Amber Taufen

Bio

Amber Taufen has been managing content and design teams professionally since 2005. She is an accomplished writer, editor, and project manager who’s led highly productive teams at start-ups, nonprofit organizations, and corporate news outlets.

Education

Amber graduated with honors from the University of Missouri-Columbia’s esteemed undergraduate journalism program before earning her M.A. in journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia, specializing in magazine writing.

Professional Experience

Amber began her career as a journalist at Denver’s alternative newsweekly, “Westword,” before transitioning to trade journalism. She built the contributor program at Inman News, a real estate trade publication, and was quickly promoted to Editor-in-Chief. Other employers include the tech startups HouseCanary, HomeLight, and Clever Real Estate, in addition to the leading nonprofit End Violence Against Women International.

Her areas of expertise include content team strategy, design, and management. Amber is known for creating and deploying content and product strategies, including research projects, daily newsletters, website user flows, and apps. She was a board member for the emergency safe shelter and wellness program PeaceWorks from 2023 through 2025, and she won a Gold Award for Best Economic Analysis from the National Association of Real Estate Editors in 2009 for her deconstruction of the National Association of Realtors’ budget and expenses.

Motivation for Teaching

Amber’s deep interest in user experience and design efficiency brought her to teaching. She hopes to help cultivate the latest generation of design team professionals, sharing what she’s learned about collaboration and people operations with students.

Helping Students Be Successful

As someone who’s launched her own small business, contributed to world-class publications, and worked for large corporate teams, Amber offers a wide range of experience for students’ goals and dreams beyond graduation. She is readily available for student discussion and support via email and virtual office hours.