Applied Decision Science
Our Team

Laura Militello
Co-Founder and CEO
Laura Militello, M.A., is a co-founder and CEO at Applied Decision Science. Laura is a leading authority on cognitive task analysis (CTA) methods – the tools and techniques for uncovering human cognition. She has extensive experience conducting CTA across a broad range of military and healthcare domains including reconnaissance and attack piloting, personnel recovery, unmanned aerial system control in terminal airspace, sepsis recognition, bladder cancer treatment, and chronic pain management. Ms. Militello contributed to the development of a set of applied cognitive task analysis methods (ACTA) for use by practitioners and she has conducted more than 20 cognitive task analysis workshops for human factors professionals and students. She coauthored Perspectives on Cognitive Task Analysis: Historical Origins and Modern Communities of Practice, an important textbook for instruction on methods and approaches for studying decision-making behavior in complex settings. Her applied research includes user interface design for medical informatics and medical devices, as well as military systems. She has experience applying cognitive engineering principles to studies of system-level issues such as cross-agency collaboration in crisis management, crewing configurations for Future Vertical Lift aircraft, and consultations between primary care clinicians and specialty clinics in the Veterans Health Administration. Laura received her Master of Arts in Experimental Psychology and Human Factors from the University of Dayton in 1995.

Steve Wolf
Co-Founder and VP of Finance
Steve Wolf, MBA., is a co-founder and VP of Finance at Applied Decision Science. Prior to forming ADS, Mr. Wolf served as the Chief Information Officer at Bridge Worldwide, a member of the WPP network. Bridge Worldwide is a digital marketing services firm specializing in customer relationship marketing. Mr. Wolf came to his role with ADS backed by more than 10 years of cognitive psychology and market research expertise. He received a portion of his training at Procter and Gamble as a Consumer and Market Knowledge Manager. In this capacity, Mr. Wolf constructed and executed market research, including pioneering the use of the Internet as a research tool for P&G, to understand consumer brand perceptions. Prior to joining P&G, Mr. Wolf researched the human factors of decision-making at Klein Associates, working with Dr. Gary Klein and with Ms. Laura Militello. While there, he led the redesign of new human-computer interfaces for the US Army, Air Force, Navy, and the Federal Aviation Administration. Mr. Wolf has published numerous articles in the area of Naturalistic Decision Making on a range of topics including: new models of cognition and information processing, principles for improved user interface design, and new methodologies for capturing and representing expertise. Mr. Wolf holds a Master of Business Administration in Marketing and Electronic Commerce from Vanderbilt University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Cognitive and Human Factors Psychology from Wright State University.

Christen Sushereba
Research Associate
Christen Sushereba, M.S., is a research associate at Applied Decision Science, and aids in all aspects of research including data collection, analysis, and design of solutions. For the past 10 years, Christen has applied cognitive engineering and human factors methods to a variety of research domains, including military pararescue, emergency response, cybersecurity, electronic health record design, emergency medicine training, air traffic control, workload, and human-automation teaming. She received her Master of Science in Human Factors and Industrial/Organizational Psychology from Wright State University in 2018.

Julie Diiulio
Cognitive Designer
Julie Diiulio, M.S., is a cognitive designer at Applied Decision Science and translates research findings into design solutions. With a background in human factors psychology, perception, and cognition, Julie applies user-centered and user-experience design principles to create designs that support human performance. Examples include prototypes of decision support applications, virtual assistants, and augmented reality applications. Complementing her design work, Julie has over 15 years of experience conducting usability testing on a range of technologies including electronic health records, voice-user interfaces, and handheld devices. Julie came to ADS after a career in telecommunications and digital marketing. Julie received her Master of Science in Human Factors Psychology from Wright State University in 2004.

Katie Ernst
Human Factors Engineer
Katie Ernst, M.S., is a human factors engineer with Applied Decision Science. Katie leverages her experience in military operations with methods from human factors and cognitive systems engineering to analyze and design for both military and healthcare applications. Examples include conducting cognitive task analysis and cognitive work analysis to design new methods of human-machine teaming and cognitively complex training scenarios. Prior to joining Applied Decision Science, she served 13 years in the U.S. Air Force in both active and reserve capacities in a mix of intelligence and engineering roles. Her assignments included an MQ-1B Predator reconnaissance squadron, the National Security Agency, Headquarters Air Force, and the Air Force Research Laboratory. Katie received her Masters of Science in Industrial Engineering from Purdue University in 2017.
Complementary Network of Collaborators
Our Partners
Emily Patterson, PhD
With Emily Patterson, from The Ohio State University, we develop cognitive engineering and patient safety solutions for military and civilian health care fields.
HF Designworks
Working together with HF Design works, we use cognitive task analysis to inform IMPRINT workload models for the U.S. Army’s Future Vertical Lift program.
MacroCognition
In collaboration with MacroCognition, we apply Naturalistic Decision Making methods to study problems in domains such as aviation and multinational trust.
Marimo Consulting
Partnering with Marimo, we emphasize ethnography and participatory design to generate insights and design opportunities for healthcare and military clients.
Perigean Technologies
Alongside Perigean Technologies, we seek to disseminate Naturalistic Decision Making research through the NDM podcast series and Cognitive Task Analysis Institute.
Roth Cognitive Engineering
In cooperation with Roth Cognitive Engineering, we integrate cognitive task and work analysis to inform Future Vertical Lift programs for the U.S. Army.
Shadowbox
Partnering with Shadowbox, we use cognitive task analysis methods to create scenario-based training for expertise in domains such as child welfare & aviation.
Shilo Anders, PhD
Teaming with Shilo Anders, from Vanderbilt University, we focus on human factors and informatics solutions to support decision making in health care.
Stottler Henke
Teaming with Stottler Henke, we provide usability and user-experience design expertise to software systems and artificial intelligence products and solutions.
Unveil
In a joint effort with Unveil, we use the Recognition Primed Decision model to guide development of mixed-reality training for combat medics & medical students.