9to5
Freelance Experience Architect | Chicago, IL
User Experience Lead | Roundarch | January 2011 - Present
User Experience Architect | Good Day Monsters | November 2010 - April 2011
Sr. Experience Architect | VSA Partners | June - July 2010
User Experience Architect | Tribal DDB | January 2007 - April 2010
- DAY-TO-DAY:
Provide UX thought leadership and encourage knowledge sharing
- Contribute to new business pitches and efforts to grow client relationships
- Encourage multidisciplinary collaboration and problem-solving
- Act as user advocate
- Review HCI principles, patterns, issues and techniques
- PROJECT-BASED:
Work with clients to understand business requirements and goals
- Research and analyze customers' content and functionality needs
- Research and analyze industry trends and competitor sites
- Translate and define UX strategy and concepts
- Devise architectures, navigation, personas and experience maps for all levels of interaction or touch points
- Work with writers and designers to ensure usability, simplicity and economy of design
- Produce appropriate deliverables to communicate project landscape and detail
- Produce working prototypes to demonstrate concepts, and actual customer experiences, for clients and internal teams
- Develop usability test plans, conduct ongoing usability testing and provide analysis reports
- Define metrics for assessing ROI and project success/growth
- VARIOUS DELIVERABLES:
Content Audits/Evaluations, Competitive Reviews, Stakeholder/Customer Interviews, Heuristic Evaluations, Personas,
Functional Requirements/Specs, Site Maps, Content Maps, Wireframes, Use Cases, User Flows, Prototypes, Usability Testing Results/Analysis
Technical Project Manager | Slack Barshinger | Chicago, IL | January 2006 - December 2006
- Work with Account and Creative to determine technical foundation and execution
- Provide accurate time/cost/scope estimations for project budget
- Drive project requirements, priorities and schedules
- Produce site maps and wire frames
- Provide Technical Direction to Creatives and Developers during concept development and Web development
- Manage project routes and testing
- Coordinate with Account Management to monitor project progress and budget; Gauge resource/priority adjustments accordingly
- Prepare weekly progress report for Director of Digital Strategy
- Manage expectations to ensure all deliverables are met according to specifications
- Manage project documentation and archives
- Manage all client SharePoint sites
- Manage email marketing Web application and client accounts
Lead Developer | Slack Barshinger | Chicago, IL | January 2003 - 2005
- Work with Account Team to determine foundation and scope of project production
- Provide accurate time and resource estimations for project budget
- Assist interface designers to ensure usability standards are met
- Assist with information architecture, interface and navigation design
- Provide Art Direction, concept development, and Web development on selected projects
- Manage all deliverables’ specifications and schedules
- Optimize artwork for electronic media as well as file economy
Web Developer | Slack Barshinger | Chicago, IL | January 2001 - 2003
- Optimize artwork for electronic media as well as file economy
- Develop in BBEdit using DHTML, and FLASH
- Collaborate with off-site programmers on selected projects
- Provide ongoing process improvement and standardization notes
- Project Management: Banner and Email campaigns, monthly updates to company Web site
- Sole developer from April 2002 through February 2003
education
Columbia College | B.A. Interactive Multimedia | 1998 - 2000
- Screenwriting / Writing for Multimedia / Digital Based Sound Production
/ Digital Photography / Typography / Geometry in the Arts
/ JavaScript / Visual Design for Interactive Multimedia
/ Computer Graphics and Animation / Independent/Team Production
/ Digital Video Production
Indiana University | Reason vs. Passion | 1995 - 1996
- Leo Tolstoy / Johann Wolfgang von Goethe / Henrik Ibsen / Jean-Jacques
Rousseau / Sigmund Freud / Chinua Achebe / Voltaire
Barat College | Library Science | 1989 - 1990
- Literary Research / British Literature / Photography / American
Literature
Harper College | Literature |1987 - 1989
- Philosophy / Literature / English Composition / French / Creative
Writing / Public Speaking / Humanities / Geology
/ Journalism
software + languages
- Documentation Microsoft Visio 2003-7 (PC), OmniGraffle Pro 5.1 (MAC)
- Rapid Prototyping Axure Pro (MAC & PC)
- Remote Usability Testing TechSmith / Morae
- Adobe (Macromedia) Photoshop, ImageReady, Illustrator, Dreamweaver, Flash (v7)
- Microsoft Visio, Office Suite, SharePoint 2007, Visual Studio 2008
- Scripting HTML, DHTML, XML, CSS, JavaScript, ASP, PHP, C#, AJAX, jQuery, JSON
- Database SQL, MySQL, MS Access
- Platforms MAC and PC
associations + activities
- Information Architecture Institute | Active Member | 2008-9
- Usability Professionals Association | Member | 2006
- Alliance Francaise | Volunteer Developer | 2004-6
- LiteracyChicago | Volunteer Literacy Tutor | 1994
- Barat Journeaux | Arts & Entertainment Editor | 1990
- Point of View | Works Published | 1990
I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.
— Mark Twain
