Connector Spotlight: Ryan Lim

Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes

Tell us a bit about the projects you’re working on?

I just finished a project with a Fortune 50 multinational automobile manufacturer to develop a platform designed explicitly for prototyping (it will allow for easy UI creation across multiple devices). We were in the second phase of this project, where we focused on the usability portion to reduce friction and lower the required learning curve before a user can effectively utilize the product. The goal was for the tool to be incredibly efficient at supporting and improving user experiences through research.

Outside of my immediate projects, I also contribute to several engineering programs. I support recruiting efforts for the Android community by overseeing processes for our deep dive interview rounds and optimizing our rubric for better evaluations. I also support our engineering onboarding process to provide the best welcome experience to our new Connectors. Additionally, I help plan and facilitate our learning sessions by working with the Google Developer Council. At Connected, we have bi-weekly Microlearns which are sessions where teachers from all backgrounds share their experiences and learnings. Hence, I coordinate with presenters and help execute each session successfully.

What’s the most interesting challenge about the project?

For the project with the Fortune 50 multinational automobile manufacturer, our target users were non-technical which made designing the experiences significantly tricky as we are trying to allow non-technical users to create product prototypes. Additionally, the prototypes that we support span multiple platforms and devices in a way where all the devices can communicate with each other. 

Where did you work before Connected?

I joined Connected as soon as I graduated from university, but I had an internship at Teknion. They offer office furniture solutions for organizations, including chairs, cubicles, and front desks. At Teknion, I was a model configurator where I helped them set up the different configuration options for their products so customers are able to choose from the list through their website. The project ended halfway through my internship and my role changed into supporting their production line. This included timing and optimizing their machinery, running inventory on all chemicals for MSDS, and creating reports on faulty furniture components.

What achievement are you most proud of in your career to date?

I am most proud of the programs I have initiated and the culture I have built in the Android community here at Connected. The community has grown and evolved so much over the years that I’ve been here, and I’d like to think that I was one of the first few who kick-started many initiatives and helped build the practices within this community to develop it into what it is today. My involvement covers a myriad of strategies, from introducing library discussions to allow everyone to learn new technologies to coordinating tickets and watch parties for Google I/O events. I curate our weekly engineering newsletters so the rest of the guild is kept in the loop on all platform cadences. I have also organized a facilitation council to help coordinate weekly learning sessions (cross-project code reviews, coding katas, workshops) and we consistently introduce unique ideas for our sessions to keep them fresh.

Do you have a mantra you live by?

You may regret the things you have done in the past, but you’ll regret the things you never did even more.

What do you love to do outside of work?

I wrote in my previous blog post that I play video games quite a bit in my free time. Outside of gaming, I do occasionally get my hands dirty with home improvement projects. I have some experience with fairly basic renovations such as reflooring, tiling, dry walls, electrical, and plumbing. I gained most of my renovation knowledge when I helped my brother-in-law renovate his entire home (most rooms were basically stripped down to their studs and then rebuilt).

If you were stuck on a deserted island, what album, movie, and book would you take with you?

Album – I’ve been recently obsessed with any music created by Lin Manuel Miranda but he doesn’t really have an album (I’ll probably curate my own)

Movie – V for Vendetta

Book – I’m not a huge bookworm so I don’t really have any books that come to mind. Can I select a video game instead? I’d definitely bring Minecraft with me.

Describe yourself in three words. 

Chill, curious, and creative.

And finally, what’s your favourite product and why? 

My favourite product is Lego; my fascination with these blocks emerged as a kid and still remains. These small building blocks are really powerful in bringing one’s imagination to reality and hence they continue to feed my creative mindset.