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M.S. User Experience Design '19
Senior Program Manager, Microsoft

Stephanie is a Senior Program Manager at Microsoft where she oversees the Azure.com A/B testing program. “I was given ownership over the program after a re-org, and interestingly enough, I was told that I would be good for it on the basis of having my UXD degree,” Stephanie says.

As a Senior Program Manager, she is in charge of managing the backlog of experiments and seeing them through from ideation to execution. Throughout this process, she interacts frequently with designers, engineers, and analysis to ensure experiments are created according to specifications. Her team’s goals are to optimize the user experience of Azure.com and make it easier for users to get started with utilizing Azure. She also advocates for the importance of experimentation and assists stakeholders in identifying beneficial experiment ideas.

"There's nothing that I would have done differently during my time at the iSchool. KSU designed online programs that are practical for professionals and can fit into your life."

COURSEWORK & RESEARCH

“Given how much emphasis was placed in user research in virtually all of my classes at Kent State, it really helped me see experimentation and A/B testing as a user research methodology, which it is,” Stephanie says. She now uses this knowledge to help run the Azure.com A/B testing program at Microsoft. In her previous role as a content strategist, Stephanie leveraged what she had learned in the Information Architecture courses to help her team build out a large database. The most memorable courses she took were Usability I and II, Information Architecture I and II, and Knowledge Organization Structures, Systems, and Services (KOS). Stephanie wrote a on her website about how taking KOS with Professor Marcia Zeng helped her understand databases.

AWARDS

Stephanie was awarded the American Association of University Women (AAUW) Career Development Grant in 2017, which helped fund her first year of graduate school.

PROJECTS & PUBLICATIONS

In addition to working as a Senior Program Manager at Microsoft, Stephanie provides content strategy coaching through her DevRel CMS program and has written two books: and . In 2015, she co-founded Chat, an initiative that publishes a free stock image collection featuring technologists who are women of color. She also served as contributing editor of .

ADVICE FOR CURRENT STUDENTS

As a graduate student who worked full-time throughout her program, Stephanie appreciated how KSU’s online programs are practical for busy working professionals. For current iSchool students, especially those who are working, she advises getting well acquainted with time management skills. Stephanie was able to manage her challenging workload by occasionally completing readings on flights or submitting homework during vacations.

CONNECT

Stephanie is open to receiving and answering questions from current iSchool students via Twitter at .

Learn about other successful iSchool graduates in our Alumni Spotlights.

POSTED: TUESDAY, MARCH 30, 2021 - 1:25PM | WRITTEN BY: JULIA STONE