About Worqx

Worqx History

The Name: Worqx

Well, it might have been "Works.com" or "WebWorks.com" or some such name had they been available. This site began as a means to present my work(s). Currently the site presents a bit of information about development, the widely used color theory tutorial, and links to a variety of external resources regarding both design and development.

Worqx Inc.

I am currently a freelance UI/UX design consultant and Worqx Inc. is my corporate business name. Worqx Inc. is both bonded and insured, and I may be available for hire!

I have worked as a consultant or as a full time employee for the following companies:

Abbott Laboratories (formally St. Jude Medical)
Smiths Medical
Medtronic Inc.
Tech-Pro Inc.
Business Incentives (BI)
BestBuy.com
Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America
US Bank
State of Minnesota Department of Health and Human Services
Best Buy (Corporate Office)
University of Minnesota

My experience and specialties include:

Research and Design Strategy: Gathering business and user requirements, conducting stakeholder interviews, discovering user insights through contextual inquiry and focus groups. User task analysis, user scenarios, personas, and story boards. Sketching, conceptual designs and mockups. Design and facilitation of usability studies.
Information Architecture: Defining information design, sitemaps, and mapping key task flows and creating or expanding navigational structures.
User Interface and Interaction Design: Creating wireframes, providing low and high fidelity prototypes using Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Fireworks, InDesign, Justinmind, PowerPoint, Visio, Indigo Studio, hand-coding HTML and CSS, responsive design techniques, light JavaScript and JQuery.
Visual Design: Mood boards, mockups, high fidelity prototypes, detailed design, style guides and visual standards definition.

I attended the University of Minnesota; the College of Architecture & Landscape Architecture in the mid- 90's, and presented my architecture thesis: Through Rose Colored Glasses, in the spring of 1998 earning the Bachelor of Architecture degree. A "BARCH" is a 5 year undergraduate professional degree accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB) that allows a recipient to qualify for the Architect Registration Examination (ARE).
I have found that there are many similarities of the UX design process and that of an architect, and the training I received is directly applicable. Both processes involve working with client, identifying needs, exploring, defining and ultimately delighting them with a technologically sound and visually pleasing solution. A favorite quote of mine reads:

"An architect is someone capable of seeing the main problems of a design, capable of examining with serenity the various possible solutions, and who finally has a thorough grasp of the technical means necessary to accomplish the project."
- Pier Luigi Nervi

For more information, a resume or samples of work, Contact Me.

The Bridge Builder

An old man, going a lone highway, came at evening, cold and gray, To a chasm, vast and deep and wide, through which was flowing a sullen tide. The old man crossed in the twilight dim; the sullen stream had no fears for him; But he turned when safe on the other side and built a bridge to span the tide.

"Old man," said a fellow pilgrim near, "You are wasting strength with building here; Your journey will end with the ending day; you never again must pass this way; You have crossed the chasm, deep and wide - why build you the bridge at the eventide?"

The builder lifted his old gray head: "Good friend, in the path I have come," he said, "There followeth after me today a youth whose feet must pass this way. This chasm that has been naught to me to that fair-haired youth may a pitfall be. He, too, must cross in the twilight dim; good friend, I am building the bridge for him."
-Will Allen Dromgoole

Gratuity & Regards

Along the road, many people from various newsgroups and other online communities helped me to master many of the web technologies & work through some of the constantly changing browser differences. This site has acquired a rather large following over the years, and in the spirit of those that previously supported my efforts, I've continued to maintain this site. I hope the information you find here will help with your own quest!
-Janet