Working with users, I create structures to facilitate effective communication using the art and science of organizing and labeling web sites, intranets, online communities and software to support usability and findability.
Office of Research – University of Washington, Seattle, WA
Business Analyst/Information Architect
January 2012 –
- Interacting productively with system end-users, developers, writers, and business owners to determine web site objectives and design website spaces that facilitate intuitive user access to content.
Zaaz, Inc. – Wunderman/WPP Network, Seattle, WA
User Experience Architect Associate, Creative
June 2011 – Present
- Responsible for research and visual direction for web sites and web-based applications. Develop information architecture, interaction patterns, and design wireframes for clients such as Microsoft, Therapeutic Associates, Group Health, Pella Windows, and Wunderman.
University of Washington, Seattle, WA
Usability and Training Specialist, Financial Management
April 2008 – June 2011
- Balanced business, product, and user requirements to create effective design solutions for the online financial system viewed by 5,000+ users daily, having worked directly with project development team.
- Contributed to product strategy for development of new phase and system features, developed use-case scenarios, information architecture, flowcharts, wireframes, high-fidelity mockups, and functional prototypes.
- Led usability research to design studies, created prototypes for testing, and distilled findings into actionable design directions.
- Designed effective campus-wide trainings and rollout presentations using adult learning techniques, including hands-on computer training, lecture training, and e-learning.
- Created content management system and managed all web operations and electronic communications for group, improving focus on customer service for 40,000 global users.
Associations/Groups:
- Finance & Facilities Web Developers, Recognition Quality Team, Mentoring Program
Awards:
- BRAVO Award: Positive attitude and behavior admired and valued by peers, using personal initiative and creativity to solve an unusual problem
- STAR Award: Working with a group using creative processes for long-term improvement, cost/time savings, opening channels of communication, and improvements to customer service
Microsoft Unlimited Potential, Seattle, WA
Training Program Manager, YWCA King County
July 2006 – March 2008
- My comfort with learning new technologies paired with excitement for interacting with others has led me down a successful path to be an empathetic advocate for users and learn more about the research that is done to make technology a better experience.
- Developed and implemented Microsoft Unlimited Potential project curriculum to train over 1400 low income and/or mature job seekers computer skills to re-enter the job market.
Kalamazoo College, Kalamazoo, MI
Information Technology Coordinator, Library & Information Services
November 2002 – September 2005
- Through the restructure of IT and Media Services, worked with a team of technology professionals to organize and coordinate all IT services for the College
- Supervised and trained 80+ student assistants to support labs & audio/visual center
Awards:
- Recipient of the Kalamazoo College High Merit Award, granted to outstanding staff
EDUCATION
University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 2010 – 2011
Master of Engineering – Human Centered Design & Engineering
Specializations: User-Centered Design | Global Technology & Communication
GPA: 3.9 | Selected Courses: User-Centered Design, Internationalization of User Experience, Experimental Research Methods, Empirical traditions in Design, Localization of User Experience in Software Design, Information Design, Usability Testing, Visual Communication
School of Visual Concepts, Seattle, WA, 2011
Designing for Mobile Devices
Understanding the users, technologies, devices, design principles, techniques and industry players unique to the mobile and wireless space.
Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI, 1997 – 2002
Bachelor of Business Administration
Majors: Computer Information Systems and Psychology
Minors: General Business and Women Studies
Scholarships: American Psychological Association Merit Recipient, General Motors Business Endowment
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE
- Member of Usability Professionals Association
- Member of Puget Sound SIGCHI
- Sole proprietor and web designer of Puja Parakh Photography (www.pujaparakh.com), with images appearing in worldwide campaigns and winning top honors in national competitions
- Volunteer with Youth in Focus, helping to empower urban teens through photography
- Volunteer with Girls Rock! Seattle helping build girls’ self-esteem via music creation and performance
UX METHODS
Cognitive walkthroughs, Scenario development, Personas, Heuristic evaluation, User interviewing, Field studies, Affinity diagramming, Card sorting, Web/Print Surveys, Wireframes, Focus Groups, Participatory Design, Usability Testing, Contextual inquiries
TECHNICAL SKILLS
- Adobe Creative Suite
Dreamweaver, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Flash, Bridge, Lightroom
CSS, HTML, FTP, PHP
Content Management Systems
Drupal, Movable Type, PixelPost, WordPress (this site!)
Wireframing/Prototyping
Axure RT, Balsamiq, FreeMind, GoMockingbird, Omnigraffle, Pen/paper, Visio, Whiteboarding
Training
Adobe Captivate, TechSmith Camtasia, Mikogo, WebEx
Usability/Market Testing
TechSmith Morae, Tobii Studio
Agile, Scrum, Kanban, Iteration Development, Waterfall, SharePoint, Team Foundation Server (TFS)
To download an Adobe PDF version of my resume, please click here.
To email me directly, please use hello@pujaparakh.com.
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