Mandy Cornwell: “The Search for UXtopia”

Utopia – An imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its citizens. – Wikipedia

UXtopia- An imagined work environment that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for UX teams.

Based on input from UX professionals, in this talk, we’ll explore the facets and qualities that lead to a satisfying work environment and positive experiences for customers/users, such as:

• Team Structure

• Process

• Strategy

• Market Position/Impact

• Community Contribution

• Career Development

We’ll also take a look at some steps that both UX leaders and individual contributors can take to create the work life they want.

Is it really possible or necessary to reach perfection? Maybe not. But if you can’t imagine it, you can’t even get close.

Currently, Mandy is a UX Manager at VMware, leading a multidisciplinary team focused on transforming complex enterprise software into consumer simple experiences. At VMware, the team designs solutions that allow companies to provide their employees with secure access to apps and resources from any device, anywhere.

With 15 years in the field, Mandy enjoys tackling challenging initiatives whether it is designing from scratch or reimagining an expansive product to ultimately build great experiences for people. She has an extensive background building and shaping UX teams, products and experiences for organizations including Cricket Wireless (AT&T), The College Board, Kellogg’s, United, Girl Scouts, Motorola, and Philips.

Mandy is a member of several user experience communities and serves as a mentor to students at Georgia Institute of Technology, her alma mater. Mandy enjoys spending time with her husband and twin daughters, building rockets, teaching herself new skills (like how to watercolor) and is fascinated by anything to do with outer space.