2022 – 2023 – Infinum (Head of Design)
- Coaching Team Leads, Lead Designers and ICs on User research & testing techniques
- Conducting user research, primarily user interviews to support key client in the development of international gaming platform. Research took place with gamers spread across the globe.
- Feedback and synthesis of findings in client facing workshops.
- Linking research and design more closely with initiatives throughout the Design Department members (30+) and client base (approx 25 client projects)
2018 – 2022 – Scott Logic – Research & Design Technology Consultancy for Investment Banks, Commodity and Energy Trading Companies.
- Advocacy and awareness building of value of User Research and Testing amongst UK consultants and with firm leadership.
- Proposals written into Way of working for it to be conducted across all appropriate client projects
- Example Research from Client Projects:
- Fastmarkets (Global Commodities Pricing Agency) –
- New website, Online tools to support customer identification of digital pricing Products and new journeys integrating early stages of the Sales journeys into online experience and linking directing into Sales systems.
- Research group workshop sessions with Customer Service representatives to draw out, capture, understand and organise customer needs.
- Remote research capture sessions with Market specialists on how metals and commodities should be organised.
- User interviews & workshop (remote) with Sales agents based in North America and Asia to uncover customer needs.
- New website, Online tools to support customer identification of digital pricing Products and new journeys integrating early stages of the Sales journeys into online experience and linking directing into Sales systems.
- Fastmarkets (Global Commodities Pricing Agency) –
- Instinet (Subsidiary of Nomura)
- Research activities to support the design of new dark pool equities trading tool for global traders
- User interviews (remote) 30-45 minute approx with 10 global dark pool equities traders from firms such as: JP Morgan & Morgan Stanley
- Stakeholders and additional UXers (for training and information capture purposes) listening on the line
- Investigating challenges, requirements, changing nature of their work environment due to Covid, typical practices and opportunities for providing critical differences in the tool where microseconds are the differences between successfully trading or missing opportunities.
- User interviews (remote) 30-45 minute approx with 10 global dark pool equities traders from firms such as: JP Morgan & Morgan Stanley
- Research activities to support the design of new dark pool equities trading tool for global traders
Walkthrough of designed prototypes with users to understand the critical differences of split second saved in cognitive capture and understanding of key information to determine trading strategy.
- EDF Energy (Global Energy Trading Firm)
- Research activities to support the design of a new Management Information system that used trading data to inform Executive strategic decision making.
- User interviews with the CEO, Compliance, Head of Trading, Trading desk heads to understand data comprehension needs including comparative performance and trading patterns with previous time periods and changing energy trading patterns.
- Task analysis of traders completing Energy trades on global markets and capturing and reporting of profitability / loss of trades.
- Research activities to support the design of a new Management Information system that used trading data to inform Executive strategic decision making.
2017 – Made.com (Head of UX – E-commerce)
- Introducing UX Research and Testing ethos into the firm (advocacy with CTO, CMO and CEO)
- New E-commerce Site for the Business
- Site Architecture support research and testing
- 5 stage process involving card sorting and tree testing to validate and ensure optimal performance of findability of re-architected site.
- Mapping of key journeys to be optimal based on interviews, existing findings and industry research validated recommendations.
- New site structures, navigation and interface design of key pages throughout the site
- Site Architecture support research and testing
- User Testing Sessions & Research programme
- Working with external recruiting partner to find appropriate participants
- Creation of scripts
- Prototyping of mid and high fidelity design of the key journeys throughout the site to support key task testing.
- User testing and research sessions – live streamed and attended in person on key aspects of the proposed new site structure, core new pages designed
- Tree Testing of findability of key product types using the new site architecture and navigation
- Quantitative research – Data analytics analysis using Google Analytics on user journeys, drop off points, search terms and funnel conversion analysis.
- Teaching and coaching Product Managers in research and testing techniques
- Assessing and testing innovative potential products and service offerings including:
- Augmented Reality testing for interior design and furniture
- Open competition for enthusiast designers to pitch and make their own products
2014 – 2016 – Cheapflights Momondo (Head of UX)
Initial Research and testing – core Product Design
- Advocacy of research and testing and evidenced based design approach
- Conducted Guerilla research when joining to uncover user expectations to inform core product design
- Creation of interface, interaction patterns which I accurately prototyped and then competitively task tested with representative users to establish design winners.
- Creation of prototypes representing the full scope of the Product design
- User testing of all key aspects and functionality of proposed functions
- Development of clear mental model of core journeys and contexts of use, target outcomes for numerous user types
Once Research and Testing established within the company ethos
- Initial Research and testing – core Product Design
- Advocacy for research programmes to drive next (multi year) Product development stages.
- Coaching and teaching UX research and testing techniques to UX team members and increasing their capability and confidence in conducting research and testing.
- Creation of strategic plan and scope for large scale programme to uncover traveller needs and attitudes.
- Liaison with recruitment partner to recruit 60 plus participants
- Drafting of recruitment scripts to match participants to identified persona types
- Drafting, refinement and sign off of multi- user interview scripts
- Assessing results and analysing finding across the responses from 60 participants
- Establishing and overseeing a quantitative programme of A/B MVT testing to validate changes leading to quantifiable and evidenced $2 million uplift in revenue across sites
2013 – 2014 – NHS Connecting for Health
- Conducting research & testing across Health Boards across the UK
- Research workshops bringing together regional users to joint information needs and synthesis sessions.
- Creation of fully interactive prototypes of proposed system
- Workshop sessions with breakdown of digital journeys analysing stages of system by groups of regional user bases – organised by their specific sub needs
2012 – Specialist UX Consultancy (Usability Lab)
- Research and testing of digital prototypes proposals by media, banking and investment sectors. Clients included: Channel 4, Standard Life Investments
- Interactive prototypes created, reviewed and iterated in tight timescales to support testing
- Creation of scripts for testing of proposals
- Creation of screeners for test participant recruitment
- Interaction and engagement with recruiter organisations
- Creation of all logistics to support testing of commercially sensitive
- Eye tracking studies and analysis of results
- Live sharing of testing sessions with key stakeholders at client organisations
- Presentation of key findings to senior stakeholders
2010 – 2011 – Centrica (British Gas)
Proposed, planned, led and executed extensive research programme to inform the redevelopment of Centrica group company Intranets (Global reach and user base of 35000 users)
Programme involved visiting sites across the UK over a period of 2 – 3 months
- Survey Creation
- Strategy and script creation to cover all key areas of investigation
- Data Analysis
- User Interviews (understanding content and functional requirements)
- Task Analysis
- Journey Mapping
- Content Requirements
- Presentation of findings to Senior Stakeholders
- Card Sorts (open and closed)
- Proposal of new site architectures (evidenced from extensive)
- Trained and oversaw similar research conducted in offices throughout North America by non-specialists
Led the extensive research programme to support creation of new SAP customer support system and account management system for approx 10,000 customer support users in turn supporting 16 million customers. This was the primary call centre software used to manage all call types from customers)
Programme involved visiting sites across the UK over a period of 2-3 months (plus ad hoc follow-ups)
- Task Analysis
- Ethnographic Studies
- User Interviews
- Journey Mapping
- Card Sorting
- Report writing and Presenting to Stakeholder groups
2004 – 2010 – Edward Jones Investments
- Coached and trained on: UX Research Techniques from Head of Research and Testing and team expert. In person coaching and observation of sessions by the Department Head who had extensive User Research and Testing experience over 15 years for the US Navy on complex system including FighterJet cockpit information and control systems.
- Conducted User Research and User Testing (Task Testing) on approximately 20 informational sites created for Financial Advisers over the course of 6 years.
- Typical 5 -10 users research sessions and
- 5-10 user task testing sessions per site.
Techniques & approaches frequently used includes:
- Ethnographic Studies
- User Interviews
- Task Testing
- Card Sorting