Ford Motor Company - UX Research
Purdue University · 2017
The Short Version
Four-person research team. Ford Motor Company's internal engineering software. Identified workflow gaps and delivered prioritized recommendations to Ford management. Under NDA.
My Role & Process
We partnered with Ford Motor Company to evaluate internal software used by their engineers — immersing ourselves in their environment first, learning their terminology, tools, and day-to-day workflows before conducting any formal research. That grounding was essential for asking the right questions and recognizing friction points that might be invisible to an outside observer.
Methods included one-on-one interviews and process workshops — all recorded and analyzed using TechSmith Morae to observe and thematically code sessions. Findings were synthesized into an affinity diagram and distilled into prioritized, actionable recommendations delivered directly to Ford management.
This project involved internal tools. Specific details about the software and findings are not shared.
What I Learned
This project gave me early experience doing rigorous research in a professional, multidisciplinary environment — working alongside engineers who had little patience for abstract design language. It taught me to communicate research findings in terms of workflow impact and business consequence rather than UX jargon, a skill I relied on consistently throughout my time at Northrop Grumman.