United States

Graphic Design

Industrial Design

Game Design

Branding and Identity Design

Product Design

Master's degree

Bachelor of Science - BS

Cheyenne Raker Townson

Freelance Toy and Game Designer/Inventor

Public Speaking

Prototyping

Communication

Collaboration

Problem-solving

Time management

Empathy

Team player

Organisation skills

Presentation skills

Leadership

Market research

CAD design

User research

Qualtrics

Adobe Illustrator

Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Creative Suite

Autocad

Conflict resolution

Critical-thinking

Branding

Introduce yourself, define mentoring expectations and goals. Learn and grow together.

General mentorship

Making remote and globally distributed teams work for you and your needs.

Working remotely

Learn essential burnout prevention techniques and replenish physical and emotional energy.

Managing burnout

Talk to people who have learned to manage their imposter syndrome.

Dealing with imposter syndrome

Navigating micro-aggression, getting paid what you are worth and finding a community.

Being a woman in tech

Strategies for maximizing your design internship or co-op program.

Getting the most out of my internship

Tips for transitioning into a new role or company.

Changing roles

How to ask for a promotion and negotiate for salary raise?

Negotiating a job offer

How to think about design career paths and what progression looks like for designers?

Design career path

Get actionable feedback on your resume or portfolio.

Resume and portfolio review

Practice HR, technical and behavioural interviews with mentors.

Practice mock interviews

Talk to people who've broken into the tech industry and learn their stories.

Breaking into tech

Learn the best ways to answer technical interview questions with frameworks

Acing technical interview questions

How to create a positive workplace culture that drives collaboration and productivity?

Fostering a good team culture

Methods of prototyping and solution validation. When to use which kind of prototype (eg. Webflow, Notion, etc)

Prototyping methods and tips

Manage team expectations and get the most out of your meetings.

Running effective meetings

Identify and define potential product problems and generating possible solutions.

Identifying problems vs solutions

Learn how to properly present your work and share ideas and opinions.

Presenting your work with impact

Tips on how to work and collaborate with designers.

Working with designers

How to work with team members with different skill sets but towards a common goal?

Working cross-functionally

Managing being the only designer at your company and working with non-designers.

Being the only designer

Explore different generative and evaluative research techniques. User research synthesis and presentation.

Conducting good user research

Ways and resources to improve your design skills.

Improving design skills

Navigating the working relationship with PM's and engineers as a designer.

Working with product and engineering

Ways to provide constructive feedback to team members.

Giving effective feedback

Tips on how to work and collaborate with engineers and developers.

Working with engineers

How to conduct interviews, what to ask, and how to analyze your results? (eg. user interview)

Conducting effective customer interviews

- Member and representative of the Current Cultural Committee 2023 to ensure that the Greenville office has an inviting, fun, and positive culture to improve teamwork, increase productivity and efficiency, and focus on our core values. 
- Initiated and led the development of a 9-month project to develop a MakerSpace in underutilized spaces in the Greenville office
- Conduct market research on trends in the lighting industry
- Develop Keyshot application images for marketing and NPD
- Create 3D models and prints for rapid prototyping and proof of concept
- Present new and innovative lighting/fixture ideas to multiple brands within the company
            

    
    

    
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Under the newly formed Advanced Development Group, I take on multiple projects from different brands within the company to update their brand language, communicate with engineers on manufacturing needs and constraints, and design new aesthetics to be competitive within the lighting industry.

ID 1011 - Industrial Design Fundamentals
Theory and practice in Industrial Design including an introduction to process, methodology, ergonomics, research tools and user research. Focus is on fundamental design principles.

Due to COVID19, my product design internship got rescinded, but rather than cancelling it entirely, PetSmart decided to do a virtual summer experience for all of the interns, which includes learning through:
 - Values and missions of the PetSmart retail business
 - Table chats with CEOs 
 - Merchandising and Proprietary Brands
 - Q&A sessions with senior leaders and VPs
 - Supply Chain
 - Virtual tours

Product development summer studio course for both junior and senior undergraduates in industrial design. As a GTA, I assist the class in providing research and expertise in product design and development, sourcing project materials, student consultations, recording attendance, and being a student resource.

GTA for History of Modern Industrial Design under Professor Joyce Medina. The class surveys the history of design from the Industrial Revolution to our contemporary times. As a GTA, I recorded daily attendance, graded 200 exams every three-four weeks, and assisted the students whenever possible.

- Rendered images and animations in KeyShot for brochures, spec sheets, and installation guides (see links attached)
- Developed new concepts for pendant light fixtures and wall sconces
- Found an opportunity to design a new tool for removing a light engine out of a light fixture. While trying to take it apart to understand how to correctly render a "how-to" installation animation video, an engineering design problem was found and then took the initiative to fix it.
- Redesigned an entire family of vacancy/occupancy wall switch stations with "speed to market" concepts and more "modern" concepts for the future
- Updated brochures using InDesign to match the new look and feel
            

    
    

    
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The innovation and design collaborative (Design Bloc) that focuses on implementing design thinking within the student body across all disciplines through workshops and classes. Companies and organizations reach out to us to teach design behavior and to encourage creativity.

Responsibilities included:
 - Host "Design your Life" workshop to teach others through design thinking activities to create a well-lived joyful life
 - Interact with the High Museum in Atlanta, Georgia to create an "Instagrammable" photo booth, inspired by famous artist Yayoi Kusama, with nearby highschools
            

    
    

    
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Mechanical Engineer in Product Design and Innovation
Participated in design discussions amongst multi-disciplinary teams, 3D modeled and printed a multi-functional enclosure for a medical device prototype, wrote test plans, conducted research on breadboard prototypes and presented results to the team.

This is a program of Stanford University's (d.school) and created as a part of the National Center for Engineering Pathways to Innovation (Epicenter). We are empowering students to become agents of change at our Universities. We become leaders to teach the entrepreneurial mindset, build creative confidence, and define problems. We all demonstrate passion for innovation and creativity and to make a lasting impact on our schools.

Mechanical Engineer in Product Development
-Conducted competitive studies on other forklifts, 2-3 week training courses in NX 9.0, participated in client interactions and site visits

Field/Office Engineer
Recorded SIPS, productivity tracking, created submittals, updated and corrected transmittals, turned over spare parts to the city, daily reports, equipment hours, SWPP inspections, and sitting in on daily MAP and safety meetings.

Cheyenne Raker Townson🇺🇸