I have been fortunate to be part of the development of UCSF research data assets and Information Commons from very early stages and see this ecosystem grow from less than a dozen users to over 500 active users a year. There were many challenges along the way, and we learned some things the hard way. One thing the team was committed to from the very beginning was listening carefully to user feedback and a deep understanding of the most important needs. There were too many things to address at any point in time, and it was crucial to choose the most important problems to focus on. We chose to start by focusing on the data aspect first, and bridging the gap between researchers' clinical perspective and technical representation of data in the systems. This was a good decision - we created a strong collection of resources for researchers, community support, training, and documentation, and this has enabled numerous impactful research projects. I am also very proud of supporting the launch of UCSF's own secure instance of Generative AI technology - Versa. It was an amazing experience to work with a talented multi-disciplinary team in IT, to advocate for an approach where we brought in users in the early stages of implementation, so that the team was able to figure out some big problems before the broad rollout. Researchers who were engaged early with the Versa projects had their own competitive challenges - they needed secure GenAI technology to conduct experiments and be the first among peers, nationally and globally, to publish GenAI-enabled results. We were able to figure out a non-standard solution to get them secure access early, which helped UCSF be among the leading institutions making an impact with GenAI-enabled research.
For me, it's understanding of what is possible now with the technology, and what will become possible in the future, both in general in the world, and specifically within UCSF. Being able to anticipate the direction and the impact of new technology helps me advocate for decisions and influence roadmaps so that we can provide the best support to UCSF community and maximize their ability to innovate and make the difference with their work.
In my product management and user success role, I love the aspect of advocating for our users and getting the message across the organization, from technology teams to stakeholders to leadership. It is this part of the work that does not scale easily - in order to address the real researchers' needs, you want to make sure you understand them deeply. It means taking time to sit down and learn about each project, listen carefully, sometimes multiple times, and not rush to offer standard solutions. Especially with researchers, who are often trying things that were never tried before, open-mindedness, flexibility, empathy, curiosity, and determination to find a working (and sometimes very scrappy) solution are the best companions on this journey.
I absolutely cannot survive without the GPS technology. I get lost easily.
I love the outdoors. Skiing in winter, hiking in a snow-free season, backpacking, and exploring the hidden wonders of nature with my family and friends are my happiest things to do. I also love performing arts (theater, music, dance), gardening, and cooking.
Right now, if I had enough free time, I would like to learn on-the-ground skills of a medical first responder.