Katie Gibbs
learning Experience design
What makes me tick professionally...
...is the alchemy of successful learning experiences. I relish the quest to find the real problem when there is a performance gap. I enjoy diving into data, observing my audience, listening to my learners, and parsing the problem before diving into designing and developing the right solution. Whether that's a simple job aid, a single module or workshop, or something more complex, I employ evidence-informed strategies to develop learning assets that engage the learner and move them through a learning experience that will enable them to achieve the end goal.
A lifelong tech geek, I love learning new technologies that complement the way humans learn best, and I frequently binge-watch/listen/read/participate in books/blogs/podcasts/tutorials/webinars to bulk up my bag of tricks. But some of my solutions involve old-school techniques, because sometimes a simple document or coaching session is all that’s needed. At the end of the day, my goal is to deliver effective learning experiences, on time, and of the highest standard.
What makes me tick personally...
...is long walks on the beach...at sunset...but a frolic in the snow will also do!
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I'm serious. Born and raised in Maryland, I started my career in the San Francisco Bay Area during rise of the "dot.coms" in the 1990s. But the Pacific Northwest has been my home for two decades, and I love it more each year. Exploring the region with my "pack" (currently two dogs and my partner)---through weekend adventures, coastal explorations, camping escapades, low-key hikes, and kayaking on lakes...that is what makes me tick personally.
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Zoë and Rudy (pictured at left) are the latest canines in my pack, both rescues adopted in 2023. Zoë's nickname is "Zoë the Wild Coyote," which says it all, while Rudy is the perfect gentleman despite being a longtime stray from Texas. We are currently in training to become a therapy dog team. By summer 2023, we hope to be visiting the residents of a nearby low-income nursing home whom I used to visit with my last dog, Rex (RIP). It's impossible to put into words everything I learned from both the residents and good old Rex, but gratitude, empathy, and carpe diem top the list.
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When I'm not exploring the PNW or swapping stories with the seniors, I can be found engaged in crazy home projects (ask my how many stone walls, walkways, and patios I've built), conjuring up a sweet or savory treat, attempting to grow fruits and vegetables in my backyard garden with varying success, reading long form articles on my phone (a bad but informative habit), writing when the inspiration strikes, listening to music (ranging from Bach to Burt Bacharach, Patsy Cline to Public Enemy), learning new tricks of a variety of ilk (from work-related skills to some fly-by-night craft), engaging in my on-again-off-again relationship with exercise, sledding in rare Portland snowfalls, flirting with iPhone photography, making up (and singing!) silly songs, and taking serious liberties with my friend, the Oxford comma.
