HOLLI DOWNS, PhD
Senior UX / Experience Research Leader
Higher Education | Enterprise & Platform Design | Remote (United States)
Little Elm, TX | hollidownsphd@gmail.com
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
Senior UX and Experience Research leader with 10+ years driving strategic, user-centered research across enterprise, B2B SaaS, AI-enabled systems, and consumer-focused products. Expert in end-to-end research design, mixed-methods synthesis, and embedding insights into product strategy, UX delivery, and organizational decision-making. Proven ability to lead research at scale, mentor research teams, and influence cross-functional partners to build intuitive, inclusive, and impactful user experiences.
CORE COMPETENCIES
User & Experience Research Leadership • Mixed-Methods Research • Research Strategy & Roadmapping
Cross-Functional Collaboration (Design / PM / Eng) • Product Discovery & Definition • Research Operations
Generative & Evaluative Research • Strategic Insight Translation • Accessibility & Inclusive Design
Mentorship & Research Evangelism • UX Portfolio & Governance Integration • AI-Augmented Research Practices
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
PHOSPHOR — Senior Director, User Experience (Remote)
2024–Present
Provide strategic leadership and vision across UX and research initiatives spanning enterprise platforms and AI-supported systems.
Define and operationalize research frameworks, governance models, and UX principles that ensure coherence and usability across products.
Partner with cross-functional teams to translate research insights into design strategy and product decisions.
Champion accessibility, inclusive design, and evidence-based decision-making across product lifecycles.
INDEED — Senior UX Researcher (Remote)
2021–2024
Led research initiatives that informed enterprise recruiter platform roadmaps; integrated research outcomes into iterative UX solutions and consistency efforts.
Identified systemic experience gaps and partnered with design and product teams to improve usability and accessibility.
Advocated for ethical, user-centered, and inclusive practices in research and design decisions.
ENCORE / PSAV — Associate Director, UX Research & Development (Carrollton, TX)
2016–2020
Directed discovery, research execution, and synthesis across agile teams for internal SaaS and hybrid products.
Partnered with engineering and leadership to translate research evidence into strategic product decisions.
Built and institutionalized repeatable research and innovation processes that improved product usability and operational efficiency.
TEXAS WOMAN’S UNIVERSITY — Professor, Human-Centered Design (Denton, TX)
2012–2018
Taught and developed curriculum in human-centered design, systems thinking, research methods, and accessibility.
Led interdisciplinary projects emphasizing inclusive user research and experience evaluation.
SELECTED ACHIEVEMENTS & IMPACT
Directed and operationalized research strategies that shaped product definition, discovery, and prioritization across enterprise and consumer domains.
Integrated generative research, usability testing, and analytics synthesis into organizational decision-making, improving adoption and satisfaction.
Mentored and coached UX researchers, elevating research practice and influence across teams.
Advocated for accessibility and inclusive research design across digital product lifecycles.
EDUCATION
PhD, Rhetoric and Composition — Texas Woman’s University
MFA, Creative Writing — Emerson College
TOOLS & TECHNOLOGIES
Figma • Miro • UserTesting • Qualtrics • Dovetail • Reduct • FullStory/Mixpanel • User Interviews • Zoom