Hi, I’m a Senior User Researcher and Design Strategist

I lead research that supports cross-functional teams to find and solve the right problems. My contributions challenge them to make the best user-centered design and business decisions.

Here’s what I bring:

  • Rigorous research process: protocol development, execution, and impactful follow through via reports, storytelling, and interactive presentations
  • Experience using relevant quant data to generate hypotheses answerable by qualitative research; track record using qualitative data to inform new quant metrics
  • Superior persuasive and rapport-building skills to forge authentic team relationships and gain trust from participants
  • Intrinsic motivation to learn new things such as highly technical domains and fresh UX methods
  • Passion for efficient research operations and repositories to reuse insights where relevant across teams and initiatives

Work Experience

Upwork, Inc., San Francisco — Sr. UX Researcher – May 2017-present

Individual Contributor

  • UX Researcher embedded in cross functional team conducting a variety of methods on tight timeline
  • Worked in close partnership with designer and PM to define research questions
  • Devised workshops to assist team to absorb insights and define product roadmap
  • Used qualitative data to identify and gain agreement for new behavioral quant metrics
  • Mentored junior researchers and evangelized research to product team

Research Operations

  • Stood up in-house participant panel; developed procedures, recruiting screeners and email templates
  • Developed handbook for non-researchers to recruit and conduct research
  • Contributed to organization’s first customer insights database

Managerial (5 months)

  • Managed team team of 8 researchers and research ops professionals serving several product lines
  • Scoped research projects for junior researchers
  • Led hiring of UX Researchers and intern
  • Onboarded new researchers
  • Vendor selection

 

User Research Principal – 2017-2019

  • Freelance researcher supporting start-up and established companies with usability, surveys, research, and business strategy
  • Conduct all functions of research including recruitment, methods selection, moderation, analysis, and reporting
  • Ongoing clients: Upwork, Inc., and Evernote; others include Stanford Health Care, Siemens Health, Delta Dental of WA, and Brew Ventures.

 

Digital Service Expert, 2016

US Digital Services at Veterans Administration, Remote

  • Generalist user experience position in lean start-up environment within US government
  • Collaborate with other UX designers and researchers to define design requirements and prototypes
  • Conducted background research to understand product requirements
  • Analytics gathering to understand user needs and top tasks
  • Conducted user research to refine IA, labels, and page flows

 

Sr. Usability Consultant, Health Information,  2011-2016

Permanente Medical Group, Oakland, CA

  • Spearheaded usability consulting program to support 20 internal consultants creating in mobile, web, and print
  • Led change management activities to promote culture of user-centered design
  • Conducted variety of user research activities to evaluate products and define user needs
  • Created prototype and iterated based on user testing
  • Conducted design review of products to discover usability issues

Product Manager, Health Plan Content,  2007-2011

Kaiser Permanente, Pleasanton, CA

  • In Agile development environment, led user story development as product owner for UI team for kaiserpermanente.org
  • Developed roadmap of features for selected products
  • Led development of microsites for specialized audiences, such as high deductible members
  • Defined requirements and prototyped page concepts for new product pitches
  • Used web analytics to inform product decisions
  • Conducted card sorting, interviews, and usability testing

Serving San Francisco and all places remotely

Resume in PDF

Professional Interests

  • BJ Fogg’s Behavior Design
  • Group facilitation
  • Plain language
  • Start-up ventures

Presentations for Staff Development

  • Choosing the Right UX Research Methodology, 2013
  • Infographics for Health Information, 2014
  • Clear and Simple Communication Principles, 2015
  • Using Behavior Design for Health Education, 2015

Volunteer

  • Slide Rule UX Class – mentor of emerging designers transitioning to UX
  • Technology implementation lead for Berkeley community organization

User Research helps

Early stage user needs research

Focus groups

Ethnographic study

Interviews

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Build the Product Right

Concept testing

Usability testing

Card sorting

Heuristic review

Wireframing

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My Research Methods

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Selected Projects

Foundational Research

  • Shoe fitting software – identified user needs, pain points, and aspirations for shoe fitting software focusing on new market segment. Deliverable included personas and shopping habits framework.
  • Restaurant ordering website – ethnographic research of restaurant customers for in-store kiosk
  • Persona development – Advance Health Care Directive
  • Winemaking app – identify user needs, habits, and behaviors

Concept Testing

  • Message testing for hospital anti-infection messaging
  • Message development and testing for new mammogram screening letter and webpage

Evaluative Research

  • Identity management software – usability research focused on technical audience
  • Search functionality – usability testing
  • Usability and comprehension testing of end-of-life wish booklet

Mobile

  • Usability testing of home winemaking app
  • Heuristic review of medication adherence application
  • Medical claims mobile app design – identified user needs, prioritized functionality and designed and prototyped targeted user flow
  • Location finder mobile app design – prototyped locating a public changing station for parents; user research to determine behavior and attitudes

Card Sorting and Information Architecture

  • City of Berkeley website – content map for site redesign based on business needs
  • Card sorting and interviews to define patient needs for surgery booklet
  • Intranet – remote card sort for employee portal

Build the right product; build the product right.

I’m available for full or part-time projects. For example:

  • Review your digital product for usability and plain language
  • Formulate a user research plan for your product
  • Conduct various kinds of user research, including usability, focus groups, interviews
  • Develop a usability practice at your company

Drop me a line.

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