Design career journeys: From business school to AI experience designer

How Minh-Anh Vuong leveraged business thinking to drive UX impact in design

Illustration by Gracia Lam

What do you do at Adobe?

Minh-Anh Vuong: I’m a user experience designer on the Machine Intelligence and New Technology (MINT) team, where I shape generative AI experiences for enterprise customers.

Put simply, I focus on understanding how teams of designers, marketers, and other creative professionals collaborate to produce large volumes of on-brand content. My work explores how generative AI can enhance their creative processes by offering more control, advanced customization, and deeper collaboration, all while supporting human creativity

How did you end up in your current role? Was the career trajectory a planned one? Was there a lightbulb moment that signaled a needed change? Or did a series of switchbacks eventually get you on track? Would you change the route?

Minh-Anh: Looking back, I realize my career has been less about following a set trajectory and more about seizing opportunities and adapting. I went into business school thinking I’d end up in marketing, maybe even as a creative director. I liked the mix of strategy and creativity, especially shaping how a brand or product connects with people. But when I discovered UX design, I realized I wanted to be more hands-on. I was drawn to the psychological aspect of diving into real user problems and creating experiences that improve their day-to-day lives. Here’s how things unfolded for me:

Through my co-op program, I completed four internships, each shaping my career in unexpected ways. My first role was at a PR firm, where I handled media pitches, managed social media content, and worked on influencer marketing. In my second internship at an economic development agency, I helped small businesses build their digital presence through web development, SEO, and social media strategy. Even though my focus was marketing, I kept volunteering to do graphic and web design work whenever possible.

Then, in a part-time student government job, I was assigned a project to redesign their intranet. That’s when I first heard about wireframes, which sent me down a rabbit hole of researching UX design. I became fascinated by the blend of design, psychology, technology, and problem-solving. It felt like a potential career path.

Since my university didn’t offer UX-specific courses, I took a self-taught route. I spent late nights watching UX design videos and completing free online courses. However, it wasn’t until my third internship at a creative agency that I gained hands-on experience in web design. It was a great opportunity to integrate design thinking and other UX methodologies to improve internal processes, client relationships, and business outcomes.

Still, I knew self-teaching could only take me so far. I enrolled in an online UX bootcamp, to strengthen my foundations and refine my portfolio. That decision paid off when Adobe responded to my application. To my surprise, my marketing background was seen as a strength. After an incredible summer internship growing in UX design, I landed a full-time role on Adobe’s MINT team. It was another unexpected twist. Although I had no experience in AI or machine learning, I embraced the challenge, continuously learning while leveraging my fresh perspective to make AI-driven experiences more intuitive for creative users.

Looking back, my career hasn’t been linear, and I don’t expect it to be. I don’t know if I’ll still become a creative director one day, but I’ve learned to embrace every twist and turn because each one leads to new opportunities for learning and growth.

What’s something about your work history that someone couldn’t learn from LinkedIn?

Minh-Anh: What’s not obvious on LinkedIn is how much my career has been shaped by the generosity of others. Through meaningful conversations, I have connected with people, often through LinkedIn and ADPList, who have shared their experiences, challenges, and insights. These exchanges went beyond networking. They became opportunities to learn and grow. Many of those connections have lasted, and I’m grateful for the ongoing support.

While my team at Adobe, primarily based in the US, has been an incredible source of guidance, I have also been actively discovering a design community here in Toronto, Canada. Connecting with passionate students and local designers has been a powerful reminder that careers are shaped not only by our work but also by the relationships and communities we cultivate along the way.

What’s the one life skill you think everyone in your role should have?

Minh-Anh: The ability to reset and let go of what you’ve thought to be true, to create space for fresh perspectives. As designers, we are constantly considering points of view across multiple teams and stakeholders to develop well thought out experiences that drive measurable impact.

However, there are times when the problem you’re trying to solve is unclear or poorly defined. As a junior designer, I’ve often deferred to more senior colleagues and focused on delivering what was asked of me, but I struggled to feel inspired or have conviction in my ideas. That’s why at the start of every new project, I take a step back and investigate. I dig into how a project request came about in the first place. Is it coming from leadership? Customer calls? Who initiated that customer call? Are there existing research studies we can leverage? I’ve found that this approach helps me identify potential gaps and uncover fresh directions that could lead to better results, rather than simply repeating old patterns that may no longer serve us.

What’s the most useful thing you learned in school?

Minh-Anh: I learned so much in school, but the most useful lessons ended up being the soft skills I picked up along the way. I took plenty of theoretical classes and learned how businesses operate, scale, position themselves, and build effective strategies. But the most valuable takeaways were not what I memorized—they came from the different ways we had to deliver a project.

Semester-long group projects in almost every class forced me to become a better leader and team player. Writing papers and case studies with strict structure guidelines sharpened my attention to detail. The countless presentations I had to deliver—hitting time requirements for each section, avoiding filler words like “um,” using the right gestures, and ensuring my slides were grammatically flawless—taught me how to communicate clearly and concisely. My digital marketing course pushed me to develop my personal brand through social media, websites, and content creation, helping me stand out in the job search.

One of the most anticipated and daunting courses in my program was a strategic management capstone that involved a business simulation. Each group represented a company in the marijuana industry, negotiating deals and making complex business decisions. The most profitable team won, and our ranking determined our final grade.

Looking back, I didn’t always see the value in these experiences, but those challenging moments shaped who I am in the professional world today.

What's the most helpful advice you've ever received? Why was it so helpful?
Minh-Anh: I actually have two pieces of advice that have stuck with me.

The first came when I was struggling to get responses after applying to over 50 companies for an internship. I remember hearing (though I can’t recall where) to treat your portfolio and resume like a trailer. Show just enough to highlight your skills and problem-solving approach but leave out enough to make the viewer want to learn more. That shift in mindset helped me refine how I presented my work and ultimately led to more interest from recruiters.

As designers, we may not always be able to steer the train ourselves, but we can plant seeds in the conductor’s mind. By consistently advocating for user needs, questioning assumptions, and presenting thoughtful solutions, we can guide a product strategy with our design and user-centered POV. Even if a design solution isn’t implemented right away, those conversations shape the way teams think. You’d be surprised how often cross-functional teams end up revisiting and implementing ideas you explored months or even years ago.

What’s been the most challenging moment of your career so far? How did you get through it?

I’m incredibly grateful to be part of a team where my ideas matter, but stepping into an ambiguous role as a junior designer was intimidating. The trust placed in me with responsibilities like leading design projects, presenting to executives, and handling customer calls was overwhelming at times. It’s easy to feel like you are not ready, especially when comparing yourself to senior designers who consistently deliver amazing results. The learning gap, simply from having fewer project cycles, often fueled my anxiety and made me feel like I wasn’t measuring up to the high standards I placed on myself.

Over time, I’ve learned to be patient with myself and that advocating for my own needs is key. It’s okay to not always know what support you need at the start. You may even learn it the hard way but recognizing what you don’t know and seeking help is essential. Building confidence takes time, and practice makes progress. It’s easy to forget, but I remind myself that I got here for a reason, and that’s something I continue to earn every day.

What’s your process when you need to solve a big problem?

When tackling a big problem, it helps me to take a look back on how it emerged in the first place. I start by auditing current experiences, reviewing past work, and gathering insights from UX researchers and customer interviews. It’s important to analyze internal efforts to identify gaps in knowledge and areas where more research is needed, and to conduct external market research, especially in the fast-moving generative AI world. People would be surprised by how many competitive analyses my team develops throughout the year.

Conducting internal audits also helps identify whether similar problems have already been explored by other teams. At a large company like Adobe, the chances are high that other designers have tackled user problems like yours, and it’s crucial to avoid reinventing the wheel. It makes for a great opportunity to collaborate with a different team that you typically wouldn’t work closely with. It’s like forming your own Avengers team and leveraging various expertise and skill sets to solve a common problem.

When was the last time you felt truly inspired by something? What was it?

I was invited to a mentor matchmaking event in Toronto, sponsored by Adobe. There were over 100 students and 11 mentors—and I was one of them. I was nervous because I didn’t have years of experience to pull from, but I knew I had my own unique perspective to offer. As I started answering questions, I could see the students’ faces light up. That’s when I realized that even though my journey was still unfolding, I had valuable insights to share.

One moment that really stuck with me was when a fellow designer thanked me after our conversation, saying it felt like they were talking to a friend. That made me feel like I was truly making a difference by simply sharing my experiences and listening to theirs. That event provided the inspiration I needed to continue making people feel seen and understood. It was an eye-opening realization of how fulfilling it could be to support others in their careers.

What’s on your heads-down, time-to-focus playlist?

I’m all about switching up my playlists. I usually rotate between afrobeats, R&B, indie pop, folk, or alternative rock. Every now and then, I mix it up with some of my favorite classical film scores for a change of pace. On the flip side, I find a lot of inspiration in other people’s ideas. That’s when I’ll throw on a podcast or TED talk. Even if I’m not hanging on every word, just hearing others dive into their thoughts often sparks my own.