Aletheia D.

Experience

• 

  University of Waterloo

  Jun 2010 - Sept 2010

  Scientific Illustrator for Dr. Carol Peterson
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  Rogers Media

  Jan 2012 - Jan 2014

  Producer

  ‣ Strategic valorisation of interdisciplinary science and technology research funded by the Government of Canada‣ Project management: film crew, interview schedule, liaison with media, production, social media and communications strategy‣ Exploratory missions: conducted over 100+ semi-structured interviews with scientists, graduate students, farmers, astronauts, and librarians for production‣ Collaborative partnership building with research groups, universities and local community actors Show less

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  University of Waterloo

  Jan 2014 - Jan 2016

  E-Learning

  Department of French Studies | Centre of Excellence for Learning

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  European Commission

  May 2017 - Sept 2017

  Policy Analyst | EdTech Industry

  ‣ Advised senior management on innovative practices in EdTech across Member States.‣ Conducted research, synthesized MS contributions, and supported the design aspects (sculpture, web, murals decals, sketches) of an international ministerial summit.‣ Drafted briefings, flash reports and speeches for senior officials (Commissioner, Director General, and Deputy Director). ‣ Improved quality of internal guidelines on Commission impact assessment protocols.‣ Assisted in content editing and strategy for annual Education & Technology flagship report. Show less

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  International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP-UNESCO)

  Feb 2018 - Sept 2019

  IIEP-UNESCO's new "Cities and Education 2030" Research programme (2018-21) was launched with the objective of examining the role of cities and local communities in co-designing quality education systems.‣ Contributed to the design of research frameworks and international surveys.‣ Conducted in-depth ethnographic interviews with governments, businesses and local community actors.‣ Designed infographics summarizing research data, supporting the alignment of SDGs and Member State reforms.‣ Authored and edited various communications (long reports, concept notes, blog posts) on IIEP-UNESCO research. ‣ Presented key research findings and policy recommendations through web articles and flagship reports.‣ Drafted the information architecture and concept note of an upcoming book on education management. Show less ‣ Assisted in the new content strategy, web re-design, and information architecture of two (FR/EN) virtual campuses used for IIEP's in-person training programmes.‣ Script writing, video production, web editing, technical support, research, literature review, facilitating group sessions and debates, managing online collaborative tools and forums.‣ Conducted research and presented pitch to policy planners on use of novel technological solutions to improve sanitation and girls' education in developing countries.‣ Contributed to steering committees on foresight trends in education management. Show less

  • Research & Design

    Feb 2018 - Sept 2019

  • Research and Learning experience design

    Feb 2018 - Apr 2018
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  ENA - Ecole nationale d'administration

  Apr 2018 - Sept 2018

  Learning Design and Communications

  ENA (French National School of Administration) is a public service that operates under the mandate of the Prime Minister’s Services. ‣ Designed new content for behaviour-based testing and implemented back-end changes to web modules.‣ Conducted quantitative benchmark analysis of Member State performance at EU open competitions.‣ Created infographics and web promotion materials.‣ Drafted communications and briefings related to diplomatic visits or strategic messages.‣ Represented ENA in multilateral francophone cooperation events and partnerships.‣ Conducted commercial prospection and cost-benefit analyses for various organizational needs. Show less

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  Alcimed

  Aug 2019 - Jun 2020

  Innovation Strategy and Design Consultant, Public Sector

  Industries I'm involved with:Digital Innovation, Education, Public Policy, Health, Medtech, AccessibilitySelected experience:‣ Service design: using research insights from stakeholder interviews to build a value proposition and a viable business model for an Open Innovation Living Lab dedicated to start-ups building technologies and products for aging populations.‣ Key contributor to defining our business unit's overarching strategy and value proposition to support the emergence of European Digital Innovation Hubs across France.‣ Evaluated hospitals' RDI proposals to commercialize disruptive technologies aimed at improving diagnostic practices for healthcare professionals.‣ Piloted the launch of an experimental higher ed program aimed at helping early school leavers and disadvantaged youth, developed and managed >40 partnerships from a wide range of sectors (government, EdTech, sport, culinary arts, coaching, military, start-ups, science associations, etc.)‣ Prototyped client archetypes and tested a pilot business development strategy for a Circular Economy corporate trainings catalogue. Show less

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  BrainStation

  Jun 2020 - Sept 2020

  User Experience Design & Research Fellow

  - 2020 Ernst & Young Women in Technology Scholarship recipient- Collaborate with corporate partner EY to prototype, iterate and test designs within an interdisciplinary team to validate design directions and create a range of mid- to high-fidelity mock-ups.- Plan and conduct usability tests with healthcare professionals and caretakers to craft personalized virtual reminiscence therapy experiences for persons with dementia.- Execute secondary research, semi-structured interviews, and qualitative data analysis to identify opportunities in the design of a novel mobile application platform influencing city-dwelling millennials to act against food waste.- Perform heuristic analysis of various corporate websites and card sort to restructure information hierarchy. Show less

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  AlphaPlus (also known as AlphaPlus Centre)

  Sept 2020 - Mar 2024

  Equipping adult literacy instructors and administrators with critical digital literacy skills through development and delivery of trainings and interactive workshops.Facilitating service design and participatory design approaches to program evaluation in a new technology program for seniors in Hamilton, Ontario.Participating in advisory committees to bring a human-centred and service design lens to the Ontario government's roadmap for the digital transformation of the Literacy and Basic Skills field.Bridging international researchers into our design work around personas, adult learner journey maps and experience mapping, and socializing our partnerships. Show less Spearheading participatory change design within learning organizations (English, French, Deaf communities) through a new UX and service design-informed model. Facilitating conversations, coaching, and championing reflective practice around teaching and learning strategies. Building and testing a service prototype for a digital inclusion toolkit, while advising on distribution channels within the ecosystem. Recruiting, interviewing, defining procurement process and selecting vendors for website development and design projects in the literacy sector. Leading and growing AlphaPlus' partnerships with World Education USA, ISTE Skill Rise, Endeavour Consulting and other regional literacy networks. Show less Championing the exploration of a UX research and service design approach (workshops, service blueprints, experience journey mapping) to reimagine organizational challenges and co-design opportunities. Researching and developing coaching resources on key trends in instructional design and digital training, delivering insights on how these affect AlphaPlus’ organizational planning and service delivery.Drive web redesign and development project: designing procurement process, defining criteria and evaluating vendor proposals.Develop website training programs for nonprofit literacy programs, following branding kits and WCAG 2.1 AA guidelines.Lead communications newsletter campaigns and responsible for implementing digital growth strategy. Building AlphaPlus YouTube channel as a bilingual library with tech tutorials for teachers during the Covid pivot to remote, receiving 100% positive response rate from ~20 users surveyed qualitatively. Show less AlphaPlus supports Ontario's 290+ LBS programs to deliver on digital literacy and basic skills for adult learners. Our mandate covers 4 key communities: Indigenous, Deaf, Francophone and Anglophone.Streamline and disseminate research on case studies around innovative remote learning strategies to drive action-oriented discussions among constituents and high-impact stakeholders. Build communities of practice to increase year-over-year technology readiness and build confidence among teachers. Plan participatory design workshops to build internal capacity and draw unique insights that feed directly into organizational strategic planning. Champion the inclusive integration of web design guidelines, online teaching and learning tools and strategies to help programs meet the province's accessibility standards and to address learner needs. Drive communications strategy around AlphaPlus' activities in advocacy, OERs, tech insights and adult learning practices to strengthen community engagement and the organization's leadership in the field.Adult Education | Blended Learning | Digital Literacy | E-learning | Learning Experience Design | Instructional Design Show less

  • Organizational Development Specialist - Service Design

    Mar 2022 - Mar 2024

  • Organizational Development Consultant - EdTech

    Jun 2021 - Mar 2022

  • Organizational Development Consultant - Learning Design, Partnerships & Growth

    Apr 2021 - Nov 2021

  • Organizational Development Associate II - Education and Technology

    Dec 2020 - Mar 2021

  • Organizational Development Associate - Education and Technology

    Sept 2020 - Dec 2020
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  Chiefly

  Nov 2020 - Mar 2021

  UX/UI Designer

  Designing user flows for Chiefly’s first MVP web application to quantify leadership development progress for tech companies. Working with PM, development team and AI team to visualize and ideate ML features for implementation to interface. Write user stories that align with user research, delivering maximum impact for coaches and their clients. Wireframing and prototyping at mid-fidelity. Web development on no-code platform.Leveraging AI/ML, computer vision, sentiment analysis, audio and video. Show less

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  Rumie

  Feb 2021 - Nov 2021

  Learning Designer

  The Rumie Initiative is a non-profit tech organization that uses innovative technology, to provide communities around the world, in particular, those with little or no Internet connectivity, with access to the latest and best learning content available online and with the vision of a world where everyone has equal access to learning. Their mission is to mobilize the power of collaboration to improve access to quality digital learning resources. Rumie’s approach begins with the LearnCloud - an online repository of high quality, digital, educational content which is crowdsourced by educators and other passionate volunteers in different languages and for different contexts. Rumie then works with local on-the-ground program partners around the world who choose the learning material that is most appropriate for their unique context and load that content onto the specialized Rumie Tablet or any personal Android device via the Rumie App for offline use.Today, Rumie is active in more than twenty countries, working with partners like UNICEF, Junior Achievement and Kepler to transform education for underserved youth. Rumie is backed by the Silicon Valley accelerator that also produced Airbnb and Dropbox (Y-Combinator), is based at Canada’s #1 incubator (DMZ), and won the Google Canada Impact Challenge in 2017. An in-depth Harvard Business School case study on the Rumie model is now taught around the world.As a Learning Designer, my responsibilities include:1. Crafting "byte"-sized micro-learning modules on an innovative mobile-first, open access learning platform. 2. Planning, researching, designing, and authoring microlearning experiences through a blend of instructional design and social media mechanics to drive learner engagement and retention. 3. Contributing to the peer review process in agile sprints and offering suggestions to shape Rumie's evolving content strategy. Show less

• 

  Government of Canada

  Jun 2021 - Apr 2022

  Design Manager - UX

  - Leading a new bilingual (French/English) Design team within government, shaping its operations and its culture by defining new processes around organizational development, design practice, UX career management, and hiring strategy- Partner with senior management to influence product strategy and user experience of a new digital interface bridging the School's learning experience platform to an intuitive, easy-to-browse ecosystem of learning products, used by ~300,000 federal public servants- Oversee the collaborative design of the learning product interface, liaising regularly with international vendors, PMs and developers to ensure implementation according to agreed-upon requirements, timeline, and design specifications- Develop a DesignOps strategy to amplify Design's value and impact at scale—aligning our people, processes and craft to deliver on a growing and evolving design team in government- Pilot multi-stakeholder design reviews with representatives across both Research and Accessibility teams, establishing a more open, cross-collaborative design culture resulting in improved UX outcomes- Through service design activities and prototyping, contribute to socializing a streamlined process that optimizes the quality of learning products developed at the School- Support research activities including setting and running usability tests in English and French, extracting key insights to inform the design work with particular attention to user needs around accessibility and official languages- Step in as a lead individual contributor (IC): designing, creating screenflows, wireframing and prototyping a new learning interface for desktop and mobile — where possible, testing and contributing new, effective UI patterns to the canada.ca design system Show less

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  Ceridian

  Apr 2022 - Jan 2023

  Design Ops, Program Manager - Design System and Accessibility

  - Building collaborative partnerships and community around the design system at Ceridian with Design, Engineering and Product partners- Elevating our design practices, workflows and culture for an org of ~60 multidisciplinary UXers (product designers, UX researchers, design ops specialists, accessibility design leads, visual designers)- Partnering with executives, design leadership and teams to define and measure success for Ceridian’s first design system, Everest- Operationalized Everest’s first intake process for over 1500+ stakeholders across Product and Technology- Shaped information architecture and defined content strategy for our first internal design system doc site- Scaling adoption models, design system governance, intake, champion programs for Everest across product teams, creating bridges with stakeholders across Ceridian- Creating Ceridian’s new Product equity and inclusion program, focusing on: accessible technology, ethical research, equitable product decisions and diverse, inclusive teams- Supporting hiring and recruiting the best talent for Ceridian’s growing Design org Show less

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  Zapier

  Jan 2023 - Jan 2025

  I manage an all-star operations team (creative producers and program managers) across Brand Studio, Product Design, and Product Management. Together we make up the operating system that enables teams to craft products and brand experiences that customers love.• Designed Zapier’s first-ever “Walk the Park” quality audit program, focused on identifying paper cuts and low-quality issues across our end-to-end product experience.• Launched inaugural Customer Love Sprint with 100+ improvements to our product suite featured in a big marketing campaign "Happy Zapping!"• Established standard planning deliverables for 27 squads (Engineering, Product, Design) and 3 executives, cutting out >100 hours of cognitive load while increasing cross-team visibility into shared dependencies ahead of the curve.• Operationalized Rhythm of Business to capture our rituals across Design & Product, leading to more predictable communications and planning cycles.• Implemented Design Leadership Critiques to review designers’ work on a weekly cadence, aligning on quality bar, identifying systems-level candidates and promoting cross-design visibility of work in flight.• Redesigned onboarding for new Product & Design hires to incorporate our Build Operating Principles within the first 4 weeks at Zapier: building customer connections, product literacy, and shipping• Set up the framework for our design leadership team to process culture survey insights, driving action items and KRs.Things I’ve built with Zapier automation platform & AI:↘️ A weekly Monday standup bot in Slack using Zapier brand colors to form message attachments↘️ A weekly Friday watercooler bot in Slack with non-repeatable randomized questions↘️ Send user feedback to a table via a reacji, using AI to generate a synthesis of the insight↘️ Notify me of Figma seat upgrade requests, automatically documenting rationale in GSheets, Coda and Slack↘️ Personalized onboarding chatbots for new hires based on manager ReadMe’s Show less Lead the Design Ops team at Zapier, elevating our practices and processes across the Product design org as well as our Brand Studio team to enable our people to do their best work. Supporting our mission to make no-code automation more accessible for everyone.• Set up the framework for our design leadership team to process culture survey insights, driving action items and KRs.• Support OKR planning, documentation, and core milestone deliverables for our design system and product design language.• Champion our Design roundtables and monthly design roundup newsletters across Build and GTM orgs, effectively templatized how the design org communicates monthly updates on product vision.• Leveraging automation to power tool management and governance for Figma & FigJam provisioning, owning communications around usage across our company and supporting IT Operations.• Organized, drove and facilitated a Design offsite for the org, focusing on knowledge exchange, guest speakers, team-building, and product literacy. Show less

  • Manager, Design Operations and Product Operations

    Apr 2024 - Jan 2025

  • Manager, Design Operations

    Jan 2023 - Apr 2024
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  Microsoft

  Jan 2025 - now

  Sr. Design Operations Staff, Design Prog Mgmt & Design Systems

  Transforming the way we think and build loveable software in the era of AI — with a focus on inclusion and trust. Our Design Operations team builds the infrastructure for motion/animation, creative, content, product, design, UX engineering, and our partners to take customer experience to the next level across OneDrive, Teams, and SharePoint. We architect systems and processes to reimagine the future of product.