Human-Centered design

When GRD was getting started, most companies were beginning to recognize that they needed to be doing human-centered design, but few had interaction designers, usability specialists, or user researchers on staff. Over the years, we have been helping teams large and small to learn the process and think like designers.

Technology is ever-changing, but GRD’s process remains constant: Start with understanding what people are doing today. What works well and what doesn’t? Then use those findings to drive design innovations suited to the people, the environments, and the workflow they serve.

We aren’t simply usability experts; we’re human-centered designers. And we all share the design thinking DNA.

Read about our Process.

GRD history

Kate Gomoll founded GRD in 1993 when she grew tired of days packed with endless meetings and evenings spent trying to do the real work. She believed she could make a difference by helping companies focus on the people who use their products.

Today, GRD exists to make things better. We have no desire to become a big company, because we don’t want to lose sight of the joys found in daily individual interactions. Individual attention — to our people, to our clients, and to our clients’ customers — sets us apart.

The apple years

Kate + Tom are former Apple usability and design leaders. GRD’s process and approach to user experience design stem from their experiences at Apple in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Kate worked in the playground that was Apple’s Advanced Technology Group – prototyping and testing product innovations with a multi-disciplinary team of human interface designers. She focused on user research, usability, and online help systems.

Tom established the first formal usability process at Apple and later became manager of the Human Interface Group. Tom’s team was responsible for Macintosh System 7 and 7.5.

diverse portfolio

We have been fortunate to work with companies large and small, from many different sectors. We are able to cross domains because we are so seasoned in design thinking and human-centered design. We have extensive experience in the medical, financial, consumer, education, and automation domains.

Check out our Client List.