Dr. Melissa Smith
UX Research Lead, Google

Melissa Smith, PhD, is a tenured User Experience Researcher and manager at Google Workspace for the Playspace Labs team, where she leads research for a multidisciplinary team innovating and building the next generation of workplace tools. Previously, she held roles working on YouTube Music & Premium, improving YouTube creator monetization, and advancing the video watching experience for the YouTube mobile app and desktop site.

Melissa is the first FIRST^® alum on the Board, having participated as a student (FIRST^® LEGO^® League and FIRST^® Robotics Competition) and actively volunteered in various roles for the past 24+ years. Currently, Melissa is a Regional and Championship-level Head Referee and part of the Greater San Francisco Region planning committees. She was the 2018 FIRST Inspire Gala Evelyn Kamen "Rising Star" Award Recipient and the 2020 San Francisco Regional Volunteer of the Year Award recipient.

Melissa holds a B.S. in Psychology from the University of Central Florida and a PhD in Human Factors & Applied Cognitive Psychology from George Mason University.