experience design & scaling ux teams
Improving alignment, meaning, and connection for employees, customers, and brands
My super powers are setting up and scaling up UX teams (from processes and cross-team collaboration, to culture and POVs, to hiring new talent and measuring success) and simplifying big, complicated scenarios (updating legacy softwares, making big brand pivots, rolling out new tools, and strategic change management). Learn more about each below, or choose Reviews to hear what others have to say about working with me.
RATES
My process is a little different - I prefer to get to know your business, the unique challenges your team is facing, and how my skillset can best be applied before offering prices. We can do this one of three ways, outlined below.
Virtual Interview
Not to add one more Zoom meeting to your calendar, but if we're in different locations and time zones, this is an effective way to spend some time with you and learning about your current challenges.
In-Person Interview
If your location is close enough that I can be on-site, we all know the benefit of a firm handshake and face-to-face communication. And if you feel really strongly about an in-person first impression, I'm happy to make it happen!
Written Brief
Sometimes schedules and time zones won't align, and a written brief will do. I'll provide a template with the information I need to give an estimate, and you can write it in, send a video of your feedback, or a voice recording - whatever feels best for you.
Systems Thinking with Heart
As we move through our days, we encounter countless systems - either as an expert user, like the sales rep taking phone calls; or as a customer, trying to access information or products. These systems evolve the same way a species or a community group evolves, but with a lot less attention and care.
I see experience design encompassing any experience where a human encounters a system - this could be called user experience, customer experience, employee experience; it could show up in a physical environment or a digital interface.
The goal of experience design is to break down a big, complex system into its distinct parts and then optimize it for the humans involved - whether internal teams or external customers.
Strategic Growth Mindset
It's pretty widely acknowledged that UX is valuable, but companies often struggle to realize that value when they start hiring UX team members.
I understand how to coach HR, discipline leads, and executive teams in planning for a UX team and setting them up to succeed.
I also excel at building out team structures, roles and responsibilities, processes, cross-team collaboration models, and change management activities to help the UX team lean hard into their expertise and to teach the organization how to incorporate the UX team's skills in their day-to-day work.
JT Cobell
"Jess is a strategic thinker with a strong point of view on design. They work hard to understand the full scope of a system and find the root problems affecting it. They are a tireless advocate for users and pushes their teams to focus on the outcomes that matter. In the short time we worked together they made me feel welcome and supported."
Megan Campbell Gallaugher
"Jess and I got to work together on a project to revamp our homegrown sales order entry tool. They dedicated hours to learning not only how it was supposed to work, but the workarounds our agents had figured out in order solve the issues they regularly encountered. They never shied away from a complicated process or system and always took the time to draw it out and confirm with the user that their understanding was correct. In addition, they spoke the language of not only the sales agents but the developers working on the project. Their ability to translate what the sales floor and support teams needed (and wanted) to the developers working on the project were unmatched."
Audrey Quirk
"When it comes to human-centered strategy, Jess is a guiding light. They have an acute sense for what matters to people—from their team to their clients to the end users. In every conversation I’ve had with Jess, I’ve learned something new, often times about myself. Their presence alone can calm a room, and their insights bring clarity, accessibility, and impact to every project."