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 Dr Richard Mander is a technology design expert who has been an active overseas ambassador for New Zealand business for many years.
He earned a B.A. at the University of Canterbury, M.A. (Hons) at the University of Auckland and a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology at Stanford University in California. His dissertation explored the design of interfaces for manipulating 3D virtual reality objects.
Richard worked for seven years in Apple Computer's Advanced Technology and Interactive Media Groups where he developed methods for customer-centred product design and rapid product development. His last position with Apple was as Program Manager of a 35-person team responsible for QuickTime VR - Apple's photographic virtual reality system.
Richard then became a principal of Zanzara Inc, a Seattle consulting company that helps clients reduce development time and increase product sales by tightly targeting their product development activities to meet core needs of specific user constituencies. Zanzara works with some of the world's largest companies including Boeing, Microsoft, Palm, Sony and Xerox.
In 2004, Richard returned to New Zealand to take up a position as Chief Technology Officer for Navman, the Auckland-based global positioning specialist.
Richard holds patents in interface design, has published papers on user interface design and conducted workshops on customer-centred design process. His experience with the business and technology of companies spans a range of sectors including healthcare, banking, finance, consumer electronics, computer, publishing, telecommunications and research.
In addition to his consulting work, Richard has given his time to many community projects in the Pacific NorthWest and authored a book applying his design process to web applications - Web Usability for Dummies.
While an expatriate, Richard returned frequently to New Zealand to work, without charge, with CEOs of early-stage New Zealand companies that want help in crisply defining their product and getting their engineering and marketing efforts better aligned. He has also promoted a number of innovative New Zealand companies such as Fisher & Paykel, Formway Furniture, and design agency The Church. Other pro bono work has included consulting with MFAT and Kea on the expat community in the United States and advising design taskforce representatives working on the Government's Growth and Innovation Framework.
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