UX Office Hours

Bryce Howitson

Bryce is obsessed with creating products that people want to use. He helps organizations of all sizes prototype and test their ideas. Sometimes called a designer, a developer, a strategist, a writer, or an artist, Bryce has led teams and worked in the trenches.

Bryce is a Google Developer Expert in UI/UX/Product/Web Technologies and a certified Design Sprint Master.

He shares his knowledge by mentoring and teaching from his homeland in the great frozen north of Minnesota.

Cameron MacDonald

Cameron is a front-end developer who works on design systems. He finds joy in bridging the gap between visual design and software engineering; artistic creativity and practical problem solving.

He is also a Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies (CPACC) through the International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP). He is working on gaining the experience necessary in order to qualify to take their Web Accessibility Specialist (WAS) certification as well.

When he's not ripping his hair out trying to fix bugs he definitely didn't create, you can find him doing one of his many hobbies that he can't seem to stop picking up. These include skiing, cycling, illustration, animation, 3D printing, smart home automation, playing guitar and piano, and more.

Cameron is also the current Vice President of Nice Moves MN, a volunteer-run organization that hosts events, mixers, and more for animation, motion graphics, VFX, and other moving picture professionals in Minnesota and its surrounding neighbors.

You can find all of his socials at cdmacdonald.com

Dante Vono

Dante Vono is a veteran UX Designer specializing in research, concept testing, interaction/UI design, prototyping, and more. He has experience working in a variety of companies and industries, focusing on enterprise products that help people work faster and more efficiently. He relies on his instincts but never wants to think he's got it all figured out. Staying curious, skeptical and always learning keeps him from getting complacent.

Some examples of his work can be found at his portfolio site. Dante is currently a Lead UX/UI Designer at Wolters Kluwer, an information services company that provides content and workflow solutions to legal, tax, accounting, finance, audit, and healthcare markets.

Homer Rutledge

This person hasn't yet added a bio.

Jared Johnson

Jared is an Sr Experience Design Consultant with over 10 years of experience building digital products & services for corporate enterprise organizations to start-ups. His professional expertise spans traditional experience design, UI Design, Business Development and Marketing Strategy. He works on behalf of a local ESOP & consultancy based out of Twin Cities, solution design group.

His experience spans the industries of finance, healthcare, construction, agriculture, and legal and has worn many hats ranging from production artist and graphic designer to interactive designer and experience strategist. His personal website can be found here and he has been featured on technology podcasts, written blogs highlighting best practices when building digital products, presented to dozens of technology professionals on industry trends, curated design topics + speakers for local conferences, and contributed to panel discussions for events like World Usability Day. He currently supports as a teaching specialist & adjunct faculty member of the University of Minnesota's College of Design.

Stop by the UX Office Hours table & say hi!

EJ Makela

EJ is a career-switcher, trying to land his first paid gig in the area of experience design (service design, UX, IxD, etc.).

With a long background in customer service, education, and IT-oriented roles, EJ also spends a lot of his time engaging in community-building and other volunteer work. He nerds-out on anything related to design or process. Currently, he's a local leader for the Interaction Design Foundation (IxDF) and the webinar coordinator for UXPA International.

At Minnebar 18 (2024), EJ was shocked when 30+ folks attended a humble UX meetup that he had organized. He also volunteered at the all-day UX Office Hours session, and he's doing it again for 2025. Stop by if you want to talk about your tech project or idea!

His nickname is "Johnny," and he usually finds it odd to speak in the third person.

Links:

• LinkedIn profile: /in/ejmakela
• UX portfolio: ejm-ux.com

Jodi Kuehn

A designer that knows how to CODE? And an introvert that isn't afraid to stand up in front of an audience and talk for 45 minutes?? You won't want to miss this session! (Peanuts and popcorn optional)

Jodi Kuehn (pronounced "keen") has a keen eye for design [see what I did there?!?] and has worked for multiple Fortune 500 companies, including Northwest Airlines, Target, Wells Fargo, Medtronic, Ameriprise, and Komatsu. She is super passionate about her work, and specializes in user interaction, responsive web design, design systems, WCAG accessibility, and HTML/CSS.

Tim Armato

This person hasn't yet added a bio.