Tania Schlatter 121 Thorndike Street, Brookline, MA 02446 617.680.0058 | [email protected]
experience
November 2016-present User experience and interface design lead, IQSS, Harvard University Cambridge, MA • Lead the design of IQSS’ applications for academic researchers, including user research, usability testing, UX, feature, interaction and interface design. • Lead the team’s efforts establishing, maintaning, and communicating design standards to the open source community.
June 2014-present Independent UX designer and consultant Tania Schlatter Design Brookline, MA • • Lead all phases of design for interactive applications, including user research, concept development, prototyping, wireframing, information architecture, content planning, UI design, and testing using a user-centered approach. Oversee and review technical implementation. • Consult with design teams and technical partners to define UX strategy and approaches. • Estimate and manage project budgets and schedules. • Mentor junior designers. • Direct the design of printed publications. Clients include Stoltze Design, Harvard University Department of History, PixelSlam, political social media startup reASSEMBLE.co, and The Science Festival Alliance at MIT.
Fall 2011-present Part time faculty, thesis advisor Northeastern University Boston, MA • • Design and teach courses including Designing Infographics, Interactive Information Design 1&2 to graduate students pursuing a Master’s in Digital Media. • Serve as thesis advisor to graduate Digital Media students. • Teach Responsive Interaction Design to undergraduates pursing BFA and combined degrees in the College of Arts, Media & Design.
Spring 2013-2014 Graphic Design education consultant, College of Professional Studies, NU Boston, MA • Evaluated the undergraduate BS in Graphic Design for reaccreditation. • Redesigned the undergraduate BS in Graphic Design program.
June 2004-July 2015 Principal, Co-founder Nimble Partners Brookline, MA • • Promoted the firm’s work and approach via blog posts, speaking engagements and involvement in local and international UX community events. • Wrote and published Visual Usability: Principles and Practices for Designing Digital Applications with co-founder Deborah Levinson. • Led meetings with prospective clients and responded to requests for proposals, including budgeting time and resources. • • Collaborated with client teams and technical partners to define and implement strategies for designing or improving the user experience of digital applications. • Led the design of full and partial-scope client engagements for web and mobile applications using user-centered design methodology. Work included managing time and design resources, product definition, content strategy, IA, UI, visual design and/or direction, and style guide delivery. • Designed and conducted research including contextual inquiry, card sorts, interviews, and usability tests of websites, applications, paper, and digital prototypes to evaluate usability and desirability. Nimble Partners was a two-person+ user experience design firm that specialized in information-rich sites and complex web applications. Clients included over a dozen offic- es at MIT, Tufts University Advancement, non-profit start up Catapult (funded by the Gates Foundation), B2B application developers Burning Glass Technologies and Endeca Technologies, e-commerce company CafePress.com, Shoe Carnival, and housewares designers Umbra, Ltd.
1 February 2003-August 2004 Advisor, Publishing Services Bureau MIT Cambridge, MA • • Advised members of the MIT community on design and production of print and digital communications. • Reviewed and evaluated new and existing creative and production vendors. • Defined and promoted best practices for communication design and publishing at MIT. The PSB was a resource available to anyone at MIT. Advice ranged from helping graduate students promote their projects, to working with large departments to strategize and develop effective print and digital communications.
February 2002-October 2002 Design Lead, Manager, Professional Services UX Design Group ATG Cambridge, MA • • Developed and promoted ATG design service offerings. • Managed and mentored 6 design consultants working onsite and remotely. • Defined and communicated best practices for designing applications with ATG products. • Managed the design of working software demonstrations as part of the services sales cycle. Professional Services Design helped customers and ATG engineers, project managers, and salespeople create compelling online applications using ATG software. ATG products enabled the development of personalized, dynamic web applications.
July 1999-February 2002 Design Lead Art Technology Group Cambridge, MA • • Led interaction design and oversaw visual design and page production of dynamic web applications for external and internal clients, including ATG.com. • Designed, wrote, and produced ATG’s design methodology materials. Design Lead work included identifying user groups, writing scenarios, specifying features and defining them with the Technical Lead, writing the feature specification, defining page and information structures, and overseeing the design team in the creation and delivery of templates, prototypes, graphic, and UI designs, and presentation page code.
Summer 1998 Design Consultant Institute for Research on Learning Menlo Park, CA • • Investigated communication and interaction issues for PRIMES: Parents Rediscovering and Interacting with Mathematics and Engaging Schools. • Created a communication plan and prototypes for PRIMES materials: activity-based workshops, a web site, broadcast videos and advocacy guides. Responsibilities included primary and secondary research to define interactions, goals and methods for engaging parents with PRIMES materials. The plan and prototypes focused on providing consistent, useful and engaging materials to workshop facilitators and parents.
1995-97 Senior Designer Suffolk University Creative Services Boston, MA • • Led the design and production of marketing materials for development, graduate, and undergraduate admission offices. • Art Directed illustrators, photographers, writers, and junior designers. • • Managed project budgets and schedules. • • Designed Suffolk University’s first web site and site standards.
1992-95 Graphic Designer/Project Manager Shepard/Quraeshi Associates Brookline, MA • • Designed publications for educational and corporate clients. • Managed all aspects of production including vendors, scheduling, budget, and client contact. • Directed illustrators, photographers, and writers; supervised freelance designers and interns.
1991-92 Assistant Designer WGBH Design Boston, MA • • Designed and produced promotional materials for fundraising and educational outreach with senior designers.
1990-91 Graphic Designer PageWorks Cambridge, MA • • Produced textbooks, slide presentations, and technical diagrams in an electronic publishing environment.
2 speaking engagements
December 2016 Invited speaker, Harvard University IQSS. “Visual Usability”
October 2014 Invited speaker, Harvard University ABCD WWW. “Visual Usability”
February 2014 Invited speaker, ConveyUX, Seattle, WA. “Tips for Talking about Visual Design for UX”
August, 2013 Invited speaker, Institute of Design, Chicago, IL. “Metaprinciples for Designing Digital Interfaces”
July 2013 One-day tutorial, UXPA International conference, Washington, D.C. “Visual Usability: Visual Design Principles and Practices for Creating Great Web and Mobile Application Interfaces”
October 2013 Workshop for UXPA Boston, “Visual Design Principles and Practices for Creating Great Web and Mobile Apps”
2011 One-day seminar at the Boston ACM SIG CHI Professional Development Day, Waltham, MA, “Visual and User Interface Design Fundamentals for Web Applications”
2010 Usability Professionals’ Association Conference Waltham, MA, “Establishing Qualitative Criteria for IA and UX in One Fell Swoop: How to Conduct a Card Sort with Storytelling”
2009-2013 Guest Lecture at Tufts University School of Medicine Boston, MA “Design of Health-related Web Sites”
2003 Speaker and producer, MIT Communication Workshop, Cambridge, MA “Tips for Managing the Publication Process”
2000 Co-presenter, American Center for Design Living Surfaces Conference, Chicago, IL “A Day in the Life of an ‘Experience Designer‘“
2000 Presenter, New Media 2000 Conference, Toronto, Canada, “Sure it’s Usable, but is it Useful? Understanding the Role of Usability in User-Centered Design”
publication & recognition
July 2008-2014 Seen & Learned Blog (http://nimblepartners.blogspot.com)
May 2013 Schlatter, Tania, Levinson, Deborah, Visual Usability: Principles and Practices for Designing Digital Applications, Morgan Kaufman, 2013
January 2011 Gualtieri, Lisa “Secrets of Good Health Website Design” KevinMD.com. Last retrieved on 5.16.2016 (http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2011/01/secrets-good- health-website-design.html)
March 2010 DiMauro, Vanessa “Designing Web-Based Communities for Professionals” Building On Line Communities for Business Last retrieved on 5.16.2016 (http://www.leadernetworks. com/2010/03/designing-web-based-communities-for.html)
2003 Poggenpohl, Sharon “Future of Learning Workshop” Teaching Graphic Design NY, New York: Allworth Press, 2003. Graduate work featured pp. 216-225
2001 Graduate thesis work featured in Interactions magazine March/April issue, pp. 95-97
1997-99 Institute of Design Fellowship recipient
1997 Gold award for Suffolk University Undergraduate “Viewbook” from the 12th Annual Admissions Marketing Report
1996 Gold and Silver awards from the Center for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) for MIT’s “No Bull – Tips for Getting into College” and MIT’s undergraduate “Search” publications
1995 Work featured in HOW magazine’s 1996 Business Annual
1995 Excellence Award for MIT’s “No Bull – Tips for Getting into College” from the University and College Designers Association (UCDA)
1995 Admission materials for MIT featured in HOW magazine
1994 First Place honors for MIT “Viewbook” from the CASE Awards
3 professional activities
2015-2016 Participate as a speaker and discussion leader at UXPA Boston professional and career events
2012-2016 UXPA Boston Conference submission reviewer and attendee
2003-2013 AIGA Student Portfolio Reviewer
February 2011 IxDA (Interaction Design Association) Conference Attendee
2010 Information Architecture Summit Attendee
2009 ACM SIGCHI (Association for Computing Machinery Special Interest Group on Computer- Human Interaction) Conference Attendee
2009 User Interface 14 Conference Attendee
affiliations
2012-present Member, UXPA
2007-present Member, Interaction Design Association (IxDA)
2009-2013 Member, Information Architecture Institute
2000-2002 Co-chair, AIGA Boston Experience Design Community of Interest
1999-2002 Member of the American Center for Design
education
1999 Institute of Design Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, IL Master of Design in human-centered communication design (M.Des.) magna cum laude
1991 Yale University Summer Program in Graphic Design Brissago, Switzerland Intensive six-week course taught by international designers including Armin Hofmann, Paul Rand and Richard Sapper
1990 Boston University School for the Arts BFA major in graphic design, minor in art history, cum laude
skills
presenting, teaching, & On-ground and blended course design and delivery, syllabus creation, and student facilitation work evaluation at the undergraduate and graduate level Workshop creation & facilitation Presentation authoring and delivery
management Direct management of UX, UI, and visual designers including resourcing, mentoring, estimating, creative direction, and career path advising Client and project team leadership and management including scheduling and budgeting Oversight of UX and UI design implementation by remote technical development teams Design practice development and management Project management including scheduling, estimating, budgeting and tracking
design & research User experience design of interactive applications including information architecture, interaction, user interface, and visual design for a variety of technologies and devices Familiarity with designing and testing for 504 compliance and accessibility standards Primary (ethnographic, contextual inquiry, usability, participatory) and secondary research Design, development, and testing of paper and digital prototypes Design specification authoring: feature definition, use case development, storyboarding, and content planning Style guide development Creative direction and design of print and digital publications, infographics, communication systems, and identities Typography/typesetting Art direction of writers, designers, illustrators, and photographers
software Sketch, Adobe Creative Suite, Protoshare, Omni Graffle, InVision, Keynote, Microsoft Office, BBEdit, Google docs
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