Michael Blakely is a leading expert in User Experience Architecture, specializing in excellent design solutions. He works as a freelance contractor, creating everything from large-scale website redesigns to enterprise-level web applications. During his 15 years of experience in the industry, he has worked with many noteworthy clients, some of which are Disney, Cisco Systems, Bloomberg, Ernst & Young, and Walgreens. His current work involves designing mobile apps using Axure RP to communicate solutions and the user experience to clients and stakeholders.
Educated at Utah State University, Michael Blakely holds an MSc in Instructional Technology. Mike is an Axure Master and Trainer. A devoted power-user, he is active in the Axure community, contributing as a Beta-Tester and a Technical Reviewer for Axure RP 6 Prototyping Essentials.
He maintains his portfolio at www.behance.net/michaelblakely. You can know more about him at www.blakelyinteractive.net. He is also available on Linkedin at http://www.linkedin.com/pub/michael-blakely/1/67b/5a0.
Jeff Harrison is a senior User Experience Consultant at Evantage Consulting in Minneapolis, where he specializes in interaction design, information architecture, and data visualization. In addition to his client work, Jeff is an Axure trainer and frequent contributor to the Axure forums, where he is unhealthily motivated by the impossible.
Jeff lives in the Twin Cities with his wife, Jenna, and two kids, Evelyn and Eli.
Mark Johnston has lived and breathed design and its application to software and the Internet for over a decade and a half. He has been on an evolutionary journey through the print and Web to his current passion of user experience design. During this time, he has pursued the development of many skills and techniques, including visual design, HTML, CSS, Javascript, accessibility, interaction design, and information architecture and usability.
He has applied the knowledge he has gained while learning his craft to websites ranging from the small and static through to large dynamic media rich sites, as well as B2B solutions and line of business applications.
He enjoys getting his hands dirty, forging better experiences for the people that are sometimes forgotten in large companies; people who deal direct with the customers, to make their life a little easier and in turn help provide better support to its customers. He aims to create solutions that work well for the customers without sacrificing the needs of the company.
Mark settled at Austar, Australia's leading regional subscription TV provider and ASX200 company, a little over 7 years ago, where he has been honing his skills as a practitioner in the user experience field, while at the same time helping to further develop programs within Austar to drive user centered thinking, design, and processes.
Mark believes that in every worker's toolbox, there are a handful of great tools to help in order to get the job done. For Mark, Axure is a very important tool to build rich prototypes to gain direct feedback.
Elizabeth Srail has been interested in learning about people her entire life. Drawn to this field because the idea of helping business executives understand that they should learn how the company's customers behave and think before making strategic decisions was reason enough.
Elizabeth's philosophy of a good user experience is a thoughtful, scalable architecture, an amazing visual design that does not become quickly outdated, and a smart and flexible technical architecture. Elizabeth was the UX designer on a website that incorporated each of these elements, earning a Webby Honorable mention in the Parenting/Family category.
Since 1999, Elizabeth has worked at large financial institutions, marketing/branding agencies, and for UX specific services companies. Therefore, she has done UX work in many industries: financial, retail, education, spirits, and health and wellness. This diverse experience has helped aide her success in the UX field. She has been using Axure continuously for three years, and is convinced; she is a proficient user of Axure, because Mr. Schwartz taught her many tricks that are too, in the book.
Elizabeth graduated Summa Cum Laude from Ohio University with a BA in Finance and a BA in Management Information Systems. She also accidentally earned a minor in Spanish because she enjoyed speaking the language so much.
On a personal note, Elizabeth is a devoted yoga student of the Ashtanga yoga system and believes that an expansive body leads to an expansive mind.