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Work
Experience

Aug 2025 - Present

Associate Faculty

Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN

 

​Teaching within the Department of Library and Information Science in the Luddy School of Informatics, Computing and Engineering including the following courses:

  • ​Information Structures for the Web (S531-D431) SP 26

  • Tools and Technologies for the Information Professions (S507) FA 25

Dec 2024 - Present

Web & Digital Strategy Manager

Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN

  • Own digital strategy and roadmap execution for a portfolio of ~20 university websites, including 3 of the highest-trafficked "internal" sites (HR, IT, Global)

  • Manage a team of 3 and align 8+ stakeholder groups to deliver scalable, high-impact web enhancements

  • Direct UX strategy for a 13-site consolidation initiative, establishing unified navigation that improved content findability across 6 stakeholder groups

  • Translate 8+ annual mixed-method research studies (A/B testing, interviews, surveys, analytics) into prioritized roadmap decisions that improved task success rates and supported international enrollment growth

  • Collaborated with stakeholders to optimize content design, including a targeted project with Education Abroad that addressed an annual drop-off of 400+ users on a key scholarship page through a UX and content redesign

  • Led the reorganization of the web team by defining and implementing standard operating procedures, prioritization, cross team workflows, and RACI models, improving role clarity, collaboration norms, and operational efficiency

June 2023 - Present

Freelance UX Strategist & Designer

Rachel Wilken Design, Columbus, IN

  • Delivered Bartholomew County Bar Association redesign increasing online dues payments 56% and user satisfaction 85%

  • Designed accessible, responsive websites for small business and nonprofit clients improving usability

  • Conducted user research, content audits, and IA planning to improve SEO and conversion performance

  • Implemented GA4 tracking and metadata frameworks to measure engagement and optimize visibility

June - Nov 2024

UX/ Product Market Researcher

ATPCO, Dulles, VA (Remote)

  • Embedded as the primary UX/ market researcher for the Present the Offer workstream, closely collaborating with team members spanning product, design, engineering, sales, and marketing

  • Conducted user interviews with 5 customers across the Americas, APAC, and EMEA to understand barriers and gaps with current attributes and standards 

  • Designed and implemented mixed-methods survey distributed to 480 customers in the Americas, APAC, EMEA 

  • Conducted comparative analysis of airline attribute data usage by 31 customers which helped drive decisions for 2025 product strategy 

  • Designed and implemented market research framework to be leveraged by the Routehappy Product Team including an end-to-end process (intake to delivery), establishment of standards, and creation of a platform where processes and updates are stored 

Jan - June 2024

Operations & Knowledge Exchange Intern

ATPCO, Dulles, VA (Remote)

  • Conducted discovery calls with 34 people across 12 teams to understand user pain points and evaluate existing SharePoint site 

  • Analyzed qualitative findings and developed site map utilizing user priorities

  • Designed and built SharePoint communications site using UX principles and research findings

  • Developed taxonomy for Routehappy document repository and executed the migration of 1,900 files

Sept 2022 - April 2023

Web Content Specialist Extern

U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, Washington, D.C. (Remote)

  • Conducted content analysis of intranet pages and document repository to prepare for intranet migration including evaluation of over 2,000 documents

  • Developed site map for current intranet structure and proposal for new organization of 30+ pages

  • Assisted with user testing of 6 Trademarks employees to assess new intranet page R Friends

  • Awarded Intern of the Year by the Virtual Student Federal Service Internship Program hosted by the State Dept

March 2021 - Aug 2022

Assistant Director, J. Irwin Miller Architecture Program

Indiana University, Columbus, IN

  • Planned, facilitated, and led strategic planning sessions with stakeholders including students, faculty and staff

  • Managed accreditation projects including Annual Statistical Report, Accreditation Report for Continued Candidacy, Accreditation Report for Initial Accreditation, and both in-person and virtual site visits

  • Wrote and distributed climate surveys to evaluate user experience of students, alumni, and community members

  • Prepared and managed $2.7M program budget and provide financial oversight including monthly reconciliation

  • Produced 12+ events annually including Miller M.Arch Lecture series, gallery exhibitions, and other misc. events

  • Supervised 2 full-time employees, 8 part-time employees, and mentored 1 full-time employee

Sept 2017 - March 2021

Program Coordinator, Miller M.Arch Program

Indiana University, Columbus, IN

  • Conceptualized, developed and oversaw content and logistics of program and school-wide projects and events

  • Developed recruitment, marketing and communications plans to increase enrollment by 10% over 5-years

  • Applied human-centered design approaches to research and problem solving to establish policies and procedures

Education

Master of Library & Information Science

Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN

Relevant coursework: Global Digital Services, Information Architecture, Organization of Info., Research, Web Design

​

Bachelor of Music

Baldwin Wallace University, Berea, OH

Certifications

Apr 2025

Asana Workflow Specialist Certificate

Certificate ID: 138904170

Jan 2025

Google Analytics 4

Certificate ID: 130690928

March 2024

Google UX Design Certificate

Google via Coursera, Online

Skills
& Expertise

  • UX Tools: Adobe Creative Cloud, AdobeXD, Figma, Helio, Miro, SiteImprove, Survey Monkey, UserTesting.com, Qualtrics, IU WCMS, Webflow, WordPress

  • Project Management Tools: Aha, Asana, Confluence, Jira, SharePoint

  • AI Tools: Adobe Firefly, ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Microsoft Copilot

  • Design: Design Systems, Design Sprints, Mockups, Prototyping, Sketching, Sitemaps, User Flows, Wireframes 

  • Research: A/B Testing, Card Sorts, Competitive Analysis, Content Audits, Heuristic Evaluations, Journey Mapping, Personas, Surveys, Quantitative/ Qualitative Data Analysis, User Interviews, Moderated and Unmoderated Usability Studies, Tree Testing

  • Misc.: Agile Methodologies, Cross-functional Team Management, CSS/ HTML, Project/ Change Management, Product Life-Cycle, Public Speaking, Internal/ External Communications, SEO Strategy, Stakeholder Alignment, Web Accessibility (WCAG 2.1, Section 508)

Connect With Rachel

  • LinkedIn - Rachel Wilken

© 2025 By Rachel Wilken

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