Michael DeVries
Senior Managing Scientist at Exponent- Claim this Profile
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Bio
Harry Zhang
I had the pleasuring working with Michael for 5 years at Apollo. In his early days at Apollo, he was a Sr. User Experience Researcher running usability studies and brainstorm sessions. Within a year, he got promoted to the Research Manager position at Apollo overseeing the strategic growth of UX research at Apollo. He spearheaded the effort to design the new world-class research lab that became a must-have destination for internal and external visitors and dignitaries. He brought in vendors to help on research projects that cannot be handled with in-house resources. The color-coded Excel spreadsheet was his
Jody Miller-Smith
Michael has been an exceptional partner to work with over the past five years at the University. Initially he and I worked closely on creating processes that helped identify and quantify potential student (user) experience optimizations for the Phoenix.edu website that led to site enhancements and better understanding of the user's motivations and desire to attend UOPX. More recently we partnered to conduct preliminary market and experience research for a new program product line for the University. Working closely we conducted competitive analysis, field tested prototypes and gained valuable insights that helped shape the strategic direction of the product. Michael is one of those rare individuals who understands both the technical as well as the business side of an approach. His ability to focus on the details to create actionable data and recommendations that are clearly communicated and understood is incredibly valuable to any organization.
Harry Zhang
I had the pleasuring working with Michael for 5 years at Apollo. In his early days at Apollo, he was a Sr. User Experience Researcher running usability studies and brainstorm sessions. Within a year, he got promoted to the Research Manager position at Apollo overseeing the strategic growth of UX research at Apollo. He spearheaded the effort to design the new world-class research lab that became a must-have destination for internal and external visitors and dignitaries. He brought in vendors to help on research projects that cannot be handled with in-house resources. The color-coded Excel spreadsheet was his
Jody Miller-Smith
Michael has been an exceptional partner to work with over the past five years at the University. Initially he and I worked closely on creating processes that helped identify and quantify potential student (user) experience optimizations for the Phoenix.edu website that led to site enhancements and better understanding of the user's motivations and desire to attend UOPX. More recently we partnered to conduct preliminary market and experience research for a new program product line for the University. Working closely we conducted competitive analysis, field tested prototypes and gained valuable insights that helped shape the strategic direction of the product. Michael is one of those rare individuals who understands both the technical as well as the business side of an approach. His ability to focus on the details to create actionable data and recommendations that are clearly communicated and understood is incredibly valuable to any organization.
Harry Zhang
I had the pleasuring working with Michael for 5 years at Apollo. In his early days at Apollo, he was a Sr. User Experience Researcher running usability studies and brainstorm sessions. Within a year, he got promoted to the Research Manager position at Apollo overseeing the strategic growth of UX research at Apollo. He spearheaded the effort to design the new world-class research lab that became a must-have destination for internal and external visitors and dignitaries. He brought in vendors to help on research projects that cannot be handled with in-house resources. The color-coded Excel spreadsheet was his
Jody Miller-Smith
Michael has been an exceptional partner to work with over the past five years at the University. Initially he and I worked closely on creating processes that helped identify and quantify potential student (user) experience optimizations for the Phoenix.edu website that led to site enhancements and better understanding of the user's motivations and desire to attend UOPX. More recently we partnered to conduct preliminary market and experience research for a new program product line for the University. Working closely we conducted competitive analysis, field tested prototypes and gained valuable insights that helped shape the strategic direction of the product. Michael is one of those rare individuals who understands both the technical as well as the business side of an approach. His ability to focus on the details to create actionable data and recommendations that are clearly communicated and understood is incredibly valuable to any organization.
Harry Zhang
I had the pleasuring working with Michael for 5 years at Apollo. In his early days at Apollo, he was a Sr. User Experience Researcher running usability studies and brainstorm sessions. Within a year, he got promoted to the Research Manager position at Apollo overseeing the strategic growth of UX research at Apollo. He spearheaded the effort to design the new world-class research lab that became a must-have destination for internal and external visitors and dignitaries. He brought in vendors to help on research projects that cannot be handled with in-house resources. The color-coded Excel spreadsheet was his
Jody Miller-Smith
Michael has been an exceptional partner to work with over the past five years at the University. Initially he and I worked closely on creating processes that helped identify and quantify potential student (user) experience optimizations for the Phoenix.edu website that led to site enhancements and better understanding of the user's motivations and desire to attend UOPX. More recently we partnered to conduct preliminary market and experience research for a new program product line for the University. Working closely we conducted competitive analysis, field tested prototypes and gained valuable insights that helped shape the strategic direction of the product. Michael is one of those rare individuals who understands both the technical as well as the business side of an approach. His ability to focus on the details to create actionable data and recommendations that are clearly communicated and understood is incredibly valuable to any organization.
Experience
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Exponent
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United States
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Business Consulting and Services
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700 & Above Employee
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Senior Managing Scientist
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Mar 2023 - Present
As Senior Managing Scientist:- Continue to grow product development research at all phases of the product development lifecycle- Work with companies to optimize research to fit their specific needs with both standardized and unique research methods that gather the data they need in support of their products user experience and greater company needs- Support a growing team that focuses on Qualitative UX and Medical Device research- Act as an umbrella point of contact that pulls together many different skill sets, including those outside of UX and HF, to provide research that answers UX questions- Continue to expand our Centers of Scientific User Research (CSUR), previously the Phoenix User Research Center (PURC), both in Phoenix and across the US
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Managing Scientist, Human Factors
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Jul 2016 - Mar 2023
While @ Exponent:- Launch my fourth HF/UX lab: Phoenix User Research Center (PURC)- Grow product development research- Expand research capabilities into warnings and vehicle domains- Support a wide variety of research efforts nationally and internationally- Continue to grow PURC utilization, marketing, business strategy, and research integration with other Exponent practices
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Apollo Education Group
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United States
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Higher Education
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700 & Above Employee
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UX Interim Director, Research Manager, and Sr. Researcher
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Jul 2011 - Mar 2016
UX Interim Director - Managed team of 12 Researchers and Designers - Developed and facilitated vision, strategy, and objectives - Ensured delivery of work to timeline and quality expectations - Supported management with various tasks such as budgeting and headcount estimation UX Research Manager - Managed a team of up to 5 researchers and additional contractors - Developed vision, strategy, and objectives - Designed the User Experience Center usability lab space (high tech usability and design space) - Co-created a User Experience Map that tells the story of the end-to-end faculty and student experience. The map acts as a decision support system for identifying issues across the ecosystem that need the most user experience attention - Developed growing relationships with many team including Product, Analytics, Accessibility, Customer Support, executive leadership, and many other functional groups Sr. UX Researcher - Planned and executed usability studies and ideation sessions - Initiate new and standard processes into the research program including recruiting, reporting, project intake, research completion cycles (reduced from average of 5 weeks to 3 weeks, with delivery of core data by the end of 2 weeks).
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User Experience Engineer - Consultant
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Mar 2010 - Dec 2010
Consulted for IBM on card sort research aimed as simplifying navigation to content on a complex set of intranet sites. Also conducted a benchmark usability study on the sites for comparison against a prototype design solution. Work also included a web standards and usability heuristic evaluation and smaller design tasks. Consulted for Physicians Mutual on heuristic evaluations, defining design best practices for aged population, and conducting usability studies for the My Account section of the site. Activities included 1) evaluating the functional prototype of My Account pages 2) recommending redesigns at the screen element and page design levels, and 3) summative usability research to measure usability issues and overall user experience. Work also involved day to day consulting about user experience issues, contributions to functional requirements, and presenting the importance of user experience to non-user experience groups.
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Sprint
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United States
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Telecommunications
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700 & Above Employee
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Human Factors Engineer
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Nov 2000 - Feb 2010
Led the Competitive User Experience Program, including managing interns. Evaluations provided competitive strengths against which designers, project managers, and other internal stakeholders could weigh business decisions and design implications. Products analyzed included Apple iPhone, Palm Pre, Samsung Instinct, HTC G1, LG Voyager, Danger Sidekick, Windows Mobile OS, and Sprint One Click. Accomplishments include: • Implemented a competitive user experience program that serviced over 20 competency groups including product, marketing, business intelligence, sales. • Provided over 150 evaluation reports on an extensive range of products and services, directly impacting design, product usability, strategy, legal actions, advertising, and end-user experiences. • Developed a method of heuristically measuring product usability and used it to consistently predict 80% of the usability issues found in studies.
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Human Factors Engineer and sole proprietor
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Jul 1998 - Aug 2000
Guided companies in various aspects of user-centered design and usability testing, including field behavior observation and detailed design reviews. • Consultant to Storage Technologies, Inc: Introduced user-centered design approach and usability testing into the company's design strategy on an internationally collaborative project, resulting in a tighter integration between specifications and user interface design. • Consultant to Trane Company: Integrated ideation and behavior based research methodologies into focus group sessions, providing support for company product line decisions when both time and funding were limited.
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Human Factors Engineer
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1996 - 1998
Performed a variety of usability duties that spanned different products, including consumer desktop scanners, test and measurement equipment, web sites, computer applications, and hardware installations. Responsible for all aspects of usability testing, data analysis, and reporting. • Served as consultant on end-to-end usability for 1st generation hand held scanner, resulting in co-author of 10 patents. Several patent designs are still in use on products today. • Designed a usability lab, enabling the company to more accurately measure a greater range of human behavior and eliminating lab rentals.
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Human Factors Engineer
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1995 - 1995
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