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Laurie Ochsner
536 Heathcliff Drive
Pacifica, CA 94044
Cell 650-738-1740 * Laurie@ChaosMedia.com * Home 650-738-1740



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WORK EXPERIENCE:


SENIOR PROJECT MANAGER ("TRAFFIC"), Brodia.com, SF (2000 - present)

Managed Creative Services' projects from inception through launch for Brodia's eCommerce/platform product, for Mastercard, Visa, Discover, MBNA, Providian, Chase, Wells Fargo, Citibank, and Bank of America. Increased productivity through procedures that streamlined the work process, allowing Creative Services to deliver more work more quickly with a smaller internal staff, and better job satisfaction. Took in project requests from all departments, defined scope, held kick-off meetings, created schedules, assigned work and shepherded projects through to final delivery, using both internal and external resources. Designed and created an online job request and progress-tracking solution in Filemaker Pro, cross-platform, which allowed internal customers to input their job requests via a web page, allowed Creative Service members to sort jobs to which they'd been assigned, and provided a big-picture tracking table that provided a status summary for all on-going jobs. Created and maintained MS Project Plans 500-1000 lines long; set up MS Project Central (replaced by the online Filemaker database).


SENIOR PROJECT MANAGER/ PRODUCER, Imagicast, Burlingame, CA (1998-2000)

Did concept-to-completion project management for Imagicast's interactive point-of-purchase demonstration products (DVD, CD, and CD-ROM-based platforms). Took in customer content and turned it into finished product, working with internal and external video production and compression resources, graphic designers, sound editors, printers, laminators, and CD-replicators. The size of projects ranged from small, 1-week-turnaround re-orders of existing content, to complex, 1-year-plus projects with budgets ranging up to $1 million. Managed project schedules and budgets, did project costing for Sales, and conducted focus group testing.


GAME DESIGNER, PROJECT MANAGER, Silicon Gaming, Palo Alto, CA (1996-1998)

Had responsibility for maintaining a consistent look-and-feel across Silicon Gaming's entire product line; shepherded 15 titles from concept through final release. Increased productivity by creating documents and processes that helped transfer information between departments much more smoothly and efficiently: the Product Specification, the Asset Script, the Asset List, shared online documents, and Change Protocols. Ran focus group testing and evaluated results, revising gameplay and UI as necessary. Wrote marketing messages, and all online help text; wrote Product Specifications/ Design Documents, and Asset Scripts. Created Game Development's internal web site. Generated new product ideas; designed Marketing's "PC Sheets," which served as a primary sales tool for Silicon Gaming games.


PRODUCER/ PROJECT MANAGER, Crystal Dynamics, Palo Alto, CA (Contract - 1996)

Managed three Programmers, three Artists, one Game Designer and one Assistant Producer, working on Sony Playstation/Sega Saturn games. Helped guide the team through the cancellation of an existing title, and the development of a new one. Led game design, level and title brainstorming sessions; organized and led pitch sessions to upper management; created presentation materials. Explored partnerships with traditional game companies, and managed schedules and budgets.


PRODUCER/ PROJECT MANAGER, Gravity, Inc., San Francisco, CA (Contract - 1995)

Managed the schedule, budget, project team and client relationship for "Dingbat!," done for Intel, to the project's successful on-time, on-budget delivery. ("Dingbat!" was a mini-app that showed off the real-time 3D graphic and sound capabilities of Intel's Fall '95 Pentium line.) Wrote all game design documents, and edited technical specifications. Also produced and wrote the script for a project for Spectrum Holobyte, creating a version of "Top Gun" for the 3DO M2 platform, through the delivery of the final milestone. I was granted full admission into the Writers' Guild of America on the strength of my scripts for this project. Work included legal searches for title copyrighting, internal and external weekly status reports, and pressing CD-ROMs.


PRODUCER/ PROJECT MANAGER, Sega Toy & Game Division, RWC,CA (1994-1995)

Produced the Pocket Arcade product line at Sega, which outsold the competition 5-to-1 in its first month of release, and the educational Pico Wonderbook product line, a pioneer in its class. Responsible for developing and maintaining the creative vision for both product lines. Managed the development of 15 products, which included hiring and managing programmers, artists, writers, sound designers, testers and data compression engineers; creating and coordinating budgets, schedules, milestone payments and a QA/testing programs; editing and writing scripts and game design documents; booking studio time, casting and directing voice talent; obtaining reference art for licensed properties; and obtaining licensor approvals on art, stories, game play, and casting. Job ended when the division was sold to Tiger Electronics of Chicago, Ill., who wanted the wildly successful Pocket Arcade line.

POCKET ARCADE TITLES:
PICO WONDERBOOK TITLES:

PRODUCER/ GAME DESIGNER, The 3DO Company, Redwood City, CA (1992-1994)

Managed the design and development of "Worldbuilders," an educational astronomy/terraforming game done for Electronic Arts. Wrote scripts for gameplay and voice-overs; cast voice talent (Patrick Stewart). Contributed to UI and gameplay for "TwisTed!", one of 3DO's most successful games. Obtained legal permissions for the use of copyrighted material. Developed proposals for new title development. Helped direct the design and development of the U.S. West cable interface product for 3DO's TV set top box; designed product's User Interface. Programmed game and set-top box prototypes using Macromedia Director and Hypercard.


PRODUCER/ DESIGNER/ WRITER, Calif. Academy of Sciences, San Fran., CA (1992)

Coordinated the design and production of "Science Around the World," an interactive video kiosk about the research done by the California Academy of Sciences. Designed kiosk's User Interface and program structure, created all graphics, wrote all on-screen text, programmed context sensitive Help and fixed programmer's bugs.


ASSISTANT PRODUCER, George Lucas Educational Foundation, Nicasio, CA-Intern (1991)

Worked with George Lucas on an educational videodisc game; trained team how to use and design for a voice recognition system integral to the project; designed user interfaces, instructional interaction, and screen flows, and assisted on video shoots (during the time that the "Young Indiana Jones" TV series was in production).


TECHNICAL WRITER / DESIGNER, American Telecorp, RWC, CA (1986-1990)

Designed software User Interfaces; designed and programmed databases (4th Dimension, Hypercard). Produced award-winning hardware installation and PC software user manuals for telecom software and UNIX call distribution systems, writing, illustrating, and doing the book and page design. Designed and produced marketing brochures and presentation materials.


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