Silvia Zimmermann from Switzerland is new UPA President

The German and Swiss websites of the Usability Professionals’ Association (UPA) report that Silvia Zimmermann from Switzerland is the new president of the UPA.

Although the global UPA website has not yet been updated, UPA Voice confirms the news.

Zimmermann is the first European to head the international organisation which has over 10,000 members from all over the world.

Silvia Zimmermann, who was a founder of UPA Switzerland, is in charge of the Swiss Institute for Software Ergonomy and Usability in Zurich, and became a UPA vice-president in 2008. She was also a co-organiser of the December 2008 European UPA conference on usability and design, in collaboration with co-chair Michele Visciola, president of Experientia (see photo).

Her major focus now is increasing the internationalisation of the UPA: “The dominance of the USA with regards to internet and software matters is often criticised. Our work at UPA shows that usability is a global matter. Experts from Europe and Asia are heavily involved in creating more useful technology.”