Richard Henneman

I worked in industry since graduating with my Ph.D. in the area of HCI/UX management at a variety of companies, including NCR, a failed startup, ISS/IBM, and AT&T. I was on the Industry Advisory Board of the MS in Human-Computer Interaction Program at Georgia Tech for several years and got to know Prof. Jim Foley, the MS-HCI Program Director. When Jim decided to step down as Director, he asked if I might be interested in applying for his position as a Professor of the Practice. I did apply and started as the MS-HCI Director in January 2015.

I did not see a way for this to happen given my career choices. It was a very pleasant surprise when I learned about this opportunity in which my experiences in the industry would be an asset for this academic position.

The sense of community that existed among my fellow Ph.D. students. Oh, and I met my future wife, Janet Fath (ISyE Ph.D. 1987), when we both worked as GRAs at the Center for Human-Machine Systems Research.

It is bigger, better, and more diverse, has a more attractive physical infrastructure, places much more emphasis on interdisciplinary research, has a College of Computing, makes working with industry partners easier, and of course, has a world-class MS-HCI Program.

It is easy at a big school like Georgia Tech for students to lose their way. I was lucky in my graduate experience at GT to have a strong support network, i.e., a community of faculty and student colleagues who strengthened each other academically and socially through a variety of shared experiences. This emphasis on community (along with, of course, academic and research excellence) continues to have a strong influence on what I value for students enrolled in the MS-HCI Program.

I believe a continued emphasis on interdisciplinary research, increased diversity across all Institute communities, and a continued commitment to research and academic excellence are essential elements in ensuring the ongoing growth and health of Computing at Georgia Tech.