Kenneth (Ken) Beckman - 1951-2018

It is with great sadness that we wish to relate that our former Director, Kenneth (Ken) Beckman, has passed away after a brief illness

Tēnā koutou katoa!

We are excited to announce that Rob Lindeman has been appointed as the Director of the HIT Lab NZ, effective immediately.

For a period of more than three years Ken Beckman (former Director) and Rob Lindeman collaborated to provide the HIT Lab NZ with very effective strategic leadership and direction. Ken and Rob both built and maintained relationships with funding providers and academic partners, secured funding and further developed the reputation of the Lab as an internationally recognised centre of expertise in human-computer interfaces.

As you will know, sadly, Ken passed away last month. At the risk of speaking for our beloved Ken, we know he would be incredibly happy & proud to see his good friend and respected colleague, Rob, accept the Directorship.

In the role of Director, Rob will continue to provide the Lab with the abovementioned leadership and direction. Thus continuing the excellent work he and Ken have accomplished to date. Rob will also continue his supervision and mentorship of students, as well as his academic and Professorial work.

Please join us in congratulating Rob on his new appointment. We look forward to seeing what the future brings to the HIT Lab NZ under Rob’s guidance.

The key to our courses and projects are a multidisciplinary focus, collaboration with external companies and teamwork. You may have a Bachelor's degree in computer science, design, or psychology and want to expand your expertise into the prototyping domain or vise versa. We encourage students from diverse backgrounds to join the laboratory. Students with expertise in philosophy, economics or sociology are as welcome as students with an engineering degree. It is the mix of backgrounds that makes our educational programs so special.