About the Authors

Kara Pernice is the managing director at Nielsen Norman Group and heads the company’s East Coast operations. Since joining NN/g, Pernice has led several intercontinental research studies and wrote associated reports about topics such as intranets, the Web and accessibility, senior citizens, public relations, and site maps. She has developed and taught numerous seminars about these topics and about a variety of usability methods, such as the product life cycle, field studies, emotion and design, usability testing, and eyetracking. She is coauthor of the definitive book on eyetracking for websites, Eyetracking Web Usability (2009). Additionally, Pernice has worked with clients in many industries. Before joining NN/g, she established successful usability programs at Lotus Development; Iris Associates, an IBM subsidiary; and Interleaf. She managed the first usability program for Lotus Notes and the Domino server, and after her team’s work, PC Magazine wrote, “If this were summer camp, Lotus Notes would walk away with the Most Improved Camper award.” Pernice chaired the Usability Professionals’ Association conferences in 2000 and 2001, was presentations chair for UPA 1999, and was conference advisor for UPA 2002. She is on the editorial board for a new intranet magazine, The Journal of Intranet Strategy and Management. She has an MBA from Northeastern University and a BA from Simmons College.

Patty Caya (www.pattycaya.com) is a multi-platform journalist, editor, and award-winning digital media producer. In her business writing, she specializes in topics relating to usability, social media, and the business and technology of the Web. For over a decade, she has split her time between journalism projects and Web consulting. She has consulted for many of Boston’s top interactive agencies, leading Web and intranet development projects as well as usability testing, research, and design initiatives. Her client roster spans a wide range of industries and includes leading national brands alongside mission-driven non-profits. She has a BFA from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and has pursued advanced coursework in the Information Design Program at Bentley College.