As a User Experience Analyst, I want to be able to find the path forward. This means finding out who the user is, what they want, and, when needed, what’s not working for them the context of an interface or system. I love working with multidisciplinary teams and coming up with solutions to give each user story a happy ending.

The University of Michigan School of Information is one of the best institutions for UX in the country. As one of their graduate students, I have experience and training in all aspects of User Experience, including User Research and Needs Assessment, User Interface Design, Agile management and Rapid Prototyping, Graphic Design, Web Design, Content Strategy, Information Architecture, Marketing Analytics, Programming and Web Design.

What sets me apart? My core strengths as a UX researcher and designer are empathy and adaptation. Due to my prior work experience, I knew that I would be drawn to UX research and that I would be able to rely on years of customer service and a natural ability to connect with people from all walks of life. I had no idea how much fun the agile and lean processes of design would be. I’ve always had more ideas than time to execute all of them, and learning the processes which allow the designer to brainstorm, create and edit in rapid bursts has been exciting and rewarding.

Throughout my prior career as a bookstore manager, I've often been the bridge between a non-tech-savvy baby boomer boss and their sometimes low-empathy IT departments. For over two decades of professional experience, I translated non-tech into tech and back again, and provided empathy along the way. I'm also a bridge to Millennials. I've hired and trained them, and I like them. In fact, I've come to have immense respect for these digital natives. Most of them are bright, curious individuals who attack new technology with no hesitation, and I've worked to adapt this attitude as my own.