Understanding how technology influences the behavior and expectations of your customers is critical to delivering successful lifestyle and entertainment products. Families, friends, travel, sharing, learning, exploring, health, finances - they are all connected by information and devices that grow into extensions of our lives.

Great product designs can improve the way we experience life by reducing our burdens, bringing us delight, keeping us safe, and broadening our horizons.

• Expertise in researching users and competitors to find the best way to serve consumers and create relevant, engaging products
• Work with stakeholders, marketing, product managers, and consumers to ensure synergy between business and user goals
• Experienced in prototyping, developing, and introducing new products to market
• Creative, design, motion, and interaction direction for digital and physical products

Role

UX Lead (Schematic)

BMW wanted to improve the experience of iDrive, which drivers found difficult and convoluted to use. In addition, they were interested in how their vehicles serve as a central element that connects various parts of the driver's life. Our solution was an in-dash display that not only allowed for both display and control of vehicle and driving information, but also things connected to the driver's life, such as music, appointments, and contacts.

Design

Digital Instrument Clusters and Information Center / "Driver Life" User Experience Model / Steering Control Mappings

• Led research and design of all-digital gauge and information display system to replace difficult to use i-Drive interface
• Developed Cognitive Models to control information density and plotted User Journey Maps
• Focused on safety and integration of life with vehicle
• Designed steering wheel input and navigation controls, sequences, and interfaces; illustrated concepts for shared / 'co-driver' experience
• BMW accelerated their timeline to in-dash displays based on the guidance and research I provided

Role

UX Lead (Schematic)

Sony Electronics and Sony Music Corporation wanted to introduce a product to compete with the iPod Touch / Apple Music model. They also wanted to explore using the newly introduced Android operating system as a platform for delivering a consistent experience across mobile music devices and their Xperia phone product line. Our challenge was to create a cross-platform music management and recommendation service that allowed users to utilize social features and the Sony Music platform to stream, discover, and buy new music from their device.

Design

Sony Walkman Touch UI / Sony Cloud Music Network

• Developed touch-based UI for Walkman to compete with iPod, including community and store UX
• Performed group usability testing and market research for device and music service platform / pricing models
• Prototyped, installed, and tested on 1st-Generation Galaxy One phones
• Developed UX Blueprint and performed user group testing on installed devices
• Supervised and mentored junior designers and managed user research and reporting process
• Worked onsite with Sony Software Development Team in Tokyo for design handoff

Role

UX Lead (Schematic)

Samsung wanted to differentiate itself from Apple when introducing its first line of Android-based phones, namely to avoid copyright and trademark disputes around presentation and interactions that were being strongly enforced. While that effort eventually failed and they decided to copy the iPhone and hope that user adoption outweighed the legal cost, there was a brief moment when they considered the innovative, content-oriented approach we developed to specifically appeal to the "American" market.

Products

"Mustang" Android Mobile OS

• Performed task, process, and product modeling for developing core product concepts
• Developed wireframes and working prototypes with foam / paper and animations
• Created and maintained all product design blueprints
• Worked directly with design and animation teams to storyboard and oversee key interactions and transitions

Role

UX Lead (Schematic)

With the fourth installment of Halo, the focus shifted away from Master Chief to the Spartan soldiers that fought alongside him. The goal was to immerse the player in the game by introducing dimensional squad tracking systems and character-oriented features along with an innovative heads-up-display and progression model. The result was a gritty, military feel that was notable for its detail and player feedback.

Products

Halo: Reach X-Box Video Game Menus and Heads-Up Display (HUD)

• Oversaw the creation of next-generation user interface for Halo, including lobby progression and HUD (Heads Up Display) designs based on previous research with US Navy Helmet Displays
• Provided creative direction for animators and visual designers and worked directly with game testers to incorporate feedback
• Created Objective Waypoint and Progression System Tree; developed and documented in-game visual language
• Identified all controller key assignments and weapon system interactions / loadout displays
• 3.3 Million Units Sold

Role

Senior Information Architect

My primary objective at Disney's WDPRO was to facilitate trip package selection and conversion. Using data from the Guest Insights team, I developed a number of trip comparison, cart, and checkout flows for both Disney World and Disney Aulani Resort. In additon to this, I also developed a number of internal stencils and templates for use by the UX team to accellerate the design process by allowing wireframes to be approved before sending to the art / graphic design team. Those templates are still being used for site production, several years later. I also worked directly with Directors to develop Disney's responsive, mobile-first strategy.

Products

disneyworld.com / disneyaulani.com

• Minimized cart abandonment and facilitated trip cost comparison based on user research
• Improved process by creating production-ready design assets to facilitate iteration and A/B testing
• Coordinated with User Insights, Copy Editing, and Software Development teams
• Helped develop their original mobile-first and responsive design strategy with Senior UX Leadership (VP, Directors)

Role

UX Lead (Schematic)

Oversaw the design and delivery of Google's Art Project experience blueprint, which mated their new gigapixel, high-resolution art photography with their streetview technology to create an unprecedended ability to visit and browse the works of galleries all over the world as if you were actually there. I also developed the tool galleries used to map their galleries and identify the geographic coordinates of all their works.

Products

Google Art Project Website / Internal Mapping & Gallery Geo-Location

• Designed User Interface for Selecting and Browsing galleries
• Designed interactions for browsing, zooming, and tagging images with social features like notes and insights
• Created Admin Software and worked with Google's technology team to create tagging system that identifies the precise position of artworks