We can solve your business problems because our people are the most talented at and passionate about what they do. They know how to innovate and adapt. It’s key to thriving in an industry that reinvents itself daily.
Our people are the leaders others look to in the design and development communities. They’re sought-after speakers, widely-read and often-quoted publishers, and the first to provide actionable insight into creating the most effective enterprise applications across any industry.
David Tucker serves as Director of Research & Development with Universal Mind. He is a software engineer with more than 12 years of experience in web and mobile design, working closely with Universal Mind's clients to develop an effective technical strategy as well as end-to-end experiences that span devices and technologies.
As Creative Director, Francisco Inchauste works to deliver solutions that balance beauty with function. He regularly shares his passion for design in major publications like like Smashing Magazine and Six Revisions. He also serves as Editor of Smashing Magazine’s UX Design section. He shares his passion for design on his renowned personal blog: www.getfinch.com.
Director of UX and Director of R&D Joe Johnston specializes in consumer-grade enterprise applications, web apps, desktop, kiosks, and mobile and embedded devices. With 13 years of experience in design, he was creating great user experiences well before the term “UX” was created. Joe was UX Lead on the Digital Experience Framework for the Jimi Hendrix Experience.
Mike Nimer, Solutions Architect for Universal Mind, specializes in CQ5, Android, HTML5/JS, ColdFusion development, and social media integration. Previously, Mike was a member of the Adobe ColdFusion engineering team where he was responsible for HTML-to-PDF generation. A recognized thought leader, Mike speaks regularly at industry events, and has spoken annually at Adobe MAX since it was the Allaire DevCon in 1999.
Ben Clinkinbeard, a self-taught web developer with an artistic background in digital design, serves as a Developer and Principal Architect for Universal Mind. He co-created the FlexMDI library for Adobe Flex (subsequently integrated into FlexLib), and now contributes to the Swiz framework, a lightweight IoC container for Adobe Flex. Recently, Ben has become engrossed in the JavaScript and Node.js worlds.
Having begun her career in interior architecture, space planning and product/service design, Kelly brings her diverse design background to her role at Universal Mind. She received her master’s degree in Industrial Design and Design Management from the Savannah College of Art and Design and was previously at Newell Rubbermaid and EffectiveUI.
Principal Architect, Vladimir Agafonkin, is a Master of Applied Mathematics who possesses deep expertise in front-end development and modern web technologies. He created Leaflet, the most popular open source solution for publishing maps on the web today (used by Foursquare, Flickr, Craigslist and the Washington Post).
A solutions architect at Universal Mind and previous software architect for Eastman Kodak Company, Peter brings 25+ years experience in the web application development field and the business-consulting world to our clients. He regularly speaks in several development user groups on web and mobile application development technologies.
As a Director of Software Development at Universal Mind, Chris Scott works with consulting and product development firms to accomplish projects in enterprise publishing, education, loss prevention data mining, and telecom management. He speaks frequently at many of the major Adobe community conferences.
Douglas Knudsen, Senior Technical Architect, has a record of working with Fortune 500 companies as well as innovative start-ups. He specializes in working with Adobe products and also with surrounding database and server technologies like Oracle and Java. He has worked with Fortune 500 companies as well as startups including Nasdaq, Pearson Education, Nomee, Principal Financial, and TMobile, to name a few.
Holly makes understanding her clients and meeting their needs her highest priorities. She’s a certified Project Management 1 (PMI) and a Certified Scrum Master who brings more than 15 years of project management experience in the furniture and packaging industries to her role as Delivery Manager for Universal Mind.
As Director of Technology for Universal Mind, Ryan brings 13 years of experience in web development, object-oriented programming, database design, systems architecture, Agile methodologies, and project management to his role. He’s currently innovating in mobile advertising, creating solutions for mobile platforms that match ORMMA (open rich media mobile advertising) standards. His colleagues call him a client-friendly developer, a solid mentor, and a great technical leader.
Derik Lolli brings 13 years of immersion into all things web to his role as Creative Director at Universal Mind. While his passion for design has translated into numerous award winning websites, it’s the attention to functionality and how it merges with form that has driven his success.
As a designer, Christian bridges the gap between functionality and aesthetics, delivering beautiful, effective digital experiences for clients. A 15-year veteran of the interactive design community, Christian aims to engage users on a personal level, using design to meet them where they are and in ways they’re comfortable with, no matter the platform.
As Director of UX at Universal Mind, John McRee specializes in design process management, digital strategy, user research, persona development, information architecture and interaction design. He’s also a master of user-centered design (UCD) methodologies, and has designed Web sites, CD-ROM-based experiences, shrink-wrapped desktop software and mobile applications.
Tommy Rochette is a Senior Consultant for Universal Mind specializing in HTML5 and Javascript development. He is an expert at building rich Internet applications, using technologies like, Bootstrap, Foundation, jQuery, and Angular.js bridging the gap with enterprise application back-ends.
Nate is an architect who builds some of the iOS apps people touch every day. He has over ten years experience crafting award winning mobile applications for the web, desktop, and a variety of devices. He has worked with companies such as Google, Microsoft, and Oracle, to push the limits and deliver memorable experiences into the hands of consumers.
Darron Schall, Director of Software Engineering, stands proudly on his ten-year track record of developing visually compelling and beautifully functioning applications. Darron's history of targeting the Flash Platform is well documented, touting many high profile successes both commercially and in open source. He is actively building upon this storied legacy in today's mobile iOS and Android world
Doug McCune is a passionate Flex developer, consultant, and community contributor. He has been developing Flex applications since 2004 and is currently a Principal Software Engineer at Universal Mind, where he specializes in geospatial data visualization.
Zoe Bloch has more than a decade of experience in software development, product design, and IT management, spanning the health care, finance, and intellectual property industries, bringing a vast technical understanding to his role as a Delivery Manager.
As Technical Architect at Universal Mind, Ryan builds client-side enterprise applications in HTML5 as well as Apache Flex technologies. Prior to joining Universal Mind, Ryan worked for Digitas, delivering award-winning experiences to clients including P&G, Aflac, American Express, and Goodyear.
Cliff brings more than ten years experience in application development to his role as Solutions Architect at Universal Mind. Since 2005 he has focused on enterprise Java development using technologies such as Spring and Hibernate, and Rich Internet Application (RIA) development with Adobe Flex and AIR.
David Tucker serves as Director of Research & Development with Universal Mind. He is a software engineer with more than 12 years of experience in web and mobile design, working closely with Universal Mind's clients to develop an effective technical strategy as well as end-to-end experiences that span devices and technologies.
Universal Mind started out of necessity, the result of our commitment to clients facing the broken promises of others. We met those clients face-to-face and got their jobs done before we’d even picked a name.
When we finally did select a company name, we were inspired by the song Universal Mind by The Doors. Quite simply, it resonates, because when you work with Universal Mind you don’t just work with one individual, or even with just the team that’s on your project. You get an entire company of people who pride themselves on sharing knowledge and making everyone better.
Many of our people were once employed by top companies, such as Adobe, IBM Global Services, Accenture, Cambridge Technology Partners, and Publicis Dialog. They come to Universal Mind and stay with us because we provide a work environment that most of our competitors don’t. We present our people with the best opportunities, treat them with respect, and keep the organization transparent at all levels. It’s just how we do business.
Since 2003, Universal Mind, Inc. has been building custom digital solutions for clients. With this experience as our foundation, we are experts at creating truly innovative applications with engaging user experiences for people …on any device they use. Solutions that leverage your business systems and combine them with the latest technologies and platforms around.
It’s all our way of building an organization where people love to work, with clients who love to work with us, and that’s respected in the industry.
@briankellyphoto: Editing videos for @universalmind... blown away at what goes into development and design of the best apps and digital solutions!
Congrats to UMs @WhatImpressesMe for winning @microsoft's Windows Entertainment and Connected Home MVP for 2013!
The people at @universalmind are maybe some of my favorite people on the planet. I love this company.
@universalmind contributed some of our best practices around #userresearch and #personas with our friends @forrester
Whether they’re established players or fast-moving upstarts, our clients seek us out for the leading-edge innovation they need to inspire customer loyalty, boost revenues, and maximize business efficiencies. We form deep relationships based on mutual respect and a passion for excellence.
We’re obsessed with exceeding clients’ expectations so they see us as must-have partners for the long term. We make in-person interactions a priority, and we strive to delight our clients at every step, from investigation to concepts, iteration to final deployment, strategic planning to follow-up.
While we bring best practices to every engagement, we aren’t prima donnas. We’re pragmatic about playing by our clients’ rules and getting the job done according to their specifications.
Passion for the great experience that comes from the perfect combination of technology and design is in our DNA. We insist on great design and innovative execution in both our tools for work and our toys for play. (And really, is there a difference?)
We thrive on the continual change of NOW. We’re always testing, exploring, and tweaking the newest stuff, asking what-ifs and why-nots. We know that the best technology and user experience can help us discover breakthrough ways to help our clients get ahead.
We also know that today’s hot technology can quickly become tomorrow’s Betamax. And while we like to push technical boundaries to take our clients to the next level, we also ensure the solutions we deploy create real business value.
We hire the best, learn from the best, and do the best work. We love being surrounded by crazy-smart people at the top of their craft—true masters who constantly raise the bar for each other.
We love to share our expertise with the technology community. Our thought leaders speak at the conferences and write the books and blogs that help shape the future of digital experiences.
Despite our knowledge of technology and design, we aren’t know-it-alls. We’re team players and articulate communicators who connect beautifully with business people. We may be bold and outspoken, but arrogance is not our thing.
Eccentricities? No problem. Office politics? No thanks. We’ve created an environment in which each of us is evaluated based on the quality of our contributions—the code we write, the designs we create, and the client relationships we build—and not how we dress or how many meetings we attend.
Our workforce was virtual before virtual was cool. We believe in individuality and autonomy—not set hours or corporate face time. But we understand that with great freedom comes great responsibility to our clients and our company. We operate with few layers of management because our people are common-sense self-starters.
Integrity means everything. Our staff may have diverse workplaces, but each one of us cares deeply about satisfying our clients and doing the right thing.
We splurge on the latest and greatest tech: software, hardware, devices, and education that helps us work better, faster, and cheaper.
Our love of technology means we’re often the first to discover and implement innovative solutions that boost productivity and reduce costs. (Hello SaaS, goodbye servers and file cabinets.)
We’re vigilant about minimizing bureaucracy and freeing our people from unnecessary process, and find there is no real substitute for good common sense.
We take what we do seriously, but we know that life’s too short to take ourselves too seriously. We have fun every day.
Stiffs beware. From terrifically clever to terribly lowbrow, humor is a key part of our culture. But whether our jokes are in good taste or bad, we’re always respectful of others.
We’re all passionate, but when discussions heat up we use jokes and sarcasm to cut the tension. No grudges allowed.
Brett Cortese is the President and CEO of Universal Mind. He is responsible for the company’s strategic business priorities and technical investments to ensure Universal Mind meets the needs of its clients in the competitive digital landscape. Brett oversees all the core areas of the company including technology development, user experience, and solutions delivery. As the solutions strategy expert at Universal Mind, he provides strategic insights for customers across all vertical markets as they undertake new mobile initiatives.
Brett co-founded Universal Mind in 2003 as a systems integrator for large companies. As enterprises began exploring ways to offer mobile and digital experiences at the onset of the mobile revolution, Brett saw a new opportunity for the company. He hired the industry’s most creative talent to form a new breed of agency, offering the stellar design services of a leading interactive agency combined with the deep technical expertise the firm has provided since inception. It is Brett’s vision to help clients extend their brands through consistent digital experiences that span multiple touch points by leveraging their existing technical investments on the back end.
Previously, Brett was a senior level consultant at Macromedia where he helped Fortune 500 companies overcome legacy system and implementation issues to realize the benefits of new innovative technologies. His success in this role laid the groundwork for creating Universal Mind.
Today, Universal Mind’s customers include FedEx, Amway, Adobe, EnerNOC, and Oracle. Under Brett’s leadership, Universal Mind realized extraordinary growth and twice earned the distinction of being included in Inc. Magazine’s 500 Fastest Growing Companies.
Tom Link came to Universal Mind in early 2004 after more than five years at Allaire and Macromedia. As a founding member of Allaire’s consulting team, he was instrumental in forming the practice and implementing core processes that enabled teams to work more effectively. While at Macromedia, he worked at more than 100 locations around the globe, planning, architecting, and troubleshooting the world’s largest applications based on Macromedia platforms.
During this period, Tom became convinced that rich Internet technologies and Flash as a platform were the industry’s future and came to Universal Mind to help embrace these trends. Tom’s arrival at Universal Mind signaled the beginning of today’s RIA (Rich Internet Applications) practice that is now recognized throughout the industry. From there, Tom has pulled off the rarest of feats—converting talent to product.
During his tenure at Universal Mind, Tom has taken the best people in the Flex development space and infused a Location Intelligence competency to create SpatialKey, a Universal Mind product. Today, Tom continues to innovate with his leadership and influence on the SpatialKey product. Assisting enterprises that rely upon time and location based information to track everything from hurricanes to flu vaccines, Tom believes we can make a tangible difference in the world with SpatialKey.
As EVP of Technology, Brian O’Connor sets technology direction and strategy for our client initiatives, with an emphasis on multiple device strategy and technology integration. Brian’s experience across multiple platforms and development technologies in web and mobile/tablet arenas make him uniquely qualified to manage Universal Mind’s technology team of more than 75 developers worldwide.
With 16+ years of consulting experience across multiple disciplines and technologies, Brian possesses a significant background in Insurance & Financial Services solutions that demand high availability and real-time messaging performance. He has driven business innovation with Flex, AIR, LCDS, and BlazeDS solutions as well as in the Voice XML space.
Before joining Universal Mind, Brian worked with Adobe/Macromedia Consulting, focused on delivering large-scale enterprise applications. He served as the Wireless Technology Officer at Breakaway Solutions. And he was Enterprise Architect at Blue Cross Blue Shield of MA, where he concentrated on J2EE development for all core web-based solutions.
Brian spends most of his day sitting in front of his MacBook Pro and five tablets ensuring that our clients are prepared for this mobile evolution.
Erik Loehfelm is the Executive VP of User Experience at Universal Mind. In this role, Erik oversees design teams and UX studios across the country which develop cutting edge immersive user experiences for clients across various verticals.
With a deep knowledge of the ways humans interact with technologies, Erik ensures user experience is about elegant design, usability, performant development and physical context and how these elements come together to create a holistic experience for people. Erik oversees interaction design, user testing, UI design, and vision prototyping at Universal Mind and determines where the company should make investments to deliver highly immersive experiences for its customers.
Erik has more than 18 years of experience in design. He began his career in New York and became an award-winning editorial designer and studio owner, transitioning his focus from print to web design in the mid 90’s. Erik is also an adjunct professor at the Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Erik earned his B.S. in Aviation at The Ohio State University in the early 90’s. Taking his inspiration from nature, he enjoys the outdoors with his wife and four daughters. He credits his teamwork and leadership skills to over 25 years as a volleyball player and coach.
Unique in her multi-disciplinary consulting background, Julie Liberatore’s 12 year track record of delivery management brings the best of Big-6 foundational best practices together with the dynamic, design-driven world of rich Internet applications. Julie’s blue-chip resume includes KPMG Consulting/BearingPoint, Arthur Andersen and four years in the RIA space with Adobe Systems and Universal Mind.
From a delivery innovation perspective, Julie has been a pioneer in melding the UX process with Agile development to drive innovation into the enterprise. Julie was the senior project management lead for Adobe Consulting NA, and as Director of Delivery for Universal Mind, is leading our project management team in cultivating and driving best practices to ensure delivery excellence in everything we do.
Dan Bentz heads up our Solutions Strategy practice, helping clients convert complex ideas into strategic customer experiences. Dan is an indomitable strategist, with the ability to analyze and advance solutions—the more complicated and involved, the better—particularly in regard to organizational design and structure. He also works with our clients on solutions strategy considerations such as innovation pipeline design and implementation, process analysis/creation/improvement, physical experience exploration, critical thinking methodologies, and much more to help clients define their hardware and applications strategies.
Dan brings more than 17 years of experience in program management, experience mapping, and process analysis from companies including Haworth, Honeywell, and International Paper as well as managing global collaboration projects for the US Navy. He also has a Masters in Organization Leadership and a BS in Organizational Management, both focused on organizational strategy, design, functionality, change, and alignment.
Besides being wicked-smart, Dan has never met a bad joke he didn’t immediately foist upon unsuspecting coworkers. And, while not an actual Elvis impersonator, he has played one on TV. In his spare time, Dan exercises his strategic expertise in the off-season by attempting to design the perfect fantasy football team to dominate his league.
As EVP of Client Engagement, Tammie is responsible for the face of Universal Mind, overseeing the experience of our clients across all touch points, including marketing and communications both externally and internally to our consulting teams.
Tammie grew up in the technology industry with more than 18 years experience marketing products and services for world-class companies such as Netscape, HP, The Wall Street Journal, and Adobe. She has a unique blend of management, creative, and analytical skills, combined with a passionate advocacy for the customer experience in everything she has done. With a breadth of expertise in integrated marketing program strategy and execution across diverse communications vehicles, she believes customer experience is what truly defines the brand.
Matt Kollmorgen brings a wealth of industry experience in creating and fostering progressive client relationships. As a SVP Global Sales, Matt heads the team which forges the vital link between Universal Mind and our clients. A highly creative and conceptual leader, Matt is committed to exceeding expectations for successful client engagements and championing Universal Mind’s multidisciplinary service approach.
Prior to Universal Mind, Matt was Vice President of Digital Media Solutions for ClearStory Systems, and Director of Marketing Technologies for Aquent. Matt started his prolific career as a music producer for Red Dog Music.
As CFO, Blaine Cheshire directs all financial activities for Universal Mind. With more than 12 years of financial operations and management experience in the technology sector, Blaine is responsible for the development and implementation of long-term financial initiatives for the company, including monitoring and coordinating all functional activities and policies related to finance, accounting, and analysis.
Prior to Universal Mind, Blaine was the General Manager USA for Zed Worldwide, a global leader in mobile entertainment applications and mobile content distribution. Blaine has also held corporate finance positions at Promotech Research and Level 3 Communications in addition to public accounting experience with KPMG.
In his free time, Blaine enjoys counting beans. All kinds of beans – red, black, pinto, kidney, even lima beans. He especially loves the challenge of counting refried beans.
