About

Chaos is my fuel. Ambiguity is my playground.

I'm a technical product leader. 16+ years bridging engineering and the business, PhD in Systems Engineering underneath it. I've been building with AI and LLMs since 2014, back when nobody said that out loud in a product meeting.

Usability Testing Design Thinking Program Evaluation
2009 2013 2017 2020 2026 Blackboard PhD Research, with IBM, then Amazon and Sonos Joint Special Operations Command BYU Innovation Lab and Faculty BluePath Labs Large Public Institution NOW
Several chapters ran concurrently. The PhD years alone included three concurrent threads: industry research and a defense product management role.
2009 to 2013

Product Manager, Blackboard

Started my career proving UX moves revenue. Shipped 84 mobile apps, drove a 64% year-over-year jump in sales, and helped build the case that led to the company's acquisition.

2012 to 2017

PhD Researcher, Virginia Tech, alongside IBM and Amazon/Sonos

Pursued a PhD in Industrial & Systems Engineering while running full industry roles at the same time: product management at IBM, scaling SaaS adoption 75x, then UX research for Amazon Echo and Sonos Play:5, concurrently. Selected as an NSF I-Corps Graduate Fellow.

2014 to 2017

Senior Product Manager, Joint Special Operations Command

A fourth concurrent thread during the PhD years: product strategy for UX and mobile innovation inside a defense command. Built the business case from scratch, secured $750K in research funding, and shipped two prototypes on time and under budget.

2018 to 2020

Lab Director & Visiting Professor, Brigham Young University

Founded a university innovation lab from zero. Raised $325K, mentored 200+ students through AR/VR and mobile product delivery, and taught across Mixed Reality, HCI, and UX.

2018 to 2026

Senior Technical Product Manager to Principal AI Product Strategist, BluePath Labs

Eight years at a defense technology contractor. Directed a $45M portfolio across six government contracts, authored proposals worth $51B in potential contract value, led AI/LLM research at the Army Cybersecurity Institute, and scaled the team from 4 to 12 while doubling contract value.

2026 to Present

Senior Technology Solutions Strategist, Large Public Institution

Scaling from 1 to 4 concurrent AI programs and architecting the institutional platform spec that unifies them, from vendor evaluation through architecture-lock.

Bridge, don't translate

I don't translate between engineering and the business. I sit in both rooms well enough that translation isn't necessary.

Governance as infrastructure

Compliance and ethics review, built into the pipeline from day one. It ships faster than bolting it on after legal finds the problem.

Numbers over opinions

If a decision can be modeled, it should be. Multi-criteria frameworks beat whoever presents last in the room.

See these applied in practice →

PhD, Systems Engineering

Virginia Tech. NSF I-Corps Graduate Fellow. UPS Doctoral Fellowship. Dissertation: “Rapid Design and Prototyping Methods for Mobile Head-Worn Mixed Reality (MR) Interface and Interaction Systems.”

MS, UX Research

Brigham Young University. Thesis: “User Experience Engineering Adoption and Practice: A Longitudinal Case Study.”

BS, IT & Cybersecurity

Brigham Young University. IT Student Association. Research Assistant, 2010 to 2012: taught foundational IT and networking courses and introduced applied cybersecurity labs.

AA, Butte College

Elected Student Body President. Regional Vice President and Vice President of Service, Phi Theta Kappa. Also active in the Inter-club Council, the LDS Student Association, the Cultures & Civilizations Club, and Friends of the Wildlife Refuge. The community college chapter behind the Jack Kent Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship below.

Jack Kent Cooke Scholar

Undergraduate Transfer and Graduate Scholarships, both highly competitive national awards.

Eagle Scout

The discipline started early.

AI Fluency & Claude Code, Anthropic

Nine certifications, spring 2026: Claude 101, Claude Code 101, Claude Code in Action, AI Capabilities & Limitations, the AI Fluency Framework, Teaching the AI Fluency Framework, and the educator, nonprofit, and student AI Fluency tracks.

Active DoD Secret Clearance

United States Department of Defense, current through January 2027.

STEM Faculty Institute Award

Brigham Young University, 2019.

NIST RMF & CMMC 2.0 Certified

Implementing the NIST Risk Management Framework (2021) and Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification, CMMC 2.0 (2025), LinkedIn Learning.

UX & Interaction Design Foundations

Become a User Experience Designer, Interaction Design: Structure, Interaction Design for the Web, and UX Foundations: Interaction Design, LinkedIn Learning.

Honor Medal with Crossed Palms

Scouting America's highest honor for lifesaving, awarded for extraordinary heroism at extreme personal risk.

Honor Societies

Golden Key International Honour Society, Tau Alpha Pi, Order of the Arrow, Order of the Engineer, and Phi Theta Kappa.

Also completed 140+ LinkedIn Learning certifications across UX design, Agile and Scrum, Six Sigma, and networking fundamentals, 2019 to 2021. Full list on LinkedIn →

Peer-reviewed research from the PhD and MS years, on mixed reality interaction design and UX engineering practice.

Dissertation & Thesis

PhD Dissertation, Virginia Tech, 2018

Rapid Design and Prototyping Methods for Mobile Head-Worn Mixed Reality (MR) Interface and Interaction Systems →

Advised by Dr. Joe Gabbard. Thirteen experiments evaluating rapid prototyping methods for 3D head-worn display systems in the first responder domain.

Conference Papers

SIGITE 2019

Identifying and Evaluating Information Technology Baccalaureate Degree Programs per IT2017

With B. Lunt et al. 7 citations.

UXPA International Conference, 2019

Implementing Effective Rapid Design and Prototyping Strategies for AR/MR/VR

Full record on Google Scholar →

The specific research methods, product and program disciplines, and software behind 16+ years of delivery. Not just the job titles.

UX Research Methods

A/B TestingAffinity DiagramsAnalyticsBlack Box AnalysisCard SortingClickstream AnalysisCognitive WalkthroughCompetitive AnalysisConcept TestingContextual InquiryDiary StudiesEthnographic StudiesEye TrackingField StudiesFirst Click TestingFive-Second TestingFocus GroupsGuerrilla TestingHeatmapsHeuristic EvaluationIn-Person EvaluationsJourney MappingModerated Usability TestingParticipatory DesignPersonasRemote Usability TestingStakeholder UnderstandingsSurveysSystem Usability ScaleTask AnalysisTree TestingUnmoderated Usability TestingUser InterviewsUser Scenarios & StoriesUsability Benchmarking

Product & Program Management

Agile MethodologiesBenefits RealizationBudget ManagementChange ManagementConflict ResolutionCost ManagementCross-Functional Team CollaborationCustomer Feedback AnalysisData AnalysisFacilitationInfluencing & NegotiatingInnovation ManagementMarket ResearchMentoringPerformance MeasurementPlanning & ForecastingPortfolio ManagementPrioritizationProcess ManagementProduct Lifecycle ManagementProduct RoadmappingProgram GovernanceQuality ManagementResource ManagementRisk ManagementScope ManagementStakeholder ManagementStrategic Planning

Tools & Platforms

Adobe Creative CloudAsanaAtlassian (Confluence, Jira, Service Management)BasecampDevOpsDropboxFigma & FigJamGoogle AnalyticsGoogle WorkspaceInVisionMarvelMicrosoft Office SuiteMicrosoft ProjectMonday.comMiroPower BIQualtricsServiceNowSharePointSketchSlackStatistics & MinitabSurveyMonkeyTrelloUserTesting.comWebExWordPressZoom

211 LinkedIn Learning courses since 2019, nine Anthropic AI certifications this year, and the agentic systems work underneath my last two roles. From UX research and technical product management on up to the AI product leadership I do now. The oldest cluster is the widest. The newest is the one I use every day.

AI, agentic systems & security

UX & design

Infrastructure & engineering

Business, tools & curiosity

“He has been a pleasure to work with. He is extremely responsive, takes his responsibilities seriously, and strives for excellence in all he does. I was particularly impressed with how he developed and ran the Mixed Reality Lab, which has introduced many students from across campus to virtual reality and augmented reality technologies. He has an outstanding breadth of knowledge about many technical topics, but particularly VR and AR technologies.”

Derek Hansen, Professor, Brigham Young University

“Brady is one of the smartest, most diligent, and innovative people I have ever worked with. He is an excellent researcher, designer, analyst, writer, and project leader. Over two years he was almost single-handedly responsible for turning the culture of this software development company into what the CEO proudly termed ‘a UX company.’”

Bret Swan, Director of Product Management & Product Development, MetaSource

“Brady has been the best coworker I have ever had the privilege of working with. He is proactive and does not need to be told what to do, he gets the job done in a timely manner. He impresses people with his knowledge and charisma. I would hire Brady the first chance I got.”

Jordan Mathews, Cyber Risk & Data Privacy Architect, Freeport-McMoRan

“Brady was a great colleague. His technological expertise was a valuable asset both for the company and for individuals with whom he associates. Brady frequently searched for the best solution, not just what it takes to get by. Brady's spirit of service extends outside the office as he continuously reaches out to help people.”

William Prather, Information Technology Team Lead, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

“Brady is probably one of the best workers I've met. He plows away until the project is done. If he doesn't know how to do something he's not afraid to ask, but he gets the job done. I know many people that are that focused on their work.”

Morgan Adams, Senior Software Engineer, Production Engineering, Meta

“Brady is a pleasure to work with. He gets his job done, and improves the work environment with his attitude.”

Jason Mavandi, Software Engineer Technical Lead, Auction Technology Group

“Brady is a quick study and one of the few professionals who really understands software usability. We hope to work with him in the future.”

John Graff, Founding Partner, 2nd Story Capital

“Brady demonstrated sincere dedication to scholastic achievement and community service. During his term he fulfilled his own duties, working collaboratively with his peers, while also taking the lead on other innovative projects, doing so without reservation. Brady's clear devotion to academics and improving society as a whole, through teaching and serving others, will only continue for as long as his life permits.”

Cara Crugnale, Data Analyst, Tegra Analytics

“Brady was a wonderful addition to our regional board and a valued member of our team. He was always willing to help out, give direction when needed, and work as a team.”

Daniella Cortez, Executive Marketing Assistant

I build things with my hands when I'm not writing code: LEGO with my son, restoring classic cars, designing my own home office down to the last cable run. I mentor students through the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, and I'm a technical advisor, advocate, and counselor for the Widower's Support Network. Member of UXPA, HFES, IEEE Computer Society, ACM SIGITE, itSMF USA, Product Hive, and PMI. Native English, limited working Spanish. Based in Spanish Fork, Utah.