Julie Nowicki              

Professional Resume

Overview

Julie is a entrepreneurial leader who is especially effective in balancing the needs of customers, employees, and stakeholders. She is a people‑oriented manager who successfully directs multiple organizational functions, with experience in a wide range of industries, including professional services, high-tech, manufacturing, financial, medical instrumentation, and non‑profit.

• Builds a shared vision
• Maintains a customer focus
• Ensures staff professional development and develops investment in talent
• Emphasizes effective use of technology to serve customers, stakeholders, and employees
• Creates buy-in: dynamic presenter and educator
• Manages change with integrity, during rapid growth and organizational challenges

Summary

Non-Profit

•  President, The Grey Muzzle Organization
• Certificate in Non-Profit Management, University of Illinois-Chicago
• 2 years volunteer for OldDog Haven: dog foster, fundraising, technology
• 2 years on board of Usability Professionals' Association
• Consulting for non-profit organizations

Business Management

• Seven years management with financial responsibility 
• Owned 13-person consulting business for three years

Customer Research

• M.S. Human Factors, University of Massachusetts-Amherst 
• 17 years experience in customer research, including market research and user research

Program and Project Management

• Certificate in Project Management, University of Wisconsin
• 12 years experience

Technology

• B.S. Computer Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison
• 13 years of software design and development experience as a programmer, analyst, database manager, and project manager

History

President, The Grey Muzzle Organization
February 2008 - present
Raleigh, NC

• Founded this non-profit organization that makes grants to shelters and rescues for programs that help homeless senior dogs
• Conducted interviews for a needs assessment and wrote report, Old Dogs and Animal Shelters
• Conducted survey research for feasiblity study and wrote report 
• Recruited Board of Directors and Advisory Board
• Completed IRS 1023 application for 501(c)(3) status and recieved approval in three months
• Develop grant process and applications
• Develop marketing materials and website
• Manage writer, graphic designer, and volunteers
• Setup and manage bookkeeping system. Working with Treasurer, ensure financial integrity

 Volunteer, OldDog Haven

March 2006 - May 2008
Arlington, Washington

• Foster home for a dozen senior dogs. Provided hospice for two of these dogs, who were too old or ill to be placed in adoptive homes
• Volunteer of the month three times
• Organized fundraising and wrote fundraising plan for 2006. Created, edited, and published a very successful new electronic newsletter for OldDog Haven. Increased Microsoft employee donations from three digits in 2005 to five digits in 2006 and doubled again in 2007
• Developed technology solutions, including an online donor management database that can be used by volunteers at multiple locations

Program Manager and User Research Lead, Microsoft

June 2003- May 2008
Redmond, Washington

• Created a new support tool for Windows Vista, the Enterprise Learning Framework, which allows large companies to quickly put together an employee training plan for Windows. Over 18 months, managed the requirements, design, and development of this product. Assembled a cross-division team to create the concept and design, and managed prototype and product development
• Managed the new generation of the Windows Feedback Panel, a program for customers to provide input on Windows, increasing the panel's scope and visibility
• Conducted an 18-month body of customer research on employee learning that changed some commonly-held perceptions of how employees at large companies learn. Several research techniques, including individual interviews, a survey, and card sorting, revealed patterns that provided guidance on individual differences in learning and the best delivery mechanisms for training at large companies
• Designed and conducted joint research projects with some of Microsoft's largest customers. Specified goals and data collection methods: individual interviews, usability testing, and ethnography. Managed execution of ongoing data collection by several other researchers. Concise research reports via e-mail and web site influenced the direction of key features, and were used across Microsoft including at the executive level
• Developed a 1.5 day program for the 2005 MVP (Most Valuable Professional) conference that placed less emphasis on formal presentations and more emphasis on one-on-one and small group interaction between Microsoft employees and MVPs. 10 of the 11 breakout sessions received 100% "top box" satisfaction ratings from 80+ MVPs
• Created a research report format that was selected for the Microsoft corporate Engineering Excellence Handbook
• Served one year on the Windows Division Diversity Council

President, Optavia Corporation   

October 1999 – December 2002
Madison, Wisconsin

• Created and implemented the start-up business plan for this consultancy. Defined professional service offerings that helped clients design usable technology
• Provided client engagement management, winning multi-year relationships with Fortune 100 companies such as Kraft Foods and GE Medical Systems. Other key clients: VISA, State Bar of Wisconsin, Wisconsin Department of Tourism, World Resources Institute
• Directed efforts of three sales people and developed sales forecasting model. Guided creation of national marketing plan, working with sales manager and marketing. Led proposal development and ensured proposal quality
• Delivered highly-rated presentations at national conferences nationwide, generating 50% of new business
• Created a team staffing model that included multiple disciplines on most projects (technical, usability, graphic design, project management, communication)
• Built and managed a professional development program for usability professionals that was also adopted by a major client. Highly respected for professional mentoring
• Grew staff to 13 in first year and later managed economic restructuring while sustaining solid personnel and business relationships
• Built a national network of consultants, including former employees, developing long-term relationships with specialist contractors across the country
• Operations management including effective use of vendors for human resources, legal, accounting, and technical functions
• Developed and managed budgets up to $1.2M per year within 5-10%. Built initial accounting structure and ensured on-going quality of financial reports
• For a large non-profit client, developed an actionable three-year web strategic plan addressing organizational priorities and constraints. Facilitated brainstorming sessions with influential members. Managed client staff during the first phase (6 months) of the next-generation web site project. Mentored staff on techniques to develop deeper relationships with their constituents
• Provided creative meeting facilitation for client problem-solving, involving executives, stakeholders from multiple departments and levels, and customers
• Managed orderly closing of the company while maintaining good business relationships

Usability Services Manager, Compuware Corporation

October 1994 – October 1999   
Madison, Wisconsin

• Founded and managed the usability services practice that became a national Center of Excellence for this $2B consulting company. Wrote the corporate-level business plan
• P&L responsibility for the practice. Grew revenue 219%, 318%, and 206% respectively in 2nd, 3rd and 4th years. 4th year revenue was $1M

• Wrote key proposals and managed proposal process. Developed an innovative mini‑proposal concept that was widely appreciated by clients

• Defined job levels and descriptions for usability professionals. Hired staff and managed on‑going professional development for a 13-person staff. Zero staff attrition in three years

• Provided mentoring for new and experienced consultants, and developed and delivered an in-house training program for the practice area. Several branches invested in the program
• Produced curriculum and materials for a 3-day course: The Process of User Interface Design. Over several years adapted the course for software and web design. Course and process were purchased by two large IT organizations and are still in use. Delivered the course personally over a dozen times and trained other instructors
• Successfully developed and implemented customized processes based on best practices. Developed technology standards for one client that increased productivity 3-10 times and are still being used six years later as the model for success
• Managed design, implementation, and deployment of a tri-state expense system for thousands of employees of a multi-state energy client. Facilitated user-centered design methods, including cross-department employee participation in workflow analysis, resulting in reduced project risk and uncommonly low level of help desk calls

More...

1993 – 1994, Staff Consultant, Keane, Wisconsin

1993 - 1993, Staff Consultant, CSC Partners, Minnesota

1990 – 1991, Project Leader and Senior Software Engineer, Pitney Bowes, Connecticut

1988 – 1990, Senior Software Engineer, PPG Biomedical Systems, New York

1985 – 1988, Database Manager, Mattson Instruments, Wisconsin

Education

2007: Certificate in Non-Profit Management, University of Illinois-Chicago

1998: Certificate in Project Management, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Executive Education

1993: M.S. Industrial Engineering/Human Factors, University of Massachusetts-Amherst

1985: B.S. Computer Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Publications

Learning Windows Vista in the Workplace, Julie Nowicki, Microsoft Corporation Whitepaper (2006)

Beyond Compliance: Bringing the Human Aspect to Accessibility Evaluation. Cory Knobel, Julie Nowicki, and Beverly Arnoldy, Proceedings of the Usability Professionals’ Association 11th Annual Conference (2002)

Seeing through the organization: Overcoming roadblocks to usability services development, Julie R. Nowicki and Shawn Lawton Henry, Proceedings of the Usability Professionals' Association 6th Annual Conference (1997)

Individual Differences in Processing Strategy for a Bargraph Display, Julie R. Nowicki and Bruce G. Coury, Proceedings of the Human Factors Society 37th Annual Meeting (1993)