United States

UX Research

UCLA

Julia Pfeiffenberger

UX Research Manager

Usability Testing

Quantitative research

Product strategy

Qualitative research

Collaboration

Problem-solving

Empathy

Presentation skills

Stakeholder management

Leadership

Project management

Brand positioning

Human computer interaction

Information architecture

Market research

Product roadmap

Tableau

Figma

Miro

Mural

- Led research to inform the design and creation of hearing-related feature Ray-Ban Meta smartglasses, convening in the launch of the Conversation Focus, enabling people to follow conversations more easily in noisy listening environments

- We built an AI-enabled hearing aid! 
- I originate and conduct generative, formative, and evaluative research studies on our two primary targets: hearing care professionals and hearing aid users, to inform desktop, mobile, and industrial design initiatives.
- Conducted and socialized a qualitative and quantitative persona project, consisting of qualitative interviews and a large scale national survey. 
- Led Human Factors-focused product development cycle, and oversaw human factors submission for FDA approval of the Whisper Hearing System
- Led UX design and iterative improvements of the Whisper Mobile App, which is rated 4.8 stars in the Apple App Store
- Saved tens of thousands of dollars and accelerated the pace of research execution by recruiting and nurturing two pools of research participants: panel of over 900 Americans with hearing loss, and over 200 Hearing Care Providers

Photo and swipe-based dating apps present an insurmountable barrier to entry if you're not young, traditionally attractive, and pedigreed. Blindchat invites you to fill out a quick questionnaire about yourself and your values, which is then used to set you up on a series of blind and anonymous phone chats. The chats are guided by provided ice-breaker questions, to help you escalate from small talk to real talk, and quickly get a feel for your emotional and intellectual compatibility with your partner. And studies show that when you respect and enjoy someone's personality, you're more likely to find them physically attractive when you meet them in person.

BlindChat spurred over 100 relationships (and three marriages!), and helped countless individuals get over dating app burnout by raising their confidence about their ability to find a compatible and complimentary partner. 

The service was so effective in providing an enjoyable and effective dating experience, that the unit economics presented a challenge for continuing as a paid service, at which point Julia decided to join the team at Whisper.

- Conducted foundational research on physical safety, including extensive work in developing countries, followed by rapid iterative prototyping, leading to the launch of Android's Physical Safety Suite in 2018. Features include Safety Check, which enables users in uncertain situations to set up a time for their phone to check in and ensure they're safe, and in the absence of a response, sends their location and battery level to emergency contacts and/or connects them to 911. 

- Informed design and implementation of infrared “Face Unlock” and “Motion Sense” touchless gesture features of Pixel 4 through multi-method formative/generative research studies.

 - Conducted immersive in-context field studies in China and India, enabling groups of ~20 cross-functional stakeholders to cultivate end-user empathy and inform product direction. Insights drove feature design and prioritization of 19 features for Android P, Pixel 3 and Android Go. 

 - Pioneered research for Android Slices, enabling contextually-relevant information and actions to appear throughout the operating system. Led design sprints and generative concept studies to inform solution space, then validated and iterated on solutions with the Google Search team.

 - Spearheaded iterative research studies focused on privacy and security to improve multiple initiatives, including the Android lock screen, Google Play Protect, and Find My Device.

- Led full-cycle iterative development of the Dropbox Badge, which enabled collaborators to coordinate serialized work on Microsoft Office files, including prototyping, usability testing, beta program administration and field studies.

 - Led full-cycle iterative development of Dropbox Paper, including early behavioral segmentation, need identification, prototyping, and design of a scaled beta program with heavy qualitative interviewing to corroborate hypotheses and deepen product/market fit.

 - Designed and executed over 30 studies, employing research methods including survey design and analysis, in-context observation and inquiry, qualitative interviews, ethnography, remote unmoderated platform studies, digital diary studies, participatory design workshops, and in-lab usability testing of browser and mobile- based prototypes.

I started convening this for solo (and mostly solo) UX researchers within organizations, to meet and learn from fellow researchers and build community. It has grown into a regular gathering in San Francisco and the South Bay, with a community of 250+ researchers and aspiring researchers.

- One of four members of YCombinator startup with widely used wiki-style collaborative editor.

 - Developed and executed user research program, including needs identification, in-context observation, qualitative interviewing, and usability testing and iteration, informing extensive redesign.

Erin

UX Designer

Lillian Goloborodov

UX Researcher

Shivam Shipankar

Grayson Butcher, PhD

Behavioral Scientist | UX Researcher

Lanyi Zhu

Student

Xiaotong(Shia) Du

Mentorship Session

In this series, we'll uncover what your dream UX Research-related job looks like, and I'll provide detailed and actionable guidance to help you land a UXR offer, including: Meeting 1) Optimizing your LinkedIn for findability and conversion, Meetings 2 & 3) Behavioral and Technical Interview Tips and Mock Interviews, and Meeting 4) Tips for how to create an impactful and persuasive UXR case study that will get you an offer, and Case Study Mock presentation and feedback.

1 on 1 Coaching to get hired or promoted

Julia Pfeiffenberger🇺🇸

About Julia Pfeiffenberger

Expertise

Sessions with Julia Pfeiffenberger

What mentees say