Max Edelmann | 914.224.4026 | maxedelmann417@gmail.com | linkedin.com/in/maxedelmann

SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS

I am a UX Researcher with over six years of experience in commercial, academic, and clinical applications of human factors research. I have a background in collaborating directly with designers, management, and clinicians while advocating for the importance of data-driven research in the Human-Centered Design process. I also have established public speaking and leadership skills in both academic and industry settings. Most importantly, I am passionate about accessibility, improving quality of life, and faithfully conveying users' needs so that none are forgotten or misrepresented in product design and implementation.

I am proficient in User-Centered Research and Psychology Research Methods: Qualitative Research Specialist, Experience in Mixed Methods research methods, survey design, questionnaire design, data visualization, card sorting, moderated usability testing, AB testing, affinity mapping, user flow creation, accessibility design, data analysis, participatory co-design, and video storytelling.

I have strong research, creative, and prototyping skills with professional deliverables and coursework in: Usertesting.com, Userzoom, Adobe XD, SPSS, Premiere Pro, Tableau, Sketch, InDesign, Invision, Illustrator, Google Forms, Figma, Cubase 11, Qualtrics, Dscout.

EDUCATION

University of Washington, Seattle, WA
Master of Science, Human-Centered Design and Engineering (HCDE)

Awards: 2021 Graduate Award for Excellence in Technology

Purchase College, Purchase, NY
Bachelor of Arts, Psychology

Awards:  summa cum laude, Gloria Roth Award for Excellence in Science, Nancy Jo Abeles Merit Scholarship

RELEVANT EXPERIENCE

Senior UX Researcher, Adaptive Research Team - Expedia (via Bluehawk Consulting), Seattle, WA

05/2022 - present

  • Built a base of novel, foundational research examining how travelers use AI-powered language models in the travel planning process.

  • Handpicked to join an experimental horizontal research group in an agile environment, supporting each pillar of research if lacking the manpower or resources to conduct the optimal level of research. Our team saved Expedia over 400,000 dollars in less than a year by reducing the need for outsourcing via external research vendors. My work quality has resulted in multiple contract extensions

  • Created tutorials, guides, and presentations to assist research colleagues in learning creative software to assist in storytelling, highlight reels, video compilations, data synthesis, and video editing/special effects.

UX Research Generalist, Windows OS Team - Microsoft (via Collabera), Redmond, WA

03/2021 - 05/2022

  • Conducted a multitude of studies both in-person and remotely, moderated and unmoderated for the Window Operating System team during the COVID-19 pandemic. I explored pre-release features for Windows 11 in domains such as Multi-Monitor Displays, Tablet OS, Skype, and AI-Assistance before launch and provided user feedback in a fast-paced and highly condensed research timeline.

  • Created a research repository and published several literature reviews regarding ethical considerations for AI and data privacy in UX.

  • Extensive usage of online software in usability testing, surveying, and interviews due to the pandemic such as usertesting.com, Qualtrics, Dscout, and Userzoom. In report creation, usage of software such as Premiere Pro, Illustrator, XD, and Cubase Artist 11.

Student UX Researcher, HCDE - University of Washington, “Atlas” and “Parse”, Seattle, WA    

12/2019 - 12/2021

  • Our team partnered with Building H to address Mobility-as-a-Service, improve transportation in Seattle, and make public transit more attractive to reduce carbon emissions and reliance on personal vehicles. I also collaborated with a three-person team to design and plan an innovative virtual voice assistant for users with stuttering or other speech impediments utilizing iterative participatory co-design.

  • We used a variety of research methods such as contextual inquiry, moderated usability study, participatory co-design,  unmoderated usability study, user acceptance testing, and surveying.

  • I won the 2021 Graduate Award for Excellence in Technology in the UW HCDE Graduate Program for work on “Atlas”

UX Research Lead, Usability Studies Team, University of Washington, Seattle, WA

01/2020 - 03/2020

  • Partnered with Samsung to perform usability testing and competitive market analysis for their visual voicemail app redesign, which is expected to be released in Q1/2020

  • Served as research lead of a four-person team whose duties included recruiting participants, designing the usability study, moderating interviews, data analysis, and data interpretation, and also served as the liaison with client

  • Delivered a comprehensive usability study using both quantitative and qualitative measures including task efficiency, task completion rates, think-aloud protocol, a visual sorting task, and competitive market analysis

UX Research Lead & Prototyping, User-Centered Design Team, University of Washington, Seattle, WA

09/2019 - 12/2019

  • Served as research lead in a four-person team dedicated to creating a physical time management system and companion app. Also in charge of app prototyping using Adobe XD, Protopie, and Adobe Illustrator

  • Recruited participants, designed screening surveys, moderated user interviews, and analyzed data through SPSS. For prototyping, created a high-fidelity interactive app interface that was demonstrated in the project presentation

Senior Researcher, Purchase College, Purchase, NY

12/2015 - 06/2017

  • Completed an independent literature review, developed a research question based on the literature, designed an experiment, ran trials, coded and analyzed data using Matlab and SPSS, and completed a full independent thesis.

  • Presented as lecturer at SUNY Undergraduate Research Conference 2017 and Purchase College Natural Sciences Symposium 2017.

ADDITIONAL EXPERIENCE

Lead Data Analyst, Information Visualization Team, University of Washington, Seattle, WA

01/2020 – 03/2020

  • Served as a lead data analyst in a four-person team creating an interactive tool for comparing health care plans

  • Cleaned and analyzed a large dataset from the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services and assisted in creating an interactive map comparing healthcare plans between states using Tableau.

Research Assistant, Purchase College, Purchase, NY

12/2011 - 08/2012

  • Served in a five-person research team under a research mentor investigating experimental treatment for anxiety disorders which was later published and further investigated using fMRI

  • Ran trials involving both physiological and behavioral measures and assisted in data cleaning and analysis

Teaching Assistant, Research Methods I, Purchase College, Purchase, NY

01/2016 - 06/2016

  • Assisted in teaching Research Methods I, a required class for psychology students teaching experimental design, statistical analysis, and research ethics

  • Conducted study sessions in-person and remotely through Skype twice a week in addition to normal classes