Steven Schirra Email and Phone Number

UXR Lead, Main App (Watch, Core & Systems and Video Infrastructure teams)

UXR Lead, Watch

Built and developed UX research function from the ground up, growing team to five full-time researchers and operations staff to support end-to-end product development research across all Twitch products for viewers and creators.Managed intake, scoping and execution of executive-level research requests that directly impacted strategic planning, project green-lighting and feature development.Worked collaboratively with data science, market research and data analytics teams to triangulate research findings, create durable data-sets and frameworks, and develop strong mental models about Twitch user behaviors, attitudes and needs.Mentored and developed research team members; oversaw research budget, infrastructure and tooling, including vendor management, contracts, and research lab construction and operations.

Led generative and evaluative user research across key product franchises in Yahoo’s Video and Publisher Products groups, including the Yahoo Homepage, Yahoo Finance, Yahoo Sports, Yahoo Fantasy Sports, Tumblr, and the Yahoo-NFL live-stream partnership.Collaborated with directors of product, design and engineering to create quarterly research plans to align with product goals and development roadmaps,Conducted research at all stages of product development—from concept to launch; employed a variety of UX research methods, including lab-based usability testing, semi-structured interviews, diary studies and surveys.Researched the user experience across all of Yahoo’s supported product platforms: web, mobile web, native apps, smart TVs, digital media players, wearables and game consoles.

Led cross-platform research initiatives to support product development for Zynga's major game titles, including the FarmVille franchise, Words with Friends , Zynga Poker, Empires & Allies and many unreleased products.Conducted research using a variety of games user research methods—including competitive benchmarking, surveys, large-scale remote playtesting (300+ users), contextual inquiry and lab-based usability testing.Championed user-centered design throughout the development cycle; represented UX research at key stakeholder meetings.

Supported qualitative, quantitative and ethnographic research related to social media systems and users; studies included research on online music audiences and fandom, flagging behavior in social media systems, and the crowdsourcing platforms Amazon Mechanical Turk, Microsoft UHRS and MobileWorks.

Led and supported end-to-end research and development of multiple educational and serious games, including Movers & Shakers, a two-player game for Android tablets, and Radix, a science-themed MMORPG for high school students.Mentored student designers and engineers during summer game design research program, leading to the development of multiple award-winning game projects.Developed public outreach materials for lab-developed games, including a viral video for A Slower Speed of Light—a game simulating the visual and environmental effects of Einstein’s special relativity—which has received more than 1MM views on YouTube.Wrote, published and presented research findings at research conferences, including CHI and FDG.

Worked as a member of the core research and design team of two year-long, grant-funded software development projects (Participatory Chinatown and Community PlanIt) designed to enhance critical thinking and dialogue around local urban planning projects.Developed software requirements reflecting the needs of three partner organizations; participated in software design process from prototype to implementation; conducted surveys and interview-based research to evaluate project outcomes; co-authored research findings and grant proposals.Executed and evaluated large-scale field tests and deployments of systems with multiple non-profit and NGOs, including partnerships with the Boston Public School System, the City of Lowell, MA, and the Asian Community Development Corporation.Awards: "Best Direct Impact Game, 2011" by Games for Change; "Community Partner Award for Service to the Chinatown Community, 2010" by Asian CDC; coverage in major media outlets including multiple stories in the Boston Globe