My Background

After 12 years in advertising, I took a leap into UX writing at Banco Guayaquil with no prior experience. Through Uxcel's bite-sized learning approach, I transformed from a hesitant freelancer to a confident UX professional in just one year, securing a full-time position with a significant salary increase and now driving digital transformation across our organization.

Denise Pesantes, UX Content Writer @ Banco Guayaquil

My Challenge

When I took a leap of faith and accepted a freelance UX writing position at Banco Guayaquil, I faced an incredibly steep learning curve:

Those first weeks were really disorienting. It was a flood of new terminology and a completely different mindset. I remember wrapping up meetings and immediately asking my teammates, 'Can you explain this to me? I want to understand how we can tackle these challenges in a bit more details.'

As a freelancer with only theoretical knowledge from "a book or two," I needed to quickly demonstrate value while simultaneously learning an entirely new discipline. The imposter syndrome was real, and the pressure to perform was intense.

Finding My Solution

Everything changed when Banco Guayaquil provided me with access to Uxcel. Unlike other platforms that felt overwhelming and time-consuming, Uxcel's approach perfectly matched my needs.

I just dove into the Uxcel courses, watching one or two daily. What worked so well for me was how the courses were bite-sized. It felt like, 'I just need to take a bite into this,' and once I did, I'd think, 'Well, I still have 5 minutes to spare, so why not take another bite?'

What made Uxcel my go-to resource:

  1. The bite-sized format fit perfectly into my workday: Every time I had 5 minutes of downtime instead of doomscrolling on Instagram, I'd open Uxcel and take a course. That's it.
  2. Uxcel Pulse helped me focus my learning. Taking the main assessment that shows the Skill Graph was crucial – it showed me where I was already strong from my advertising background and where I needed to develop new skills.
  3. Just-in-time learning for immediate day-to-day application. When I was assigned to work on our app's onboarding, a concept completely foreign to me, I searched ‘onboarding’ on Uxcel. By the time we had our brainstorming session, I came prepared with ideas and examples. My colleagues were shocked, saying, 'We weren't expecting you to be such an active participant this early.
  4. The gamification kept me engaged. We had a weekly team meeting where they highlighted top Uxcel performers. I stayed in that top ranking for months, which created a fun competitive edge that motivated everyone.

Why Uxcel Made the Difference

During my UX journey, I've explored multiple learning platforms, including Nielsen Norman Group and their blog resources. While these other platforms offered valuable information, they didn't deliver the same transformative impact as Uxcel for several key reasons:

Time efficiency that fits real work schedules. What I found with Uxcel that really worked for me were how short the courses were. When comparing this to platforms like Coursera or Udemy, where I've felt overwhelmed by the time commitment required, Uxcel's approach was refreshingly different. Those other platforms can feel like obligations – something you have to schedule outside of work hours. With Uxcel, learning became part of my natural workflow.

Immediate practical application. Whenever we were talking about a different topic like updating email notifications, I would instantly search for that specific concept on Uxcel. This just-in-time learning approach meant I could contribute meaningfully to projects right away, rather than waiting to complete entire courses before applying my knowledge.

Engagement through competition. Our team's leaderboard created healthy competition that dramatically increased engagement. I remember people frantically taking courses an hour before our weekly meetings just to improve their ranking. This level of motivation simply doesn't exist with traditional learning platforms.

In practical terms, Uxcel saved me countless hours compared to traditional learning methods:

  • Instead of scheduling 1-2 hour blocks for watching videos, I could learn in 5-minute increments throughout my day
  • Rather than completing entire courses before applying concepts, I could search for exactly what I needed when I needed it
  • The interactive format meant information moved directly into my active memory, eliminating the need to review notes or rewatch lectures

This efficiency translated directly into accelerated career advancement – helping me transition from complete beginner to digital transformation team member in just over a year.

How Denise improved her design skills over time

My Transformative Results

Within just one year of consistent learning with Uxcel, my career trajectory completely changed:

A year after putting everything into action and applying all the principles I was learning, I went from freelancer to being hired with full benefits. Just three months later, I received a new challenge on a new team leading digital transformation for the bank.

My results included:

  • Rapid advancement to strategic team in just three months
  • New role as a UX mentor to colleagues from traditional banking backgrounds

Beyond Technical Skills

What's most meaningful about my transformation isn't just the career advancement or salary increase – it's the profound shift in my professional identity and confidence:

I went from that girl with imposter syndrome who couldn't follow conversations to now being the one who explains to others, 'What happened in this meeting was this, this, and this, and what we need to do is this, this, and this.' That exponential growth could not have happened without everything I learned in Uxcel.

Today, I'm not just applying UX principles – I'm helping transform an entire organization's mindset.

I'm now part of a team going through digital transformation for the first time, moving from traditional banking to digital banking. When I asked why they selected me, they explained I'm there to change mindsets and mentor a team with a very commercial approach to adopt user-centered thinking. It's a responsibility I never saw coming, but one that makes me incredibly proud.

My Advice for Others

For anyone starting their UX journey or looking to advance in this field, I recommend:

  1. Start with Uxcel's Pulse Assessment: Understand your current strengths and identify areas for focused improvement.
  2. Don't feel obligated to take courses in order! Look through the whole catalog and see what you need right now for your current project. Search specifically for that topic.
  3. Integrate learning into small moments: The bite-sized format makes it possible to learn without feeling overwhelmed by lengthy courses.

On a scale of one to ten, I'd give Uxcel a perfect ten for its impact on my career. It transformed me from a complete novice to someone leading digital transformation initiatives at a major financial institution in just over a year.