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CUA of the Month – March, 2012
Interaction Designer,
Tam Tam,
First CXA in Europe
Staying on Top of the Game Leads to CXA
by Sheldon Kreger
One of the distinguishing features of excellence in any discipline is a dedication to mastery. In technological fields, new ideas and tools are constantly being developed. As a working professional, these often have an immediate impact on a person’s work. Therefore, staying on top of the newest trends requires focused and deliberate effort. If one is to stay on top of the game, education must remain a priority. That’s why Sven Buschgens chose to pursue the CXA training with Human Factors International. In fact, Sven is the first CXA in all of Europe.
“I spend a lot of time reading blogs, white papers, and books to help keep my skills sharp. In the web development industry, things change quickly and I want to ensure that I’m staying up to date with the changes that are relevant to my work. Since I’m involved in a variety of projects with Tam Tam, I’m always eager for new knowledge.”
It was this drive which sparked Sven’s interest in the CXA training from HFI. In addition to the course work, Sven was happy to take his education to a deeper level while taking this extra step.
“I feel like earning my CXA was not only great for my skill set, but helped me meet and establish new relationships with other dedicated usability experts. The workshops and classes were held in Chicago - one of my favorite cities - and I had a really great time.”
Many user experience professionals work by themselves or within small teams. Sven, for example, is a part of the usability projects at Tam Tam - a web development firm located in the Netherlands. Tam Tam has recently been voted Best E-Business Full Service Company in the Netherlands of 2012! Therefore, surrounding oneself with like-minded individuals can be an enlightening experience.
“It’s very helpful to be immersed in usability work during the training period. I had the opportunity to learn not only from the course materials, but from interacting with other professionals who face the same problems I do in my work.”
Sven’s career developed in a natural progression, similar to many stories we hear from usability professionals. Once he settled into web work as a career choice, Sven quickly moved up the ladder within his organization.
“I started out as a programmer, and then began to develop front-end interfaces. I’ve spent time managing projects and also had great interest in information architecture. I’ve also spent time with my freelance practice since 2009, which has given me the opportunity to handle every aspect of web design projects for my clients - from wireframing to backend development, even programming and interface design.”
With such a variety of skills under his belt, Sven is an experienced web professional who can view projects from a holistic perspective. He has learned to prioritize and guard the end user within every project he is involved in.
“Because I’ve spent time working within so many different aspects of the web development industry, I’ve developed an understanding of how projects unfold. I can take a quick look at a web interface and suggest small changes which can make a large difference. This is what inspired me to engage usability on a deep level. Since the success of a project is always dependent on the response of the end user, it’s very important to make their experience a top priority during every phase of web development.”
Sven is currently in the process of trying to get Tam Tam to a higher UX maturity level, the timing is ideal while Tam Tam is changing their motto to “from project to program”, which means they are engaged with their clients over a long period of time and not just during the (current) project. He is part of creating a process-based approach to usability work at Tam Tam and is planning to set up a usability lab in the near future.
“Getting the client and stakeholders engaged and making them part of the project team is one of the important parts of a usability project. That moment that they see the end-users working with their website/application is priceless.”
Each month we highlight the successes and achievements of a different member of our CUA community. If you are a Certified Usability Analyst and would like to be considered for CUA of the Month recognition, please send a brief professional bio to hfi@humanfactors.com
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Reviewed: 18 Mar 2014
This Privacy Policy governs the manner in which Human Factors International, Inc., an Iowa corporation ("HFI") collects, uses, maintains and discloses information collected from users (each, a "User") of its humanfactors.com website and any derivative or affiliated websites on which this Privacy Policy is posted (collectively, the "Website"). HFI reserves the right, at its discretion, to change, modify, add or remove portions of this Privacy Policy at any time by posting such changes to this page. You understand that you have the affirmative obligation to check this Privacy Policy periodically for changes, and you hereby agree to periodically review this Privacy Policy for such changes. The continued use of the Website following the posting of changes to this Privacy Policy constitutes an acceptance of those changes.
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Contacting HFI
If you have any questions or comments about this Privacy Policy, you may contact HFI via any of the following methods:
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hfi@humanfactors.com
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Terms and Conditions for Public Training Courses
Reviewed: 18 Mar 2014
Cancellation of Course by HFI
HFI reserves the right to cancel any course up to 14 (fourteen) days prior to the first day of the course. Registrants will be promptly notified and will receive a full refund or be transferred to the equivalent class of their choice within a 12-month period. HFI is not responsible for travel expenses or any costs that may be incurred as a result of cancellations.
Cancellation of Course by Participants (All regions except India)
$100 processing fee if cancelling within two weeks of course start date.
Cancellation / Transfer by Participants (India)
4 Pack + Exam registration: Rs. 10,000 per participant processing fee (to be paid by the participant) if cancelling or transferring the course (4 Pack-CUA/CXA) registration before three weeks from the course start date. No refund or carry forward of the course fees if cancelling or transferring the course registration within three weeks before the course start date.
Cancellation / Transfer by Participants (Online Courses)
$100 processing fee if cancelling within two weeks of course start date. No cancellations or refunds less than two weeks prior to the first course start date.
Individual Modules: Rs. 3,000 per participant ‘per module’ processing fee (to be paid by the participant) if cancelling or transferring the course (any Individual HFI course) registration before three weeks from the course start date. No refund or carry forward of the course fees if cancelling or transferring the course registration within three weeks before the course start date.
Exam: Rs. 3,000 per participant processing fee (to be paid by the participant) if cancelling or transferring the pre agreed CUA/CXA exam date before three weeks from the examination date. No refund or carry forward of the exam fees if requesting/cancelling or transferring the CUA/CXA exam within three weeks before the examination date.
No Recording Permitted
There will be no audio or video recording allowed in class. Students who have any disability that might affect their performance in this class are encouraged to speak with the instructor at the beginning of the class.
Course Materials Copyright
The course and training materials and all other handouts provided by HFI during the course are published, copyrighted works proprietary and owned exclusively by HFI. The course participant does not acquire title nor ownership rights in any of these materials. Further the course participant agrees not to reproduce, modify, and/or convert to electronic format (i.e., softcopy) any of the materials received from or provided by HFI. The materials provided in the class are for the sole use of the class participant. HFI does not provide the materials in electronic format to the participants in public or onsite courses.