Mitch Stein

Design, development and marketing efforts include: Consultant to Motorola. Assisted in design of next generation cellphone family, including integrated hardware/software/services user experience; Consultant to PalmSource, Inc. Strategic analysis and development of next generation user interface prototypes for PalmOS in the areas of contextual computing, task management, and effiecient one-handed operation of smartphones; Design and development of Home convergence products and technologies (including the worlds first Digital Video Recorder as part of an integrated Home Digital Hub); Interface design and market position consulting for a variety of Internet “push” solutions; Interface consulting on internet based, video conferencing HW/SW; electronic software distribution strategies and products; interface design of version 1 of what became Microsoft's eShop, online retail shopping experience. Specified a wide variety of pen-based, mobile computing applications, and developed strategic analyses for a variety of hardware and software products across all personal and mobile computing platforms. Single and multi-user database development includes: sales force automation; client/account/contact management; inventory; job bidding; warranty tracking; trade show management; subscription management, and tournament management. Business consulting comprised: business planning, venture capital and acquisition deal structuring.

Responsible for all technology activities for this non-profit foundation focused on bringing safe drinking water to the world's one billion plus people who lack adequate access to this basic need. Chief fundraising approach based on spreading the word and generating awareness through an unprecedented, 95 day, non-stop, around the world running relay,covering 15,200 miles and accomplished by a team of just 20 citizen athletes. Designed and managed development of the Foundation's new website, taking advantage of the latest Web 2.0 technologies and imbued with a host of social-networking, viral-propogation and community building facilities.

Responsible for User Interface innovation and standards for all Oracle products and services. Manage groups responsible for visual design, interaction design and user testing of System Technology products including: Developer Tools, Application Server, Business Integration, Business Intelligence, and Identity Management.

Led IBM research efforts in areas related to Pervasive Computing including the delivery to market of the CrossPad Portable Digital Notepad (1997 Best of Comdex finalist). Also coordinated IBM efforts in the emerging areas of Peer to Peer computing, Identity Management and Grid Computing technologies. Created and led the Worldwide LifeNetworking research effort including advanced user interaction technologies, next generation pervasive computing devices and infrastructure (Industrial Design, software architecture, prototyping), knowledge extraction, and home automation. As part of the integration of information technology into everyday devices, coordinated IBM efforts with a number of consumer electronic/appliance and automotive companies as well as construction and archetectural firms. Won an international design award for the InfoPortal industrial Design as well as an internal IBM Design Competition. InfoPortal Prototype on Display at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, and the 2001 SMAU conference in Milan. IBM Research Liaison to a number of consumer electronics, white goods, and retail firms. Submitted nearly a dozen patent disclosures and filings in a broad range of fields including User Interface, pattern recognition, speech recognition, electronic commerce, materials science. Presented Life Networking projects at IBM Board of Directors meeting. Member of IBM Corporate Design Consultancy, Sr. Architect on the IBM Research, Planet Blue Initiative. Co-authored multiple corporate technology initiative papers, Member of numerous corporate advisory panels, commissioned by the IBM executive committee. IBM Research spokesperson including many invited speaking, writing and press (TV, radio and print) engagements, Including Newsweek Magazine, the PBS Nova series "Science of the Impossible", MIT Technology Review feature article on IBM Research, CBS Radio, IEEE Multimedia invited paper on the future of User Experience. Active in recruiting (academic and business). Participated in numerous internal training and summer intern enrichment programs including 'Summer Jam'. MIT Media Lab/IBM Investment Steering Committee member.

Responsible for delivering advances in Apple’s User Interface Technologies. Managed several departments of more than 130 people, involved in the design, user testing, development, qualification and marketing of system software. Projects included the Finder, Installer, Chooser, Feature Manager, User Experience components of the High Level Toolbox, Sherlock (content searching technology), Cyberdog (component based internet navigational tool), end user OpenDoc Parts, speech synthesis and recognition, and pen computing. Managed the group responsible for Apple’s world-wide human interface design (visual and interaction), productization, and education. AppleSoft executive staff member. Successfully managed approximately $17 million annual budget. Consistently delivered products on-time and within budget. Managed major portions of five Operating System releases. Project director for future component-based, internet-focused OS release. Active participant in corporate level strategic planning. Chartered with the design and implementation of Apple’s future user experience direction. Creator of several hardware/software prototypes, including predecessors of the iMac and OS X. Involved in cross divisional Architectural Councils and Chief AppleSoft Liaison with Apple’s Advanced Technology Labs, and Industrial Design. Inventor of 7 pending user interface patents.

Managed Independent Business Unit developing sales force automation tools for use by large sales organizations. Developed an automated proposal generation system, usable by a non technical sales organization. Product was built for the fourth largest U.S. long distance carrier. It included scanning and character recognition of the prospect’s existing phone bills, extremely sophisticated industry-wide cost modeling, and multimedia proposal generation. Large, distributed, multi-user relational system, comprised four main programs (including content and model authoring tools), was developed from an initial specification through documented beta release in only 9 months, including recruitment of the entire development team (4 in-house developers and 4 outside contractors). Architected a cross-platform, commercial version of the system based on OOP component toolset and semi-custom vertical application framework.

Co-founded (with Dan Bricklin, Vern Raburn, Tom Byers and Dottie Hall) a software company dedicated to pen-based computing. Established corporate product direction and was responsible for product definition and design of the company’s cornerstone product PenApps. Set up Bay Area Development Center. Recruited staff of industry veteran software engineers/architects and product marketing manager. Key liaison with GO corporation, development subcontractors, and Slate clients. Participated in venture fundraising and board meetings.

Directed all aspects of product management, marketing, and engineering of forms products for Adobe. Participated in long range strategic planning. Evaluated target product and company acquisitions.

Managed product development, manufacturing, marketing, sales, support, financial and administrative functions. Key designer of TrueForm, forms processing software. Negotiated several rounds of financing and sale of the company to Adobe Systems. Designed and developed motorcycle and auto race timing and scoring hardware and software systems .

Engineered color graphics hardware and software, networking systems and mass storage drivers for desktop computers. Worked with development team to design serviceability into desktop computer and related hardware and software systems. Provided final line of support for field service force.

Concurrent with employment at Hewlett Packard, managed a high-end, boutique audio shop. Designed high quality listening rooms that reflected state-of-the-art home environment, pioneered in-home demonstrations, custom designed/configured system installation. Research and selection of products lines offered.

Designed, developed and specified a range of software and hardware solutions including civil engineering, plasma physics, institutional pharmacy, hotel management, and inventory control.