About me
I am Niels Dikken, a product designer from the Netherlands.
My most recent work experience was with Athom, where I helped with the design of new functionalities in their application as well as updating some of the older elements in the app.
I create designs through an iterative and data-driven approach, while also focusing on creating a product that is in line with the product strategy.
I graduated from the EIT Digital Master School with a double master's degree in Human-Computer Interaction and Design (HCID).
I have studied and worked in 4 different countries, which has taught me how to quickly adjust to new challenges.
I am currently looking for a job in Paris. If you think that I would be a good fit in your team, then feel free to contact me via email or LinkedIn.
Education
Master
My master's program is part of the EIT Digital Master School. EIT is an international double degree master's school that focuses on combining technical subjects with entrepreneurship and business courses. Studying HCID at the EIT Digital Master School has changed the way that I design products, as they make sure you do not solely focus on the client but also on the product strategies, the stakeholders, etc. I believe that as a UX designer, being able to align business goals with user needs is something that is very valuable and during this study, I was able to practice this often.
The study program is set up to follow classes and do internships all around Europe. During my first year in Madrid, I was able to do an internship at Monty Global Payments and during my second year in Stockholm, I did my master thesis at an app development company called The Mobile Life. During these two years, I was also able to follow business courses in Tallinn and Dublin.
Bachelor
I finished my Bachelor in Creative Technology at the University of Twente in the Netherlands. My bachelor's program also represents my interest in product design and business. It combined subjects focused on programming, interaction design, UI/UX Design, electrical engineering, and entrepreneurship. This combination of subjects was the main reason for me to choose this study. During the first semester of my third year, I followed a Business minor at the University of Stavanger in Norway.
Work Experience
Athom
Athom has been my most recent work experience. Athom provides a service called homey, which can be used through an application and a web app. They currently have a users base of more than 30.000 consumers.
During my time at Athom, I have mainly worked on improving the current functionalities within the application as well as designing new functions for the users. For most of my work, I used Balsamiq to create Lo-Fi prototypes. After several iterations and meetings with other designers and the product owner, I would continue by creating Hi-Fi prototypes in Sketch. Finally, I would create a working prototype with interactions by using Principle, including some micro-interactions to make the app appear more user friendly.
I currently can't show any of my work from Athom on my website as it is still being implemented. During an interview I would be able to show some of it.
The Mobile Life
During the last semester of my Master's, I was able to complete my thesis in cooperation with The Mobile Life. The Mobile Life is an app development company in Stockholm that has created native iOS and Android applications for several big companies in Sweden.
One of The Mobile Life's clients, a hotel chain in Stockholm, wanted to create a new application for their guests. One of the main goals of the application was to improve the check-in process for their guests. To reach this goal the hotel chain wanted to make it possible for their customers to open the room with their phone. My research was therefore focused on designing a digital key that is both easy to use and perceived as safe as well as designing a new online check-in to receive this key.
A Research through Design approach was followed consisting of semi-structured interviews, an analysis of textual user reviews, and Lo-Fi and Hi-Fi prototyping to understand the needs and problems users face while receiving and using a digital key. If you are interested to learn more about my thesis you can find it here.
Monty Global Payments
During the first year of my Masters, I was able to do an internship at Monty Global Payments in Madrid for 3 months. The internship was focused on both UX/UI Design and web development. I assisted with the development and design of both websites and applications. I mainly worked with a platform called ionic, to develop hybrid applications for both iOS and Android. This platform works with HTML, CSS, TypeScript, and Angular.
While web development is not my strong suit, I am able to create basic websites using HTML, CSS, and a little bit of JavaScript. As an example, I created this website myself using just HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.