VizThink Blog

Visual Thinking during Software Design

Software design, usability, and the user experience are complex processes.  From the initial concept to prototype to the final product, the process mirrors the development of almost any product or service.  The entire process is ripe for improvement with visual thinking.  The trio of Henning Fischer, Sarah Nelson, and Brandon Schauer from Adaptive Path are a great add to the VizThink ‘08 group of facilitators. They bring years of experience in software, interface, and user experience design. Their session will focus on how visual thinking can impact the entire design process.  Here’s a little more about each one of them:

Henning Fischer

Henning Fischer is a design strategist for Adaptive Path. His principal focus is on design research and strategy development. He has worked with a diverse group of organizations to develop multi-channel strategies for communications, services, and products for the web and beyond.  He holds a Master of Design from the Institute of Design at Illinois Institute of Technology, where he focused on the confluence of business analytics, design, and user research. Prior to joining Adaptive Path, Henning specialized in web strategy at Diversified Media Design and the Ruder Finn Group, consulting for a range of clients.

Henning’s portfolio of skills include digital product strategy development, business concept illustration, and user-centered research and analysis techniques.

Past clients include Ameriprise, Eli Lilly, Guggenheim Museum, Hallmark, Hunter Douglas, Japan Society, LeapFrog, Magellan, Novartis, Trek Bicycle Corporation, uGenie, Vanguard Financial.

In addition to his degree from the Institute of Design, Henning holds a bachelor’s degree in International Relations from Tufts University in Boston and a Certificate in Graphic and Digital Design from the Parsons School of Design in New York. He speaks German fluently and is diligently working on his Mandarin to impress his in-laws.

Sarah Nelson

Sarah B. Nelson is a design strategist for Adaptive Path. She has ten years of experience in interactive media, designing kiosks, mobile and online experiences for clients in a variety of industries. Sarah has a particular passion for practice development, conducting research into methods for improving collaboration, supporting creativity, and encouraging innovation.

Sarah brings a unique blend of creative vision and technical expertise to her work. Her research-focused approach to interaction design has produced successful results for clients such as the Federal Home Loan Bank, Home Street Bank, AOL Mobile, The Metropolitan Opera, and The Royal Victorian and Albert Museum.

Before joining Adaptive Path, Sarah managed the creative team and developed the user experience practice at POP, an interactive design firm in Seattle, Washington. A classically trained violinist, Sarah graduated from the Interlochen Arts Academy and received a B.A. from Oberlin College in visual arts and electronic music. While completing her Masters at the Institute of Design in Chicago, Sarah focused her studies on the definition and design of complex multi-modal systems supporting collaboration and communication.

Brandon Schauer

Brandon Schauer is an experience design director for Adaptive Path. He speaks, writes, trains, and practices experience design as a differentiator for business strategy. Brandon’s passion for finding and understanding the unmet needs of customers has led him to diverse environments, from the homes of cancer patients to tunnels beneath Walt Disney World. This insight with customers — plus a solid grounding in business analysis and a mastery of design methods — allows Brandon to help organizations define and design more meaningful experiences for their customers.

Brandon has over a decade of experience developing new products, services, and user experiences for the web, desktop, and devices. He’s keynoted, presented, and conducted workshops at such conferences at Business to Buttons, IA Summit, Designertopia, and UIE Web App Summit.

Past clients include American Cancer Society, Ameriprise Financial, Bank of New York, Charles Schwab, Chase Manhattan Bank, First Union Bank, Flickr, JetBlue, LeapFrog, Morgan Stanley, Motorola, MorningStar, NYCE, and Vanguard Financial.

Brandon holds two master-level degrees from schools with the Illinois Institute of Technology. He received a Master of Design from the Institute of Design in Chicago where he studied the planning, development, and management of innovation. Concurrently, he graduated with a MBA from the Stuart School of Business. Brandon is a past editor for the Institute of Design’s Perspectives on Design and Strategy, allowing him to pick-the-brains of leaders in the fields of innovation, design, and strategy.

He also has a love of Excel that is unnatural for a designer.

Welcome to all 3 of you!