Why Your Portfolio Isn’t Working
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First, we treated hiring managers as the users of her portfolio. That meant:
Over three sessions, we went from portfolio-as-a-pretty-thing to portfolio-as-a-strategic-tool.
And guess what?
She started getting interviews. Here’s how we did it:
Before you send out another soulless application, take a breath.
You wouldn’t design a product without knowing what users want, so why are you applying to jobs without knowing what hiring managers care about?
Here’s your first mission:
Find 3-5 job descriptions for roles you’d love. Not just ‘meh, I guess I could do this’ roles, but ones that make you want to immediately quit your day job (or your current state of funemployment).
Now, extract the most common skills and requirements. Look for patterns. Are they all asking for facilitation or data-informed decision-making?
Next, rate yourself on each skill, 0-5 style:
When my mentee did this, she realized she’d been downplaying some of her best skills—and completely ignoring skills that every job was asking for.
This does two things:
The Audience Strategy Worksheet (ASW) was created for workshop and presentation planning—to help designers think about who’s in the room, what they need, and how to guide them toward action.
But guess what?
It works just as well for job applications.
Think of your portfolio like a user experience.
If it’s unclear, unfocused, or missing what hiring managers need, they’ll bounce—just like a frustrated user on a bad website.
Here’s how to adapt some of the sections for your job search:
3a.
Original: Who will be in the room?
Adapted: Who will be looking at your application?
Identify whether a recruiter, hiring manager, senior designer, or all could review your work.
3b.
Original: What’s their experience level with the topic?
Adapted: What’s their experience level with UX and hiring designers?
Some hiring managers are designers themselves, while others rely on signals like clarity and communication.
4.
Original: What VALUE does this bring to your audience?
Adapted: What will they thank you for after reviewing your application?
Did your portfolio save them time by being clear? Did it remove doubts about your skills? Did it show initiative and leadership?
5.
Original: Expectations
Adapted: Why are they reviewing your portfolio?
Are they filling a skill gap? Scaling a team? Replacing a designer who left?
6a.
Original: What concerns might they have?
Adapted: What concerns might they have about hiring you?
Lack of leadership? Gaps in experience? Weak case study storytelling?
6b.
Original: How will you address those concerns?
Adapted: How will you proactively address those concerns?
Highlight relevant projects, add testimonials, or clarify your role in team collaborations.
Once you’ve completed the ASW, return to your portfolio and apply these insights.
Your case studies shouldn’t just say what you did; they should say how you helped the team make decisions.
For example:
❌ "I designed a new onboarding flow based on user research."
✅ "I ran a workshop with PMs and engineers to align on onboarding goals. The team was split on prioritizing speed or engagement, so I facilitated a decision-making process that led to a 20% increase in activation rates."
See the difference?
One is about design. The other is about leadership. And guess which one hiring managers are looking for?
You can either keep sending out the same portfolio and hoping for better results, or you can actually design the hiring experience.
Try this for just one job application and see what happens.
Want to take it to the next level? Find an accountability buddy!
Let me know how it goes—I’d love to hear what you change!
The next cohort of Facilitating Workshops starts on March 17, and there’s only a little time left to join!
If you’ve been thinking about it, now’s the time—doors are closing soon.
Learn More & Join the Cohort |
ONLINE WORKSHOP: Leading Effective Discussions COURSE: Facilitating Workshops COURSE: Defining UX Strategy |
Until next time!
The Fountain Institute is an independent online school that teaches advanced UX & product skills.
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