“It’s an absolute pleasure to recommend Sarah Gibbons, one of the most creative and dedicated UX professionals I’ve had the honor of knowing. I first met Sarah as a student at NC State’s College of Design, and even back then, she amazed me with her ability to think outside the box and craft human-centered solutions that were as innovative as they were thoughtful. Watching Sarah’s career unfold has been nothing short of inspiring. At IBM, I had the chance to work alongside her and saw firsthand how her creativity transformed projects. Whether she was designing a universal system that unified teams or leading mobile UX efforts for Watson Workspace, Sarah consistently brought fresh perspectives and ideas that elevated the organization as whole. Now, as Senior Vice President at Nielsen Norman Group, Sarah’s impact is even more profound. She’s reimagining how design processes and the discipline itself adapt to the rise of AI. Sarah is leading conversations and strategies around how AI can enhance design workflows, support deeper user insights, and create smarter, more empathetic experiences. Her forward-thinking approach is helping shape the future of UX and preparing organizations to integrate AI in a way that holistically serves the discipline. What I admire most about Sarah is how naturally her creativity flows into every aspect of her work. She doesn’t just solve problems—she envisions entirely new possibilities and brings them to life with boldness, empathy, and a visionary approach that inspires others to reimagine what’s possible. It’s been a privilege to watch her journey from a talented student to a world-class leader in UX, and I feel incredibly lucky to call her a trusted colleague and friend.”
About
Activity
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Huge shout-out to the few after-Config event organizers who approved RSVPs on a first-come, first-served basis instead of on where you worked. The…
Huge shout-out to the few after-Config event organizers who approved RSVPs on a first-come, first-served basis instead of on where you worked. The…
Liked by Sarah Gibbons
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So enjoyed being profiled by Rob Belk on his substack, Rambull. It's fun talking about things you love 😆 Kudos to Sarah Gibbons Jeremy Mulliez…
So enjoyed being profiled by Rob Belk on his substack, Rambull. It's fun talking about things you love 😆 Kudos to Sarah Gibbons Jeremy Mulliez…
Liked by Sarah Gibbons
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A very wise colleague today: “[A tradeoff we are working through] is probably a symptom of the industry becoming deconstructed before our eyes and…
A very wise colleague today: “[A tradeoff we are working through] is probably a symptom of the industry becoming deconstructed before our eyes and…
Posted by Sarah Gibbons
Experience & Education
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Nielsen Norman Group
View Sarah’s full experience
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Licenses & Certifications
Volunteer Experience
Publications
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A Model for Conducting UX Workshops and Exercises
Nielsen Norman Group
See publicationTo ensure activity participants get the most out of UX activities, use a three-step process to conduct them: explain, execute, and examine.
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Using Prioritization Matrices to Inform UX Decisions
Nielsen Norman Group
See publicationVisuals such as charts and matrices can help practitioners base important decisions on objective, relevant criteria instead of subjective opinions.
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The 5 Steps to Service Blueprinting
Nielsen Norman Group
See publicationFive key steps comprise a framework for service blueprinting that can be scaled to any scope or timeline.
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Empathy Mapping: The First Step in Design Thinking
Nielsen Norman Group
See publicationVisualizing user attitudes and behaviors in an empathy map helps UX teams align on a deep understanding of end users. The mapping process also reveals any holes in existing user data.
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UX Mapping Methods Compared: A Cheat Sheet
Nielsen Norman Group
See publicationEmpathy maps, customer journey maps, experience maps, and service blueprints depict different processes and have different goals, yet they all build common ground within an organization.
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Service Blueprints: Definition
Nielsen Norman Group
See publicationService blueprints visualize organizational processes in order to optimize how a business delivers a user experience.
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UX Stories Communicate Designs
Nielsen Norman Group
See publicationHelp audiences empathize with users and buy into your design goals with well- crafted stories that build insight and focus on users and their needs.
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Design Critiques: Encourage a Positive Culture to Improve Products
Nielsen Norman Group
See publicationOpen feedback is essential for a collaborative UX process. However, sharing unfinished work is naturally uncomfortable and often generates tension. The right facilitation process can foster an efficient, honest feedback loop.
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Design Thinking Builds Strong Teams
Nielsen Norman Group
See publicationNot only does design thinking foster innovation, but it also strengthens teams by creating common vocabulary and artifacts, and a trust-based team culture.
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Design Thinking 101
Nielsen Norman Group
See publicationWhat is design thinking and why should you care? History and background plus a quick overview and visualization of 6 phases of the design thinking process. Approaching problem solving with a hands-on, user-centric mindset leads to innovation, and innovation can lead to differentiation and a competitive advantage.
Projects
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AIGA Design Conference: Mainstage Speaker
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Talk UX Boston: Speaker + Workshop Facilitator
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Digital Summit Boston: Mainstage Speaker
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IBM Watson Work
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Other creators -
Recommendations received
4 people have recommended Sarah
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Please, I’m begging you, stop writing your LinkedIn posts and comments with LLMs. You’re not getting away with it. It pokes through in your tone…
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Today I woke up to 20 messages from Henry Comfort. You would think that it was all about the awesome Series A they just announced but it is just the…
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I’m kicking off UX on the Beach in three weeks, you should come ☺️ Usually speakers like me are tied to slide decks while on stage, but not this…
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I’ve been quiet here lately because I spent the last 10 days in safari camps in Botswana with no WiFi. It was a lovely detox from AI, news, and all…
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We're looking for a Senior Director of Product Design at Adobe, based in Noida/Bangalore, reporting to me. You'll be guiding an accomplished group…
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International Interior Design Association
🌐 It’s not about predicting the future—it’s about preparing for it. Matt Thompson, Assoc. IIDA, CDF, shares how IIDA’s Certified Design Futurist (CDF) program expanded his thinking, deepened his research skills, and opened new doors for conversation and connection across the design industry. Whether you're working in sales, strategy, or design, this 10-week certification gives you the tools to apply strategic foresight—a research-backed approach to understanding what’s next. 💡 Ready to level up your thinking and lead the future of design? 🚀 Enrollment is now open for the next CDF cohort: https://ow.ly/r8g450WvjOn #IIDA #StrategicForesight #CertifiedDesignFuturist #InteriorDesign
4 Comments -
Robert Fransgaard
This is what investing in AI in design looks like. As with many other job families, the design industry focuses on what might the impact of AI be: will it lower the quality with slop? Will it replace humans? Etc But I don't see much focus on to understand and really capitalise on the potential AI brings to design. We are largely treating it as any other tool: a way to get incrementally better. At best it's a short course for the designers, at worst it's expecting designers to already know how to use it. But AI has the potential for making radical shifts and leaps. I'd love to hear, and learn, from anyone who is making significant strides to drive AI transformation in design.
1 Comment -
Sil Bormüller
How to make your Design System readable for AI? Jesse Gardner, Director, User Research at New York State is joining the Into Design Systems AI Conference 2026! 🥳 Jesse oversees the New York State Design System and Accessibility teams supporting 45+ agencies and 20 million residents His session: Context > Probability The problem: AI doesn't know what's right. It only knows what's likely. For critical government services that's not good enough! Jesse shows how to turn design decisions into machine-readable infrastructure that AI can actually use. Real examples from New York State: - Converting complex PDFs into accessible web apps - Using Figma, Code Connect and MCP servers as guidance layers - Making AI speed work with accessibility standards What you'll learn: - How to make your design system readable for AI - Making AI compatible with consistency and accessibility requirements - Skills designers need for AI-assisted workflows - No coding experience required Join us and learn hands-on with Jesse Gardner 📐 Into Design Systems, AI Conference 🗓️ March 19-20 2026, Online ✅ Recordings, files, certificate included 👉 Limited tickets: https://lnkd.in/gnCF4zCx See you there! 🙌 #designsystems #ai #vibecoding
5 Comments -
Ishita Karwal
Can everyone actually use what I designed? That's where a 508 Accessibility Check comes in. Section 508 is a U.S. accessibility standard that ensures digital products can be used by people with disabilities. While it originated for government systems, its principles are becoming a benchmark for good digital design everywhere. A 508 check looks for things like: ✅ Alternative text for images so screen readers can describe visual content ✅ Sufficient color contrast so text remains readable for users with low vision ✅ Full keyboard navigation for people who cannot use a mouse ✅ Captions and transcripts for audio and video content ✅ Proper document structure in PDFs and Office files using headings, tags, and tables A proper review usually combines: ▶ Automated scans to catch common issues like missing alt text or poor contrast ▶ Manual audits to evaluate reading order, focus states, and keyboard interactions ▶ Testing with assistive technologies such as screen readers and voice-control software Tools like Wave (https://wave.webaim.org/) and Accessibility Checker (https://lnkd.in/garR546d) can help you run a 508 check on your website. The best designs aren't just beautiful. They're usable by everyone. Because accessibility isn't a feature. It's part of good design. #UXDesign #Accessibility #InclusiveDesign #UIDesign #ProductDesign #UserExperience #DesignSystems #DigitalAccessibility #WCAG #UXResearch #508Compliance
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