photo of a stargazer lily - link to home

user-centered design & development

qualification summary

  • Comprehensive web site design and development: information architecture, interaction design, visual design, content development, usability and accessibility analysis
  • Hand-coded, standards-compliant XHTML and CSS
  • Mobile industry design expertise
  • Writing, editing and marketing support
  • Exceptional technical communication skills

experience

User Experience Designer, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, Durham, NC [2/2008 – present]

Provide full-spectrum user experience design (UXD) support for the state’s largest health insurance provider.

  • Collaborate with business owners and project stakeholders to capture and clarify project-level UXD requirements
  • Represent and advocate for the user throughout the software development lifecycle (SDLC)
  • Conduct heuristic evaluations and competitive analyses to support web site redesign efforts
  • Conduct project-appropriate user research, including lab-based usability testing, contextual inquiries and web stats analysis
  • Develop UXD documentation: interaction design flows and wireframes, information architecture diagrams, paper prototypes, test reports, etc.
  • Lead UX design and research activities for Web Office Agile development team

Senior User Experience Designer & Creative Services Team Lead, Motricity Inc., Durham, NC [12/2005 - 1/2008]

Led all creative and UXD activities for mobile content platform development company.

  • Managed and mentored Creative Services team (UX and graphic designers)
  • Analyzed business and client requirements to develop interaction design flows and wireframes (both web and WAP) for wireless information portals and m-commerce storefronts; major client deployments include Cingular/AT&T, Alltel Wireless, Leap Wireless, Tracfone, Bell Mobility, MTV and BET
  • Created standard company user experience documentation templates and standard notation system
  • Developed core system software "white label" web interaction flows and wireframes for use by sales and engineering teams
  • Conducted heuristic evaluations and competitive analyses to help define company product roadmap
  • Created cross-device-browser compatible WAP production templates (xHTML and CSS)
  • Provided creative direction to visual designer(s)
  • Served as charter member of Innovation Review Board, a peer-elected team that solicited, evaluated, funded and mentored employee-initiated development projects to support the corporate portfolio

Senior Web Developer/Team Lead, North Carolina Central University, Durham, NC [contract: 8/2005 - 12/2005]

Provided redesign, development and web team management expertise to the IT department; direct report to the university CIO.

  • Supervised a team of junior web designers/developers
  • Created a phased development strategy and schedule for university web site redesign
  • Created pre-redesign interim design/code template (standards-compliant XHTML and CSS)
  • Compiled user research data on the web site's target audiences and conducted competitive web analyses of other HBCUs
  • Redesigned campus intranet home page; created a page-level self-publishing system for content creators
  • Designed layout and drafted content plan for new student portal
  • Drafted campus IT web policy
  • Delivered lecture on web design best practices for senior-level systems analysis seminar

Senior Web Designer, Duke Clinical Research Institute, Durham, NC [contract: 2/2005 - 8/2005]

Design and develop web sites and application interfaces, with a focus on usability and accessibility, for the world’s largest academic clinical research organization.

  • Translated business and user experience requirements into functional, user-centered interfaces
  • Optimized visual designs for cross-browser and cross-platform compatibility
  • Served as creative lead on interdisciplinary project teams
  • Collaborated with web developers and administrators to solve development and production problems in accordance with industry best practices
  • Created or revised site information architectures and perform content inventories
  • Updated team development process and workflow documentation for improved product consistency

Senior Web Designer, Automobile Club of Southern California, Costa Mesa, CA [2000 - 2004]

Provided information architecture (IA), design, development and usability expertise for four e-commerce sites with multiple business lines for the nation's largest AAA affiliate; IA and XHTML Lead for first complete site redesign in over seven years.

  • Create information architecture for site redesign (5,000+ pages)
  • Perform line-of-business content inventories and analyses
  • Develop site standards for increased usability and accessibility
  • Design site interface and create all XHTML page templates and style guides
  • Write online marketing copy and product descriptions
  • Serve as technical and creative liaison between business teams and developers
  • Provide guidance to clients on content positioning and industry best practices
  • Tasked by product managers to create online travel strategy, based on analysis of user feedback, ethnography, industry forecasts and internal marketing research
  • Created annual comprehensive competitive analysis of top travel web sites for senior executives
  • Provided analysis of web metrics for key content and applications
  • Scheduled, assigned and tracked all online travel content and maintenance projects
  • Supervised and mentored junior team members
  • Created and maintained project documentation and deliverables

Publications Specialist, Energetics, Inc., Columbia, MD [1998 - 2000]

Provided editorial and web development support to government and industrial clients of energy consulting firm.

  • Wrote and prepared technical materials (reports, brochures, briefings, program plans, fact sheets, proposals) and communication products (press advisories, newsletters, feature articles, speeches)
  • Designed and produced graphic illustrations
  • Created and taught a writing course for junior staff
  • Designed information architecture and edited content for client sites
  • Oversaw core development team of engineers, programmers and graphic artists
  • Conducted high-level usability testing
  • Coordinated and conducted client reviews
  • Provided project management support

Technical Publications Lead for Defense Public Affairs, Teledyne Brown Engineering, Huntsville, AL [1996 - 1998]

Provided both editorial/content and public relations support to a variety of U.S. Department of Defense clients.

  • Wrote, edited and produced technical documents (proposals, user manuals, test plans and reports, briefings, white papers) and corporate publications (newsletters, spec sheets)
  • Designed information architecture for prototype customer web sites
  • Developed documentation standards/style sheets for individual programs
  • Conducted regular reviews with document authors (internal and external)
  • Analyzed and reviewed customer publication needs (photography, video, CD, print)
  • Designed and creatde products and delivery strategies
  • Oversaw publications team and coordinated graphics, design, photography, scheduling and production requirements
  • Wrote scripts, speeches, articles and press advisories
  • Provided project management and client relations support

Columnist, Mount Holyoke College Alumnae Quarterly [1991 - 2001]

Selected to compose quarterly class news column for alumnae magazine and maintain contact data on over 500 women worldwide.

Assistant Director of Medical Alumni Affairs, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA [1995 - 1996]

Assisted the Executive Director with the planning, coordination and implementation of alumni programs and events.

  • Created the information architecture for the Office of Development and Alumni Affairs web site
  • Designed, wrote and edited newsletters and direct mail pieces
  • Wrote and edited alumni section of the medical quarterly Tulane Medicine

education

MA in English, University of South Carolina, 1994
BA cum laude (major: English), Mount Holyoke College, 1991

Additional Coursework

Practical Usability Testing (HFI), Effective Prototyping, Agile Scrum, Information Architecture, Web Project Management, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), JavaScript, Active Server Pages (ASP), XML, graphics

awards & affiliations

  • Board of Directors, Mount Holyoke College Alumnae Association
  • The Information Architecture Institute (IAI)
  • Interaction Design Association (IxDA)
  • Triangle Usability Professionals Association (TriUPA)
  • Achievement Award, Society for Technical Communication, Washington, DC Chapter (1999-2000 Technical Publications Competition)

portfolio

Samples are available upon request