About
I’m a versatile and highly skilled User Experience Architect. Prior to my latest role as a Design Lead at Oracle, I established a design background working in multidisciplinary teams and conducting lab testing at WebMD for enduring products such as Symptom Checker and My Health Record. I then learned to adapt my designs to the needs of enterprise by developing intricate legal and claim management application platform used by Fortune 500 companies (Toyota, Honda, Home Depot, McDonald’s, GE, etc.). I started putting an emphasis on accessibility while working with government organizations such as SSA and DMV. At Intuit, I moved on to facilitating the use of “Design for Delight” principles to champion the user experience for QuickBooks Merchant Services. I now integrate these varied experiences into my holistic approach to design, which employs strategizing and multi-level creative problem solving to simultaneously address aesthetic and technical concerns as well as industry and consumer demands. As a multi-lingual person who experienced many cultures, I am well-versed in diversity & inclusion aspects of design.
In my spare time, I can be found sketching portraits/figure drawing, mural painting, dancing hip-hop at In The Groove Studios, or planning my next trip to Europe.
Skills
On my journey from novice to master designer I developed a wide range of skills. This enables me to think like a generalist and deliver like a specialist.
Authentic Intelligence
I provide contribute contextual understanding, complex decision-making, emotional intelligence, and creative brainstorming to human-AI collaboration.
Industrial Design
I have a Master’s degree in Industrial Design. It taught me to use both my creativity and analytical thinking. I believe that form follows function, and design solves a specific problem.
Front End Development
A generalist in the early days of the Web, I learned HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to implement my designs. Since then I’ve designed for a variety of technology platforms. I take feasibility into account and speak the “dev” language, which makes the design-development hand-off smoother.
Visual Arts
My experience with graphics for both print and Web was equated to a Bachelor degree in Graphic Design. It further developed my natural sense of style and aesthetics. I aim for visual appeal that supports and enhances the content and functionality.
Research & Analysis
I always incorporated research in design projects. From informational interviews, competitive intelligence, contextual inquiry and paper-and-pencil evaluations, to prototype testing at the state-of-the-art WebMD and Intuit’s usability labs - I leverage all available research tools to inform design decisions.
Information Architecture
Working on complex, large-scale enterprise-grade systems, I learned the importance of planning and organizing content into meaningful and scalable structure. I practice systems thinking, creating conceptual models, classifying and organizing information into reusable components and patterns.
Accessibility
When working with government organizations, I developed a special interest in Accessibility, which I believe is not only the foundation for inclusion, but simply the best design practice. As an Accessibility expert, I propose accessibility features, define general guidelines and implementation requirements.
Business Requirements
After years of designing for enterprises I gained understanding of common business cases and contexts of use. Aimed with Product Requirements certification from Pragmatic Marketing, I root design solutions in providing business value.
UX DESIGN
During my exciting Product Design career, I had a chance to improve existing products and services, and to design new services from scratch. In my most recent role as a UX Lead for Database Management, I focused my attention on generic requirements of all cloud services to deliver a unified system to improve overall service performance.
Curriculum Vitae
EDUCATION
M.S. in Industrial Design (with Honors)
State University of Technology and Design, St. Petersburg, Russia
Certificate/Professional Training
‘Product Management with Requirements’ from Pragmatic Marketing | Business Law | Essentials of Marketing | Macroeconomics | Introduction to JavaScript | Introduction to "C" Programming
EMPLOYMENT HISTORY
2009 - 2025
Principal UX Design Lead, Oracle Inc.
Lead and execute complex design initiatives that span multiple product areas of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, Database Services, and Enterprise Manager. Worked iteratively with cross-functional teams from project inception through implementation to completion. Gathered & analyzed user requirements, and defined mobile & web design strategy. Conveyed designs through user flows, wireframes, specifications, and interactive prototypes. Conducted focus groups and quick rounds of usability tests.
2006 - 2009
Sr. Product Designer, Intuit Inc.
Championed the user experience for QuickBooks Merchant Services and Intuit Payment Solutions. Engaged with stakeholders to identify user needs and refine requirements. Working closely with Users/PMs/Engineering/QA, applied accessible design standards when creating user flows, wireframes, prototypes, specifications, and facilitated usability & accessibility testing.
2003 - 2006
Usability Product Manager, Mitratech Inc.
Responsible for UX Architecture of Claim, Matter and Risk Management software platform. Designed product features (Workflow Engine, Role-based Access, Security, Rules Engine, Import/Export Tool, Language Manager, etc.). Engaged with Fortune 500 clients for site assessment and secondary research. Collaborated with Engineering towards feasible and extensible solutions.
2002 - 2003
Usability Specialist, FutureTrade Technologies Inc.
Defined user experience for electronic trading applications. Gathered requirements from customers and sales representatives. Worked with Product Management and Engineering to translate complex concepts into simple and engaging interfaces for features such as Web Allocations, and Peg Order option in Trading Panel.
2000 - 2001
UI Team Lead, WebMD Corp.
Responsible for usability and design of WebMD service features such as My Health Record, Symptom Checker, Doctor and Patient. As part of cross-functional team, lead research, design and usability testing activities. Managed UX group, including researchers and UX and visual designers.
1998-2000
UI Designer, Global Village Consulting Inc.
Part-time consultant to a programming house. Evaluated, designed, and implemented user interfaces for Web applications/E-commerce sites.
1998 - 2000
Web/UI Designer, Epic Data International.
Web Architect/Developer for a data collection and warehouse management provider. Developed, and maintained the company’s Web site/intranet, and created user interfaces for web applications.
1996 - 1998
Web Designer, Cyberion Networking Corp.
Web Designer for a national full-service Internet company. As part of a small development team, pioneered design and front-end design of Web sites/applications. Created prototypes and verified requirements with customers.
1995 - 2000
UI Designer/CEO, Selene Communications.
Sole proprietor of a Web design company. In 1995, created HealthLink, an online directory for alternative health businesses. Collaborated with numerous clients to develop cost-effective, elegant and usable web sites for their businesses.
Legacy Portfolio - tanyagal.com
Recent work samples available upon request.
Portraits
Portrait artist by night, I enjoy capturing an essense of a person; their unique personality and spirit.