Robert Oxford

San Diego, California | www.linkedin.com/in/rbophd | rboxfordatprotonmail.com | robertoxford.info

Creative Director and Cultural Anthropologist: I leverage cultural analysis to uncover deep insights and shape unforgettable human experiences.

Education

The University of Texas at Austin

Ph.D. American Studies/Anthropology

New York University

M.A. American Studies

Oklahoma City University

B.A. History magna cum laude

Professional Certificate: Google Foundations of UX Design

Experience

Creative Director – Tennis Fest: 2026

Worked with event’s executive director to execute on my creative vision for an annual tennis event in San Diego with over a thousand attendees.

  • Commissioned art and coordinated edits with major tennis brand design company.

  • Designed social media marketing and outreach program

  • Filmed and edited short social media posts

  • Coordinated social media campaign and drove event’s brand identity with major stakeholders

            Lead User Researcher – Thermo Fisher Scientific: 2022-2023

Led user research initiatives to discover what customers and the market required for next generation cell and gene therapy instruments.

  • Specialized in qualitative research methods.

  • Conducted 25 customers and key opinion leaders on 5 separate projects.

  • Drove information gathering though in-lab observation and interviewing lab staff about the usability of instruments and workflows.

  • Led and worked with cross-functional teams in business and product development.

  • Synthesized data and reported findings in collaboration with research team to business leadership.

            Lead Researcher – University of Texas at Austin: 2013-2019

Led independent six-year ethnographic, human centered study that told stories about how people experienced the environmental impacts of polluting industries in Texas, culminating in the publication of a book-length dissertation.

  • Conducted two dozen Institutional Review Board approved interviews with geographically dispersed people of different races, genders, and classes.

  • Organized, transcribed, and synthesized qualitative data collected from group observations and interviews, objective quantitative scientific studies, and citizen science studies.

  • Incorporated research on best practices from different stakeholders and on public policy for more sustainable and equitable approaches to energy and global climate change.

  • Designed, curated, and presented ethnographic findings at major international academic conferences.

  • Delivered multiple research products to numerous stakeholders.

  • Taught four undergraduate courses at Research 1 university on topics and methods related to research.

Graduate Research Assistant – New York University: 2011-2013

  • Assisted senior faculty member in self-directed qualitative and quantitative research about the student debt crisis in the United States for book publication.

  • Learned how to use finance technology to track student debt in the marketplace.

  • Aggregated market data, public policy, testimonials, and historic and cultural contexts to answer the question “How does student debt work and affect graduates’ lives?” and advocated for student debtors in research findings.

  • Recommended financial, political, and activist solutions to student debt crisis.

Skills

Qualitative research, ethnographic field work, interviews (individual and group), surveys, journey maps, user stories, analytical writing, wireframes, UX design, Miro, Dovetail, Adobe XD, CaptureOne, Microsoft Office.