Drakonakis - About Me

About

mY NAME IS kOSTAS DRAKONAKIS

I’m a Freelance
User Experience Designer currently based in Berlin

What started out as an education in Industrial Product Design has evolved into an 8-year interdisciplinary career.

Over the years, I have collaborated with 30+ companies across industries to improve their brand, streamline their sales operations and transform their overall digital experience. This has made me into a great believer of how design methods can be applied in any field or context.
I’m currently (mainly) interested in collaborating with businesses in the biotech industry as they create emerging technologies and methods to help humans heal and improve their physical and mental well-being.

Featured Project:
‍Oscillo is a biotech company that is fighting Alzheimer's through music generated Gamma Waves. Here’s a look at the website we created together.

A Short History

This story of my life starts in Bangalore, IN.

It was 2013 and I had just finished studying at TWENTE UNIVERSITY (NL). I took a design trip to India to work as a Junior Product Designer for Studio ABD. It was my first experience applying User Research, Storytelling and Product Development methodologies, but the thing that really drew me in was the relationship between design and cultural differences. Human needs. Human interaction with objects and the cultural value of craftsmanship.
I haven’t been the same person since that trip.
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I moved to Berlin in 2015 to work in sales and operations in the coworking ecosystem. It was here that I learned my natural strength for connection. Forging connections between members of the community. Designing spaces that inspire collaboration. Bridging the divide between data and actionable insights. Helping businesses identify their most challenging problems and connecting them with solutions through Design Thinking workshops and sprints. And most recently, creating digital experiences that put quality of experience and interaction at the forefront.
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It wasn’t until 2020 that these paths merged and I became a full-on User Experience Designer. It was this nonlinear path that has informed my human-centered approach to design. A belief that all design should be informed by the user, and that ethics should inform any human-technology interaction.

While this nonlinear path expands, I find myself focusing more on the importance of user research in the product strategy. Processes such as creating the hypothesis (problem statement) and following up with the appropriate research method, generating insights and shaping the right Design Personas and User Journeys. It is these steps that have a powerful impact in the decisions made throughout the whole design process.
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I especially enjoy the epiphany moments after discussing with stakeholders or interviewing possible users. I can see that my current focus on user research in combination with my passion for workshops and sprints will lead me toward consulting and supporting the creation of innovative solutions for businesses and especially mission/purpose driven startups in emerging markets from the biotech and cannabis industry.

DOWNLOAD MY FULL RESUME HERE.

Highlights

Here’s a look at the methodologies and frameworks I’m experienced in.

Design & Other Experiences

Full stack visual design (including brand and web)
Generating solutions (through insights)
Hosting Design Thinking Workshops (and Sprints)
Conceptualizing (solutions from start to finish)
Project management

Human-Centered User Experience Methodologies

User Research (Competitive Analysis | User Interviews | Surveys | Data Analysis)
User Personas (User Flows | User Journeys | User Stories | Defining Features)
Prototyping (Wireframes)
Testing (Usability testing | A/B testing | Preference testing)

Professional