Michaela Huffman Email & Phone Number

Austin, Texas, Us

Atlanta, Ga, Us

o Established and led a new UX research team of 3 mixed-method researchers to support product and the business - Marketing, Sales, ESG. o Led product adoption and user experience, leveraging deep research, interviews, and A/B testing to uncover critical insights revealing misalignment between user behavior and site intent, ultimately enhancing project implementation and fostering a more impactful user experience.o Utilized user insights to drive product strategy during transition from in-house system to applicant tracking system (ATS), resulting in a transformation of the recruitment process with task automation which increased recruiters' time for personalized client support and candidate assistance.o Championed UX research within the organization by crafting and delivering a compelling positioning deck, strategically illustrating the pivotal role of UX research in driving business success, and developed persuasive narratives and case studies to enlighten internal stakeholders on the transformative impact of UX insights on product development.o Optimized vendor contracts and reallocated budget resources to enhance user recruitment for UX interviews. Implemented streamlined research operations, prioritizing user engagement through aligned incentives, resulting in improved participant quality and attendance.o Empowered and guided researchers in crafting and executing comprehensive qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods studies, encouraging a deeper exploration into data narratives and emphasizing the significance of uncovering not only the 'why' but also the 'so what' behind research insights.o Fostered a culture of marrying qualitative and quantitative data to deliver actionable insights for Product teams.

Austin, Texas, Us

o Managed a team of 3 international (APAC & SA) mixed-methods UX researchers supporting 5 major product areas - including SMB Innovation Labs, Payments and Communications. o Collaborated with Product Marketing and Product Strategy teams to evaluate and redefine the value propositions and naming strategy for a product within their small business innovation lab, aligning with shifts in product functionality and Indeed's broader employer portfolio rebranding; presented strategic recommendations to Executive Vice President and General Manager to influence hiring manager strategy.o Conceptualized and spearheaded a comprehensive proposal for a cross-functional research hub, strategically aligning product solutions for small businesses with Indeed's diverse employer and job seeker product suites to fortify ongoing and future SMB Innovation Labs initiatives.o Mentored and created formal career development pathways for direct reports that were in various stages of career (associate to senior level researchers). o Strategically managed a blend of generative and tactical research initiatives in collaboration with senior product stakeholders to align with organizational Key Objectives and Results (OKRs), balancing future business opportunities with fostering career advancement and upskilling opportunities within the UX research team.o Owned and delivered annual and quarterly research planning.

Austin, Texas, Us

o Subject matter expert in Indeed.com’s enterprise audiences, provided strategic research advice to Product Marketing, Global Brand Strategy, Product Strategy, UX, and Global Product Commercialization. o Presented a competitive threat analysis at Indeed’s Company Spotlight (a company wide presentation) outlining competitive analysis, the potential for Indeed to become irrelevant, and providing long term strategies for Indeed to stay relevant.o Conducted research, for over a year, on Indeed’s Direct 2 Interview product to guide and direct go-to-market and market fit strategies. o Participated and facilitated group ideation sessions for Indeed’s Innovation Incubator - 6 month initiative to reimagine Indeed enterprise product suite in collaboration with Product, Product Strategy and UXR. o Quarterly research roadmapping with Product Marketing & Global Brand Strategy to support business Objective Key Results (OKRs).

Austin, Texas, Us

o Managed 4 priority markets - US, France, UK and Netherlands as lead researcher and strategist.o Developed thought leadership initiatives to provide research driven insights to better inform product development and messaging strategies by conducting workshops with internal stakeholders to evangelize key insights and provide directional recommendations.o Point of contact for Product Marketing, UX, Client Services and Sales to develop research initiatives to surface key enterprise customer insights to guide Product Strategy and Global Brand Strategy teams.

San Francisco, Ca, Us

o Built and retained clients through account and stakeholder management as well as handling research end-to-end. o Collaborated with clients through stakeholder meetings to map out project hypotheses and expectations before executing new research.o Led research end-to-end - screener and discussion guide development, moderating (one on one interviews, focus groups, in-homes), analysis and report writing. o Experienced qualitative researcher with the following methods: ethnography, phenomenological, grounded theory and narrative. o Worked with a variety of clients across tech, retail, and CPG, from new companies developing an audience to established organizations understanding their current consumer and/or brand positioning. Clients include: Facebook, Amazon, Flipboard, Gap

London, England, Gb

o Conducted end-to-end qualitative research (in-depth interviews, focus groups, online diaries) with an international scope to provide customer insight. o Generated over $800,000 revenue in 8 months, exceeding financial goals set by CEO. o Fostered client relationships by developing an understanding of their business issues and needs across industries: tech, CPG, retail, healthcare. Clients included: Intel, Intuit, Microsoft, PepsiCo

Berkeley, Ca, Us

o Co-directed a large-scale interdisciplinary research program in collaboration with UC Berkeley and the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History. Managed and mentored 3 graduate and 20 undergraduate research assistants in applying quantitative, e.g., Mantel Test, Biodistance and qualitative methods, e.g., in-depth interviews, to investigate transitions in oral health of native Californians over the past 5,000 years.

Berkeley, Ca, Us

o Developed a mentorship program with Arizona State University School of Public Affairs using inductive, exploratory interviews and focus groups to provide postdoctoral scholars nationwide with the tools to move from academia to industry. o Collaborated with executive board members to develop and organize monthly workshops about entrepreneurship and professionalization featuring founders and CEOs of startup companies.o Recruited CEOs and VCs from over 10 Fortune 500 companies to participate in monthly workshops and sponsor BPEP.

o Conducted customer centric marketing and primary research by creating discussion guides and interviewed over 15 leaders of undergraduate, graduate and alumni groups at UC Berkeley to better understand the needs and wants of users interfacing with a networking application to improve product design. o Synthesized primary research findings to recommend market shaping activities ahead of product launch.

Columbus, Ohio, Us

o Assessed migrations patterns of early Native Americans (> 200) from East Asia to South America through the analysis of dental traits to better understand the evolutionary processes influencing human variation. Developed code in R to calculate multivariate statistical analyses such as distance matrices and F statistics. o Research results indicated that South American populations are differentiated due to geographic isolation over time. Awarded over $34,000 in grants to collect data in Brazil and France to support this research project. o Developed course content and taught college courses in introductory Anthropology and Women, Culture, and Development at the Ohio State University; achieved superior ratings from student evaluations (4.7/5.0). o As part of a department course redesign, collaborated with faculty and graduate students to develop laboratory activities and curriculum for a new course.

o Conducted in-depth interviews with locals to better understand current perspectives on indigenous populations in the context of museum research. o Analyzed human teeth traits (> 300) in museums and universities across Southeast Brazil to understand how early Americans dispersed and adapted in South America.

Doctor Of Philosophy (Phd), Physical Anthropology

Msc, Forensic Archaeology

Bs, Biological Anthropology