Ep. #18: Over the past few years we’ve seen a growing trend of designer founded startups. There are a few really notable designer-founded startups like — Airbnb, Kickstarter and Lynda.com have paved the way… and in general startups are realize the value of user-centered design as a competitive differentiator, so there’s definitely more value placed on design and user experience. But the designer as founder is still not the norm for startups. This week I’m talking with designer-founder Will Sykora of Covailnt, to find out more about the benefits and challenges he's faced as a designer in the startup world. ​Will Sykora is a Product and UX Designer, and startup founder. When not focused on Covailnt, he works with companies to craft, validate, and focus their product experiences on their customers. Over the years, he's experienced the success that comes from putting people first, staying grounded in empathy, and delivering on customer needs to build great businesses. Will is well versed in LEAN, Design Thinking and the various flavors of Agile. He's a Certified Scrum Master and Scrum Product Owner, and holds a Masters in Technology Entrepreneurship from the University of Maryland.Check out Covailnt-- where freelancers go to find freelancers.Covailnt: https://covailnt.com/freelance_directory/will/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/willsykora/Website: http://www.willsykora.comConnect with us!Website: uxcake.coFacebookTwitterInstagramPodcast music by hip-hop band Eaters (song Cruziero, album Simian Samba) Hear their music on FacebookSupport this show http://supporter.acast.com/uxcake. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.