Margaret Plumley, Product, Design, and Research Lead Case, Studies
I am a pi-shaped Design, Research, and Product Lead and have both designed the products and managed the processes for products ranging
from scientific visualization to PlayStation streaming gaming to consumer creative tools to DreamWorks internal software,
researching users and markets, defining standards and creating prototypes, with results including usability success,
customer wins, and drops in support.
CSUMB - California State University Monterey Bay (2025-present)
Faculty, School of Computing and Design
Teach Human Factors, User Research and Design (300- and 400-level classes), making sure students have a well-rounded skill set. Coordinate with other faculty to ensure a complete and coherent degree program.
US Digital Response (2024-2025)
Project Lead and Product Manager
Modernize local and state governments
Project Lead and Product Manager for a dashboard to measure the efficacy and value of an AI application for a state service.
Lead a research project about data, trust, and privacy for the City of Long Beach, CA. Results: Provided the city with data on resident views toward technology and data collection; what influences these feelings; and how to approach technology distribution moving forward.
Thoughtworks (2019-2023)
Product, Research, and Design Lead
Global consulting company
Lead innovation workshops, User Journeys, Empathy Maps, Personas, Storyboards, and other activities through a combination of leadership and hands-on work to shape product strategy and champion organization-wide alignment while mentoring global product, research, and design teams. Lead North American XR (Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality) and new technology initiatives, from Proof-of-Concept and prototype through launch.
Google (contract) (2016-2018)
UX Program Manager
Support, Shopping, Identity
Lead a matrixed UX team (Design, Research, Writing) for multiple projects and dozens of people including planning, project scheduling, load balancing, day-to-day deliverables from kick-off to launch and retrospectives for Identity, Support, and Shopping. Owned synthesis and analysis of CSAT survey results, including writing queries to turn spreadsheets of data into easy-to-understand charts. Results: Identified areas for change and areas that need more investigation.
PicsArt (2015)
Senior (Lead) Mobile Product Manager
Consumer, mobile, social app
Lead Product Manager and Designer for creative tools for a late-stage startup consumer mobile app on multiple platforms and form-factors. Lead the design for drawing tools including requirements, design language, and mockups. Create, manage, and prioritize the Agile roadmap, working with dev team in Armenia.
PlayStation Now (2013-2014)
Product Manager
Streaming gaming service
Turn a technology into a product for a high-profile (executive-level) v.1 streaming gaming product on multiple consumer platforms ranging from TV to mobile, integrating it into the existing e-commerce ecosystem using existing design paradigms.
PDI/Dreamworks (2011-2013)
Principal UX Designer and Product Manager
Internal artists' tools
Bring a user-centered design process to the studio. Work with both training and the artists to make sure that the artists have what they need when they need it (both features and information) in order to get their work done. Prioritize multiple projects on multiple platforms (Linux, Windows, iOS, web). Responsible for internal tools from 3D lighting and rendering setup to media management.
Case Studies: Media Manager, Integrated Help, Previz and Layout
Tecplot (2010-2011)
Senior Product Designer
Computational Fluid Dynamics Visualization
Turn loosely-defined customer data into a product for a v.1 first-to-market product. Bring end-to-end, customer-centered design to a highly technical company. Results: According to one customer, "Our post processing productivity increased by an order of magnitude... Now I can do in five minutes what once took me 4-6 hours."
Flight Simulator Platform (2008-2009)
Product Designer
Training and scenario creation
Own and drive the end-to-end experience for a training-based startup platform based on Flight Simulator. Determine UX requirements for a complex set of simulation development tools. Make a complex 3D simulation process usable by a non-3D user base.
Microsoft Office Word, Microsoft Winqual, Solucient Market Planner Plus
Product Manager and Designer
Archive
Older projects, going back to 2002
Case Studies: Word, Winqual, Solucient