Experience

Relevant Skills


Leadership

I've been leading cross-disciplinary teams for over six years. The most important part of leading a team is inspiring collaboration and cultivating good communication. Collaboration takes work, but it pays off in much more creative and thoroughly considered design. Effective communication across disparate groups, keeps it all on track. Some of my leadership skills include:
  • Guiding the strategic vision from client requirements through to implementation.
  • Coordinating relationships between design and development teams to affectively execute appropriate digital strategy.
  • Managing on- and off-site teams (in Singapore, Korea, Finland, Poland, Russia, and India).
  • Managing the client relationship for some of the largest accounts in the company.

Digital Strategy

Strategy is, well, strategic. There's no magic formula or process that creates insights. Good, quality research provides the building blocks, but the art of strategy is in creating the story that inspires amazing design solutions. I have experience in all sorts of methodologies. For some stories about how these turned into insights, please refer to my case studies. The list of my strategy skills include:
  • Conducting stakeholder interviews, consumer interviews, competitive assessments, focus groups and usability testing with consumers.
  • Assessing and documenting scope and functional specifications to create product roadmaps.
  • Using prototypes and wireframes to quickly test and iterate designs.
  • Develop brand positionings, creative briefs, and personas.

Software Expertise

Design can take place anywhere. One of my favorite tools is a white board. Or paper. I'm also fond of the following tools.
  • Web planning and prototyping: Balsamiq, Sketch, Photoshop, Axure, OmniGraffle, Invision, Keynote, or HTML.

Programming Experience

I like to build things. Even if I'm not developing my designs, I like to have an idea about how it all works. I'm just curious that way.
  • Dynamic and flexible web page design: HTML5, CSS3, responsive frameworks (e.g., Foundation, Zurb), jQuery, PHP, MySQL, and WordPress.

Design Experience


Director of User Experience

Favorite Medium | San Francisco, CA January 2014 - Present

Leading and collaborating with multidisciplinary teams across remote offices to deliver amazing user-centered designs that are executed across mobile, web, and applications.  Establishing and fostering strategic client relationships with companies in finance, communications, and non-profits. Responsibilities include creating design strategy, directing and executing design solutions, and mentoring and growing the design team.

Forum for the Future case study
Map Your World case study

Senior Interaction Designer

HYDRANT | San Francisco, CA November 2012 - January 2014

Led a number of projects with strong strategic components. Worked closely with business stakeholders and developers in an agile environment to create intuitive and sophisticated cloud-based versions of extremely complicated financial accounting software. Designed marketing and e-commerce experiences to work across mobile, desktop, and kiosks.

Senior User Experience Designer

Hot Studio | San Francisco, CA June 2011 - October 2012

Led the long-term strategic relationship for one of the largest accounts at Hot in 2012. Collaborated closely with all team members (internally and with clients and their vendors) to design and test user-centered digital experiences. Designed quickly and iteratively, producing varied deliverables (from collaborative sketches to traditional wireframes to HTML prototypes) within the framework of larger strategic projects.

Eaton Vance case study
SportStream case study
FunTracker case study

Experience Designer

Freelance Consultant | San Francisco, CA February 2011 - May 2011 | Cambridge, MA July 2008 - August 2008

Consulted on iterative projects in process, providing heuristic evaluations to make incremental design improvements. Designed information architecture strategies to significantly improve the flow and usability of interfaces.

The High Bar case study

Account Supervisor

Isobar North America | San Francisco, CA August 2010 - January 2011

Responsible for the successful management of client relationships and account team leadership. Created, developed and strengthened strategic client relationships. Identified the approach and strategic direction for the accounts with the input of internal stakeholders and clients. Nurtured two accounts to become million dollar revenue streams for 2011, one of which started as a $75k project.

Experience Design Consultant

Isobar North America (née Molecular) | Watertown, MA November 2007 - July 2010

Led the design and execution of usability, information architecture, and taxonomy creation. Supported the development and delivery of information architecture strategies, taxonomies, business requirements, audience and competitive analysis, content inventories, and creative briefs.

Nokia case study
Northwestern Mutual case study

Digital Experience Specialist

Mechanica Branding | Newburyport, MA May 2006 - November 2007

Responsible for information architecture and digital planning, presenting strategy and comps to clients, managing design and development teams, and testing.

Research & Strategy


Assistant Brand Planner

Mechanica Branding | Newburyport, MA February 2005 - May 2006

Performed quantitative and qualitative research, based on the needs of the project. Creation of brand positioning and audience segmentation. Worked with a number of clients: Forest City Enterprises; NBC Online; Blockbuster Online; Chaps; Chemistry.com (IAC); Pronto.com (IAC); Animal Rescue League; Next Street Financial, LLC.

Sociology Professor


Specializing in popular culture, sports, race, and gender, I taught students in a range of levels. In addition to many years of introductory sociology, I created two specialized curricula for intersections of race and gender in both sports and mainstream films.
  • Adjunct Professor, Wentworth Institute of Technology, Boston, MA (2004)
  • Adjunct Professor, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA (2003-2004)
  • W.E.B. Du Bois Teaching Fellow, University of Maine, Orono, ME (2002-2003)
  • Adjunct Instructor, Santa Fe Community College, Gainesville, FL (1999-2000)
  • Instructor, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL (1998-2001)

Sociology Evaluation Research


Project Coordinator, Program Evaluation (2000-2001), Healthy Families Jacksonville Evaluation Team, Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL
  • Conducted quantitative survey analysis of the efficacy of the Healthy Families Jacksonville program which provides support to women and children who are at risk for child neglect. I managed a team of four researchers and two data collectors, synthesized and analyzed the data, and contributed to the final report.

Research Assistant, Program Evaluation (1997), Center for Youth Research, University of Hawaii, Manoa, HI
  • Contributing to a 15 year study, I conducted focus groups with at-risk teens on Molokai, Hawaii, and Oahu.

Education


Doctorate, Sociology (2003)

  • University of Florida
  • Focus on popular culture, media, and fans.
  • Dissertation nominated for Phi Beta Kappa

Masters, Sociology (1999)

  • University of Florida

Bachelors, Sociology (1996)

  • Rollins College, Summa Cum Laude