having somebody with with me uh as
a leader keeping them challenged and
ensuring that what they are doing they
like doing it because otherwise there's
no results. So those were the two
things. Always you know, I used to have
within the team we used to have Friday
sessions where people would tell what is
a new thing you learn. Are you being
challenged? And we even played games
together. So uh
it was necessary to keep the people
bonded, to keep the people challenged.
At the same time we it was also
necessary with so many new things coming
in together
at every day. It was also important to
make sure that every person keeps
himself or herself updated with what's
uh there. So
all those things needed to be done. So,
uh along with doing design, these were
the other things that needed to be done.
>> Right.
>> And then there's always different kinds
of people in the team. You need to be
able to talk uh in a specific specific
way to a specific person to get the
outputs. So, those are the different
kinds of challenges that I've faced as a
leader. Um
as a leader also uh within the company,
paving a path for design, as I said
earlier, was one of the challenges. So,
uh there was once a time where I said I
started off with a title of a developer.
So, even fighting and getting a design
title was one of the things that I did
for my team. And now we have uh
principal designers, junior designers,
and seniors. So, so so that's the kind
of thing that has I
>> So, you've had quite a challenging
journey like after listening to
everything.
>> Yeah, that's because, you know,
initially this has been a services
company. It's not a design studio per
se. So, that's where the different set
of challenges
>> So, if yeah, definitely, definitely. So,
even a service-based company has its own
set of challenges which you need to be
ready for. Right. So, um since you have
been working at MoEngage and before that
you have worked at startups as well. So,
how was that transition for you like
from a startup to a company like this?
>> So, uh
in a startup, I think uh
one of the major uh advantages of being
in a startup is that it's like a small
family. You get to know everybody and
everybody is working at the same goal
together.
>> Right.
>> There's hardly any space for politics
over there.
>> Correct.
>> So, it's it's very nice working
together. Everybody's helping out each
other and you're working towards the
same goal. When I transitioned to
MoEngage, also, I mean, it was uh still
a very small uh as I said, the design
team was nothing.
>> Right.
>> So, it was still a small company at that
time. But now that's the different uh
challenge that I face, being able to
communicate with totally different
verticals. So, there's uh digital,
there's Microsoft, there's other teams
who are there. So, uh there's a there's
a difference in the thought process, the
way they work, and being able to work
together with them in harmony to deliver
something. That's the major difference
that I feel is from a startup to a big
company.
>> Right. Right, definitely. So, at My
Design Tech, you would be working across
different verticals.
>> Yes, there's a lot of different
verticals. As I said, there's SAP,
there's Oracle, there's uh Microsoft.
And then, there's the design team who
works across everybody because everybody
needs design at the end of the day. So,
yeah, working together is a different
challenge that is.
>> Right. Right, the collaboration part
would be the key over there. Thank you
so much for sharing about your journey.
It to It I think it even for me that was
a learning experience because I see
myself as a leadership in the at the
leadership level in the upcoming years.
So, now coming to your panel talk at UX
India, so it's about design portfolio
and mentorship.
>> Yeah.
>> So, uh since you have been working with
a team of designers already, and I'm
sure you would be looking at portfolios
and, you know, mentoring designers all
this while.
>> Okay.
>> So, out of your experience, what are
some things that truly make a portfolio
stand out or a design candidate stand
out for a job role?
>> Right. So, uh
actually,
when we are talking about portfolios,
now what is a few if you see, there's a
lot of fancy UI, fancy interfaces
happening all over, and like today, even
AI is doing it.
Uh the first place where I sort of uh
cut out portfolios is where I start
seeing too
too beautiful of a screen, but no
thought process behind it. So, when I'm
looking at a portfolio, I I want to see
more of the thought process that has
gone behind. How did you try to
understand the user? How did you try to
understand the problem that you're
solving? How did you strike a balance
between the user and the business? And
how what are the results you got?
Screens are very important, but they are
still secondary because we are still
talking about expe- experience is the
most important part. I mean, something
if it's beautiful, it doesn't solve the
problem, it's of no use. So, I think
it's very important to be able to put
through your thought process in your
portfolio, then you've got a winner over
there.
>> Right. Right. So, uh you must be getting
like, you know, hundreds and thousands
of portfolios. So, since you described
about the first level, right? So, after
that first level of selection, what is
it that you really look for someone who
would be joining your team?
>> Right. So, uh one of the important
things uh I learned from my mentor was
that whenever we're getting new people
on the team, it's very important that,
no matter at which role I'm taking that
person, there should be some at least
one thing that I learn from him. Even if
I'm at this role,
that person should be able to teach me
something in the journey. So, it may be
just it may be just being able to
present nicely or being able to uh
talk in a nice way. Anything, it may be
anything. But, the person needs to fit
into our DNA, and there should be one
thing that I feel that he or she would
be able to teach me through the journey.
So, that's one of the important things
for me.
>> I think that's a really beautiful thing
that you just said that, you know, you
get to learn from their journey and from
them as well. So, at the same time that
would be humbling as well at times. So,
that's
>> Yeah, it's it's always a give-and-take
journey because I feel you can't just
be, you know, saying that you're a
leader, give me. It's It's not Even I
have within my team I have a
an expectation set that, "Okay, you're
coming to me for reviewing your designs,
but if you take my suggestions without
arguing with me, that's not going to be
accepted. So, whatever suggestions I
give,
I need to hear why you did something and
if or not you accept what I am saying.
So, it's very important for me."
>> Right. I think that's that that is
something that would truly set you apart
as a leader as well.
So, now we have our audiences, you know,
looking at this podcast. So, they would
love to know that if you have any advice
for them, you know, any top two
suggestions for their portfolio and how
they can truly stand out in this, you
know, ever-emerging market at the
moment.
>> I think at this moment,
when we are
looking for profiles or portfolios, one
of the major things is that uh
there's a lot of AI-generated content in
it.
>> Right.
>> And it's very easy to get AI-generated
content. It's very easy to get addicted
to generating content via AI because it
looks pretty. And uh it's it looks like
what everybody else is doing. But that's
again another point uh where uh
like somebody like me would quickly
understand that this is not genuine
because this is AI. So, it's very
important to have your personal touch,
uh what they say, human in the loop or
something like that, where you have
taken your creativity and applied
something on top of what was done to
make to give it your identity. That's
what again would set you apart as a good
designer. So, that's very important and
again, as I said, it's very important to
showcase your thought process within the
of the projects that you've done.
>> Right. Right. Right. I think these are
very crucial suggestions that you have
given and these will really help our
designers who are watching this video.
So, it has been a pleasure to know about
your journey, Vilma. So, now moving
ahead to the last segment for the
interview, I have an exciting part
planned for you, which is a rapid fire
round.
>> Okay.
>> So, I will be asking you five questions
and you have to answer like
back-to-back.
>> Okay.
>> So, are you ready for the rapid fire
round?
>> Hey, go for it. Let's see.
>> All right. So, here goes the first
question. So, how would you describe
yourself in one word?
>> Uh cheerful.
>> All right. So, what's one book or movie
that you find inspiring?
>> I think the book was The Fountainhead.
>> Okay.
>> Uh
it was a very difficult book for me. I
mean, I'm I'm I'm sorry. It's supposed
to be a rapid fire, but there's a couple
of words. It was a very difficult book
for me and I had read it long back uh
when I was just starting my career and I
read it again last year.
Uh the person Ayn Rand, she's got
amazing views of what design should be,
how you should look at design, what What
is the purpose of design? And what
struck me was uh the way I perceived the
book 10 years ago as compared to the way
I perceive today is entirely different.
>> Wow.
>> So, yeah, it's one book that I really
love and I stand by.
>> Thank you. Thank you for sharing that
transformation which happened in those
10
>> Yeah, yeah, because the outlook has
changed a lot, I suppose. So, it's uh we
should do that, I think.
>> Definitely. Definitely. I'll also take
the suggestion for the mounting head.
>> The Fountainhead.
>> Yeah, the Fountainhead. Correct.
Correct. So, coming to our next
question, what's the best part about
your work day?
>> Uh the best part about my work day is
interacting with my team because it's
always filled with fun, so many ideas, a
lot of coffee happening, and uh I have a
very I'm very lucky and I'm sure it's
it's with all design teams because the
people are so creative. Uh
it's very informal and that's where a
lot of ideas are generated. So, that's
the best time of my day always.
>> Right. That's that's great to know.
So,
our fourth question, what do you love
about UX India?
>> About UX India, I love the energy that's
there because
it's amazing to see, you know, design
people together. There's always such
electrifying things happening. It's also
fun to see how people dress up and come.
It's fun to see how they just don't care
about the world. So, I love to be in
this type of
>> I think that's a great observation.
All right, so coming to our last
question. So, if not design, what other
field would you have been in?
>> Oh, I would have been a dancer for sure.
>> Wow, that's beautiful. That's beautiful.
So, with that we would like to wrap up
our session. So, thank you so much Wilma
for joining us today. It was lovely
speaking to you and I hope you have a
really good time at the conference.
>> Yeah, thank you so much Akriti for
having me.
>> Yeah.