Researcher | Technologist
Snigdha
Petluru
Education
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Ph.D. in Information Science (2017 - paused)
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Focus: HCI, Machine Learning - Visual Analytics
University Merit Fellowship Awardee
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Master's Degree in Information Management (2017)
University of Maryland, College Park
Focus: Data Science, Strategic Management
GPA: 4.0
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Bachelor's Degree in Information Technology (2015)
Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University
Departmental Topper - Roll of Honour, GPA: 4.0
Skills
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Quantitative Methods
A/B Testing, Multivariate Testing, Cognitive Modeling, Web Analytics, Usability Testing, Factor Analysis, ANOVA, Classification, Clustering, Regression, Random Forests, Neural Networks.
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Qualitative Methods
User Research, Interviews ( in-person, remote), Focus Groups, Participant Observations, Content Analysis, Surveys, Questionnaires.
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Research Approaches
Experimental Design, Ethnography, Grounded Theory, Phenomenology, Contextual Inquiry, Participatory Design
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Design
Wireframing, Storyboarding, Empathy Mapping, Prototyping, Information Architecture, System Design, Interaction Design, UX Design
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Programming
Python, R, Java, C, SQL, HTML/CSS, JavaScript/D3, LaTeX
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Libraries
sklearn, pytorch, gensim, nltk, beautiful soup, matplotlib, pandas, spacy, keras, librosa, nltk
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Tools
Adobe (XD, Illustrator, Photoshop), Marvel, Balsamiq, Tableau, Kibana, Qualtrics, ATLAS.ti
I am a UX researcher, technologist, and strategist.
My expertise lies at the intersection of human-computer interaction, machine learning, and visual analytics. I currently work as a User Experience Researcher with the YouTube Ads team at Google, and am focused on understanding and improving the advertiser experience. My past work with YouTube Ads has also focused on the viewer experience, with an emphasis on Next Billion Users.
Prior to Google, I spent time researching games and ads with Glu Mobile, a mobile gaming company. A lot of my past work has focussed on Emerging and New-Media Technologies like Mixed Reality and Virtual Assistants with the User Experience and Design Research team at Conduent (formerly Xerox Research) as a Research Scientist.
I have led projects and cross-functional teams to collaboratively design innovative mobile and web products intended for use by stakeholders spread across a variety of domains and industries (automotive, healthcare, mass digital media, education, and non profits). I have also defined innovation and product strategies and roadmaps, led client and stakeholder engagements, and managed agile research methodologies.
I'm adept at both quantitative and qualitative research methods, and this has helped me design experiments effectively to understand the crux of a problem or behaviour. I have often tinkered with Data Science, NLP, and Audio Processing on various occasions. I have had my fair share of experiences in industrial and academic research, and this has given me a constant wealth of learning that I enjoy putting in the context of the real world.
Originally from Hyderabad in India, I was always drawn towards technology, leading me to pursue a Bachelors degree in Information Technology. I then completed my Master's degree in Information Management from the University of Maryland, College Park. During this time, I was an active contributor to various internal and external HCI research groups. I then began a Ph.D. in Information Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill under the guidance of Dr. David Gotz. I'm currently on a hiatus from the program.
When I'm not understanding how people interact with technology, I dabble in design and writing.
I'm a sporadic poet with nascent curatorial skills, as witnessed by my Instagram page.
I'm always open for conversations around potential collaborations. If you'd like to get in touch, please use one the following channels:
