SLIS Network, Alumni Newsletter, Fall 2000
Michael Wilson, MIS'99, was interested in pursuing a job at UNext when he heard the company would be opening doors in Bloomington. But when he researched UNext and learned that Don Norman, a leader in the field of human cognition and computer interaction, is on the board and is president of its Learning Systems, he was thrilled.
"The combination of working with such a great name in the field while utilizing cutting-edge technology to deliver distance education lured me to the company," says Wilson, a user-experience senior analyst at UNext.
Wilson, along with other SLIS graduates and students, works closely with course development teams throughout the design process, utilizing both the theoretical human-computer interaction concepts, as well as user data to drive the design process and ensure a high-quality, usable product. All of that teamwork, stressed in many SLIS classes, is paying off, he says.
"Almost every course included some type of group project, which is reflective of the type of work most of us see in the IT industry," says Wilson. "Nothing happens in a vacuum. Everything happens through collaboration, consensus building, and working together. This is the foundation of our development philosophy at UNext."
Besides SLIS Associate Professor Andrew Dillon's HCI class, others that emphasize information management and organization, as well as information architecture, gave Wilson a foundation for his everyday tasks on the job. Wilson also values his internship experience at Indiana Career and Postsecondary Advancement Center, where he first applied what he'd been learning in the classroom.
His only regret?
"That I didn't utilize the wonderful SLIS usability lab as often as possible. I used it only for formal course projects, but I would be in there every day reviewing tapes and running informal sessions if I were to do it over."
PHOTOS:
Michael Wilson MIS'99; UNext.com logo; UNext managing director Bill West, far left, leads a discussion at the company's Bloomington office as SLIS alumnus Michael Wilson, next to West, and SLIS Associate Professor Andy Dillon, far right, listen.
Photos Courtesy of UNext.
Related SLIS NEWs stories:
Internet Connection: SLIS Lends Skills To UNext
From Chemicals To Health Care Internships That Count
Posted December 11, 2000