Her Story
About Nikki
I'm a Senior Product Designer at CBS Sports, where I've been working in media and product design for 5 years. My expertise is mostly in media and sports. I originally majored in graphic design before switching to kinesiology, and I had a passion for design that I did as a hobby on and off while I was in the fitness industry. During COVID, I knew I wanted to make a career change and started dabbling in other stuff, specifically in coding, and then I discovered product design. When I discovered that, it was like a light clicked, and I knew that was the route I wanted to take. Getting to blend my background in athletics and sports with design has allowed me to pursue a passion that blends two different things into one that I previously wasn't able to do, and that's what I love about it. One of my strengths is communication and collaboration with different teams and departments, so uniting teams to want to work together and to be helpful with each other, creating a unified vision. I think that building trust with your colleagues will take things so much further than what you thought you could.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Nikki
01What do you attribute your success to?
I would say the courage to continually try new things. As a career shifter, that was huge for me. Not being afraid to leave the comfort, or the known, and step into the unknown. It takes practice, but having the courage to continually try new things has been key to my success.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I recently gave this advice to someone who reached out to me on LinkedIn asking a similar question. What worked for me was to look for companies or products, or whatever it is, in something that you are passionate about and can speak to. Whatever that is for you, look for those companies, because that can help give you a leg up in a way where you're inexperienced. It can help you speak to the products more. When you can speak with passion about something, like you can hear it in my voice, that makes a real difference.
03What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
Authenticity, honesty, and adventure are the values most important to me. You have to know your core values to be able to have integrity. You have to know your core values to have integrity, and for me, being authentic, being honest, and being adventurous and courageous - those are my North Star. Those core values guide everything I do.
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