Audience Experience

Why is it that there are more boys/men in the growing fields of Science/Technology/Engineering/Math fields than women?  I know lots of cool (feminine) women who grow into self-confident, self-realized uber-nerds that most of us (men or women) only aspire to be in our wildest dreams.  It's a cool life, and frankly should be featured on more reality-shows and celebrity award statuettes. My personal experience is that of commonly being the only woman in a room full of developers.  Sometimes there are issues with it, sometimes not.  I'm sure there's a lot I miss and a lot I imagine.  Some of it has to do with the social ties that encourage team-building in the software development environment.  If you are good enough to bring value to the team, you are a welcome addition. As an additional caveat, a UX person sometimes comes in as an unwelcome interloper.  Someone who is asking for an extra step, and creating more work for the group.  If it's in ...

There are LOTS of definitions of "User Experience" as a field. And then also, LOTS of definitions in terms of expectations of what the job should entail.  Most companies don't have a "mature vision" of what to expect, or how to integrate the UX person into their larger product cycle. I was trained to look at the overall picture, always get input from the end-user and to keep in mind the business requirements.  Also, from the business POV, to keep in mind the ENTIRE Customer Experience within the overall process.  The customer clicks a buy button online, but every interaction with the brand prior to that is a huge influence.  The abandonment rate does not exist only online. When you hear about "growing job opportunities" within the UX field, most are for short term contracts described below. Note to the beginning UX'er: BEWARE!! Quoting from an email on a (closed) UX professionals listserv: "Sadly, the majority of companies here stil...