David Farkas

UX, Research, & Strategy

Working with Cisco I have built a UX Research team within Workforce Experience Design, focussing on enterprise systems, supporting a team of 20+ product designers across multiple work streams and initiatives with a growing team of dedicated UX Researchers.

I believe it is through direct client involvement that the best solutions surface. I focus on a transparent design process through collaborative workshops.

Co-author of UX Research, and author of Collaborative Improv, I am actively engaged in the community at a local, national, and international level.

What I Love

UX

  • Current & Future State Journeys
  • Workflows & Wireframes
  • Iterative Sketching and Design
  • Low-fidelity Prototypes

Research

  • Contextual Inquiry
  • Heuristic Review
  • Integrate with Quantitative

Strategy

  • Business and Product Goals
  • Service & Experience Design
  • Lighthouse Concepts

Work

CollabraLink

Cisco

June 2022 - Present

Joining as a Design Manager, I quickly shifted to build a 4-person UX Research team, collaborating with product designers, strategists, stakeholders, and partners on the exploration, definition, and validation of internal systems.

Please contact me to discuss the work completed during this time.

CollabraLink

CollabraLink

June 2020 - May 2022

Working alongside digital leadership, I facilitated our internal research practice, supported business development pursuits, and lead Human Centered Design (HCD) initiatives with our clients.

Please contact me to discuss the work completed during this time.

EPAM

EPAM Empathy

March 2014 - June 2020

Along with strategists, visual designers and developers, I collaborate and lead client engagements to design elegant solutions for business systems and commerce platforms. As a UX designer, my responsibilities include qualitative research, information architecture, wireframes, and client strategy and workshops.

Please contact me to discuss the work completed during this time.

TammanTech

Tamman Tech

January 2013 - January 2014

I worked with a team of developers and clients to lead the design practice within the consultancy. As the first member of a formal design team, I worked to define a more scalable process as it relates to integrating design and implementation in a LeanUX environment.

Please contact me to discuss the work completed during this time.

Mug Warrior

MugWarrior

May 2011 - Present

A side project looking to explore the social aspects of a beer-swap with the educational aspect of learning about beer and the brewing process.

Note: Site is under development.

Bresslergroup

Bresslergroup

June 2012 - January 2013

As a lead designer with Bresslergroup, I worked closely with clients to understand and evolve their interactive product needs. As part of a cross disciplinary team, I worked with engineers and industrial designers on a variety of medical and industrial equipment. A large focus of the work was on clear documentation and the creation of interactive prototypes for detailed testing.

Please contact me to discuss the work completed during this time.

Electronic Ink

Electronic Ink

January 2010 - June 2012

As a Lead Designer with Electronic Ink I led projects developing internal business systems for clients including leaders in the financial industry, Penske Truck Leasing, and Premier Inc. By coordinating design workshops, synthesizing research and creating visualizations I developed designs around business requirements and user needs.

Please contact me to discuss the work completed during this time.

YinzBar

YinzBar

December 2008 - December 2009

Designed Yinzbar, an iPhone application intended for the Pittsburgh Steelers fan on the go. Yinzbar provides the current season's schedule and a simple locator for tracking down the local watering hole, anywhere in the United States.

Note: Discontinued in the AppStore

PNC Bank, NA

PNC Bank, NA

July 2008 - December 2009

Hired as one of the first two designers in the E-Business and Online Banking department, I redesigned the Online Banking experience, designed mobile applications and explored the Wealth Management space. Primarily supporting internal business needs, I engaged in research and design methods within the bank and coordinated efforts with outside design consultants.

Please contact me to discuss the work completed during this time.

Presentations & Publications

Collaborative Improv

Published June 2019

Published in June 2019, Collaborative Improv explores the tools of improvisational theater for active listening to support collaborative product teams through hands-on activities.

Collaborative Improv Blog
Buy the Book, Amazon
All You Can Learn Library webinar
Mind the Product Podcast Interview
And shared at conferences at local, regional, and international events.

UX Research Book Cover

UX Research: Practical Techniques for Designing Better Products

O'Reilly Media

November, 2016

Published November 2016, UX Research was cowritten with Brad Nunnally as a desk reference for UX Researchers. The text explores the history, planning, execution and synthesis of the product research.

Explore the Book on O'Reilly
Learning UX Research and Analyzing Data and Sharing Results , two 3-hour online courses through O'Reilly's digital learning platform taught throughout 2017
Podcast with O'Reilly from April, 2017 on How to approach User research
Shared in various 1-hour and 4-hour workshops both online and in person through local community events and regional conferences.

CTRL+Z: A UX Support Group

GIANT 2015

A discussion in how we can better ask and offer support within our teams when projects and situations occur that are unexpected or non-ideal. This session was part presentation of methods and techniques and part live-demonstration and discussion with the audience.

GiantConf
Talk Summary On Lanyrd
View the Slides on Slideshare

Silver Linings: When Building a Team Fails

Pro/Design 2015

Presented at Pro/Design hosted by Nasdaq, this lightning talk shares a story and lessons learned builidng a design team within a larger organization.

Pro/Design
View the Slides on Slideshare

The F Word... Fail

IA Summit 2013

Presented at the IA Summit 2013 in Baltimore, the presentation addressed the need to discuss lessons learned through the design process in a more direct and open manner. The presentation shares a background on failure in the design process, personal stories, and provided a framework to continue sharing lessons learned.

Presentation Summary at IA Summit 2013
View the Slides on Slideshare
FailBtrUx.tumblr.com for more stories
Interview on UXBooth
Listen to the Podcast

Interaction Design Through Mixology

IxDA DC, August 2012

Midwest UX 2012

First presented at MidwestUX in May 2012, Interaction Design Through Mixology follows my hobby of infusing liquor and creating custom cocktails and tracks comparisons to the field of User Experience Design.

IxDA DC Slides on Slideshare
IxDA DC Video on Vimeo
MidwestUX Slides on Slideshare

JohnnyHolland

Johnny Holland

November 2008 - May 2011

Wrote for JohnnyHolland.org primarily in the Observations category where I explored technologies and methods parallel to Interaction Design.

Johnny Holland has been closed and articles are no longer available for reference.

Community

PhillyCHI

PhillyCHI

Vice Chair, January 2011- December 2011

Member, January 2010 - Present

One of four officers for the local SIG-CHI chapter planning and organizing monthly speakers and social events.

Member in good standing since moving to Philadelphia in January 2010

Visit Chapter Page

IASummit

IA Summit Marketing Chair

May 2011 - April 2012

June 2013 - March 2014

Led a team of seven volunteers for the marketing efforts for the 2012 IA Summit held in New Orleans. Coordinated team efforts with those of the larger committee including email blasts, twitter, facebook, alternate social media, and contests. The results supported what was the largest IA Summit conference to date.

Resumed the role for the 2014 IA Summit held in San Diego, Ca.

IxD12

IxD12 Local Redux Co-chair

March 2011 - April 2012

Together with my co-chair, we organized a framework for local IxDA chapters to host a mini redux conference based around the content of the annual IxDA conference. We provided support through documentation and planning as well as providing a central location for the community of leaders to share stories and collaborate within.

IxD12 Redux Information
Interactions 12, Dublin

JSIMF

Joseph Samuel Isicoff Memorial Fund

January 2009 - September 2015

Supports the basic web presence for JSIMemorialFund.org, a non-profit established to create a program that would provide resources for counseling, tutoring and academic intervention to assist low-income children or children in foster care with Attention Deficit Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

Visit JSIMemorialFund.org