Andrew Casden

UX Research & Insights / Strategy Consultant

OCT 2023 - PRESENT · 3 years

Since the start of 2024 I've been acting as a fractional insights leader, primarily focused around UX research and insights. I have advised several local start-ups in the AI space, assisting one company with early market research and product design planning, and another with some content & brand strategy for their first foray into Y-Combinator. References available upon request. Other recent client projects outlined below: + Hired on by Google partner agency as part of a consultant design research team to lead all-day field immersions for Pixel team stakeholders with fitness app and product users - Co-created discussion guides and fitness immersion activities with Pixel team stakeholders - Moderated several ‘pods’ with fitness activity participants observing product behaviors and investigated user experience with device and app - Moderated in-home interviews with select participants to uncover insights around health & fitness goals, product experience, and fitness data implementation. + Lead an evaluative design research phase for Nextdoor in anticipation of the app’s relaunch in summer of 2025 - Coordinated with stakeholders across design, product management, and research to design a study that would deliver on Nextdoor’s brand positioning and marketing goals - Recruited, screened, and scheduled user interviews in a tight timeline - Moderated interviews and created a rich summary report along with a dynamic edited video deliverable + Partnered with boutique design consultancy EMB Design to provide user research leadership on advanced home appliance waste management project - Worked with principal designer to create research proposal and project plan - Created recruit profiles for target segments and conducted interviews remotely and in-person - Provided high-level topline summary with video assets to inform design phase - Facilitated co-creation workshop with designers and engineers in prototype phase

Media Maker / Documentary Producer

Between 2005 and 2010 I was quite active in photography and shooting/producting short films, documentaries and a few music videos. I've produced content primarily in the music, arts, and entertainment industries, for clients like Diageo, Om Records, Blasthaus Productions, The Rx Gallery of San Francisco, the Bar of Contemporary Art, M3 Music and Media Summit of Miami, and the St. Helena (Napa Valley) Chamber of Commerce, and a number of my own side projects.

Media Associate

+ Oversaw media duplication and replication projects at scale for clients in advertising, tech, and public sector + Intake and preparation of digital assets to video and dvd production department + Lead generation and business development assistance

Research Director

SEP 2024 - MAY 2025 · 9 months

+ Designed and executed research program for industrial design studio contracted by leading home fitness cycle and treadmill brand + Partnered with Huge’s design leadership and client's product management team to create a comprehensive and robust multi-phase user research plan + Managed a generative research phase based around a remote qualitative video response survey with equipment owners across the US and the UK + Uncovered numerous insights to fuel Huge’s design team for hardware UX generation phase + Presented stimulus from phase I to present to new panel of fitness equipment owners for phase II evaluation phase and synthesized user feedback into tangible insights + Presented key findings of research and design to client senior stakeholders

Strategy Director / Managing Consultant

JUN 2020 - AUG 2023 · 3.3 years

+ Integrated Astro's design research studio practice into PA Consulting's global consulting organization and scaled our studio's offering accordingly + Aligned Astro's research team's goals with the business goals and directives of the PA Consulting organization ensuring consistency of messaging and services to PA's global client network + Increased the research team's revenue YoY for 3 years running + Collaborated with PA's other North American and UK-based teams regularly to enhance our offering and capabilities to clients and ensure best-in-class insights and design services on each project + Managed and developed junior and intermediate researchers across other offices for specific project-based initiatives + Began integrating AI tools into design research processes and workflows as early as 2023 + Contributed to PA's bi-weekly 'Research Roundup' of global research team leaders to discuss relevant topics and issues pertaining to our field and our teams

Research & Insights Director

JAN 2017 - JUN 2020 · 3.5 years

+ Created and enhanced studio expertise in key areas of qualitative & quantitative research methods; AI for research, in-person & remote, project management, synthesis, analysis, storytelling and strategy + Developed creative and comprehensive research plans and methodologies to support complex industrial design, digital design, and brand marketing challenges at Astro + Cultivated a broad network of outside partners and vendors in global markets for managing global research projects across EU, LatAm, East Asia + Elevated studio’s video storytelling resources and capabilities through the contracting of videographers and editors on various high-profile client programs

Content Strategy Consultant

MAY 2006 - MAR 2007 · 11 months

+ Generated new content acquisition strategies for burgeoning HD video platform + Established and cultivating relationships with strategic content channels and content-creators to supply impactful content to the Azureus platform + Created dynamic and engaging content for internal sales and marketing teams