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PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Principal - Empathic Innovation         2016 – present

Human-centered design and innovation consulting.

 

Adjunct Professor - Northwestern University Segal Design Institute         2016 – present

Faculty advisor in the dual-degree MMM program where students earn both an MBA and an M.S. in Design Innovation, as well as the Engineering, Design, and Innovation program.

 

Design Researcher in Residence - MATTER         2016 – present

Advising and mentoring healthcare startup teams on design research and human-centered design at MATTER, Chicago’s healthcare incubator.

 

Adjunct Instructor - Northwestern University Segal Design Institute         20132016

Faculty advisor in the Engineering, Design, and Innovation program.

 

Director - IDEO         2012 – 2016

Location and Portfolio Director responsibilities include attracting, developing, and leveraging exceptional people; leading great design with clients and the IDEO design community; surfacing, refining and promoting IDEO’s offer in the world.

 

Healthcare Lead - IDEO         2010 – 2012

Healthcare domain expert supporting teams globally on health and medical programs for a variety of clients including U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Otsuka, Eli Lilly, and Bayer. Business development, content and client guidance for project teams, mentoring and professional development of IDEO designers, external speaking engagements.

 

Health and Wellness Practice Lead - IDEO         2005– 2010

Global human factors lead for Practice supporting projects for clients in the pharmaceutical, medical device, and healthcare services domains including Baxter, Medtronic, Eli Lilly, and Bayer.

 

Human Factors Lead - IDEO         1998 – 2005

Founded and grew human factors research group in the IDEO Chicago.  Led human factors research and design activities for products and services in a variety of domains ranging from medical products to consumer products.  Led research for several design teams that won IDSA and Medical Excellence Awards, including the Lifeport Kidney Transporter that also won the IDSA Design of the Decade Silver Award in 2010 and is in the permanent architecture and design collection of the Metropolitan Museum of New York. 

 

Member of Technical Staff - Ameritech         1994 – 1998

Member of a Human Factors research group. Research and design activities in the telecommunications industry including user requirements analysis, usability testing, design and piloting of new products and services.

 

President - Applied Cognitive Research         1989 – 1994

Human factors consulting services for travel and telecommunications industries.  Task analysis, HCI design, study design, statistical analysis.

 

Associate - Dunlap and Associates         1985 – 1989

Human Factors researcher and designer on projects for a variety of clients in the areas of aviation, power plant control design, highway safety, military, and financial services.  Responsibilities included study design and data collection, statistical analysis, prototyping and user evaluation. Clients included U.S. Army, National Highway Safety Administration, RCA, Airbus.

EDUCATION

Yale University

PhD - Psychology         1986

Thesis - Perceptual Limitations in Encoding and Memory
Advisor - Wendell R. Garner
MPhil         1983
MS         1982

 

Columbia University

BA - Psychology         1980

MENTORING & ADVISING

Mentor - Chicago Innovation Mentors

Life sciences tech transfer.

 

Adjunct Instructor - Northwestern University Segal Design Institute

University, Faculty Advisor for the MMM and EDI programs.

AMY SCHWARTZ, PHD
SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS & PUBLICATIONS

Design as a tool for public health innovation.  Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine Public Health Review, Volume 3, Issue 2 (2016). Schwartz, A. (2016). 

 

How Design Thinking Can Drive Innovation in Healthcare. Podcast interview, Journal of Health Design, Oct. 2016.

 

Improving Health Through Human-Centered Data-Driven Interventions.  (with Justin Massa, IDEO).  The Data Effect, Vancouver, March 2016

 

Designing for Taboo:  How to Navigate Tricky Health Issues and Increase Patient Engagement.  (with Paul Bennett, IDEO Chief Creative Officer).  Matter Healthcare Incubator, May 2105

 

Designing for a child’s experience of clinical rounds. O’Keefe, A., Rottenberg, S., Giese, A., Schwartz, A., Benini, J., Hageman, J. Hageman, S., and Joseph-Griffin. M.  (2014). Touchpoint, Volume 6, No. 2

 

Lessons from the Field:  Some Things I’ve Learned in 25 Years of Design Research. University of Michigan Psychology Department, November 2011, Yale University Psychology Department, October 2012

 

Human-Centered Design-Based Approach to Adoption of Comparative Effectiveness. Schwartz, A., Sevin, C., Lee, J., and Goodrich, K. (2011)  A Poster presented at the Academy Health Conference

 

From Innovation to Transformation. Closing Keynote at the ESOMAR Global Healthcare 2010 Trends & Innovation Booster, March 2010

 

Human-Centered Design in Healthcare. RockHealth Boot Camp, June 2012

 

Can a Usable Product Flash 12:00? Perceived Usability is a Function of Usefulness. Schwartz, A.L., Thomson, L., Seifert, C.M., Shafto, M.G. (1996). 

 

Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting. Oct. 1996, vol.40 no.5 313-317

 

Designing and Supporting a Learning Healthcare System. IHI National Forum, December 2011

 

Prototyping Innovation. Cleveland Clinic Nursing Innovation Summit, October 2014.

 

IDEO’s Human Centered Design Applied to Healthcare.  Workshop at IHI National Forum on Quality, December 2011

 

Healthcare Innovation through Design Thinking. Panel at Business of Healthcare Conference, Kellogg School of Management, November 2011

 

How Do We Obtain Patient-reported Information Through Technology? Panel at the ECRI Patient-Centeredness in Policy and Practice: A Conference on Evidence, Programs and Implications, November 2011.

 

Inspiring More Human Healthcare Experiences. McCoy Steelcase Lecture, Steelcase, November 2008

 

Collaborative Design: Turning Surgeons into Design Partners. American Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation, June 2005

 

What Downton Abbey, Japanese Temples, and Maria Montessori Can Teach Us About Designing A Better Children’s Hospital Experience. National Association of Children’s Hospitals, October 2012

 

Medication Adherence:  Many Conditions, A Common Problem. Klein, D.E., Wustrack. G., and Schwartz, A.,   Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting, 2006

 

Innovation in Global Health:  Global Health Then and Now: Equality, Development and Globalization. Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine Interdisciplinary Symposium Series, Nov. 2015.  Session moderator.

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