usability/human factors engineer - information architect/ux designer

Dear Reader;

I am a Usability/Human Factors Engineer – Information Architect/User Experience Designer. Currently, I am the Chief Executive Officer of False Front Interactive, LLC. In 2005, I was employed in Encino, California with Answer Financial, Incorporated as an Information Architect. Prior to this, I was employed with Infoseek/GO.com in Sunnyvale, California. I worked as a Usability Analyst and was responsible for developing and conducting formal usability testing and heuristic evaluations for the GO Network’s (a part of The Walt Disney Company) online products, including: GO.com, ABCNews.com, DisneyOnline.com, ESPN.com, and Movies.com. I worked with multidisciplinary departments headed by producers to develop user interface designs and to usability test products that the teams had developed. Prior to working in the Silicon Valley, I was a freelance interactive media developer in Studio City, California, and had clients such as Warner Bros. and Scholastic.

I am excellent at coming in at the beginning stages of system development, and:

• overviewing the entire information structure for the application, conducting a workflow/task analysis and developing the information architecture for the application;

• developing storyboards, and rapid prototyping via an authoring application;

• lo-fi testing the application in the development environment, and making suggestions to the development team, so that user interface design issues are at the forefront of product development;

• conducting formal usability studies from planning to statistical data gathering and analyses;

• authoring formal user interface design documents/guidelines along with flowcharts of relationships between user interface elements;

• integrating formal usability test findings into the production sequence to implement the user interface (I use a user centered design approach to develop the best combination of user interface elements in order to create the most efficient and easy to use application).

I am highly capable of working with other usability/human factors engineers and managing a usability team as well as maintaining a usability laboratory. I have a wide range of experiences from the last eighteen years of employment and have worked on a variety of projects which entail educational CD-rom design, instructional design, corporate training materials development, information architecture, usability testing, and user interface design.

I have several years of teaching experience, so I am capable of discussing all user interface issues in-depth, and conveying in full the complexity of all user interface design implications to all production team members under all circumstances. I am capable of seeing through the underlying information structure of an application at its inception; and I know when to mention user interface issues throughout product development, so that the production team is forewarned of the consequences of developing suggested product features. I am excellent at heuristic troubleshooting and being able to suggest quick user interface fixes on-the-fly.

Aside from the listed experience in my resume, I have also been hired as a Usability Engineer by DirecTV, and rehired by The Walt Disney Company as an Information Architect. I had to turn down these opportunities, having been hired just days/weeks before these offers came through.

Balazs Schreil, M.A., zm69vz@r.postjobfree.com, Tel: 818-***-****

5865 Rolling Road, Woodland Hills, California 91367

OBJECTIVE Usability/Human Factors Engineer - Information Architect/User Experience Designer

• system conceptualization • task analysis • use cases • wireframing/storyboarding • usability testing • flowcharting • design documentation • creative direction • production • user-centered design • educational software design • corporate training materials

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

January 2009 - Present

Chief Executive Officer for False Front Interactive, LLC. Lead software design and development efforts. Entailed:

1) brainstorming product feature for 10 WWW applications;

2) developing business plan;

3) contracting software engineers.

January 2009 - February 2009

User Experience Designer for Arnaco. Designed a real estate document management web application. Entailed:

1) conducting a contextual inquiry about real estate industry documents with subject matter expert;

2) brainstorming product features;

3) developing wireframes.

June 2007 - August 2008

Senior User Experience Designer for Peopleizer Corporation. Conducted system conceptualization, user experience design, and usability evaluation for a social networking web application. Entailed:

1) brainstorming product features;

2) hand drawing page layouts during brainstorming sessions;

3) developing wireframes.

September 2007

Information Architect for Zenji Web Development. Designed wireframes for ubuyo.com, a video based e-commerce site. Entailed:

1) reviewing of use case descriptions and existing partial wireframes;

2) completing the wireframes.

July 2007 - August 2007

Senior Usability Design Engineer for FanRocket. Conducted system conceptualization and developed wireframes for the drphil.com community section, a CBS/Paramount project. Entailed:

1) conducting system conceptualization on drphil.com's social networking application;

2) developing wireframes to define the design of the application;

3) directing graphic designers and software engineers to visually design and implement the application.

June 2007

Usability Consultant for Music Concepts. Conducted a usability evaluation of

weddingmusiccentral.com. Entailed:

1) conducting a heuristic usability evaluation of the site;

2) conducting a heuristic usability evaluation and the proposed upgrade to the site;

3) offering user interface design suggestions for improving site usability.

March 2005 - October 2005

Information Architect for Answer Financial, Incorporated. Developed information architecture and designed user interfaces for answerfinancial.com, also developed lo-fi and formal usability testing to evaluate the usability of answerfinancial.com and its competitors. Entailed:

1) conducting system conceptualization for answerfinancial.com’s attributes;

2) conducting heuristic evaluations of answerfinancial.com and of its competitors’ websites;

3) constructing wireframes, interaction flowcharts and authoring user interface design documents to aid the development team in implementing user interface design specifications;

4) developing information architecture and prototyping of answerfinancial.com’s newly developed version;

5) developing and conducting lo-fi and formal usability testing methodology for the current version of answerfinancial.com, the version of answerfinancial.com being newly developed, and for its competitors’ websites.

November 2003 - December 2003

Usability Tester for the Zenith National Insurance Corporation (TheZenith). Usability tested and redesigned an internal software application for TheZenith’s worker’s compensation insurance adjusters.

Entailed:

1) reviewing existing workflow/task analyses flowcharts;

2) conducting a contextual inquiry of insurance adjusters;

3) conducting a heuristic user interface design evaluation of the existing application;

4) planning, preparing, conducting, and reporting formal usability

testing;

5) redesigning the user interface of the existing application based on heuristic and formal usability study findings.

March 2002 - April 2002

User Interface Designer for EnrightSoftsystems. Developed an accounting software prototype. Entailed:

1) conducting task analyses to understand underlying information structure of the application;

2) storyboarding the user interface of the application;

3) prototyping the application in Macromedia Director.

November 1999 - May 2000

Usability Analyst for the GO Network (The Walt Disney Company).

Conducted heuristic user interface design evaluations and formal usability testing, and developed user interface designs for GO.com/Infoseek portal and ABCNews.com, DisneyOnline.com, ESPN.com, Movies.com. Entailed:

1) conducting heuristic user interface design evaluations of GO Network assets;

2) developing the information architecture and designing user

interfaces for the GO Network;

3) planning, preparing, conducting, and reporting formal usability

testing;

4) developing a database for all user interface design inefficiencies of

the GO Network.

February 1999 - April 1999

Instructional Designer for UrbanInsight. Developed distance learning course content for the University of Southern California (USC). Entailed:

1) obtaining business calculator and accompanying book exercises;

2) conducting information analysis to understand business calculator use;

3) developing distance learning exercises to teach business calculator use.

January 1998 - May 1998

Creative Director/User Interface Designer for ViaMultimedia. Created an exploratory interactive media application that teaches social skills and decision making to children. Entailed:

1) conducting system conceptualization for the product;

2) collaborating with a writer to develop the storyline;

3) developing interactive storyline flowcharts;

4) prototyping the storyline in Macromedia Director.

September 1997 - December 1997

Graphic Designer/HTML Programmer at All In advertising agency in Praha, Czech Republic. Developed print media advertisements and interactive web content. Entailed:

1) creating Photoshop image files;

2) developing user interface designs for interactive web content;

3) authoring html files.

March 1997 - April 1997

User Interface Designer for Warner Bros. Studios. Developed user interface design guidelines for Batman & Robin - The Cyber Experience - a Warner Bros./Apple Computer, Inc. project. Entailed:

1) reading the script Batman & Robin and critiquing the existing user interface design of Batman & Robin - The Cyber Experience;

2) conducting system conceptualization to create a new user interface for the game;

3) authoring of user interface design guidelines to elaborate on

existing user interface problems and suggested user interface features.

February 1997 - March 1997

Interactive Media Developer for CyberNation. Ported Puzzle Fighter (1st console game in history to be ported) to the Web for CAPCOM/SONY. Entailed:

1) reviewing of current and PuzzleFighter CD-rom;

2) collaborating with JAVA programmer;

3) editing and recreating image files;

4) evaluating coded files and image files to determine optimal game functionality on the web.

July 1994 - April 1997

Instructor’s Assistant at Art Center College of Design, Pasadena.

Assisted instruction of Introduction to Interactive Media course. Entailed:

1) supporting lead instructor’s educational content delivery during class time;

2) instructing the course during lead instructor’s absence;

3) instructing Macromedia Director to students;

4) reviewing and critiquing students’ interactive media projects.

June 1996 - August 1996

Interactive CD-rom Developer for Roaring Mouse Entertainment.

Developed ABC City educational CD-rom. Entailed:

1) pulling "ABC" related content from several CD-roms;

2) designing the user interface for the new ABC City CD-rom;

3) recoding Macromedia Director files to create a new single CD-rom containing preexisting "ABC" related content.

July 1996

Usability Analyst for Cloud 9 Interactive. Conducted usability testing on educational CD-roms. Entailed:

1) reviewing educational CD-roms for usability testing;

2) presenting interactive CD-rom content to each user (grammar

school pupil);

3) requesting users to accomplish various tasks with each CD-rom.

April 1996 - July 1996

Instructional/User Interface Designer for Learning System Sciences.

Developed corporate training text. Entailed:

1) serving as an information architect and technical writer to develop an instructional handbook.

February 1995 - April 1995

User Interface Designer for California State University, Northridge.

Collaborated in development of interactive student advisement system for the Psychology department. Entailed:

1) designing the user interface for the application;

2) prototyping the application in HyperCard.

September 1994 - May 1995

Instructor for California State University, Northridge. Instructed a seminar in Introductory Psychology. Entailed:

1) reviewing Introductory Psychology textbook;

2) developing of lectures and tests;

3) lecturing;

4) administering exercises;

5) grading students’ tests.

November 1994 - January 1995

User Interface Designer for Ayzenberg Design Group. Developed Cool-Cat CD-rom prototype. Entailed:

1) brainstorming user interface features for Cool Cat CD-rom;

2) prototyping the application in Macromedia Director.

May 1994 - August 1994

Graphic Designer for Steelman & Associates. Developed print media advertisements. Entailed:

1) compositing ads in QuarkExpress.

December 1993 - January 1994

User Interface Designer for Homer & Associates. Developed user interface design guidelines for the Magic School Bus: Explores the Solar System, a Scholastic/Microsoft educational CD-rom (my interface design guideline was used as the basis for developing the entire Magic Schoolbus CD-rom series and subsequent animated television series). Entailed:

1) reviewing of existing children's book, The Magic Schoolbus:

Explores The Solar System by Scholastic, Inc.;

2) reviewing existing Microsoft design recommendations for the

educational CD-rom;

3) developing user-interface design guidelines of the CD-rom's

educational content presentation, and interface style/look & feel.

PORTFOLIO

http://www.go.com http://www.abcnews.go.com http://www.espn.go.com http://www.movies.go.com http://www.disney.go.com http://www.answerfinancial.com http://www.sociaspot.com (coming soon)

Wireframe Samples - http://www.falsefrontinteractive.com/wireframesamples/

COMPUTER EXPERIENCE

PC/MAC: Dreamweaver, GoLive, Axure, Director, HyperCard, Premiere, Snag-It, Camtasia, Photoshop, InDesign, QuarkXpress, Visio, StudioPro, SoundEdit, Office, Excel, Project, etc…

PUBLICATIONS

Schreil, B. (2000, September). Designing the Optimal User Experience: The Role of Applied Experimental Psychology in Interactive Product Development. <http://www.smartbitsmag.com/Balazs1.html>.

Schreil, B. (1998, November). Seamless Integration: Educational Content Delivery in Entertaining Contexts. International Interactive Communications Society's Children's

Special Interest Group presentation.

SIGGRAPH '95. SIGKids '95 Panelist: Mathematics Animation at Rowland High School.

University of California, Los Angeles (1995). Panelist: Authoring Multimedia Applications: From Predevelopment to Prototype.

Kozel, K. (1995, August). Dealing With an In-Your-Face Interface. Multimedia Producer, 13- 14. [Consulted by the author about user interface best practices.]

Schreil, B. (1994). Animation of Mathematical Concepts at Rowland High School. Association for Computing Machinery's Special Interest Group: Computer Uses in Education's Outlook, 22(2), 40 - 41.

EDUCATION

MA: Human Factors/Applied Experimental Psychology

(focus: Human-Computer Interaction: educational applications)

California State University, Northridge.

Graduated: Spring 1996.

BA: (Cum Laude) Psychology

California State University, Northridge (rated #1 by the National Science Foundation).

Graduated: Spring 1990.

INTERESTS

Production, Creative Direction, Educational Technologies, Learner (User) Centered Design, System Conceptualization, Task Analysis, Use Cases, Flowcharting, Wireframing, Storyboarding, Information Architecture, User Experience Design, Rapid Prototyping, User Interface Design Guidelines, Documentation, Usability Testing, Authoring, Instruction (Psychology: Human Factors: Human-Computer Interaction), Instructional Design, Distance Learning, Corporate Training Course Development

LANGUAGES

English (fluent), Hungarian (fluent), Spanish (intermediate), German (beginner), French (beginner)

Addendum

As a Usability/Human Factors Engineer - Information Architect/User Experience Designer, I engage in task/requirements analysis, wireframing/storyboarding, prototyping, usability testing, creative direction, and production team management.

Applications are created to enable users to complete tasks. While using an application, users process the information that the user interface presents, make decisions, and take actions (input information and otherwise manipulate the software). At the beginning of the development process, a task/requirements analysis is conducted to understand who the users will be, for what purpose the system/software application will be used (what tasks users will complete with it), what information the application will entail (including information it will present to the user, and information the user will input), and how this information will be employed by the user while making decisions and actions to complete tasks. The information gained from this process is used to understand the interrelationships between how user interface elements will relate to each other to represent the functionality of the system and to enable the user to trigger this functionality. These interrelationships then have to be translated into design decisions. This is done through wireframing/storyboarding or prototyping.

During wireframing/storyboarding or prototyping, user interface elements are arranged so that they are conducive to the user processing all of the presented information, making decisions based on this information, taking actions and inputting information, and thus, completing all of the tasks. Yet, interface elements are laid out in a manner that is conducive to building the simplest and most elegant internal construct of the application’s user interface in the user. This internal construct is the mental map of the application. The better that relationships between decisions and actions are understood during the task/requirements analysis process, the better the arrangement between user interface elements can be achieved. The most optimal arrangement enables the user to accomplish the tasks in the most efficient manner possible, and results in the simplest and most elegant mental maps in users. The functional requirements for the development of the application are that the users are enabled to complete all of the tasks and that the application’s user interface afford the most elegant and simplest mental map for the user. This is the heart of the user-centered design process.

Before production can ensue, it is important to determine if the application enables the user to accomplish, in the simplest way possible, all of the tasks for which the application is designed. In other words, whether the functional requirements are filled. To determine this, the storyboards/prototype is usability tested.

Usability testing has to be planned. First, the requirements for usability test participation, the user characteristics, which were found during task/requirements analysis, are used to define the user population, and participants are then recruited for usability test participation based on the requirements. Second, the tasks defined during task/requirements analysis are arranged in the sequence that users would accomplish them outside of the testing scenario.

During the usability test (which is video recorded), participants are asked to complete the tasks, using the wireframes/storyboards/prototype, in the sequence in which they have been arranged. The problems the participants encounter during task completion are recorded and these findings are later used to redesign the wireframes/storyboards/prototype. The participants can also be asked for suggestions on how to improve the user interface and subjective measures, such as Likert scales to measure user satisfaction, can be presented to the participants.

The data collected during usability testing (i.e. error rates, task completion times, subjective ratings) are tabulated and depending on the testing methodology employed, statistical analysis of gathered data can be conducted. Task completion times can be compared to a previously set time requirement for each task, and if several competing versions of the application are developed, than competing performance measures can be also statistically compared. The wireframes/storyboards/prototype is then redesigned based on the findings of the usability test. A user interface design document is prepared to accompany the prototype. It describes system functionality and guides the development team through the prototype. The user interface design document includes the interaction diagram. The interaction diagram represents the sequence in which information will be presented through the user interface and possible user actions at each step of the interaction process.

Usability/Human Factors Engineering is part of an overall, multidisciplinary production process, where the Human Factors Engineer collaborates with software engineers, graphic artists, audio engineers, etc… to develop the ideal product. Ideally, these other professionals become involved in product development during its early stages and definitely by the wireframing/storyboarding process, where the sequence of user interface elements are arranged in relation to each other. The software engineer will need to understand the results of the task/requirements analysis and interpret the wireframe/storyboard/prototype with its accompanying user interface design guideline and interaction diagram in order to program the sequence of interactions that compose the application’s user interface. The graphic artist will need to ensure that the user interface design elements are suggestive of the functionality of the product. The Human Factors Engineer cooperates with both to ensure that all tasks are completely represented and that the user interface enables the user to accomplish all tasks in the most efficient and elegant manner possible. Tight collaboration is extremely important during wireframing/storyboarding/prototyping, during and after usability testing (where research findings are interpreted and turned into user interface design decisions), and during the production of the application. After usability testing, the Human Factors Engineer acts as a Creative Director, and ensures that the prototype, the user interface design document (including the interaction diagram) are correctly implemented by the multidisciplinary production team.

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