Erika has been working in web design and development since before Cibo Matto released their first EP. After parlaying her raw enthusiasm for the Internet into a job at global technology publisher IDG, she began her career coding up some of the very first magazine websites and writing ad server administration tools in Perl.
Now, many years and many layers of abstraction later, Erika oversees the boxes, arrows, words, and numbers at Mule—that is to say the research, interaction design, business development, and content strategy. (Director of Schemes would be more apt, but sounds sinister in American English.) She is adept at helping clients articulate their goals and frame their problems to ensure successful design solutions, and encourages everyone to embrace the sure power of the clarifying question.
Erika sometimes speaks in public—most frequently about the importance of natural language to a successful interface and the folly of excluding writers and strategic thinkers from design teams. Past appearances include the Future of Web Apps, Web 2.0 Expo, and Confab – the content strategy conference.
Many hours spent negotiating contracts and her more recent zeal for insufferable athletic pastimes have given rise to Running from the Law. Along with Gabe Levine, Erika co-hosts this podcast devoted to business law and endurance training. She is also the San Francisco chapter organizer of CreativeMornings, a monthly breakfast lecture series.
In her spare time, she fights empty and political business jargon at unsuck-it.com.
Erika received her B.A. in Philosophy from Dartmouth College.
