Shruti Gunupuru

Technical Knowledge

  •  Tools: Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, Adobe XD, Figma, Rhinoceros, SketchUp, Keyshot 

  • Skills: Digital & Web Design, CNC Manufacturing, Laser Cutting, Creativity, Verbal & Written Communication 

  • Languages: English, Telugu, Hindi & Bahasa Indonesia

Education

Massachusetts Institute of Technology Apr 2024 - Oct 2024 

Building and Designing AI Products and Services

School of the Art Institute of Chicago Jul 2019 - May 2021 

Master of Design, Designed Objects 

LaSalle College of the Arts, Singapore Aug 2015 - May 2019 

Bachelor of Arts, Product Design 

Graduated with Honors 

Professional Experience

Echo Bliss Studios

Founder Current

  • Founded and managed Echo Bliss Studios, a creative venture specializing in handcrafted laser-cut designs, achieving strong initial sales success.

  • Developed and implemented marketing strategies, including social media campaigns, to drive brand awareness and customer engagement.

  • Designed and crafted unique product lines, including candle holders and lanterns, blending intricate patterns with innovative techniques.

  • Collaborated with clients on custom design requests, delivering personalized and high-quality solutions that exceeded expectations.

  • Managed end-to-end operations, including product design, photography, and logistics, ensuring seamless customer experiences.

  • Expanded product reach through strategic partnerships and promotions, fostering a loyal customer base.

TRICOM Events

Creative Strategist Apr 2024 - Jul 2024

  • Executed a high-profile client event, ensuring seamless coordination and exceptional client satisfaction, enhancing customer engagement throughout the event lifecycle.

  • Developed comprehensive mood boards and presentation decks to guide creative direction, ensuring alignment with client objectives and improving customer touchpoints.

  • Collaborated with designers to create cohesive 2D/3D visualizations, enhancing project presentations and client engagement.

NEON Global

Creative Researcher May 2023 - Jan 2024

  • Working closely with CFO and CIO on Neon to produce 3 communication decks within 2 weeks in order for them to present to onboard investors.

  • Attended 10 on-going experiential events in Singapore; revolving around trending topics and writing reports on them to share with the team

  • Organizing the process of before, during and after experience for those attending them in Singapore, USA and China by making 3 different forms and excels sheets to store information.

  • Building 4 creative & research decks and business decks consisting of details of clients, intellectual properties and upcoming events to summarise collected research

  • Consistently analysed and explored different industries to gain understanding of ongoing and upcoming trends to continuously inspire and influence concept planning of future exhibitions and events.

  • Creating 2 research decks revolving around merchandising concepts and ideas for upcoming events and exhibitions.

Ideactio

Design Researcher Sept 2022 - May 2023

  • Working within the scope of design research, project management, client engagement and activities around business development.

  • Facilitate workshops, learn how to synthesise materials to get a better understanding of communicating with other companies and their employees.

  • Assisting with client checklists, in-person and online interviews and note taking during those sessions.

  • Learning how to do public speaking, which question to ask and understand how to read body languages and look out for the intricate details.

  • Working with clients of various backgrounds and conduct workshops and projects according to their needs and. expectations.

  • Writing business proposals, assisting with brand and business model strategies for companies

  • Writing Government grant proposals, checklists and presenting proposals to clients

  • Putting together case studies for projects for presentation basis

Hivar Studios

Project Management Intern Jul 2022 - Oct 2022

  • Producing digital technical drawings of interior layouts of clients home and ideating where the ideal changes and renovations will be done

  • Working with clients and having meetings to understand their needs and wants from the renovations they want

  • Collecting images and dimensions to create mood boards for designs to understand what the clients are expecting from mood images during meetings

  • Researching organizations and exhibitions for future participations in those events

Treasured Designs

Head Designer/Founder Oct 21 - Jul 2022

  • Producing hand drawn drawings for customers of emblems, wedding card invitations as well as home décor objects 
  • Produced work by hand, paints and watercolors along with Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and other digital design softwares. 
  • Facilitated designs and styles by utilizing various softwares such as, Rhino 6, SketchUp and Adobe Creative Suite

School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Teaching Assistant Aug 2019 - May 2021

  • Led class discussions and gave presentations for 2 years on advanced design concepts, abstract art and wood fabrication.
  • Shadowed 3 professors to gain a deeper understanding of methodologies for design research & experimentation 
  • Taught 8 classes through 2 years on how to understand the needs and desires of customers and how to build storyboards 
  • Created 2 booklets and curated galleries of content to display the class projects on different social media platforms 
  • Facilitated final 2 semesters teaching curriculum from physical to digital design to work remotely with students due to COVID 

Wood Workshop Assistant Aug 2020 - May 2021

  • Constructed 3 tutorial videos for new students to learn foundational wood working principles and techniques 
  • Utilized over 10 manufacturing tools like the table saw, CNC, laser cutter, & more, to gain proficiency in manufacturing 
    processes and fabrication techniques to construct functional prototypes 
  • Facilitated 5 training courses to train and authorize 18 students per group on how to use the wood working machinery 

Arthur Zaaro

Product Design Intern Apr 2018 - Jul 2018

  • Conducted customer research for 4 different clients and interpreted results to assemble unique, sustainable furniture pieces. 
  • Worked with 3 internal stakeholders and 2 external clients (start-up companies, restaurants, high schools) to gather design requirements and ideate on product development – making 3D Models and renderings 
  • Created 3D digital renderings w/ SketchUp throughout product life cycle & prepared comps for final product review 
  • Managed social media marketing and advertising/promotions on their social media accounts and company site 

BeScene

Design Intern Aug 2017 - Oct 2017

  • Revamped both Apple and Android versions of a mobile app by redesigning logos and icons and updating the color scheme 
  • Performed research on the user experience (UX) of the mobile app and mapped out the customer journey to inform updates to the user interface (UI) that would allow the app to better engage the original target audience 

Igloo Home

Creative Design Intern Apr 2017 - Jul 2017

  • Redesigned 2 user manuals for digital locks, main sections of the company website, and updated UI on different client facing products to attract more customers and increase conversions for their eCommerce store 
  • Designed graphics to meet specific promotional posters to promote their annual Hack-a-thon that lasts 1 weekend. 
  • Generated 3 videos content for their Instagram and YouTube channel to introduce new lock models & upcoming collections 
  • Collaborated with the founder of the company to expand their network during the event Echelon in Singapore 

Certifications

Introduction to Psychology Completed Mar 2024
Yale University

University of Illinois Urbana Champaign Completed Jan 2024

Digital Marketing Specialization

Completed 7 courses;
The Digital Marketing Revolution, Marketing in a Digital World, Digital Marketing Analytics in Theory, Digital Marketing in Practice, Digital Media and Marketing Principles, Digital Media and Marketing Strategies, Digital Marketing Capstone

University of London Completed Apr 2023

Business and Marketing Strategies Specialization

Completed rigorous 4 course specialization;
Fundamentals of Marketing Strategies, Fundamentals of International Business, Operations Systems Excellence and Consuption, Marketing & Culture

Google Certification Apr 2022 - May 2022 

UX Design Certification 

Completed rigorous 7 course certification;
Foundations of User Experience, Start the UX Design Process: Empathize, Define and Ideate, Build Wireframes and Low-Fidelity Prototypes,
Conduct UX Research and Test Early Concepts, Create High-Fidelity Designs and Prototypes in Figma, Responsive Web Design in Adobe XD
and Design a User Experience for Social Good and Prepare for Jobs