Amy Besecker, MA, CCC-SLP, RCSLT
Clinical Specialist, Tobii Dynavox Product Management Team
Amy Besecker, MA CCC-SLP, RCSLT, is a speech-language therapist specializing in AAC for children and adolescents with complex communication needs. Originally from the United States and now based in England, she has supported autistic students and individuals with multiple disabilities across healthcare and educational settings since first focusing on AAC during her university training. As the Clinical Specialist on the Tobii Dynavox Product Management Team, Amy blends clinical expertise with product development by gathering research, clinician insights, and lived user experiences. Her interests include communication access, partner support, and reducing cognitive load to support meaningful, person-centered communication.
MY SESSIONS
Outcomes from Transdisciplinary AAC Product Development
Voices of AAC users, their families, and professionals—together with scientific research—are central to effective AAC solution development. These sources of evidence identify unmet needs, prioritize features, and guide how challenges are addressed in speech-generating devices and communication software. At Tobii Dynavox, product development is transdisciplinary, integrating engineering, design, clinical, product management, and the lived experiences of AAC users and their support networks. Feedback from users, families, professionals, and research partners is systematically gathered and translated into product improvements through an iterative process of analysis, prioritization, and implementation. Decision-making balances user impact, feasibility, regulatory requirements, and long-term sustainability while keeping communication, independence, and participation at the center. The session illustrates this approach using examples from Tobii Dynavox products.