What's your job about?

Suncorp is all about “Protecting what matters”, and my role helps make it easier for customers to protect what they love. 

Throughout the graduate program, I was able to rotate to a different part of the business every six months. Across the two years I was a graduate, I worked in product development, distribution, sustainability and experience design. Being able to have projects of my own in each of these spaces meant that I built a broad skillset and showed off my flexibility – something increasingly important in the modern workplace!

At the end of the two years, I managed to land a permanent role in the experience design space – my dream job! As an Experience Designer, I work on projects related to user experience and user interface. This focuses on understanding customer journeys and figuring out how we can alleviate customer pain points – all to make online and offline customer interactions better. One part of the role I really enjoy is when we do customer testing, as analysing the feedback we receive from customers draws upon my social science research background.  

What's your background?

I grew up in rural Pukekohe, surrounded by farmland. Both of my parents owned their own small businesses, so I was always inspired by their dedication to their relevant fields.

At school, biology and social sciences were always my favourite subjects. So, when I got the chance to take psychology in high school, I found a perfect mix of the two. I went on to study psychology at university, picking up statistics as a double major after realizing that statistics underpins so many parts of the modern world. I always thought I’d end up as an academic, but as I neared the end of my Honours degree, I knew I was ready for a change of environment.

As neither of my parents came from a corporate background, I felt that a graduate program would give me the right environment to gain hard, on-the-job skills as well as the soft skills that come with working in a corporate environment. And it did! I got to grow my confidence in the workplace bit-by-bit, and the variety of the graduate program allowed me to see where my skills were best placed in the business. I ended up loving how the experience design space combined my love of people with my love of data, and now I’m here permanently! It’s only been two months since I took a permanent role, but in total it’s been a wonderful eight months in experience design. 

Could someone with a different background do your job?

Anybody could work for Suncorp. People here come from so many different walks of life, and there is a role for everybody. For Experience Design specifically, I think there are a few skills that need to be brought to the role. That includes a strong understanding of human behaviour and biases, some lateral thinking, and the ability to visualise customer journeys. A willingness to continuously learn is also advantageous, as UX and UI trends are always changing in line with new technologies and customer expectations. 

What's the coolest thing about your job?

I love the variety of my role. We get to work with a range of different teams and departments across the business, and every day brings something different. One day I’ll be helping to design an online form for our customers, the next will be running an innovation workshop to generate new product ideas. And, on top of all of this, the things we help with are tangible. At the end of whatever we work on, there’s an actual end output that customers get to use. How cool is that?

What are the limitations of your job?

You have to be able to work with many different people over the course of your work, as we rely on other people’s expertise and guidance to create the right thing. And there are a lot of meetings. If you don’t like sitting in meetings and talking to a range of different people, this is not the job for you! 

My role is also a desk job that is worked during regular business hours. We have flexible working hours, but if you’re not looking for a creative-style desk job, then another role might be better suited to you!

Advice for yourself when you were a student...

I would tell my university self to not limit myself to who I think I should be. My own self-perception limited what career paths I thought I could enter, and post-graduate life, I realise I am so much more capable and flexible than I ever thought!