Designed and built online brand web sites for the clients of JW Messner.

Provided strategic leadership through the application of business experience, technical knowledge and design expertise. • Lead the design of the following online experiences: Herman Miller Media Market, Steelcase Room Wizard, and the Wolverine Worldwide corporate site
• Introduced clients to new technologies and new business tools to meet their needs
• Wrote design briefs and participated in presentations through all phases of projects
• Managed sites from concept through to deployment
• Worked with teams of programmers to develop both e-commerce and database driven sites

Provided expert consulting and design services for online Web applications to meet client needs. • Developed Web applications for logged-in customer portals that tied specifically into company's back-end data systems
• Worked closely with the internal Web team to assess project needs
• Created both site maps and application user flows
• Designed site and application user interfaces

As Web Design Manager, I combined expert design skills and usability practices to develop user-centered, online applications. As part of this role, I did the following:
• Designed and directed user experiences for 20-plus custom Web applications
• Set-up and moderated usability labs to assess online tools
• Participated in strategic discussions around the development of Web products and process solutions for key business initiatives
• Directed developers through product implementation of online applications
• Worked with external vendors to achieve company Web site standards
• Prioritized projects based on the organizational vision and values, as well as available resources
• Directed the design and functionality of Priority Health’s Intranet as it moved into a new content management system

Directed the community-based movie review web site through the initial steps of a re-design driven by direct customer feedback and usability outcomes. I lead the research plan and held usability sessions to observe the online user experience. The outcomes of that work directed the product development priorities and timeline. In addition to creating the site design and functionality specifications, I orchestrated the build out of an internal design team that included two designers, a QA tester, and a user experience lead. The changes to the site’s design, implemented by my team, were successful in increasing traffic and promoting social networking.

In my role as Director of User Experience at Pomegranate Studios, I led the creation of the technology components for ArtPrize (artprize.org), a radically open art competition. I was responsible for the online experience, as well as the mobile and iPhone voting platforms, and the voter, artist, and venue registration tools. In 2010, these technologies supported 1713 artists, 192 venues, and over 465,000 votes cast. Page views exceeded 6 million views in a three-week span. In addition, my design background and ability to consider the broader customer experience has enabled me to contribute as a strategic member of the ArtPrize leadership team. It’s inspiring to be part of a project with incredible visibility in the art world, and powerful economic and promotional impacts on the City of Grand Rapids. Outside of directing efforts within ArtPrize, I worked to promote entrepreneurial initiatives through the support of the Momentum program (momentum-mi.com) and creation of 5x5night (5x5night.com), a platform for sharing and rewarding new ideas.