P

Philip Strain

Head of Accessibility @ Miro | Ex- Google, Apple, Spotify

Scarva, GB

About

Ph.D. in Computer Science (Human-Computer Interaction) with over 15 years product experience from Google, Apple and Spotify combining strong technical knowledge with ux research skills to create experiences that are delightful for everyone.

Ask me about

Work experience

  1. November 2022 – present

    Miro

    Head of Product, Accessibility & Design Systems
  2. November 2021 – November 2022

    Miro

    Lead Product Manager, Accessibility & Design Systems
    Lead product manager for accessibility and design systems at Miro.
  3. September 2020 – October 2021

    Spotify

    Strategy Lead / Staff User Researcher: Accessibility
    Hiring manager for Insights roles (Data Science and User Research) in Design Platform. Strategy lead for accessibility and inclusive design.
  4. July 2019 – September 2020

    Spotify

    Insights Manager (User Research+Data Science)
    Manage a team of user researchers and data scientists located across London and Stockholm, focusing on the podcast user experience on iOS and Android.
  5. June 2017 – September 2020

    Spotify

    Accessibility Guild Lead
    Founded and lead the accessibility guild at Spotify - a cross-functional network of designers, engineers, researchers and product managers collaborating to ensure Spotify is accessible to all.
  6. August 2016 – July 2019

    Spotify

    Senior User Researcher
    2017-2019: Platform & Partner Experience tribe Implemented a methodology to scale user research across a tribe responsible for Spotify products outside of mobile including: • Car: Tesla, Android Auto/CarPlay, BMW, Bluetooth • Wearables: Apple Watch, Garmin, WearOS • Speakers: Google Home, Alexa, Sonos • Third-party integrations: Facebook Messenger, Tinder, Google Maps, Google Clock • Other: Web, Desktop, Tablet, TV, XBox, Playstation 2016: GLUE (Global Language for a Unified Experience)
  7. October 2017 – October 2017

    European Commission

    Advisor, Web Accessibility Directive
    Contributed to the European Accessibility Act by informing a study on the current practices regarding accessibility statements, reporting mechanisms and mobile monitoring methodologies and invited to European Commission headquarters in Brussels to participate in Accessibility of Web and Mobile Apps workshop.
  8. March 2015 – August 2016

    Apple

    Senior Engineer, iOS Accessibility
    As a senior iOS accessibility engineer embedded in engineering teams across Apple, my role was to conduct heuristic evaluations against iOS, OS X and web products, produce proof-of-concept prototypes, develop accessibility guidelines and promote accessibility within Apple.
  9. March 2013 – February 2015

    Google

    User Experience Researcher Lead, AdSense
    Led user research on Adsense and a range of Google Publisher products.
  10. October 2011 – March 2013

    Google

    User Experience Researcher lead, Accessibility
    Embedded in Google’s Accessibility Engineering team, I utilised user experience research skills across a range of methodologies including surveys, focus groups, usability studies and workshops to inform strategic direction and provide tactical insights for key Google products such as Chrome and Android. Developed interactive Web and iOS prototypes to communicate approaches.
  11. July 2009 – October 2011

    Ecliptic Labs

    User Experience Director
    Founder and director of Ecliptic Labs Ltd, a mobile r&d consultancy. My role involved: + leading and overseeing all phases of UX + hiring and managing a team of designers and developers + implementing R&D processes including prototyping, detailed design, usability testing, and implementation. + Projects ranged from exploring multimodality to facilitate non-visual input for a sports analytics company, to creating mobile prototypes (eg eHarmony) to publishing fully featured apps (eg Mailchimp)
  12. March 2010 – June 2010

    Google

    User Experience Research Intern
    Conducted UX research studies for Google Docs team in NYC to inform accessibility strategy and improve the usability of Docs features.
  13. June 2008 – March 2010

    Royal Mail

    Accessibility Subject Matter Expert
  14. January 2009 – June 2009

    Queen's University Belfast

    Research Fellow
    U.K. lead for the HaptiMap project, a European Project that aimed to improve navigation and way-finding among the disabled community by researching mobile solutions. My role in the project was to lead research into how the older population perceive and use mobile devices.
  15. January 2003 – May 2008

    Queen's University Belfast

    Teaching Assistant
    Advised and assisted Computer Science undergraduate students to develop their skills in various programming languages, applications and thesis work.
  16. June 2006 – September 2006

    Google

    User Experience Research Intern
    Designed and conducted user studies with both sighted and visually impaired participants. Analysed and interpreted data resulting from user studies for purposes of technical reports and research publications. Developed internal resources such as guidelines and style guides. Created accessible mockups and prototypes to demonstrate techniques and concepts. Presented study findings to management and design teams, leading to many enhancements in the accessibility of Google products
  17. June 2005 – September 2005

    Google

    Usability Analyst Intern
    First employee to work full time on accessibility and UX at Google. Designed and conducted user studies with sighted and visually impaired participants that led to tangible improvements to Google.com and Google search results page.
  18. September 2001 – August 2002

    Siemens

    UX Engineer Intern
    “UX Engineer” for the team’s error management system, FEKAT. Proposed and developed an automated system to reduce a daily task from 30 mins per day to 0. Developed software using Perl, JavaScript and HTML in a UNIX environment. Produced and executed test plans for the main software system, the Reliant Telecommunications Platform. Produced user documentation, liaised with management and delivered presentations.

Education

  1. 2004 – 2010

    Queen's University Belfast

    PhD, Human-Computer Interaction
  2. 2003 – 2004

    MA, Music Technology
  3. 1999 – 2004

    Queen's University Belfast

    BSc, Computer Science