Summary
I have expertise in digital Product Management, Interaction Design, User Research, and E-commerce. I make interesting ideas come to life. By using research and analytics, strategic new products are conceptualized and designed.
I want to learn something new every day. I am an avid yogi, a frequent flyer, an amateur gardener and I enjoy all things edible and danceable.
Ideally, I would like to work with organizations that supports innovation, creativity, and collaboration, offering my knowledge and experience to build human-centered and profitable mobile and desktop products.
Education
DePaul University, Chicago, IL
September 2007 - March 2011
School of Computing and Digital Media
- MS in Human Computer Interaction
- GPA: 4.0
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
September 1999 - December 2003
College of Engineering
- BS in Industrial & Operations Engineering
- GPA: 3.3
- Cum Laude Honors
Work Experience
Product Development Manager | Travelzoo, Inc.
May 2012 - Present
Travelzoo is a publisher of travel, entertainment and local deals. Travelzoo has 26 million subscribers across the globe.
- Own and manage the Local Deals product development roadmap.
- Continuously modifying and testing the website purchase path to optimize conversion rates and minimize shopping cart abandonment. Q4 saw over 12% increase in conversions from the Travelzoo Local Deal pages to purchase confirmation.
- Maintain strong relationships with business stakeholders, such as the CFO, CEO, General Managers, Customer and Merchant Services Vice President, Production Management and Publishers in North America, Europe, Australia and Asia.
- Enhance and create new tools to enable local merchants to more seamlessly partner with Travelzoo Local Deals.
- Support and enhance the deal production content management system (CMS) and customer service ticketing system.
- Work with payment gateway vendors and payment processors to provide popular payment options for our customers.
- Helped to develop strategic partnerships with various publishers in order to improve subscriber reach and boost revenue.
- Improve reporting and analytics in order to help stakeholders make more informed decisions.
- Recent features include:
- Travelzoo Merchant App (iOS). Launched in iTunes: January, 2013
- Mobile Voucher Redemption via iOS app, Android app and mobile website. Launched in iTunes: September, 2012
- Feedback Loop – to gather customer feedback on their experience with the merchant.
- Integrated alternative payment methods into the online purchase path (i.e., PayPal, ELV payments, Maestro)
- Facebook Commenting on Local Deal pages.
Mobile Product Manager | Tribune Co. - Digital Product Development Group
September 2011 - May 2012
Tribune Co. is a national media company comprised of newspaper, television and radio business units.
- Defined the Tribune Technology strategy on connected devices for 2012.
- Owned and managed the connected devices roadmap for all mobile app and mobile web products.
- Collaborated with the User Experience and Development teams to build mobile products, managing the product development process from conceptualization through development, deployment and launch.
- Built and maintained strong relationships with business stakeholders in Tribune Technology and the media companies within Tribune.
- Continuously and frequently engage in mobile industry events and groups, such as Chicago Mobile Meetup and Mobile Marketer, to stay abreast of mobile industry trends and technology innovations.
- Manage product analysts who help the Product Team in efforts such as: competitive analysis, requirements gathering and product documentation.
- Responsible for requesting and managing monetary capital for current projects.
- Worked with Market Research and UX Teams to request and conduct research projects to learn more about our consumer needs.
- Products include:
- Los Angeles Times App for iPad: an iPad newsreader app featuring LA Times news, sports, entertainment and opinion stories, photos and video. Re-launched in iTunes: November, 2011
- Chicago Tribune App for iPad: an iPad newsreader app featuring Chicago Tribune news, sports, entertainment and opinion stories, photos and video. Re-launched in iTunes: January, 2012
- my.ChicagoTribune.com: Chicago Tribune's responsively designed, touch optimized website to render content elegantly on all smartphones and tablet devices. Q2 2012.
Product Manager | Tribune Interactive, Inc. - Digital Product Development Group
April 2010 - August 2011
Tribune Interactive Inc. was an organization that supported the development of digital products for all Tribune media companies.
- Aided Tribune's newspaper and broadcast properties in leveraging their editorial content and advertiser relationships in a marketable, digital format.
- Led the product development process from conceptualization through development, deployment and marketing for a number of digital products. Tasks include defining requirements, composing user stories, approving mockups, writing website copy, and conducting user acceptance testing throughout product development process.
- Vetted requests for enhancements and requirements from local markets, internal stakeholders, and external sponsors.
- Conducted competitive analysis research augmented by survey and interview methods to understand the product needs of local markets and our end users.
- Worked with outside vendors to implement and deploy products ranging from ecommerce platforms to mobile solutions.
- Products include:
- Faces of Cancer... Faces That Care: A user generated content (UGC) photo gallery intended to honor those whose lives have been touched by breast cancer. Launched: October 2010 for Breast Cancer Awareness Month
- Target Weekly Ad: An online version of Target's print circular. Launched on all Tribune newspaper sites prior to Black Friday, 2010
- Chicago Shopping: Chicago Tribune's ecommerce brand including deeply discounted daily deals from local merchants. Launched late October, 2010
Fulfillment Services Administrator | Tribune Interactive, Inc. - Online and Mobile Fulfillment Group
August 2009 - April 2010
Tribune Interactive, Inc. operates news and information, broadcast, entertainment, multi-cultural, and online classified websites, WAP sites, and connected device applications. It was founded in 1999 and was a subsidiary of Tribune Co.
- Launched Microsoft Dynamics CRM in 7 Tribune print markets and 23 Tribune Broadcast markets (approx. 2,000 end users)
- Established a support structure of over 40 local Super Users of Tribune's CRM system
- Managed the Fulfillment Data Specialist(s) who are responsible for the data integrity of the CRM system
- Administrated Tribune's CRM System, Microsoft Dynamics CRM, and Online Ad Serving Systems, Double-Click DART Sales Manager (DSM) and DART for Publishers (DFP).
Interaction Designer | DePaul University - IS Department
June 2009 - August 2009
DePaul University is the largest private institution in Chicago, founded in 1898.
- Designed the interaction of an administrative tool for college deans to manage their online course surveys.
- Identified usability issues through testing and discussions with end-users
- Worked with developers to implement the design
User Experience Intern | Cars.com - User Experience
November 2008 - August 2009
Cars.com is a subsidiary of Classified Ventures LLC. Cars.com allows users to browse over 2 million used and new car listings, connect with private sellers and dealerships, post a used car listing.
- Assisted in usability testing moderation for all Cars.com products
- Facilitated coordination and planning of usability testing
- Presented existing research reviews of potential enhancements to products
- Produced competitive analysis research to UX Managers
- Conducted user research such as heuristics evaluations as well as survey creation and analysis
- Helped develop and execute user research training sessions for Cars.com employees
- Provided support to UX Managers
MS CRM Implementation Consultant | Crowe Chizek & Company LLC
October 2006 - April 2008
Crowe Chizek, now Crowe Horwath LLP, is an international accounting and technology consulting firm.
- Managed the scope, budget, and timeline for a number of MS CRM Implementations ranging in size from 10 users to 200 users and with budgets upwards to $500,000
- Organized and executed end-user testing to identify technical and usability issues with the software code and interface
- Worked closely with clients to help define the objectives of their MS CRM project, their organization's current business processes, and a user acceptance criteria that ensures an invaluable tool is configured within the MS CRM platform for end-users as well as upper management
- Developed tailored administrative, "train-the-trainer", and end-user training sessions and material
- Was instrumental in integrating Microsoft's SureStep Implementation strategies with the Crowe Implementation Methodology for Crowe's CRM team
Microsoft Business Solutions Consultant | InterDyn LANAC Technology
February 2005 - October 2006
Founded in 1985, InterDyn LANAC Technology is one of the largest Microsoft Gold Certified Partner in the Chicagoland Area. LANAC offers Microsoft Business Solutions implementation and consulting services to it's 300 plus clients nationwide.
- Managed all new MS CRM Implementation projects as well as installing, configuring, and customizing software; providing application and administrative training; and developing end-user workflow process(es) in order to effectively meet customer needs
- Organized and executed end-user testing to identify technical and usability issues with the software code and interface.
- Conducted business process analysis for new and existing customers to help them use their Customer Relationship Management products more efficiently and productively
- Developed the LANAC Technology Corp. MS CRM Implementation Process
- Technically supported all existing MS CRM customers
- Performed as technical liaison between software developers and customers during database integration projects
- Consistently achieved quarterly award: Most Customer Compliments
- Awarded annual LANAC Employee Progress Award in December 2005
Related Experience
Student Volunteer | NN/g Usability Week
San Francisco, CA - June 2009
Nielsen Norman Group offers usability consulting, training courses, research reports, and user experience conferences. The organization was founded in 1998 by the user experience pioneers, Jakob Nielsen, Donald Norman, and Bruce "Tog" Tognazzini.
Student Volunteer | MobileHCI '09
Bonn, Germany - September 2009
The yearly MobileHCI conference provides a forum for academics and practitioners to discuss the challenges and potential solutions for effective user interaction with mobile devices and services.
Skills
Proficient In
- Agile Scrum
- Adobe Creative Suite 5/6
- Axure RP Pro
- OmniGraffle
- Omniture Site Catalyst
- Google Web Analytics
- iTunes Connect
- Google Play App Publishers Portal
- Business Requirements Documentation
- Usability Testing
Experience With
- HTML/HTML5, CSS/CSS3, JavaScript
- SQL Reporting Services
- Morae
- Adobe Captivate
- Double-Click advertising platform
- Optimizely A|B Testing