Senior UX & Digital Designer with 20+ years creating intuitive, accessible digital products. Trained in visual art and grounded in human-centred design, I bring a rare blend of visual craft and rigorous UX thinking. I design responsive apps, websites, and interactive interfaces that are both highly usable and visually refined. My work spans the full design spectrum, including UX research and testing, interaction and UI design, information architecture, accessibility, responsive web and app design, content design, and learning experience design. I move comfortably from early discovery through to polished, build-ready visual design. The result: thoughtful digital experiences built on strong design principles, real user insight, and decades of practice.

Cat Ryan

PRO

Senior UX & Digital Designer with 20+ years creating intuitive, accessible digital products. Trained in visual art and grounded in human-centred design, I bring a rare blend of visual craft and rigorous UX thinking. I design responsive apps, websites, and interactive interfaces that are both highly usable and visually refined. My work spans the full design spectrum, including UX research and testing, interaction and UI design, information architecture, accessibility, responsive web and app design, content design, and learning experience design. I move comfortably from early discovery through to polished, build-ready visual design. The result: thoughtful digital experiences built on strong design principles, real user insight, and decades of practice.

Available to hire

Senior UX & Digital Designer with 20+ years creating intuitive, accessible digital products.

Trained in visual art and grounded in human-centred design, I bring a rare blend of visual craft and rigorous UX thinking. I design responsive apps, websites, and interactive interfaces that are both highly usable and visually refined.

My work spans the full design spectrum, including UX research and testing, interaction and UI design, information architecture, accessibility, responsive web and app design, content design, and learning experience design. I move comfortably from early discovery through to polished, build-ready visual design.

The result: thoughtful digital experiences built on strong design principles, real user insight, and decades of practice.

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Language

English
Fluent

Work Experience

Principal Design Consultant at Gigantor Studios
January 1, 2016 - Present
Current role focusing on UX design, visual design, branding, research, and holistically shaping customer experiences across organisational touchpoints.
Director of User Experience at Medibank
January 1, 2015 - January 1, 2016
Led UX strategy and design leadership across digital products and services.
Director of Experience Design at Isobar
January 1, 2013 - January 1, 2015
Directed experience design work for client engagements, growing service design capabilities.
Principal Experience Designer at Commonwealth Bank
January 1, 2011 - January 1, 2012
Led UX and service design initiatives across large-scale programs.
Principal UX Designer at Westpac
January 1, 2010 - January 1, 2011
Directed experience design efforts within the bank's digital portfolio.
Creative Director at Razorfish
January 1, 2009 - January 1, 2010
Led the design team to implement UX and branding initiatives across multiple client programs.
Lead UX Designer at Majitek
January 1, 2008 - January 1, 2009
Led UX design efforts for key projects; involved in research and prototyping.

Education

Bachelor of Creative Arts at Victorian College of the Arts
January 11, 2030 - March 10, 2026

Qualifications

Enneagram Coach
January 11, 2030 - March 10, 2026
NLP Master Practitioner
January 11, 2030 - March 10, 2026
NLP Coach
January 11, 2030 - March 10, 2026
LEGO® Serious Play® Practitioner
January 11, 2030 - March 10, 2026
Prince2 Practitioner
January 11, 2030 - March 10, 2026

Industry Experience

Education, Financial Services, Government, Retail, Professional Services, Software & Internet, Media & Entertainment
    paper UX Strategy & Experience Design – Deakin University (Consulting)

    For over a decade I have partnered with Deakin University as a UX and experience design consultant, leading design across a wide range of digital products, services, and strategic initiatives.

    My work has spanned the full UX lifecycle—from research and discovery through to interface design, testing, and delivery. This includes designing student, staff, and researcher experiences across web, mobile apps, learning platforms, and multi-channel touchpoints.

    Key contributions include developing UX strategy and service design frameworks, creating evidence-based personas and archetype models, and producing experience maps that informed major platform and service decisions. I have also led usability testing programs, designed UI systems, and contributed to learning design and LMS experience improvements.

    Beyond individual products, I helped establish human-centred design capability within the organisation, introducing HCD practices, frameworks, and processes to increase UX maturity across teams.

    Major initiatives include designing an end-to-end AI chatbot experience, developing content and notification strategies, and creating multiple digital products and services supporting the university’s students, staff, and research community.

    paper Brand Strategy & Digital Design – Huddle

    Led the end-to-end development of the Huddle brand, creating a cohesive identity from initial concept through to full market launch. This included defining the brand strategy and positioning, developing the [visual identity system](https://www.twine.net/signin and designing the core brand assets including logo, typography, colour system, and brand guidelines.

    I translated the strategy into a complete digital and physical presence, designing [Huddle’s website](https://www.twine.net/signin to communicate the brand clearly and create a strong user experience. I also produced a full suite of supporting materials including brochures, business cards, and marketing collateral to ensure consistency across all touchpoints.

    The project required close collaboration with the founder to clarify the organisation’s purpose, voice, and audience, transforming an early-stage concept into a clear, scalable brand with a professional and cohesive presence.