Tenacious User Experience Websmith
Cross-functional team lead and user advocate, fostering productive goal-oriented environments where design and development work toward the same outcomes.
Mastery of modern desktop and mobile UI/UX design, translating usability and accessibility best practices into high-fidelity refined prototypes. Proficient in Figma, Photoshop, Gimp, Illustrator, and Inkscape.
Fluent in responsive HTML5 and CSS3 within iterative agile development cycles. Expertise includes Bootstrap, jQuery, WordPress, WCAG-compliant accessibility, and cross-browser compatibility. Comfortable in JavaScript and PHP. Practical experience with local LLM deployment and AI-assisted prototyping workflows.
Well-versed in requirements analysis, stakeholder interviews, and user research. Expertise includes information architecture, content strategy, use case development, and AI-assisted research synthesis.
An agency-wide CMS for DFAS financial documents and vouchers. Delivered a complete visual modernization and redesign including upcoming feature enhancements using the USWDS and DoD branding as guidelines. The prototype was used for both early user acceptance and implementation, and fully complied with WCAG AA accessibility.
One of two variants of a redesign featuring clearer navigation, a still-trendy-for-government hero slider for high-value content, and a simplified news area. They chose the dark theme variant of this design, but I prefer the this.
A personal science fiction and fantasy media editorial publication, featuring a highly-responsive layout and jQuery-driven slide shows. Built on a heavily-customized WordPress install, with extensive PHP and CSS modifications.
An internal web application for patent search database updates, with bootstrap progress bars and stateful global navigation. This prototype came from six months of weekly meetings reviewing their existing PC-based application and negotiating translations and enhancements.
A stylish portfolio site for a professional illustrator, implemented on WordPress with extensive PHP customization. The target audiences are art directors and young fantasy art aficionados looking for insight into Veronica's process.
Big Cheese at Squeaker MediaProjects: Freelance design and development of artist portfolios and that one Homeland Security website.
Achievements: Providing web design services for individuals and organizations, emphasizing maintainability, accessibility, and usability. Researched, designed and deployed WordPress portfolios for several illustrators, and once provided user-focused redesigns for the DHS Office of the Inspector General website.
Skills: Web and interaction design, accessibility-centered development, and applied AI tooling for rapid design iteration and reference generation.
User Experience Architect at CGI Federal for DoD and USCISProjects: Large-scale USCIS content management system supporting thousands of agency users; complete redesign of CEDMS, the DoD financial content management system.
Achievements: Served as the UX bridge between a dedicated design team and a development organization, translating design intent into implementable specifications, and constraints back into design reality. As major feature development stabilized, I took on broader UX ownership: prototyping and accessibility across multiple smaller USCIS applications, then leading CEDMS requirements analysis through production-ready prototypes.
Skills: UX architecture, liaison and translation between design and development teams, requirements analysis, prototyping, and baked-in accessibility.
User Experience Designer at Satsyil for Beacon HealthProjects: User Experience enhancements to Military Onesource mental health website
Achievements: Implemented redesign of Beacon Health’s mental health repository for integration into the Department of Defense’s Military Onesource portal, and guidance for HTML implementation in accordance to updated style guides and Section 508 accessibility.
Skills: User Experience research, design and development, HTML templating and web accessibility.
User Experience Architect at REI Systems for HHS, DOE, and GSAProjects: User Experience enhancements to HHS, DOE, and GSA web applications.
Achievements: Delivered UX improvements to Health and Human Services’ EHB grant management applications, and developed complex search from for Department of Energy's Oil and Gas Gateway. Designed and coded General Services Administration's eOffer modernization in HTML and CSS.
Skills: User Experience research, design and development.
User Interface Designer at BCMC for StateProjects: Design and development of State Department interagency applications.
Achievements: Designed and developed the user interface and user experience of State's eCC application in an agile environment, using HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript. Ensured Section 508 compatibility, and optimal visual implementation on the ServiceNow's platform.
Skills: Advanced interaction design using HTML, CSS, Bootstrap and jQuery. Cross-browser and Section 508 compliance.
User Experience Lead at Design Interactive for USPTOProjects: UX enhancements to the US Patent and Trademark Office EST patent search and Data Operations applications.
Achievements: Designed the interface and interactions for a web-based update to the USPTO patent database, and provided interface enhancements that will allow examiners to easily and extensively search those patent databases. Also researched and designed high-fidelity prototype of database maintenance application.
Skills: Requirements analysis, stakeholder interviewing, and high-fidelity user interface prototyping via HTML 5, CSS 3, Bootstrap 3, and Axure.
Accessibility CertificationDepartment of Homeland Security Trusted Tester 5.0, a common testing approach for accessibility compliance and conformity.
Brain Bench CertificationWeb Designer BCIP, with master-level Web Design Concepts, Web Design for Accessibility, Dreamweaver MX, and Photoshop 7.0.
Northern Virginia Community CollegeMajor: Computer Information Services.
Ferrum CollegeMajor: Computer Science.
I apply AI tools with deliberate restraint, prioritizing human-centered outcomes over automation for its own sake — using local LLMs for code assistance and research, and image generation pipelines for rapid visual reference work.
I support ethical, life-enhancing uses of AI while remaining guarded about data privacy, energy consumption, and IP ownership. I seek usability and accessibility work that directly improves lives. See https://yntbom.com.
Thanks for the compute!