Anna Kahrs
Lead user experience designer
I design intuitive systems, thoughtful content structures, and user journeys that make sense.
Skills
& Tools
I'm NN/g certified with a UX Research specialty. My work focuses on grounding decisions in real user needs through interviews, usability testing, content analysis, and evidence-driven design.
Core Skills
- User Research
- Information Architecture
- Interaction Design
- UX Writing
- Prototyping
- Survey Design
Frameworks & Methods
- Design Thinking
- Usability Testing
- Card Sorting
- Journey Mapping
- Personas
- Content Modeling
Relevant Tools
- Figma
- ChatGPT
- Adobe CC
- Zoom
- CSS
- Qualtrics
Tools I Use
Professional
Experience
December 2023 - Present
Lead UX Designer
at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF)
San Francisco, CA (Remote)
- Lead design system–level work for the enterprise Drupal platform, defining reusable patterns and standards across multiple sites.
- Guide information architecture strategy through content audits, user needs analysis, and collaborative working sessions with clients, shaping structures that stay aligned across platforms.
- Plan and run usability tests, card sorting studies, and user interviews that reveal patterns, validate design choices, and inform IA and content decisions.
- Design low- and mid-fidelity wireframes and iterate based on qualitative and quantitative feedback while maintaining WCAG 2.1 accessibility requirements.
October 2018 - December 2023
Service Designer
at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF)
San Francisco, CA (Remote)
Collaborated with stakeholders to define goals, shape service concepts, and align on user needs. Led user research, created workflows and prototypes, facilitated workshops, and partnered with development and content teams to deliver scalable digital services.
August 2017 - March 2018
Information Architect UX Intern
at IU Studios – University Communications and Marketing
Bloomington, IN
Supported UX and IA efforts through interviews, analysis, synthesis, wireframes, prototypes, usability testing, and documentation. Helped refine UI assets and interface patterns.
Recognized for Excellence
Work I contributed to has earned national recognition. The UCSF Magazine website, where I led information architecture, conducted user interviews, and shaped user-tested navigation, was awarded the CASE Gold Circle of Excellence Award.
Case Studies
Work in Practice
When 88% of users do not return after a poor experience, the stakes are real. I design with that in mind, focusing on clarity, reducing friction, and supporting real tasks. The projects below highlight how I approach that work from start to finish.
ABOUT
This is the part where I talk about myself.
I’ve always been drawn to the things most people never notice: the logic under the surface, the patterns that quietly guide you, the hidden decisions that make something feel “right” without announcing themselves. In another life, that meant memorizing art-movement timelines and happily losing afternoons in dusty archives.
Now it means designing digital experiences that don’t make you think twice, in the good way. I care about the details a lot. The sort of lot you only notice when something feels unusually smooth. I like taking complex systems and giving them a shape people can actually move through. I like when a journey feels intuitive because every layer, the taxonomy, the content, the interface, is in conversation with the next.
If something feels polished, it’s because I fussed over it until it could stand on its own.
UX opinions I will defend, politely:
- Clear is better than clever
- “Learn more” is lazy
- Content is design
- Users hate scrolling = myth
- It’s not about how many clicks
- UX is not graphic design
Things I enjoy:
- A well maintained Jira ritual
- Digging in my garden
- Well-written documentation
- Finding the perfect emoji
- Categorizing things
- Knitting, crocheting, and sewing
- Hunting down thrift-store gold