Tamika L. Hughes

• Seasoned strategist, evaluator, design thinker, change leader, and knowledge manager with experience in multiple industries: credentialing & assessment, technology, law, public sector, charitable giving, and publishing.

• Fosters value creation using an interdisciplinary approach to define, measure and achieve strategic objectives that address customer needs, optimize service delivery, and drive business success.

• 20+ years of demonstrated success helping organizations and teams increase their capacity for continuous learning, problem solving, defining and delivering meaningful impact, and fostering inclusion.

Practice Areas & Skills

CX DESIGN & RESEARCH

Design thinking | Service design | Journey management | User research | Workshop design & facilitation | Human centered & inclusive design

PROGRAM/STRATEGY DESIGN & MEASUREMENT

Evaluative thinking & research | Strategy development & activation | Product management | Change leadership & management | Generative AI for service innovation | Knowledge management | Futures thinking | Balanced scorecard

PROBLEM SOLVING

Systems thinking | Plan Do Study Act (PDSA) | Hypothesis-driven approach | Issue trees | 5 Whys

LEADERSHIP & ADMINISTRATION

Project planning, budgeting & execution | Stakeholder/executive engagement & team building | Vendor & contract management | Industry association participation & leadership

Experience

Pearson VUE | Bala Cynwyd, PA | 06/2012 – Present

Customer Experience Strategy Manager | 02/2022 – Present

Drive co-creation and activation of customer experience (CX) strategy through design thinking; service design; generative AI-enabled service optimization; roadmap ownership; monitoring, evaluation & learning (MEL); journey and portfolio management; and stakeholder/client engagement.

• Lead vision and strategy development/execution activities for key CX and service innovation initiatives targeting increased customer satisfaction (CSAT) and $3M+ in operational cost savings.

• Introduced logic modeling, theory of change development, and systems mapping to CX vision and strategy definition approach for increased stakeholder alignment on current state, target impact, and success metrics.

Senior Product Manager | 08/2020 – 02/2022

Product Manager | 07/2015 – 08/2020

Defined outcome-driven product direction, vision and strategy for multi-tenant, registration/scheduling platform and related API integration using design thinking, evaluation, problem-solving, and stakeholder engagement to identify, implement and validate solutions that address user needs and enhance business success.

• Improved experience for 9M+ website users since Q1 2020 launch of redesigned scheduling website serving 600+ clients.

• Maximized benefits of single sign-on (SSO) and streamlined data flow improvements to website users and certification programs through consultation with roughly 20+ clients per year, resulting in an average of $80K+ annually in additional contract revenue.

• Led product management effort on 2 client launches requiring cross-platform software development, resulting in successful, on-time execution of projects on track to meet $15M/$90M revenue targets.

Business Analyst | 05/2013 – 07/2015

Associate Business Analyst | 06/2012 – 05/2013

Elicited, analyzed and conveyed business needs and requirements in order to bring to market credentialing platform features developed, tested and delivered according to client and stakeholder timelines and requirements; served as Product Owner for two agile development teams.

• Successfully launched major (250K+) single sign-on (SSO) feature projects for two key clients.

• Developed the client guide for SSO implementation options by translating and aggregating technical specifications into a client-friendly format for guiding implementation decisions.

• Collaborated with web service integration Product Manager to develop enhancement strategies and perform gap analysis for API integration between internal platforms.

Marketing and Knowledge Associate | SES Advisors | Philadelphia, PA | 01/2011 – 06/2012

Defined and managed the flow, scope, and reporting of business development information; collaborated with management to launch sales initiatives; analyzed and improved communication among stakeholders.

• Developed sales and marketing pipeline system in partnership with Marketing VP; created reporting tool that facilitates communication between teams and is now a key piece of sales documentation.

• Customized and reconfigured CRM prospecting database with over 18,000 contacts to address shifting sales-information priorities and eliminate outsourcing expense for database maintenance.

• Analyzed website visitor trends using CMS site-management features and Google Analytics; partnered with external consultant to improve tracking capabilities for online marketing campaigns.

Grant Associate | Centocor Ortho Biotech Services LLC | Horsham, PA | 11/2008 – 08/2010

Coordinated and administered Centocor’s educational grant funding process, from application and review through contracting, payment, and reporting.

• Directed the educational grant review process for approximately 400 projects per year, including 20% that were valued at $50,000 and above.

• Created original business metric that was used for analysis of about 600 charitable contributions, successfully identifying and correcting any errors in reporting. 

Information Specialist & Project Coordinator | The Arc/PDDC | Philadelphia, PA | 05/2007 – 11/2008

Maintained alignment of database systems with business requirements;  coordinated and implemented advocacy programs and tracked compliance with IRS regulations; acted as liaison to Board of Directors.

• As co-leader of the business analysis team, conducted regular staff meetings to elicit requirements for client tracking and billing database; oversaw vendor configuration of database to meet functional requirements; created instructional documentation and trained staff during transition.

• Collaborated with program directors and U.S. Senate staff to create a $500,000 federal funding proposal that secured the sponsorship of Senator Arlen Specter.

Independent Consultant | Sunflower Consulting | Philadelphia, PA | 05/2005 – 05/2007

Provided fee-based and pro-bono consulting services, including grant writing, project planning, copyediting, bookkeeping, and computer-based information management.

• For Moving Creations, a start-up nonprofit, collaborated with consulting team and Executive Director to develop an interim strategic plan, identify funding opportunities, and analyze administrative needs; defined and implemented information management systems to improve business functions. 

• Wrote successful $10,000 grant proposal for The Arc’s “Friendship, Fun, and Family” initiative.

Administrative Assistant | The Pew Charitable Trusts | Philadelphia, PA | 01/2001 – 11/2003

For the Planning & Evaluation Division, conducted research, developed logic models to document and measure new programmatic solutions, and helped design and maintain an intranet website.

• Co-authored “Report Cards as a Grantmaking Tool” and created an interactive PDF version for intranet publication (later described in a Fall 2006 Trust Magazine article).

Editorial/Rights & Permissions Assistant | Temple University Press | Philadelphia, PA | 05/1998 – 01/2001

As specialist in Rights and Permissions, coordinated subsidiary rights licensing, drafted and processed book contracts, and wrote copy for book covers, marketing brochures, seasonal catalogs, and the Temple University Press website.

Thought Leadership

Co-Facilitator, How Can We Measure How Well Testing Programs are Doing in DE&I?, ATP Innovations in Testing Conference, March 4, 2024

Co-Facilitator, Collecting & Using Customer Insights for Experience Innovation & Personalization, I.C.E. Exchange Conference, October 24, 2023

Co-Presenter, A Diversity and Inclusivity Maturity Model for Certification and Testing, I.C.E. Exchange Conference, October 27, 2023

Author, Why a DE&I Maturity Model for Certification, IT Certification Council blog article, June 1, 2023 

Co-Presenter, Leveraging Design Thinking to Develop a Candidate-Centric Experience, E-ATP Conference, October 12, 2022

Author, The North Star Vision: How Pearson VUE is Putting Customers at the Forefront of Experience Design, e-Assessment Association blog article, September 23, 2022

Panelist, End-to-End Excellence: Transforming the Candidate Experience, ITCC Education Session, May 19, 2022

Co-Facilitator, Equitability in Online Proctoring: Accessibility Considerations in Test Delivery, ATP Innovations in Testing Conference, March 22, 2022

Co-Facilitator, Infinite Frontiers: Enhancing the User Experience Across Space and Time, ATP Innovations in Testing Conference, March 22, 2022

Co-Facilitator, Inclusivity in Assessment: Best Practices and Industry Standards, ATP Innovations in Testing Conference, March 21, 2022

Co-Presenter, Inclusivity and Accessibility: Does your Program Measure Up?, E-ATP Conference, September 28, 2021

Professional Development & Education

Human-Centered Change Leadership Certificate | IDEO U | 12/2023

Human-Centered Strategy Certificate | IDEO U | 07/2023

Business Strategy Certificate | McKinsey & Company | 03/2023

Problem Solving Certificate | McKinsey & Company | 02/2023

Evaluation Studies Graduate Certificate | University of Wisconsin Stout | 05/2022

Design Thinking MicroMasters | Rochester Institute of Technology | 02/2021

MLSP (Master of Law & Social Policy) and MSS (Master of Social Service)

Bryn Mawr Graduate School of Social Work & Social Research | Bryn Mawr, PA | 05/2005

Full-time field placements completed in conjunction with degree programs:

Director & Case Manager | United Communities Southeast Philadelphia | 2004 – 2005

SCOH Social Worker | Girls, Inc. of Philadelphia | 2003 – 2004

BA (Bachelor of Arts) | Connecticut College | New London, CT | 05/1998

Licenses, Certifications & Affiliations

Licensed Social Worker | Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage & Family Therapists and Professional Counselors | 09/2024

American Evaluation Association | member since October 2020

Association of Test Publishers (ATP) | Assessment Design & Science Equity Sub-Committee Chair since June 2024; participant in Equity and Accessibility & Accommodations committees since 2023

IT Certification Council | Board Member since July 2024; Co-chair, DE&I Workgroup from 2022-2023

e-Assessment Association (eAA) | Blog contributor in 2022; member

Pragmatic Marketing Level Three (PMC-III) | Pragmatic Institute | 02/2017

Certified Scrum Product Owner (CSPO) | Scrum Alliance | 08/2014