UX research leader · Human-Computer Interaction

Technology serves people best when they participate in its design.

For more than 10 years I've built and led UX research programs across consumer technology, telecommunications, healthcare and emerging tech. My work pairs behavioral data with qualitative depth, puts accessibility at the center of product decisions, and uses AI to make research faster without making it sloppier.

clairev8@gmail.com LinkedIn Google Scholar

Focus areas

Mixed methods

Analytics show where people drop off. Interviews and usability work explain why.

Inclusive design

Assistive technology benchmarking, WCAG 2.2, and research with participants with disabilities.

Design systems

Research programs that make shared components worth adopting.

AI-enabled research

Repositories, synthetic testing and tooling, validated before they're trusted.

Selected work

5 case studies · 2018–2026

01 · Verizon · 2025

Helping people act on personalized offers

My synthesis of Verizon's offer research shaped a tile redesign, and the design changes contributed to a 25% increase in offer acceptance.

+25%offer acceptance rate

+216%average monthly add-a-line orders

+265%average monthly traffic to My Offers

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02 · Verizon · 2026

Making selections inside a chat

A 193-person test showed vertical lists were 10 seconds faster than carousels, and set the standard for choosing a line in Verizon's AI chat.

193participants

10 secfaster median task time, vertical vs. carousel

70%confidence at the highest detail level

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03 · Verizon · 2026

Finding traps in a mobile checkout flow

I tested a reskinned mobile checkout with 27 assistive technology users, traced the barriers they hit to four root causes, and turned them into prioritized fixes for engineering.

27assistive technology users

3assistive technology groups: screen reader, switch and voice control, magnification

4root causes, each turned into a prioritized fix

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04 · Verizon · 2026

Evaluating a Design System

A program of research on how product teams use the design system, why they adopt or detach from it, and whether it delivers on its promises. System components made delivery 5 times faster than custom builds.

5 timesfaster component delivery than custom builds

about 25%of redesign time saved

more than 1 monthshorter development cycles

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05 · Google Creative Lab · 2018–2019

Creative tools for people of all abilities

I led user research with 25 people with disabilities for a set of accessible creative tools that won the 2019 Cannes Lions Design Grand Prix.

25participants with disabilities

Grand Prix2019 Cannes Lions, Design

Open sourceexperiments anyone can use and build on

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How I lead

3research programs built at Verizon: design system, brand perception and accessibility

4 of 6researchers I led moved into senior roles

1,043studies in the searchable research repository I designed

DoubledAccessible Insights Consortium membership

Choosing the method for the question

Conjoint showed people liked each feature of a purchase flow on its own. Usability testing showed they got lost when the features were combined. I pick methods by the evidence a decision needs, like using diary studies over interviews to see how people with disabilities fit connected devices into daily routines.

Growing researchers

I managed and coached a team of six early-career rapid researchers on study design, synthesis and holding up under stakeholder questions. Four moved into senior roles.

Raising the bar on rigor

I partnered with Verizon's Insights Center of Excellence on standards for sample size, data quality and representation, and wrote our accessibility guidelines for surveys and vendors.

Moving faster with AI

I lead the design and validation of the team's AI research tools, including a searchable repository of 1,043 research studies. I also wrote our framework for using AI in research. Others include synthetic user testing and an automated readability crawler for verizon.com. I also co-led an AI tree-testing platform that compares how different AI agents navigate a site.

Accessibility beyond the product

I led the Insights Association's 2025 research initiative on disability identity, ran a workshop and certification at TMRE, and presented at the CRC. I also helped the Accessible Insights Consortium double its membership, and mentored two American Foundation for the Blind interns on a study of AI assistants and assistive technology.

Telling the story

Research only matters when it changes a decision. I write memos, readouts and executive presentations that make findings simple enough to act on.

Experience

2023–now
Senior UX Research Manager · Verizon
Owns the customer experience (CX) and UX research roadmap. Built and leads the design system, brand perception and accessibility research programs.
2020–2022
Manager, UX Research · Verizon
Led and mentored a team of six researchers, and managed the rapid research portfolio on subscription plan and loyalty strategy.
2018–2019
Creative Technologist · Google Creative Lab
User research and design exploration for Creatability.
2018–2019
Accessibility Specialist · 2U
Usability and accessibility research for e-learning tools.
2015–2018
HCI Research Fellow · New York University
Accessibility studies for Spectrum, Cooper Hewitt and the Processing Foundation, and a stroke rehabilitation device with NYU Rusk.

Education

2021
PhD, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) · New York University
2015
Master of Professional Studies, Interactive Telecommunications · NYU Interactive Telecommunications Program
2009
Bachelor of Arts, Psychology and Visual Arts · University of British Columbia