Hi, there I’m Diane Tarira
A data-driven designer who has experience in designing products end to end, leading design research, design strategy, and guidelines for greater adoption of design thinking practices across teams and an organization. My niche as a designer is combining big data with design in a business context. I love creating interactive solutions and sleek data visualizations that improve client and user experiences.
I am passionate about the intersection between technology and human behavior. Many of my projects and biggest career highlights center around designing within the spaces of e-commerce, enterprise tools, diversity and inclusion, employee engagement, environmental issues, and mental health.
I have a unique breadth of experience working for corporations, nonprofits, and local government agencies.
My Design Journey
My passion for design began in an intro to web design class at Cornell University. I was on the path to becoming a software engineer, but I realized I didn’t enjoy coding every day, I only enjoyed the outcome of my code running .
In web design, I realized that I was passionate about both the design process and the outcome. I throughly enjoyed obsessing over the details, solving user problems, and being creative. From that moment on, all I wanted to do was design nonstop. So, I immersed myself in all things design so that I could learn everything I needed to build a career in design. I’ve carried that passion to learn throughout my career to solve problems in creative and impactful ways
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This is where my design journey began. I double majored in Information Science and Psychology with a concentration in UX. Learned about UX, HCI, and research.
I enjoyed working as a research assistant in labs focused on child development where I designed experiments and computer games. I also worked as a teaching assistant for design classes. -
2016
Created a research plan and surveys to help marginalized communities become more involved in environmental activism. The research findings resulted in me designing marketing and communication materials for EDF to do outreach both online and in the community. -
2017-2023
5 years of experience spanning end to end design of enterprise data and AI products. Led the design of a natural language processing tool, sentiment analysis dashboard, and various websites. -
2023-Present
Designing for Nike’s $20 Billion B2B retail platform. Co-designed a recommendation engine experience for Nike’s retail partners to shop more efficiently.
Who Am I Outside Work?
An Avid Traveler
I love traveling whenever I can. Since 2018, I’ve traveled to 9 countries, 7 states, and 26 cities. Some of my favorite places to visit have been Lisbon, Berlin, and Guayaquil. Some places on my list that I can’t wait to travel to are to are Japan, Croatia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Switzerland.
The Ice Is My Happy Place
I started figure skating classes as an adult, which has been quite the challenge. I enjoy skating because I feel free, love winter, and sliding on the ice is actually fun. I’m now at a level 4 out of 6 for adult skaters and can do one basic little waltz jump. I hope to one day land a single axel jump!
A LEGO Enthusiast
I was recently gifted a LEGO set, and now I have jumped straight into making it a new hobby, building more and more sets. I enjoy creating so many things with LEGO and find it to be a great way to relax.