In preparing for our newest bootcamp in User Experience (UX) Design, we wanted to take the opportunity to talk with our dynamic new 
UX Design teacher, Walter Breakell, to help you get to know him better and to hear about the upcoming bootcamp – in his own words.
One of the first questions we asked Walter was who should take this bootcamp? To which he replied, “Everyone.” It might sound like overshooting, but he goes on to explain… “UX design teaches people how to be problem solvers, and where in life can’t this be applied?” It’s true, training in UX design serves as a foundation to problem solving, it teaches us to think differently about various problems and come up with creative solutions, and for that it can really be transformational.
Walter says that businesses are starting to understand that solving user experience problems through human-centered design adds up to big revenue. Companies that are design-centered are outperforming those who aren’t. A 2014 study conducted by the Design Management Institute, a Boston-based nonprofit focused on design management, discovered that design has a significant impact on a company’s success, and says, “Results show that over the last 10 years, design-led companies have maintained significant stock market advantage, outperforming the S&P by an extraordinary 228%.” Some well-known examples of “design-led” companies include Apple, Coca-Cola, IBM, Nike, and Starbucks.
This kind of bottom-line benefit for companies explains why UX design is a great career path. In 2015, CNN projected the 10-year job growth for user experience designers to be 18%. And the Nielsen Norman Group report on Salary Trends for UX Professionals in 2015 states that entry-level salaries for UX designers in the United States averaged $63,000, and after 5 years these professionals were earning about $90,000.
Walter’s many years of experience in graphic design have shown him the limitations of decorating. He saw how the lack of applying a User Centered process with the design was actually disempowering designers and forcing them into the role of making things just look pretty. Being good at aesthetics is only one factor in getting designers noticed, and helping them get jobs. Now businesses are looking for people to solve problems. Design is no longer passive, but very interactive, where function and form must become one in the same. He says, “Designers used to have to be part psychic, but now we can define user problems from testing and solve problems based on information from the audience and the stakeholders.”
“UX design teaches people how to be problem solvers, and where in life can’t this be applied?”
Walter Breakell, UX Design bootcamp teacher, CodeCraft School of Technology
Walter will teach our UX design students how to define user problems, how to solve those problems, and then be able to communicate that to the stakeholders. All three count. In addition to being a practitioner, for the last ten years Walter has taught at some of the top programs in the country and has learned what works and what doesn’t work, and most importantly, what stands out to employers. He has distilled down the process needed to help someone build a future in UX design. He will focus a great deal on how to connect you with your audience, research methods, designing with empathy (which is at the core of human-centered design), and testing, testing, testing!
Walter has worked with larger brands like Levi’s, Rolex, and Dockers. So he’s had exposure to the big clients and agencies and says, “I have been in those meetings and know what the client is going to say.” Walter will bring those experiences, stories and case studies to the classroom as part of his curriculum. Walter said his goal is not to make the students clones of him, but bring out the best in them – finding their specific strengths and amplifying them.
While Walter believes, and we agree, that UX Design is a viable skill, and a necessity for everyone, the bootcamp will be especially useful for those who already have graphic design skills they want to leverage in the digital and UX space, and for those who already have a degree, but want to be part of building something in the tech industry.
Walter believes in improving education and is doing his part in the way he educates. His style of teaching is – like the subject he teaches about – process driven. He synthesizes many lenses: that of coders, designers, stakeholders, etc. He shares CodeCraft’s philosophy that traditional education is too expensive and not going in the right direction. There is sustainability in the skills we teach and the jobs our students get hired into.
We asked Walter why he chose to teach at CodeCraft over other coding schools that he was being recruited by and he said, “There are only a handful of places in the country doing what we are doing at CodeCraft. And I like that we put students first. We help our students build a solid foundation so they can take the next step toward sustainable, and rewarding jobs.” He added that he appreciates that CodeCraft’s leaders are receptive to his approach and are giving him the freedom to create the bootcamp he knows will accomplish the intended goals and then some. “They trust me and know that I care about the students.” Walter is also impressed that we offer our students and alumni the ability to take free digital skills classes at Boulder Digital Arts (BDA). “That offering is invaluable, it allows students to strengthen their skills base – and I am not aware of any other school that offers this kind of benefit.”
In a closing statement at the end of the conversation, Walter said about the UX design bootcamp, “Problem solving never goes out of fashion – you will always be valuable.” We second that!
Thank you Walter Breakell and welcome to our team!
