erik piazza
User Interface and Experience Design Expert
A highly self-motivated, creative and technical professional with over 25 years of design experience developing interfaces that meet complex business requirements. I utilize a team-oriented approach to successfully meet competing deadlines and overall objectives.
I became specialized in web design and development in 1998 following nine years as a graphic designer and print production artist. To my art and design expertise, I added skills in front- and back-end web programming, UX research, project management and more over the next several years, working for a variety of entities ranging from small dot-coms to international corporations, interactive media firms and, most recently, a government agency.
I am currently in search of new opportunities to build beautiful and effective user experiences on the web and in mobile and desktop applications.
Professional Specialties & Core Strengths
Visual Design
UI/UX Design
Front-End Development
Team Management
Creative Direction
Production Processes and Workflow
Training of End-Users
Evaluating/Managing of 3rd-Party Systems
Ensuring Brand/Content/UX Integrity
Analysis of Site/System KPIs
Developing Project Timelines
Presenting to Executives and Stakeholders
professional experience
2016 - Present
User Interface and Experience Lead @ Orange County Fire Authority
Lead and execute user interface and user experience activities for proprietary web-based applications used by firefighters, emergency command center operators, and fire prevention personnel. In January of 2019, I became an independent contractor and continued these duties.
Responsibilities
Direct UI/UX project plans and execution for internal application development projects
Participate the application development roadmap planning process
Work collaboratively with project stakeholders to ensure internal customer requirements are clearly defined and addressed in the design and development of applications and to prioritize system features
Collaborate with development team to protect application design quality and functionality alignment with business and UX objectives
Design and prototype user experiences and interfaces utilizing traditional design methods ie : wireframes, mock-ups and functional prototyping tools.
Provide leadership of project steering committees to define business cases, gather feedback and perform user research Develop responsive, web-based user interfaces using HTML5, Javascript, CSS and frameworks such as Bootstrap, JQuery, etc.
Act as champion of the science of UX research and design
Facilitate end user training testing
Participate the the evaluation and onboarding of application development team candidates
Notable projects include:
Orion - A large scale Fire Records Management system supporting fire prevention activities covering 23 cities and all unincorporated land in Orange County, CA. Product features include:
Construction plan review submission and processing
Construction inspections and scheduling
Fire-related permits and conditions
Fire inspections (including violation notice issuance and clearing)
Special activities (ie: fireworks displays)
Finance reconciliation and integration with financial applications
Iris - Proprietary Incident Reporting and Investigations system meeting national reporting standards.
Included the creation of a UI/UX design system was used across multiple subsequent applications
Directly integrated with OCFA's computer-aided dispatch system
Provides a highly user friendly workflow used by firefighters to report the details of emergency calls
OCFA Public Services - Public-facing web property to improve access to OCFA services and decrease foot traffic to OCFA offices.
Electronically submit construction plans for review by OCFA Monitor plan review and inspection status
Make payments for fees due for any OCFA services Request fire clearances for special events
Report a fire hazard
2012 - 2016
Web Content and User Experience Manager @ Toshiba, Digital Products Division
Managed a cross-functional team of designers, developers, and content managers to create and maintain the online store and brand showcase for Toshiba Consumer Electronics for the United States and South and Central America.
Responsibilities
Led and/or executed visual, content and UX activities
Supervised the creation wireframes, workflows, and visual interfaces
Assessed requirements provided by product teams and provide strategic vision for site development/content recommendations
Directed user testing and user research working with third party research groups
Evaluated website analytics and customer reviews to maintain alignment with business KPIs and drive customer success Performed budget management for external content creation and third-party systems
Provided training initiatives, mentoring and professional development to direct reports
Introduced and implemented Agile/Scrum methodology improving team efficiency and cohesiveness while increasing transparency to stakeholders.
Notable projects include:
us.Toshiba.com - A sales channel-neutral product marketing and education website.
Friendly product landing pages complete with imagery, specifications, where to buy and customer reviews Implemented third party systems and created seamless interaction design
Developed a proprietary CMS for the easy maintenance of product content
Strict adherence to Toshiba and Microsoft brand guidelines
Continuous UI/UX and content improvement through the use of usability studies, A/B testing platforms, and site analytics
Oracle Commerce Migration - Migration from a proprietary commerce and content management system to Oracle Commerce utilizing my internal team as well as two separate offshore teams
Directed multiple overseas teams on user experience and interface development Implemented user-data-driven content delivery system
Implemented user-data-driven content delivery system
2006 - 2012
Sr. Web Designer @ Toshiba, Digital Products Division
Utilized web design and development knowledge to produce product marketing and ecommerce sites. Recognized for successfully building sites that maintained branding guidelines and which meet business objectives of improving customer knowledge, engagement, and site traffic.
Responsibilities
Led the design, development and maintenance of web pages and templates; Create requested graphics, HTML and other assets to provide to development team
Acted as a liaison between external design agencies and internal team to ensure projects are completed on-time, on budget, and per specifications
Worked with multiple 3rd-party systems such as Endeca, BroadVision, BizaarVoice, and Omniture
Notable projects include:
Launch of a sales channel-neutral content/branding site (us.Toshiba.com); utilized supplied design templates to create a full-scale website
Worked diligently to meet corporate requirements and required changes for the launch of Windows 8; in a short period of time, successfully updated numerous product pages to meet Microsoft's branding requirements
Designed all of latin.toshiba.com site utilizing a template framework to allow easy site maintenance with minimal technical resources or costs
2005 - 2006
Web/Graphic Designer @ Diverse Solutions (later purchased by Zillow)
Designed and developed a catalog of Real Estate industry-specific website templates and the user-interface for a customer-facing Content Management System. Also provided creative direction and design of company branding and marketing materials.
Responsibilities
Managed all web project including the design and development of site template designs, CMS user interface designs, flash templates/applications, and print ads
Assisted clients in gaining familiarity with content management system
Worked closely with the programming team in order to maintain high standards in user experience and visual design in finished products
2005 - 2006
Web/Graphic Designer @ Biolase
Worked with product marketing and education teams to design and develop online content to support the sales of products and the training of dental professionals in their use.
Responsibilities
Responsible for all web related projects including the creation and maintenance of four full websites
Designed, developed and implemented multiple data-driven, web applications for the administration of corporate projects and events
education & certifications
Laguna College of Art & Design
Completed key coursework in Graphic Design
Won spots in several juried exhibitions both on and off campus
Was invited to participate in student round-table discussions with the State Accreditation Committee during the college's canidacy for accreditation
Served one year as Student Body Vice President
Project Management Professional
October 2012
Core Skills
Extensive Design Experience
Research
Confident communication skills: written and verbal
Ability to lead a team
Excellent interpersonal skills
Recruiting and coaching of UI/UX teams
Adobe Suite
Figma, Axure, Balsamiq
Qualtrics, Dovetail
HTML, CSS, Javascript, Jquery, Bootstrap
Visual Studio, Dreamweaver
Sharepoint, Jira