# zu.com > AI-friendly documentation for zu.com *Complete documentation content below* # We build interfaces. See Our Work arrow_forward arrow_forward > We’re zu. For three decades we’ve partnered with organizations to create, rescue, and modernize digital products and services through human-centered design and development. Insights, summaries, and recordings from our annual experience design conference, XCamp. Volume III recap package is now available, click for access. [Get Access arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/xcamp/get-the-package/) ## / Hello We’re zu. For three decades we’ve partnered with organizations to create, rescue, and modernize digital products and services through human-centered design and development. ## / Our Work ### Sandbox End-to-end digital transformation for a century-old insurance leader, redefining their industry with invisible integration and a delightfully simple user experience. [Explore This Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/sandbox/) ### Nutrien A human-centered change management strategy uniting Agrium and PotashCorp. Streamlining procurement processes and communications to unlock over $1.0MM in annual measurable savings. [Explore This Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/nutrien-procurement/) ### SaskTel An ongoing partnership with Saskatchewan’s largest telecom to craft and ship innovative digital experiences, including a redesigned flagship app and website. [Explore This Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/sasktel/) [Explore all our work arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/) ## / Clients Farm Credit Canada (FCC) SaskTel Government of Saskatchewan Group Medical Services (GMS) Sandbox Mutual Insurance Pisim Power Crop Development Centre Moms & Kids Health Saskatchewan Rio Tinto Directwest Canpotex Cameco Nutrien Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) Conexus Credit Union Saskatchewan Government Insurance (SGI) Federated Cooperatives (FCL) AltaGas Farm Credit Canada (FCC) SaskTel Government of Saskatchewan Group Medical Services (GMS) Sandbox Mutual Insurance Pisim Power Crop Development Centre Moms & Kids Health Saskatchewan Rio Tinto Directwest Canpotex Cameco Nutrien Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) Conexus Credit Union Saskatchewan Government Insurance (SGI) Federated Cooperatives (FCL) AltaGas ## / What We Do ### Custom Solutions We partner with teams to build digital products from scratch or untangle what’s already there. Designing, developing, and connecting the systems that keep things moving. [Our Approach arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/services/end-to-end-custom-solutions/) ### Drupal Websites We design and build Drupal platforms that anchor your digital strategy. Connecting content, systems, and tools to deliver flexible, personalized website experiences. [Our Drupal Projects arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/?filters=Drupal) ### UX & AI Audits We help teams spot what’s broken and why, uncover where AI can make good experiences even better, and highlight upcoming trends that shape how people use your product(s) every single day. [Our Offerings arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/audits/) ### Brand Systems We create brand systems that unify your identity, bringing clarity and consistency to design, messaging, and execution across platforms, teams, and touchpoints. ### zu Academy We equip teams with a practical, repeatable toolkit, breaking down silos, surfacing insights, and accelerating better decisions through creative experimentation. [Our Courses arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/academy/) ### Staff Augmentation We embed trusted zu talent into your team, adding capacity, new capabilities, and a collaborative mindset to help you move faster, reduce risk, and ship with confidence. [More about our services arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/services/) ## / Index [/ Work](/work/) [/ Work](/work/) [/ Services](/services/) [/ Services](/services/) [/ About](/about/) [/ About](/about/) [/ Academy](/academy/) [/ Academy](/academy/) [/ Articles](/articles/page/1/) [/ Articles](/articles/page/1/) [/ Careers](/careers/) [/ Careers](/careers/) ## / Work with us ### Let’s talk. Not sure where to start? Tell us a bit about yourself and your product or project. With over 30 years of experience, we’ve seen it all. No matter what stage you’re in, we’ll find a way to help or guide you to someone who can. [Contact arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ](/contact/)[Book Meeting arrow\_outward arrow\_outward](https://calendar.app.google/aJcqSfUfpLRmfBsXA) --- # About > We‘re among Canada‘s leading strategy, design, and development teams. As a 31-person studio, not a faceless consultancy, we prioritize impact over growth, remaining nimble enough to transform ourselves and our clients. 30 Years in business 936 Projects launched 100% Project delivery 33 Employees 50% Female senior leadership 20+ Awards won ## / Leadership [Ryan Lejbak](#ryan-lejbak) [Founding Partner & CEO](#ryan-lejbak) [Tony Zuck](#tony-zuck) [Founding Partner & CFO](#tony-zuck) [Albert Jame](#albert-jame) [Partner & CXO](#albert-jame) [Rebecca Ready](#rebecca-ready) [Strategy Director](#rebecca-ready) [Roberta Barrington](#roberta-barrington) [Design Director](#roberta-barrington) [Brian Ohlmann](#brian-ohlmann) [Principal Designer](#brian-ohlmann) [Shane Giroux](#shane-giroux) [Technology Director](#shane-giroux) [Kevin Warrington](#kevin-warrington) [Technology Lead](#kevin-warrington) [Jen Korney](#jen-korney) [Operations Director](#jen-korney) [Kit Hillis](#kit-hillis) [Growth Strategies Director](#kit-hillis) [Melissa Arnott](#melissa-arnott) [Finance Director](#melissa-arnott) ## / Team Amanda Ede Designer Anja Gewers Senior Developer Brian Kachur Senior Design Strategist Christianne Rooke Research Strategist Cole Johnson Senior Account Strategist Dan Brown IT Manager Daniel Alvarez Designer Erin Bennetto Designer Haley Wiberg Product Owner Jessica Forster Senior Product Owner Karen Scherr Finance & Admin Manager Mackenzie Petros Product Owner Michael Hebert Developer Michael Sabares Senior Developer Mohamed Barakat Infrastructure Engineer Nick Kindrachuk Senior Developer Rachel Elson UX Strategist Rob Braid Account Strategist Ryan Nieman Marketing Manager Sam Wilkinson Senior Developer Tanmay Pathak Developer Travis Robinson Product Owner ## / Work with us ### Let’s talk. Not sure where to start? Tell us a bit about yourself and your product or project. With over 30 years of experience, we’ve seen it all. No matter what stage you’re in, we’ll find a way to help or guide you to someone who can. [Contact arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ](/contact/)[Book Meeting arrow\_outward arrow\_outward](https://calendar.app.google/aJcqSfUfpLRmfBsXA) close close Ryan Lejbak Founding Partner & CEO Ryan’s start at zu was a humble one — designing for Saskatoon small businesses while exploring the uncharted Internet in ‘95. A true community builder, Ryan played founding roles in BarCamp, Moso Conference, TEDx, and SaskInteractive, all while serving on boards for SREDA, ITSA, STEP, and SaskTech — tirelessly promoting our industry. [Next arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](#tony-zuck) Tony Zuck Founding Partner & CFO Alongside Ryan, Tony began as a strategist and designer, working with some of the earliest versions of today’s software programs — leading the way for zu techies to come. These days, Tony leads zu’s Operations and Financial direction, combining operational excellence with creativity and nimble strategy for both ourselves and our clients. [Previous arrow\_back arrow\_back ](#ryan-lejbak)[Next arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](#albert-jame) Albert Jame Partner & CXO Starting his career at zu in 2002, Albert’s journey spans from the era of static websites to digital ecosystems. Establishing zu as a pioneer in human-centered design, his deeply reflective nature and storytelling craft brings a dynamic blend of logic, reasoning, and humor, making him one of the most sought-after design leaders and speakers in Canada. [Albert's Speaking Page](/academy/albert-jame/) [Previous arrow\_back arrow\_back ](#tony-zuck)[Next arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](#rebecca-ready) Rebecca Ready Strategy Director Rebecca leads digital transformation initiatives across industries, coordinating complex project, product, and service strategy. As Strategy Director, she guides the strategic output of our studio, supporting the UX team in navigating direction and design challenges for clients. [Previous arrow\_back arrow\_back ](#albert-jame)[Next arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](#roberta-barrington) Roberta Barrington Design Director Roberta comes from a diverse creative background, spanning graphic design, art direction for advertising, editorial design for local magazines, and retail branding. Roberta is a modernist, critical thinker, and expert creative with a fascination for how design and user experiences intersect. [Previous arrow\_back arrow\_back ](#rebecca-ready)[Next arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](#brian-ohlmann) Brian Ohlmann Principal Designer Brian brings over 20 years of digital design, advertising, and brand expertise to our team. His keen eye for detail and ability to create distinct experiences can be seen in his work in art and marketing across the Prairies — collaborating with businesses on the successful execution of large-scale, high-profile, brand rollouts. [Previous arrow\_back arrow\_back ](#roberta-barrington)[Next arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](#shane-giroux) Shane Giroux Technology Director Shane brings 20+ years of full-stack development and experience to zu. Leading the technology operations, Shane is passionate about engineering that empowers. With a wealth of cross-industry and product experience, Shane helps architect the infrastructure for modern web systems, guiding the development approach of any digital initiative. [Previous arrow\_back arrow\_back ](#brian-ohlmann)[Next arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](#kevin-warrington) Kevin Warrington Technology Lead Kevin combines over two decades of hands-on experience with a love for cutting-edge web development. Specializing in JavaScript, CSS, and PHP (Zend Certified Engineer), Kevin is passionate about implementing modern UI solutions that intersect creative and technology — creating digital experiences that exceed expectations and delight users. [Previous arrow\_back arrow\_back ](#shane-giroux)[Next arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](#jen-korney) Jen Korney Operations Director Jen champions customer experience, efficiency, and effectiveness as it relates to our production teams. Keen on protecting our internal staff’s workload, Jen ensures the smooth running of our studio, while facilitating an environment and culture where everyone can easily balance client work, internal work, and life. [Previous arrow\_back arrow\_back ](#kevin-warrington)[Next arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](#kit-hillis) Kit Hillis Growth Strategies Director Kit is always looking for ways that zu’s strategy, design and technical experts can spark innovation or enhance our client’s products or services. Aligning our internal teams with the right type of work, Kit sources inspiration from new trends, companies, and markets, harnessing actionable insights for our Account Strategists and clients. [Previous arrow\_back arrow\_back ](#jen-korney)[Next arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](#melissa-arnott) Melissa Arnott Finance Director Melissa works closely with executives to lead the financial arm of zu. Through financial planning, cash flow management, and production performance, Melissa takes on the stress of the bottom line, so the rest of us can focus on building great products and experiences for ourselves and our clients. [Previous arrow\_back arrow\_back](#kit-hillis) --- # Solve problems and innovate faster. > Discover zu Academy’s three-tier design thinking courses. Elevate your skills with practical, human-centred strategies and transform the way you approach problem-solving. Learn more and enroll today! “ > "The cause of poor UX rarely has anything to do with the word Design, but rather all the steps further upstream." [Albert's Speaking Page arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/academy/albert-jame/) ## / Design Thinking ### How it helps - Align teams - Builds buy-in - Focuses on real problems - Incorporates user needs - Encourages iteration - Breaks down silos ### What you’ll learn - Human Centred Design - Methodical Problem Solving - Innovation & Transformation - Cross Functional Teamwork - Changing Culture - Rapid Experimentation ### Where it can be applied - Product Design - Service Design - Process Improvement - Change Management - Problem Definition - Brand Development ## Past Students Sasktel Coconut software City of Regina SaskEnergy Red river college Cummuno GOV of Saskatchewan Group medical services Farm credit canada Cameco Akwesasne Conexus Saskatchewan roughriders Federated cooperative limited Saskatchewan Government Insurance Sasktel Coconut software City of Regina SaskEnergy Red river college Cummuno GOV of Saskatchewan Group medical services Farm credit canada Cameco Akwesasne Conexus Saskatchewan roughriders Federated cooperative limited Saskatchewan Government Insurance “ > "Design Thinking has been a game-changer, reshaping how we solve problems and approach strategy. zu’s environment brought our team together and kept us energized. We’re now solving problems in weeks instead of months, thanks to the user-centered mindset zu instilled." “ > "Design Thinking takes time to sink in, but its impact across our organization is undeniable. Thanks to zu for their dedication to user-centered solutions, showing us a faster, more effective way to solve problems. Their enthusiasm for innovation has inspired us." “ > "I was surprised by the number of practical takeaways from such a short course—it was fantastic. The online training was well-organized, balancing theory, activities, and breaks. zu’s attention to pacing made the experience smooth and impactful, showing the power of design thinking." ## / Courses ### Design Thinking Fundamentals Your first introduction to the world of design thinking. This jam-packed 4-hour walkthrough of the entire methodology is designed to give you a foundational, practical understanding of the essential design thinking steps, as well as where and when to apply them. 4 hours Certificate workshop or virtual #### Ideal For: - Organizational leaders curious about design thinking and its applications across various challenges. - Teams and professionals looking for a new problem-solving framework and potential career differentiator. - Teams and professionals looking to explore design thinking with a low-commitment, high-impact experience. Course Details ##### What you'll learn 1. Understand the basics of the design thinking process. 1. Practice key techniques for empathy, ideation, and prototyping. 1. Learn how to uncover user insights and define problems. 1. Explore ways to generate creative ideas and test solutions. 1. Identify opportunities to apply design thinking in your role. ##### Course Outline 1. Introduction & Overview: Explore the principles of design thinking and its impact on innovation. 1. Empathy in Action: Learn techniques to connect with users and uncover key insights. 1. Defining Problems: Craft problem statements that inspire creative solutions. 1. Quick Ideation: Use brainstorming exercises, like Crazy 8s, to generate ideas. 1. Prototyping & Testing: Build simple prototypes to test concepts and gather feedback. 1. Next Steps: Discuss practical applications and answer questions tailored to your goals. Inquire about fundamentals arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ### Design Thinking Intensive Advance your understanding by taking a deep dive into the process of design thinking. This course gives you hands-on experience applying the methodology, giving you the tools and skills to solve complex business problems faster and more effectively in your own work and with your organization. 3 days Certificate workshop #### Ideal For: - Product teams wanting to align on a methodology that will help them better design products, faster. - Customer experience leaders looking to solve problems creatively, break the silos, and de-risk projects. - Organizations looking for methods to quickly generate, develop, prototype and test new ideas. Course Details ##### What you'll learn 1. Gain a clear understanding of the entire design thinking process, from research to implementation. 1. Learn how to uncover user insights through actionable, empathy-driven research techniques. 1. Master innovative approaches to defining problems and generating creative ideas. 1. Embrace a prototyping mindset that encourages rapid testing, iteration, and improvement. 1. Discover practical ways to enhance customer experiences and solve organizational challenges. 1. Understand when and where design thinking can create the most impact for your team. ##### Course Outline 1. Introduction & Background: Uncover core principles of design thinking and how they spark innovation. 1. Empathize: Master techniques that connect with users, uncover insights and guide impactful solutions. 1. Define: Transform insights into focused problem statements, unlocking innovative possibilities. 1. Ideate: Dive into creative brainstorming methods to generate bold and actionable ideas. 1. Prototype: Quickly transform ideas into tangible prototypes to test concepts, gather feedback, and refine. 1. Test: Learn user testing techniques to validate concepts, collect feedback, and refine solutions iteratively. 1. Wrap-Up: Engage in a Q\&A to explore next steps and apply design thinking to your unique challenges. Inquire About Intensive arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ### Design Thinking Masterclass Take your design thinking expertise to the next level. This six-day immersive experience is tailored for leaders and teams committed to embedding innovation into their culture. Gain advanced tools, strategies, and techniques to tackle complex challenges, foster creativity, and drive long-term impact. Learn how to facilitate workshops and create engaging, results-driven sessions that inspire collaboration and change. 6 days Certificate workshop #### Ideal For: - Senior leaders and consultants driving transformation, fostering innovation, and expanding their strategy. - Design and product teams tackling complex challenges with advanced methods and aligned practices. - Organizations ready to embed design thinking into their culture in order to create a competitive advantage. Course Details ##### What you'll learn 1. Master the complete design thinking process, from research to implementation. 1. Apply advanced techniques from the Google Design Sprint to solve challenges rapidly. 1. Develop facilitation skills to lead engaging and productive workshops. 1. Design workshops tailored to team needs and organizational goals. 1. Refine prototyping and testing methods to ensure impactful outcomes. 1. Build strategies to embed design thinking into your organizational culture. ##### Course Outline 1. Days 1–3: Design Thinking Intensive Introduction & Background: Uncover core principles of design thinking and how they spark innovation. 1. Empathize: Master techniques that connect with users, uncover insights and guide impactful solutions. 1. Define: Transform insights into focused problem statements, unlocking innovative possibilities. 1. Ideate: Dive into creative brainstorming methods to generate bold and actionable ideas. 1. Prototype: Quickly transform ideas into tangible prototypes to test concepts, gather feedback, and refine. 1. Test: Learn user testing techniques to validate concepts, collect feedback, and refine solutions iteratively. 1. Wrap-Up: Engage in a Q\&A to explore next steps and apply design thinking to your unique challenges. 1. Days 4–5: Google Design Sprint Learn the structure of the Google Design Sprint and its real-world applications. 1. Map problems and identify key opportunities. 1. Sketch solutions, prioritize ideas, and build rapid prototypes. 1. Test solutions to gather actionable feedback for iteration. 1. Day 6: Facilitation & Workshop Creation Develop skills to lead engaging and impactful design thinking workshops. 1. Learn workshop design principles tailored to team and organizational goals. 1. Practice facilitation techniques to manage diverse groups and drive collaboration. Inquire About Masterclass arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ## / Instructors zu Academy instructors are experienced professionals who apply human-centered design to real-world challenges every day. Passionate about innovation, they bring practical insights and tools directly from the field to the classroom, creating an engaging and hands-on learning experience for all participants. ### Albert Jame Partner & CXO ### Rebecca Ready Strategy Director ### Rachel Elson UX Strategist ### Christianne Rooke Research Strategist ## / Get in touch Full name Company Phone number [ ]() Email Design Thinking Fundamentals (fundamentals) What course are you interested in? How did you hear about us? Ideal training date Group size estimate Message Send arrow\_forward arrow\_forward --- # Albert Jame > Albert is a speaker, facilitator, and social commentator who blends two decades of digital strategy with a lifelong love of culture, music, and human connection. With a knack for making complex ideas entertaining, his talks are equal parts insight and energy—designed to stick with audiences long after the mic drops. ## / All About Al Raised in a small town but shaped by travel, curiosity, and a lifelong habit of paying attention, Albert has spent over two decades inside the messy reality of digital transformation, customer experience, and organizational change. He specializes in noticing what most teams miss: the emotional moments hiding inside systems, services, and everyday interactions. Part strategist, part designer, and part cultural observer, Albert brings a wide-angle lens to his work - equally comfortable referencing pop culture, vintage artifacts, or a sports metaphor to make complex ideas feel grounded and relatable. He’s less interested in chasing trends than understanding why they happen, and how they quietly shape human behaviour. A gifted storyteller and engaging speaker, Albert is a sought-after contributor and guest across conferences, classrooms, and media. He regularly lectures, facilitates, and speaks to leaders, designers, and students, bringing empathy, humour, and human insight to complex topics. At the core of his work is a deep belief in fairness, curiosity, and designing experiences that help people - especially when systems make life harder than it needs to be. Whether on stage, in the classroom, or in the field, Albert challenges organizations to stop designing for perfection and start designing for people. ## / What he talks about - **The Art of Conversation** – Social intelligence in work and life. - **Digital Strategy & Experience Design** – Designing with humans in mind. - **Generational Thinking** – Understanding how different age groups engage. - **AI & The Future of Work** – Where technology meets culture. - **Facilitation & Leadership** – Making collaboration work. - **Humor & Storytelling in Business** – Engaging hearts and minds. - **The Nostalgia Effect** – What retro trends teach us about modern behavior. - **The Future of User Experience (UX)** – Where experience delivery is heading. ### Why audiences love Albert He combines real-world insight with memorable stories and stand-up-level timing. “ > “Albert was an incredible speaker and facilitator – it felt like we had a world-class TEDTalk, but with a homegrown Saskatchewan flare. He has a special gift for connecting with the audience, whether they eat, sleep & breathe design or are engaging with it for the first time. Guests left energized with a refreshed outlook on design. We cannot recommend Albert enough and would welcome his energy and passion back to any future Cultivator event.” ## Past Speaking Engagements TEDX Art in a digital world summit fuze conference Sask innovation week TEDX Art in a digital world summit fuze conference Sask innovation week ## Bookings ### Event Booking Bring Albert to your next conference or company event ### Media Inquiries Looking for commentary on digital trends or culture? ### Birthday Parties Totally kidding. Unless you’re serious. ## Get in touch Full name Company / Event Phone number [ ]() Email Message Send arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ### Albert Jame Chief Experience Officer (CXO), Partner --- # 404 ## / Error ### 404 #### We’re moving some stuff here It looks like the post moved! But no worries—there’s plenty of interesting stuff below. Just scroll down to explore! [Back to Home](/) --- # / Article > Explore the exciting future of Drupal with insights from DrupalCon North America 2021, including updates on decoupled Drupal, JavaScript modernization, and improved sitebuilder experiences. ## 5 Key Takeaways from DrupalCon NA 2021: The Future of Drupal May 16, 2021 5 Min Read DrupalCon North America 2021 took place a few weeks ago and a number of zu developers were able to attend this online event. While online doesn’t provide the same experience as actually attending a conference in person, the digitized DrupalCon was still a great success as the record numbers of registrations proved. The format for the conference was slightly different this year, with each day more or less focused on one of the current strategic initiatives, here are a few links to take a deeper dive into each: - [Automatic updates](https://www.drupal.org/about/core/strategic-initiatives#automatic-updates) - [Decoupled menus](https://www.drupal.org/about/core/strategic-initiatives#decoupled-menus) - [Drupal 10 readiness](https://www.drupal.org/about/core/strategic-initiatives#drupal10) - [Easy out of the box](https://www.drupal.org/about/core/strategic-initiatives#easyootb) - [New front-end theme](https://www.drupal.org/about/core/strategic-initiatives#olivero) Each day was split into two parts—presentations for the first half of the day and contributor sessions for the second half. This format allowed for a greater focus on allowing and enabling people to contribute to the project, with access to mentoring and help resources readily available. In his traditional [“State of Drupal” keynote](https://dri.es/state-of-drupal-presentation-april-2021), Drupal founder and Project Lead Dries Buytaert provided updates on the progress of each of the current strategic initiatives and introduced a renewed focus on improving the sitebuilder and contributor experiences. The upcoming work in these areas will be seen in the [Project Browser Initiative](https://www.drupal.org/project/ideas/issues/2940733) as well as the modernizing of drupal.org’s collaboration tools with GitLab. Here are 5 key takeaways we’re most excited about… ## Decoupled Drupal is looking great Decoupled Drupal has been the main topic at past DrupalCons but was included in forward-looking talks or long-term discussions. This year marked a noticeable shift toward case studies on completed decoupled Drupal sites and conversations centred around solving the challenges raised by the shift toward a decoupled setup. In particular, community progress and conversation around Drupal’s Decoupled Menus Initiative is very exciting. Solving challenges centred around menus has been one of the major hurdles involved with the shift toward decoupled Drupal. ## JavaScript modernization is coming Naturally following the growing trend toward decoupled Drupal sites is the conversation around modernization for Drupal’s JavaScript libraries. This is a significant undertaking for a project as large as Drupal, but it brings change that end users will experience—such as more modern rich text editors. ## Admin experiences are improving The administrative experience has been a major focus within the Drupal community over the last couple of years. We’re now reaching the point where community effort around this topic has flourished into beautiful, usable administrative themes that put editor experience at the forefront. This incredibly important area of website development tends to be pushed down the priority list, but the time has come to bring it back into the spotlight. We’ve begun testing recently released administrative themes and are very excited to bring these updated administrative experiences into new and existing workflows for our clients. ## Updates are predictable and smooth One of the biggest changes to happen within the Drupal project in recent years is a shift towards predictable, planned releases and smaller jumps between these releases. This has allowed us to reduce the time required for updating, feel confident about the move toward Drupal 9 (and soon to be Drupal 10) and it makes for smooth and painless security updates. The community workflow around updates has greatly matured, allowing us to predict and plan for security patching and long-term support. ## Improved sitebuilder and contributor experiences Taking a step back to focus on the sitebuilder and contributor experiences was a major topic at DrupalCon this year — taking up a significant portion of the main keynote. The takeaway here is that the community has recognized that the site builder and contributor experiences were under prioritized in the rush to modernize Drupal. As Drupal is backed and powered by a large open-source community, excellent support for contributor workflows is foundational for the growth and development of the entire project. DrupalCon is always a fantastic event that highlights the effort and changes released already and brings forward community awareness of new initiatives in progress. Several of us at zu have experience with contributing to Drupal and we are all looking forward to improvements being made to the process. The future looks bright for Drupal. We are excited to continue using it to bring digital experiences to life and to empower individuals and organizations to deliver their message to their audience. ## / Author ### Michael Hebert Developer --- # / Article > Ensure the success of your next web project by considering these six critical factors. From defining your goals and target audience to planning your budget and timeline, these essential steps will help you create a more effective and efficient web development process. ## 6 Key Considerations Before Starting Your Next Web Project November 22, 2018 6 Min Read In the last decade, the web has drastically changed. From mobile, responsive, apps, and social, to the Internet of Things, it’s intimidating for anyone embarking on a digital project. Having said that, capitalizing on all the new technology is only one side of the equation when it comes to launching a project. We often get so distracted by all the shiny ideas of digital, that we sometimes lose sight of the pillars of a successful project. I was curious to see what our zu crew viewed as important factors to a successful project, so I sat in the kitchen the other day and asked various people around the office to answer this simple question: > For clients who are embarking on a new project, what should they REALLY be thinking about? Here’s some of my favourite advice: ## Think about change management After a major site launch, many organizations are surprised at what sort of internal impact it has. From updated workflows, new admins, and integration into organizational wide data, it should be creating efficiencies throughout multiple departments. Whether change management is handled internally or externally, make sure to discuss this during the planning stage. It’s important to envision life after launch and examine what sort of systems, structure and resources will be needed to accommodate the upcoming change. ## Think about formalizing project management It’s never a bad idea to assign formal project management duties to your web project. For larger projects it’s required, but the problem is that most clients underestimate the size of the project, and realize their ‘small’ website project was in fact, not so small in the end. I would say, unless you have excess capacity or are willing to redistribute your existing duties, adding the management of a web project to your plate may compromise the project from a budget and quality perspective. A designated project manager may handle more than one project at a time, but they are trained and assigned the duties to hold all parties accountable for time, budget and scope. ## Think about a simple project charter It’s important to budget time early on to discuss ‘how we are going to accomplish this project.’ This is the very first step before any discussions surrounding content, design or technology take place. It’s simply to discuss the ground rules. Understanding roles, responsibilities, workflow, the decision tree, and project management philosophies is paramount . Every organization has different project management styles, philosophies, and tools. It’s important to put aside all assumptions and preconceived notions at the start of your project, together with your digital partner. We vary methodologies from project to project, so it’s important to set aside time at the beginning to discuss everyone’s beliefs and to find a common ground that everyone agrees will work. And remember, as the project evolves, so will your techniques and comfort working in the system, and pretty soon you’ll be a well-oiled machine. ## Think about doubling your content effort This point was mentioned several times. It’s 2016 and we still cannot stress enough the effort it takes to have great content delivered ON TIME. Imagine the time it takes you to approve the content for a simple bi-fold brochure. Now multiply that by 100. Each page of content should have that level of care and attention. This isn’t 1998, and you aren’t just writing random paragraphs to fill up generic subpage layouts. This is your chance to do it right and have it potentially live on for years. It doesn’t matter if you’ve arranged for your agency or an individual to take care of content creation, the bulk of the content will come from arms-length subject matter experts that may or may not respect your deadlines. Invite these people to your initial kickoff meetings to help emphasize their importance in making sure content is delivered. ## Think about engaging users User engagement doesn’t have to be complex. Three things you should always include in any web redesign project is to Identify users, Talk to users, and Test with users. This way you are at least confirming your assumptions. It doesn’t have to be fancy, just identify who the key users are that matter, and then profile their goals, frustrations and motivations. Once you’ve done that, go out and interview a few of them to confirm your assumptions. Ask them the questions that will help you design a tailored experience. And finally, make sure to test ideas, content and prototypes with them to get their feedback. Design with them, not for them. This does add some additional time to the whole process, including screening, scheduling and executing. We recommend budgeting $100/hr/user to reward users for any type of engagement, whether it be for interviews or testing. ## Think about life after launch When we launch a new project, we think of it as bringing something new into the world. Unfortunately, many clients treat it as a death - and soon enough, it’s all but a distant memory as they have already moved on to the next project. This is backwards. Once launched, it should be someone’s duty to nurture it and raise it well. There is so much to do after a site gets launched - from adding new content, testing usability, adjusting for changes in browsers/devices, security patches, improving experience based on analytics, to further integration with backend systems, and more. With digital continually changing, your site/application is figuratively decaying the minute you launch. So when you are budgeting, make sure to account for healthy maintenance to make these updates possible. It will allow for you to be proactive, improve your site over time and minimize any surprises. ## I know it’s unsexy I’m not saying you should avoid discussing design, content and functionality early in the process. After all, those build excitement and buy-in throughout an organization. But just like any major project, it’s rarely the actual execution that you have to worry about, it’s all the stuff around it. They say to have the hard conversations early, however, early on we didn’t know what those conversations were - but two decades later, we definitely do now. So, before you embark on your next digital journey, think about the above list and protect yourself from future headaches or surprises. ## / Author ### Albert Jame Partner & CXO Starting his career at zu in 2002, Albert’s journey spans from the era of static websites to digital ecosystems. Establishing zu as a pioneer in human-centered design, his deeply reflective nature and storytelling craft brings a dynamic blend of logic, reasoning, and humor, making him one of the most sought-after design leaders and speakers in Canada. --- # / Article > Explore 25 years of business growth, challenges, and lessons from the founder of zu, reflecting on the company’s unique approach to sustainability, culture, and client collaboration. ## A Founder’s Thoughts on 25 Years of Business June 11, 2020 5 Min Read Whew, 25 years! It doesn’t seem that long ago we decided to take the leap into business as a printing start-up called ProPrint. The Internet was then only a tiny, tiny sprout of what it would become, and what it would mean for our future as zu. In two and a half decades, there have been hundreds of employees, dozens of children born to them and the founders as well as many extended family members who are no longer with us but who helped along the way. Driving around Saskatoon, there are few buildings where at some point we didn’t have business meetings, a pitch or presentation or dropped off a proposal. Many became **landmarks in our corporate journey** that we’d return to regularly once we’d established the initial successes and they became long-term clients. In the various locations where zu has operated lurk the ghosts of a thousand late nights of deadlines, heated discussions and laughter. A blizzard blowing outside while hard choices on opportunities, risks or challenging personalities on the team keep it warm inside. With hundreds of projects completed, we took many “business classes” via the tuition of cost overruns, failed experiments, out of control changes and other details to be taken into account “next time”. With property and renovations, we experienced a few near-bankruptcy events, though so far all sidestepped. Once or twice, the market has made switches, catching us off-guard and complacent, so we had to hustle to get ourselves re-aligned and focused on our strengths. We can thank our clients for feedback as to what they value zu for, allowing us to strengthen or further expand those capabilities. All of these things seasoned us as entrepreneurs and honed our skills as a team that gets things done. In reflecting on how we came to be what we are and where we are, it seems that some of the biggest questions that shape an organization are quite basic, almost philosophical: - “How important are growth and size?” - “How aggressive do you want to be?” - “What’s the endgame of this approach?” It seems that aggressiveness in business usually calls for using a lot of “other people’s money”. We’ve observed the businesses that wrestle it out of their employee’s hands, their suppliers or their customer’s hands. Many successful giants are like that. Pursuing growth above all often means selling your control until the decisions made are not the ones you would have made, and soon you and your core team are on the sidewalk looking at what you created–but are no longer allowed in. **That’s not been the zu way.** We’ve likely “bonsai-ed” our business to some degree, making something perhaps smaller than it could be, but exhibiting a unique character and producing a rarified experience for both employees and clients. We’ve engineered our own little zu-econo-biosphere that has its own rules about how things should be done – not dog-eat-dog but dog-help-dog-learn-new-tricks. It crosses my mind to think in binary scales. - On a scale with “Work” on one end and “Club” on the other, our needle is definitely closer to “Club” than 90% of the places we could be working. - On a scale with “OT and Emergencies” on one side and “Family Life” on the other, we lean more to “Family Life” than most companies. - On a scale of “Compensation, Benefits and Flexibility” vs. “Average Remuneration and Strict Rules” we’ve achieved a better set of rewards and benefits with creatively flexible rules fitting the needs of busy young families. - On a scale that puts “Events involving food, competition, learning and general socializing” against “Infrequent special staff occasions” I’d put our busy schedule of unique happenings concocted by zu’s SAC (Socially Awkward Committee) against any and all comers. - On a scale that compares delivered projects for “Citizen Life Enhancement” vs. “Money for Money’s Sake” I’d say a lot of our work is about making the things we citizens of Saskatchewan all use work better. These could include government effectiveness, the efficiency of healthcare, your awareness of disease statistics and many other web and mobile apps used by our neighbours. There’s plenty in our project roster for me to feel good about when stopping to think about the point of my career. During this pandemic, with 29 of 33 zu folks working from home, I’d throw in another scale: **“Miss My Coworkers” vs. “Don’t Miss My Coworkers”.** I’m certain–even without double-blind testing–that zu would also score much higher than average towards the “Miss My Co-workers” end of the scale. In summary, after 25 years, I think our greatest accomplishment is that zu is a highly effective company that **feels like a family**. We’ve perhaps inadvertently sought business sustainability over growth. And this has fostered a culture that has been the cause (or effect) of zu’s identity, which is shown to offer uniquely effective results for clients. Each project is a collaboration with our clients, delivered via a very personal service relationship, and containing the secret ingredient baked-in: the Integrity of zu’s like-minded people. Perhaps zu’ll be like the 200-year-old pizzeria: delivering consistent excellence, uncompromising in approach, with a staff that is undoubtedly well-fed. ## / Author ### Tony Zuck Founding Partner & CFO Alongside Ryan, Tony began as a strategist and designer, working with some of the earliest versions of today’s software programs — leading the way for zu techies to come. These days, Tony leads zu’s Operations and Financial direction, combining operational excellence with creativity and nimble strategy for both ourselves and our clients. --- # / Article > Ensure the success of your next web project by considering these six critical factors. From defining your goals and target audience to planning your budget and timeline, these essential steps will help you create a more effective and efficient web development process. ## Adapting Your Core Offerings for a Changing Market October 13, 2018 5 Min Read Technological innovation is rapidly increasing, and the barriers to entry across industries are declining at unprecedented rates. Small and nimble teams are now able to introduce digital solutions to multi-billion dollar industries from their garage or basement headquarters. Though these startups are a major driving force of innovation, they can become sources of major concern for long-time established organizations. These organizations often feel unassailable, believing their experience, brand recognition, historic track records, and business relationships provide all the tools they need to stymie any startup competition. As foundational as these achievements are, they are quickly eroded by the value proposition of new innovation. ## Exploring different diets No one is more familiar with this scenario than us. zu has been leading digital in Saskatchewan for over 22 years. Our humble beginnings date back to 1995 around the same time the internet was just gaining momentum. As businesses began realizing the importance of a web presence, we soon became known as a “website” company. At the time, building a website was an involved process requiring a certain level of technical expertise. But as technology evolved, costs declined, and new tools emerged, someone with limited technological knowledge was given the tools to create a decent looking website. Our market and core product offering was commoditized. Our bread and butter was given away - for free. So we had to alter course and become a full-service digital and software agency. To get there, we considered the following: 1. **Look along the entire value chain.** With the emergence of services like Squarespace, Wix and other self-help website builders, we realized a large part of the value we provided came from our experience and knowledge of what to build and how to build it, not just the mechanics of it. To have the impact companies expect from their digital investment, good design and a user-centric approach to projects became crucial. We found that our expertise in these areas helped us differentiate and elevate our service to a new market segment. 1. **Innovation doesn’t always require large teams or huge amounts of capital.** What it does require is a specific mindset and a supportive culture. One of the best ways to minimize the risks of disruption is to continue to innovate, but this doesn’t always have to mean new products and services. Consider the supply chain, your business process, or your sales and distribution channels through the lens of emergent technology. Newfound efficiencies and distribution channels can significantly improve your defensibility. At zu, we made progress by switching to Agile in 2010, adapting to this modern process for software development. By using smaller teams who work closely together, we were able to gain efficiencies in multiple areas. 1. **Business models are rapidly changing, and so should yours.** One of the most powerful disruptors is a new business model. After all, if someone is giving away your bread and butter, they (hopefully) have another business model they trust will be more successful. Innovating on business models is difficult for large corporations due to the fear of cannibalizing their existing business. It’s not until external pressures and declining revenues force them to adapt, that they finally take the leap. Take for example, a software company like Adobe, or even Microsoft, that finally moved to subscription models for several core products after years of resistance. Or consider the lucrative opportunities in opening up your platforms to third parties to create powerful marketplaces. Rather than supporting our projects on a one-off as-needed basis, we switched to a fixed monthly support and optimization offering. This allowed us to have predictable recurring revenue while providing clients with better maintained projects and mitigating unplanned expenses. ## Disrupting yourself through reinvention “Disruption” has become an overused and threatening buzzword in many industries. Young startups strive to be disruptive while incumbents fear the impact. But disruption doesn’t need to be negative, and more importantly, it doesn’t need to be caused by an external force - it can come from within. Incumbents have advantages that they can leverage in this area to compete and win. They have the means and the reputation to recruit the best talent, allowing them to execute on emerging technologies. Higher margins allow them to innovate, while large customer rolodexes are conducive to testing new products, services and ideas. When these tests yield positive results, their speed to market is often better because businesses prefer to partner with leading incumbents on new opportunities. ## As long as you’re progressing, you’re not regressing [1](#as-long-as-youre-progressing-youre-not-regressing-1) The areas of innovation we discussed hold tremendous opportunities for companies to continue—or begin—to innovate. Considerable [research](http://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/digital-mckinsey/our-insights/the-case-for-digital-reinvention) exists showing strong evidence for a positive ROI in innovation. This pay-off, combined with the intrinsic advantages of being an established incumbent, should provide the structure to move forward and discover ways to preemptively disrupt yourself. And if someone else does take the first step by giving away your bread and butter, these areas of focus (product, supply chain, sales and distribution, business process) will allow you to innovate and compete. 1 Dwight D. Eisenhower: “Unless we progress, we regress.” ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Explore the challenges and benefits of early adoption in emerging technology. Learn how to align new tech capabilities with user expectations, mitigate risks, and enhance user experience through proactive engagement and careful consideration. ## Balancing Early Adoption of Emerging Technology with User Needs August 23, 2023 7 Min Read It’s difficult to predict which new tech will or won’t become important for business, but we can’t ignore the fact that some communication fads and “toy” applications have become business tools. Was it worthwhile building your SaaS in support of Foursquare? Did Google Glass change the world? Was Apple OpenDoc able to build the community and components they promised? Bitcoin, a blockchain technology, started as a cypherpunk outlier built to demonstrate a new independent philosophy for money. Starting at fractions of a cent, it became a unique asset class hitting a market cap of 1 trillion USD and poised to offer a true alternative to the printing press fiat currencies on which we currently rely. As we witnessed with all of the Blockchain startups a few years ago, it’s exhilarating to be associated with a new tech boomlet. Organizations should try to spot the hype however, and not get too far out in front of things – things like what their users actually want. Startups committed to new breakthroughs (or at least their investors) eventually realize actual business results will be required at some point, though rounds of financing have kept many corporate corpses alive for a surprisingly long time. New tech can be app-specific or a whole new category of possibility. While Bitcoin is a beautiful little algorithm, a whole industry has blossomed around it. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is an ongoing hot topic, with uses ranging from data science and finding insights in giant pools of information, to replacing humans wherever the skill is a repetitive activity, or to simply improve the ability of clients to serve themselves. ## Return on Investment in Emerging Technology Falling Short In a global survey regarding the use of AI to automate processes, McKinsey Digitals (Dec. 2019) observed with three-quarters of respondents: “Companies have begun to automate some business processes or plan to do so within the next year. Yet many find total returns have fallen short of their expected target.” Our client work indicates there are two main reasons for this: 1. Too many organizations fail to consider how automating certain steps in a business or customer-facing process will affect upstream or downstream handoffs and connections, which can introduce new inefficiencies, capping the value delivered by automation.” 1. Companies often limit the scope of automation to point solutions aimed at eliminating work. These solutions tend to deliver only an incremental, and often temporary, cost-savings advantage, given that most companies are working to make the same basic efficiency improvements.” ## Achieving Emerging Technology’s Full Potential To achieve the full potential of new tech, an organization must be sensitive to how the total user experience is affected. For zu, this suggests that our relevance to our clients continues because, no matter which new technology is to be deployed, you will still need to Design For and With Users to realize the full benefit. So, adding emergent tech works best when used in tandem with practices addressing user experience and the growing desire for users to be self-sufficient. > Don’t design for users, design with them. And give them an opportunity to help. Progressive organizations should be ready to offer customers what they need when they need it; not after the need has been around for a while, or your competitor has already cornered the market. To this end, customers can be recruited to explore new tech and its potential uses in interacting with your organization. Customers – bringing experiences with other digital organizations – will identify points of friction or possible frustration as well as new possibilities. Having them proactively engage in discussion – or with actual prototypes – to explore the practicality of new tech will produce epiphanies. Before committing to an approach, discover what it will take for you to put it into use. As important as a new capability may appear to your organization, it is likely to be sandwiched between legacy steps in the journey which, if poorly considered as a whole, may defeat the potential. Hitting a fail after investments have been made may cause premature death for this new approach. Careful consideration with end users increases the likelihood that the key component of their cooperation – their effort in making something new work – may be gladly given, or may be withheld. In recent projects, we have explored a few emerging technologies including Blockchain, as well as the Intersection of 5G, Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence. ## Blockchain and Agriculture One area we have consulted in is in the use of blockchain technologies to assure the provenance of agricultural products, especially for organic foodstuffs where claims to legitimacy are difficult to investigate or enforce. Blockchain potentially provides a new approach for tracking the source and proper handling of crops and would be expected to increase the perceived value of the product and price achieved. A blockchain approach basically replaces the need for trust to be something layered on top of a system, as it builds trust into the product as processes occur. The product’s provenance is trapped with the product’s journey from field to consumer and attests that the claimed quality of care has been maintained. The end goal is that farmers, transportation organizations and processors doing things right should be rewarded for it, and best performers will be more profitably rewarded. But the success of such a system will come down to making the concept of traceability practical in actual use. Will the humans carry out their necessary role, or not? And with that, we circle back to usability as a key component in any new system. ## The Intersection of 5G, Internet of Things & Artificial Intelligence 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT) are all about connecting sensors and controls to everything in a particular system, be it agricultural, industrial, transportation, human comfort or wherever there is a need to make continuous adjustments to optimize a system. 5G essentially unlocks the opportunities offered by IoT by providing the type of data transfer needed to create feedback loops. In fact, there’s plenty of ‘old’ existing off-the-shelf tech that can become useful with improved connectivity and cellular networks. Much of the best of new tech is actually connecting old tech – with a little human effort-glue – to create new systems. Alternately, it is possible to be “too soon” with emerging technologies: that period when a new tech is a solution in search of a problem. Through this lens, it is certainly easy to overthink an approach or overprescribe a new solution; everything looks like a nail to a hammer. New technology should perhaps be thought of as the spice rather than the main ingredient of a real improvement - the main ingredient is still the human. In optimizing the system for the human component, the goal might be to say, “Encourage Self-Service”. So our new approach may involve customers in the collection of data. This would lower costs and increase system reliability with a smaller addition of technical risk. For instance, rather than contriving some hugely technical solution, we’ve seen cameras on phones (“old tech”) used for cheque deposits in banking, video used for insurance claims and parts ordering and text messaging in combination with chat/help bots. These achieve the integration of tech and legacy systems that improve the experience for users and decrease costs for organizations serving them. Uber relies on the passengers and drivers to ensure the quality of the counterparty through the rating step, carried out by system participants. There may have been a much more complicated way to analyze the reputation of users to ensure they were trustworthy to share rides with: imagine CIA-strength AI combing through the browser histories of everyone combined with identity management databases. But with a little usability testing, and in recognizing the desire for people to be self-sufficient, the “AI” of the users themselves supports the system. So if you want to get the biggest bang for your new tech spend, first encourage autonomy, self-sufficiency and self-sovereignty in your users. Then add the least amount of new tech possible while optimizing user experience. With this recipe, you are likely to produce resilient and cost-effective solutions that are, in fact, the new tech we need. only means that it’s more work. ## / Author ### Tony Zuck Founding Partner & CFO Alongside Ryan, Tony began as a strategist and designer, working with some of the earliest versions of today’s software programs — leading the way for zu techies to come. These days, Tony leads zu’s Operations and Financial direction, combining operational excellence with creativity and nimble strategy for both ourselves and our clients. --- # / Article > Get an inside look at the experiences of our interns through the InternView program. Learn about their roles, challenges, and achievements, and discover how this program helps shape future professionals. Gain valuable insights from the perspectives of our talented interns. ## Behind the Scenes: The Internview January 29, 2021 12 Min Read “Are you registered for the internship program?” is my opener for almost every student I talk to at career fairs or open houses. Depending on their response, I pivot one of two ways: “Awesome! Are you applying at zu?” or “Huh. Well, we all make mistakes.” usually followed by an awkward chuckle and maybe some finger guns, depending on their expression. A bit of context for the uninitiated - every year, zu participates in the [University of Saskatchewan’s Computer Science Professional Internship Program](https://www.cs.usask.ca/students/undergraduate/become-an-intern.php). It’s how I got my start at zu and it’s something that we have been doing for over a decade. It’s an incredible opportunity for students that provides an accelerated boost into the job market while allowing zu to form a working relationship with a local up-and-coming developer. While I could ramble on about the upsides of the internship process, it does come with a series of hurdles that can appear daunting. Cover letters, resumes, applications, job fairs, topped off with perhaps the most anxiety-inducing obstacle of all: **the interviews themselves**. While interviews can be stressful and nerve-wracking all on their own, they all end up scheduled in the same two-week period forming a gauntlet of stress and panic. During my internship application, I foolishly made the mistake of applying to every company that seemed vaguely interesting and as a result, ended up with a week of 3 midterms and 12 in-person and over-the-phone interviews. Spoiler for that chapter of my biography: I did not do well on those midterms. Today, I find myself in the privileged position of being on the other side of the table and have a different challenge to face. I now have the pressure of ensuring that the next intern is going to succeed. I have to ensure that whoever we choose isn’t going to drop a production database during their first week, while also making sure that they have an interesting performance for the zu talent show. In an effort to atone for my current role of adding more interview dread to the world, I’d like to talk through our **internview process**—highlighting some of zu’s big questions, what I hope(d) to hear and what’s surprised me in years past. This year we’ll use a different set of questions, so if you’re an aspiring intern looking to game the system: first of all, great initiative. Second, try and learn the lessons and tune your brain to start thinking this way and I’m sure we’ll get along just fine. ## zu’s Developer Internview Process: So that the rest of this article makes sense, our intern interviews in 2020 were typically 45 minutes long and were a mix of both technical and personality questions. I represented the technical side of things while Deidre, zu’s People Strategies Director, was there to make sure I didn’t bite anyone. We structure the interview by beginning with traditional interview questions before quickly diving straight into the deep end with our technical questions, which form the majority of the interview. We then wrap up with a practical whiteboard question, review any lingering personality questions that came up during the conversation and finally give the internviewee a chance to ask us questions. A sidebar from a robot-brained developer—don’t stress the personality questions. You’re the best expert on you, so relax, be honest and reflective and you’ll slay this part of the interview. If you’re at the point where you’re sitting in the room with us, we probably already like you. ### Homework I don’t love traditional take-home interview questions. Personally, I’m the type that would stress over them and come to the interview with a killer answer, while neglecting to prepare adequately for the rest. Beyond the anxiety they introduce, we’ve all read the horror stories of companies using applicant’s interview solutions as a way of boosting their own productivity. It’s terrifying and all things considered, I’ve just never been a big fan. The issue is, however, that not all applicants submit portfolios and those who do don’t always have as robust examples as we’d like to see. The power of a good portfolio goes a long way in demonstrating the depth of a candidate’s abilities but they are also time-consuming to put together. All concerns aside, there’s a lot of value in allowing the candidates to prep _something_ for the interview. Last year we tried something a bit different. We decided to give two high-level discussion questions in advance to give the applicants the chance to think about their answers in more detail while allowing us to get to the meat of the conversation faster. As part of the homework, I gave instructions stressing that I didn’t want or expect any sort of code or development to be done but just wanted people to feel comfortable having a conversation with me about the questions. ### The Questions In order to understand the reasoning behind our questions, it’s important to understand what zu does at a technical level. The easiest way to explain us is that **we are digital problem solvers**. A large part of the technical issues we solve are oddball issues or requests from clients. Those questions can come through to development with a wild scale of variance. One of the primary jobs of a developer who is going to be working at zu is to be able to quickly digest the problem and start mentally trying to solve it while identifying strategies that we can use and problems that we need to overcome. The questions we sent out last year to our intern applicants were meant to simulate these situations. Some general thoughts I had when crafting the questions: 1. Just as the conversations we like to have with our clients, these questions are raw and unrefined. Both questions contain a really good idea surrounded with some _maybe_ incorrect presumptions. 1. I wasn’t looking to have a specific conversation with the interviewee about technology choices. Whether someone builds a Vue.js app for this or wants to code up a Swing GUI is irrelevant for the question. Familiarity with technology is important, but it’s also something that usually comes up in conversation and when talking about the candidates’ personal projects. #### Mixtape Mayhem Let me set the stage of the basis of this question—Kevin, a senior developer here at zu, asked me a more specific version of this question while we were loitering at the bread counter - our office’s equivalent of a water cooler. His wife recently found a box of old burnt CDs and wanted to listen to them in the van in a more portable fashion. That problem became the basis for the first question we sent home to our applicants: _Imagine you have a stack of 100 burned CDs filled with mixes of songs that your friends have given you. You don’t know the tracklists or what the names of the songs on the disc are._ _You’ve just purchased a new vehicle and want to listen while you drive, but it doesn’t have a CD player._ _How would you go about transferring all the songs to a streaming music service as a set of playlists?_ I really like this question. It’s actually really straightforward and achievable in scope, but it’s delightfully complicated in its execution. As I see it, there are two major problems (three if you don’t have a readily available disc drive): 1. How do you identify the title and artist of a song when you rip it from a homemade mix? 1. How do you automatically get the identified track on your streaming platform of choice? The second problem is the easier of the two. Here, I was mostly hoping to hear candidates talk about something like an API or other means of communicating with a standalone piece of software. Whether Apple Music even has an open API or not is another question. I’m just hoping the students are wondering about themselves or took the initiative to check. The best responses were from students who took the time to research the available methods and formats that their provider of choice supported. The first problem is the more difficult, by far. To the best of my knowledge, the only way to develop this is through digital fingerprinting and amassing a large database of fingerprints for popular songs - something that is far outside the scope of a simple app. What I was looking for in the discussion of this problem was a **recognition of the scope problem** and just how big and expensive it might end up being. > This reinforces one of the primary skills a zu developer needs to have: be able to forecast technical hurdles that are going to end up being time sinks. The best solutions I heard for this problem were to find out a way to piggyback off of an existing music identifier such as Siri, Google Assistant or Shazam—similar to how I’d attempt to tackle it. My favourite answer for this problem came from an applicant who took the time to research a combination of python libraries that could be used to do the digital analysis on the files and who came up with a theoretical way to build the fingerprints. This was way too heavy of a solution but it was interesting to read and theorize about. As an aside, Kevin did end up assembling a prototype app that would solve this problem. He ended up using a pretty nasty mess of Apple Scripts and the Shazam Mac app. The last time I heard, it was working really well with the exception of a bug that was triggered when Shazam failed to find a song and would instead substitute [Lil’ Jon’s Taco Tuesday](https://www.shazam.com/track/472538752/taco-tuesday) as the default song in the playlist. #### Content Discontentment For the second question, I wanted to give something that was as big as the first question was small. We asked our applicants: _Your friend asked you to build a web-based app that would help them track what TV shows are on which streaming service (Netflix, Amazon Prime, Crave etc.). They want the ability to look up a show and know if it is streaming in Canada. They also want to allow users to create an account on the app and then have it automatically subscribe and unsubscribe them from services just by toggling them from within this new app._ _What questions would you have for your friend to clarify what they’re looking for? What technologies would you use? How would you host it?_ The most memorable response when I asked the applicant for their take was: “Well I don’t think I’d want to be friends with this person anymore if they wanted me to build this for them.” This question is something that I think has widespread appeal. It’s an attractive pitch, but when you start digging into it at a technical level it’s a mess. When you start thinking about the technical problems, they quickly get out of control: 1. Is this even legal? Does this violate the terms of service for those platforms? 1. Can we register and unregister users? 1. Where does the content come from? 1. How are you going to securely store the payment info? And the list could go on and on… As I pointed out in relation to the first problem, a big part of the developer’s job in tackling a pitch is to help identify areas of risk. This question is full of risk, but it also gets at something that is essential for staff at zu: **the willingness to tackle a seemingly impossible problem**. > The ideal developers, for us, are the type of people who, even when presented with a seemingly impossible question with dubious foundations, start to look for new angles to make it \[the project] both possible and successful. The best answers we received here were along the lines of: “This is a terrible idea, but here’s how it might be done. …just to reiterate this would probably be really complicated.” My favourite ideas were the ones that veered to unorthodox solutions: building a calendar of subscriptions, partnering with the companies to develop APIs and hosting partially-automated solutions that would help streamline the subscription and unsubscription process. If I were to tackle this one, I’d spend some time researching new open providers of movie and TV data. I’d completely punt the option of dealing with subscriptions and payment in favour of a service that sends reminders to users informing them of when their subscriptions will renew and reminding them to cancel. ## Finding our Unicorn There’s a running joke among the developers at zu that hiring a zu developer is a bit like finding a unicorn. It’s almost impossible to find someone who is an existing expert in the wide variety (and ever-expanding) technologies that we work in. At the end of the day, you’d have an easier time finding a unicorn than a developer who is a preexisting expert in Drupal, iOS and Ember.js. While we do still look for them (developers, not unicorns), we’ve also found that it’s best to look for people who are teachable, flexible and have the motivation to learn while being an expert in _something_ applicable to our business. Once we’ve found those people, they naturally gravitate toward the leaders on our development floor who can teach them what they know. Through this process, we find that we can end up finding some pretty amazing people and mentoring them so that they become incredibly successful zu developers. So, I suppose we’ve learned that instead of finding unicorns, it’s a better idea to find an eager horse and turn them into a unicorn. This also, apparently, is where the analogy appears to break down. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Understand why your website is more than just a marketing tool. Discover how it serves as a hub for customer engagement, brand representation, and business operations. Learn strategies to maximize your website’s potential to support broader business goals. ## Beyond Marketing: Why Your Website is More Than a Sales Tool June 13, 2019 3 Min Read To kick off the new year, we held a cleaning bee around the office. Just like everywhere, a lot of junk had been accumulating under my desk. Original iPod mini? Check. The ever unpopular U-Force controller for Nintendo? Check. As we looked through boxes, I stumbled upon some dusty notes that I had taken from projects that we started a decade ago. It’s a bit like going through old pictures to see how process and design trends have changed over the years, but the biggest difference to me was how one dimensional websites were back then. At the time, websites were the ultimate bolt-on marketing tool. They were a place that held all of your content and PDFs in a maze of information. Most of them were built primarily for lead generation, awareness, hours, service, product overviews and the like. It was clear that, back then, very little responsibility was given to the website outside of a marketing purpose. Today, though marketing and sales may be the departments that drive the rebuild of a website, they sometimes become a small role player in the overall requirements of the organization’s goals. At zu, our website redesign projects always lead into discussions of opportunities around: - Sales - Recruitment - Process & workflow - Customer service & retention - Efficiencies - Legacy & backend systems - Data - Resourcing & culture - Innovation (Internet of Things, other bespoke software) All of this encompasses a much wider scope and is misrepresented under the label of a “website redesign” project. Lately I’ve been saying, ‘Your website planning should spark some of the best business strategy discussions you’ll ever have.’ This is a realization that everyone in the company needs to come in on the project sooner than later. To get the most out of your website, it’s imperative to look at the big picture before you start. Not just the digital ecosystem, but the people involved. A project like this needs to be repositioned in the minds of the decision makers. Bringing your C-level personnel in early discussions can help connect the divisions of business that are all impacted by future digital projects. Bring in these key stakeholders at the beginning of a project and open their minds about digital transformation through facilitated discussions. Allow them to voice concerns and thoughts in a neutral setting (one spared from judgement, hierarchy or politics), this not only brings everyone’s ideas to the table early on, but also creates buy-in among decision makers, as they start to see the pieces fitting together. Before we dive into website planning, we always recommend these types of early exploration workshops to build momentum within the organization, making the task of removing barriers easier - especially in regards to the budget. So remember: treat your project like a website redesign and you’ll receive a website budget. But, position your project as a transformational business improvement initiative and get ready for some of that sweet capital investment money. If you have a new digital adventure to embark on, give us a shout! ## / Author ### Albert Jame Partner & CXO Starting his career at zu in 2002, Albert’s journey spans from the era of static websites to digital ecosystems. Establishing zu as a pioneer in human-centered design, his deeply reflective nature and storytelling craft brings a dynamic blend of logic, reasoning, and humor, making him one of the most sought-after design leaders and speakers in Canada. --- # / Article > Discover how to prepare your services for the conversational AI future. Learn about MCP, seamless AI integrations, and how companies can stay ahead with AI-ready digital experiences. ## Building for AI: Preparing Your Services for the Conversational Future June 05, 2025 5 Min Read Remember when you first started using Google to find information online? It felt revolutionary. We are witnessing another shift right now with AI assistants like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini changing how we interact with services. ChatGPT came out in November 2022 and has quickly transformed how millions find answers. I have seen this firsthand, not only do I rely heavily on it, but now even my family, who are not particularly tech-savvy, use AI for everyday tasks. Studies show that fewer people are using traditional search engines for their queries, opting instead for conversational interactions with AI assistants. I have noticed myself barely using Google at all these days. For nearly everything I think about, I simply ask ChatGPT. Even when I ask seemingly silly questions, I still get thoughtful answers. Thanks to AI, my curiosity has led me to learn so much in the past two years. This shift makes it crucial to start building websites and digital services tailored for AI. Users today want direct answers, quick actions, and personalized interactions without navigating complex websites. By enabling integration with AI assistants like ChatGPT and Claude directly into your services, you can significantly reduce friction and enhance accessibility. Tasks such as booking appointments, scheduling meetings, obtaining detailed information, filling out forms, or completing applications can become simpler and quicker. To simplify AI integration, we have something called the Model Context Protocol (MCP). Think of MCP as a standard port, similar to USB-C, that helps AI assistants like ChatGPT and Claude connect directly to your website or app data. This makes it easy for people to complete tasks like booking Airbnb stays, scheduling an appointment, or searching flights through simple conversations. Here’s a personal example: recently, I needed to create a music playlist for a special event. Instead of manually searching and adding songs, I chatted with Claude, explained the event and music style, and let it suggest songs. I picked some, rejected others, and in a couple of minutes, I had the perfect playlist. The key was that Claude, thanks to MCP, directly added those songs to my YouTube Music playlist. Another common scenario is filling out application forms, like student loans. Forms often create confusion because people interpret questions differently based on their cultural backgrounds. AI assistants understand context, translate languages seamlessly, and help users complete forms accurately without misunderstandings. Looking ahead, AI interactions will become even more seamless. Imagine booking a haircut by just telling your AI assistant your barber’s name and preferred days. Your assistant checks your calendar, talks directly to your barber’s scheduling service via MCP, finds suitable time slots, and books your appointment after your approval. All done through a brief conversation. Companies that embrace AI integrations early will stand out from competitors by offering smoother, faster, and more personalized experiences. This is not just about keeping up, it’s about getting ahead. At zu, we have spent the past 30 years building meaningful, user-first experiences. Now, we are helping clients build for this new AI-powered landscape. Whether it’s optimizing your website so AI assistants easily find your content, creating user-friendly chatbots, or developing MCP tools, we are ready to help. Ready to step into the conversational future? [Talk to us](/contact/) at zu—we are experts at making your services AI-ready. ## / Author ### Tanmay Pathak Developer --- # / Article > Learn how to create value and improve customer experiences through effective service design. Discover strategies to understand customer needs, streamline processes, and innovate services to provide exceptional value. ## Building Value Through Service Design: Enhancing Customer Experience February 16, 2019 3 Min Read Every business, government and non-profit organization shares a basic, fundamental equation; they possess a core internal group of individuals who provide some type of good or service to an external audience. Traditionally, these two groups are brought together through the efforts of marketing. To be an effective marketer, an organization will divide consumers into market segments and, through research and statistics, will create one-way messages that can be delivered to targeted audiences. Most often this is in the form of advertising. 40+ years ago this was an extremely efficient way for an organization to communicate to audiences. Media consumption was far more predictable, and a well-placed 30-second television spot could reach wide swaths of a market segment. Unfortunately for advertisers, decades of trying too hard to be clever and loud, and pushy “one day only” sales, have left audiences with ad fatigue. This fatigue, combined with a highly fractured, multifaceted media landscape, has left marketers with the daunting challenge of getting their message out to smaller, highly targeted audiences, or sometimes rethinking the way they interact with their audience entirely. ## Organizations as service providers One way to look at an organization anew is as a service provider or, for larger organizations, a collection of services. By definition, a service is an intangible commodity, but even when there is a tangible commodity involved, there is an element of service in all organization/audience exchanges. The tools we use to look at and understand services allow us to see today’s competitive ecosystem more holistically from the perspective of our audiences. It also pushes organizations to see it as a two-way exchange rather than the one-way relation of traditional marketing. By using tools like experience maps, service blueprints and user research, we can quickly understand the elements of an organization’s interaction with its audiences, and identify areas where value can be created for all parties involved. In an increasingly complex and connected world, the ability to create a positive experience through an exchange of value is [quantifiably one of the most important things a business or brand can do](https://hbr.org/2014/08/the-value-of-customer-experience-quantified). This is the heart of **service design**. ## Applying design thinking to services Service design as a practice has been around for over three decades, and has been used effectively by companies like fast food chains and hotels for a long time as a way to differentiate themselves from otherwise very similar competitors. In more recent years, the use of service design has extended its reach to all types of businesses and public sector organizations. It is especially useful today as it allows organizations to look at their interactions with people across multiple channels from the vantage point of the user. Breaking down a large organization into a collection of service providers has a number of benefits. The most obvious is the way the process identifies user pain points. By documenting a service through a blueprint framework, it’s easy to see where users may have a negative experience. This knowledge, confirmed through research and testing, gives the organization a point to focus its efforts on, and the confidence of knowing that their investment to improve experiences will pay dividends. Another benefit of this is that it can make a large organization approachable and digestible. Documenting a service, even one that is quite complex, can happen relatively quickly. We often go through this process with a department in a matter of hours and soon begin to conceptualize solutions to the aforementioned pain points with the client in one single meeting. And because these paths are represented visually by nature of the frameworks, it is easy to then circulate the materials with other groups inside the organization to create a shared understanding. Compare this to long research engagements that produce lengthy consulting reports with little actionable content, it’s no surprise that businesses and governments are embracing the tenets of service design. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Drupal 8 has evolved in many ways over its predecessor. Some of the prominent features are the inclusion of the widely used views module into core, configuration management, and an easy to use translation service. However, today we are going to dive into one of the other major updates of Drupal 8 that provides a huge boost to performance and perceived performance: the cache layer. ## Caching in Drupal 8 November 22, 2017 6 Min Read Drupal 8 has evolved in many ways over its predecessor. Some of the prominent features are the inclusion of the widely used views module into core, configuration management, and an easy to use translation service. However, today we are going to dive into one of the other major updates of Drupal 8 that provides a huge boost to performance and perceived performance: **the cache layer.** Caching in Drupal 8 has received a much needed overhaul. It has become highly customizable and dynamic, and now has the ability to cache individual blocks or items on a page. This means that we can control exactly when a block on a page has its cache cleared instead of clearing the entire page cache. ## Diving deeper into caching There are three main components to the cache layer in Drupal 8: - Cache tags - Cache contexts - Cache max-age ### Cache tags Cache tags are for dependencies on data that are managed by Drupal, and are the easiest way to control cache. As an example, let’s consider a site with a news story content type and view page. This site has a list of three nodes that are displayed in a block on the homepage. How would the homepage cache (more specifically the news block cache) be cleared if we added a news story to the top of this list? The answer is cache tags! Cache tags are used to inform the system when the news block would need to be invalidated. The homepage might have cache tags specific to the page itself `node:5`, but this will not invalidate the entire homepage when a news story `node:18` is added since the cache tag does not exist in the list of tags for the homepage. The news story block, on the other hand, would have specific tags that line up with the node ID’s that currently appear in the list `node:16; node:17; node:18`. So when we update or add a new news node, we will invalidate all caches that contain that particular cache tag. In this case `node:18` tag will be invalidated, and thus the block that contains the tag `node:18` will also be invalidated. ### Cache contexts Cache contexts are used when a dependency exists on an environment-specific object. Content is often reused across multiple pages and the cached object could be rendered differently based on the environment’s state. In this example, we will take a look at how cache contexts can be used and important considerations for developers, by modifying the default breadcrumb in Drupal 8. By default, the breadcrumb only shows the path up to and including the parent page. For many websites, we also need to display the current page title in the breadcrumb. Here we have altered it to add the current page title to the end: ```php function theme_preprocess_breadcrumb(&$variables) { if (($node = \Drupal::routeMatch()->getParameter('node')) && $variables['breadcrumb']) { $variables['breadcrumb'][] = [ 'text' => $node->getTitle() ]; } } ``` Now the following page [`http://home.com/page-level-1/page-level-2/page-level-3`](http://home.com/page-level-1/page-level-2/page-level-3) will have the following breadcrumb: `Home > Page Level 1 > Page Level 2 > Page Level 3` Great! We have the breadcrumb we are looking for. But we have not yet considered how this might have affected caching. Additionally at this point we have not changed anything to do with the caching of the breadcrumb. Drupal does not know how it should handle caching our new version of the breadcrumb and this can create some unexpected behaviours. If we look at the cache contexts, which can [be configured](https://www.drupal.org/docs/drupal-apis/render-api/cacheability-of-render-arrays#headers) to be sent along in the response header, we see the breadcrumb is cached on the context of the parent url: This means that once Page Level 3 is loaded, the breadcrumb is now cached based on the parent url. When a sibling page like Page Level 3-1 is loaded, the parent page has not changed, and thus the breadcrumb will be loaded from cache. This can give us unexpected behaviour due to the missing cache context. When running on a cold cache (a cache that has been cleared or rebuilt) and you load Page Level 3-1, the proper breadcrumb is displayed. `Home > Page Level 1 > Page Level 2 > Page Level 3-1` When you go to the sibling page Page Level 3, you will notice that the previous breadcrumb is still showing: `Home > Page Level 1 > Page Level 2 > Page Level 3-1` When we altered the breadcrumb we also needed to be aware of the cache settings on it. Since the breadcrumb is now unique to each specific page and not just to the parent page, we need to add the following to our `preprocess_breadcrumb` function: ```php function theme_preprocess_breadcrumb(&$variables) { if (($node = \Drupal::routeMatch()->getParameter('node')) && $variables['breadcrumb']) { $variables['breadcrumb'][] = [ 'text' => $node->getTitle() ]; $variables['#cache']['contexts'][] = 'url.path'; } } ``` With `http.response.debug_cacheability_headers` enabled, we can now see that the `url.path` context is appearing in our response header. This will then use the current path to cache the breadcrumb. Now, when running on a cold cache, we load page Page Level 3-1 and the proper breadcrumb is shown. When loading the sibling Level 3, the proper breadcrumb is now showing for it as well. `Home > Page Level 1 > Page Level 2 > Page Level 3` This is a quick example of how cache contexts can alter the output of a page, and how developers must take this into consideration when working with Drupal 8. ### Cache max-age Cache max-age is used when there are time dependencies attached to the content. An example of a time dependence is the need to invalidate items when using feeds or timelines as the content changes periodically. For example, let’s say we are importing a feed into a block and we have the import set to every 30 minutes. We would want to add a max-age cache of 30 minutes to the block in order to invalidate it consistently after the feed is imported. Anytime your content has a dependency on time, you should consider checking or setting a Max-Age cache value. ## Big Pipe Drupal recently included an experimental module in core called Big Pipe. The Big Pipe concept is about loading page data as it becomes available instead of waiting for the entire response before showing anything. This will not affect the total response time, but will greatly reduce the perceived response time. The page will appear to load faster and portions of the content can be readable in less time. Below is a video showing the perceived speed of Big Pipe. Page data is displayed as it becomes ready, and placeholders are created for sidebar items that will be filled in as the data is available. This caching improvement applies to authenticated users viewing pages which have partially customized content. ## Wrap up This was a quick look into the new cache layer in Drupal 8. The cache layer provides three ways for us to declare how we want our feature or content to be cached. These components of the cache layer are a very important detail we need to take into account when developing for Drupal 8. The updates to the cache layer provide a very robust system and are a big stepping stone for Drupal 8’s performance. Don’t forget to take a closer look at the cache API and how it can help you store, retrieve, invalidate, and manage your own cache tags. ### Resources: - [Drupal 8 Cache API](https://www.drupal.org/docs/8/api/cache-api/cache-api) - [Big Pipe](https://www.drupal.org/docs/8/core/modules/big-pipe/overview) ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > A reflection on the power of returning—this time with clarity. From tech trends to team tools, progress often comes from a second look at what came before. ## Circling Forward April 23, 2025 5 Min Read When my second tour with zu became official, the first message I sent was to our CXO, Albert Jame, with the iconic first panel from Grant Morrison’s The Invisibles: That line has always stuck with me as a simple summation of a pattern we see all the time in technology, business, and life. We often return to familiar ground—but we don’t come back empty-handed. We return with experience, context, and clarity. In a field obsessed with what’s next, it’s easy to overlook the value of what’s worked before. I spent a decade at zu the first time around—as a developer, project manager, production manager, and eventually, technology director. Then I spent another ten years elsewhere, working in similar roles but within different constraints, with different teams, tools, and perspectives. And now I’m back with a new perspective. This idea of returning—only with new perspectives—is something we see constantly in our industry and it shows up across technical decisions, team structures, and even the tools we choose. ## Server-Side Rendering Reborn Server-side rendering (SSR) was the default for years. It was simple, and it worked. Then came Single Page Applications (SPAs), promising speed and seamless interactivity. Websites started to feel more like apps—but also became more complex. SEO became trickier. Debugging got harder. Now SSR is back in the conversation, with tools like HTMX, Turbo, and Alpine.js aiming to simplify things. Not because we forgot why SPAs became popular, but because we’ve learned how to apply SSR more thoughtfully. It’s not a step back—it’s a better path forward. ## Streaming Rebundled You can see the pattern in consumer experiences too. Streaming was supposed to free us from cable. No bundles, no ads, just on-demand content. But now? We’re juggling subscriptions, sitting through commercials, and hunting for where our favourite shows live. At some point, it’s likely we’ll rediscover the simplicity of switching channels, just like in the “good old days” of cable. It’s not that streaming has failed—it’s evolving into something familiar. The cycle continues. ## The Comeback of Community Even communication platforms have come full circle. We moved from forums like phpBB and early Reddit to noisy, algorithm-driven feeds. Now we’re returning to focused communities—Slack, Discord, niche newsletters. Smaller spaces. Fewer distractions. Real conversations. The smaller the room, the easier it is to be heard. ## SaaS Swings Back to Custom SaaS is what really pushed me to write this. Before hosted platforms dominated, most organizations built their own tools. Teams worked directly with developers to create CRMs, scheduling tools, inventory systems—designed from the ground up to fit their needs. But building and maintaining software is hard. As complexity grew, it made sense to simplify. Hosted tools promised faster setup, less maintenance, and a lower upfront cost. It worked for a while and adoption soared. But now the costs are piling up, flexibility is shrinking, and teams are feeling boxed in. We’re seeing a renewed interest in owning and running software—whether that’s self-hosted platforms, open-source stacks, or hybrid approaches. It’s not about nostalgia. It’s about making better-informed decisions, with clearer eyes. ## And so we return and begin again It’s tempting to treat returns like failures. To feel like we’re back where we started. But a better metaphor might be an orbit—not a circle, but a spiral. We pass familiar ground, but from a new vantage point. We’ve tested ideas. We’ve seen what works, and what doesn’t. So yes, sometimes we return to where we started but we’re not standing still. We’re going from A to B to A prime. A smarter version. One that knows where the pitfalls are and how to avoid them. At zu, we embrace that. We don’t chase the newest thing just because it’s new. But we don’t dismiss legacy approaches either. Sometimes the best way forward is through a second look at what came before. That’s how we grow. That’s how we build better. And when we find ourselves coming back around, we don’t see it as a reset. We see it as progress. ## / Author ### Shane Giroux Technology Director Shane brings 20+ years of full-stack development and experience to zu. Leading the technology operations, Shane is passionate about engineering that empowers. With a wealth of cross-industry and product experience, Shane helps architect the infrastructure for modern web systems, guiding the development approach of any digital initiative. --- # / Article > Learn how to fight user disillusionment by designing for optimal performance. Discover strategies to enhance user satisfaction, ensure fast load times, and create seamless digital experiences. Keep your users engaged and happy with high-performing designs. ## Combating User Disillusionment: Designing for High Performance January 20, 2021 7 Min Read Do you ever find yourself searching for information on your phone, loading the first interesting google result only to get impatient and hit the back button for the next result? And perhaps you find yourself repeating this process _over and over_ until your ravenous information appetite is finally satiated? Can I get a show of hands? The truth is this is a common situation. It’s known that ‘[people will visit a web site less often if it is slower than a close competitor by more than 250 milliseconds](http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/01/technology/impatient-web-users-flee-slow-loading-sites.html)’. But really, how quick is that you ask?…well it’s quicker than the blink of an eye. A blink takes a whopping 400ms. Although my mind has a hard time comprehending that, I know I notice it. And so do you. I feel a twinge of pain when I check out an old website I designed and worked on for months and I find myself \*noticing\* the load time. “My son! What is… wrong with you?” I think. “My poor, child we’ve failed you.” When I look at a site that is engaging, visually stunning, memorable and unique but the performance is slower, a knife goes through my heart. The total experience has been a let down. My eyes may be feasting, but my brain is tapping its toes in impatience and more often than not, I bail. > People will visit a web site less often if it is slower than a close competitor by more than 250 milliseconds Steve Lohr ## Planning for performance - using a budget As a designer, it is my job to make sure that the beauty and the performance of a site work together to create an exceptional experience for my client’s users. Recently I’ve been watching many videos and reading articles that emphasize just how important this is–and what I, as a designer, can do to ensure this happens. Performance is a design feature just as important as beautiful brand photography, or awesome animation. A fast site is important. [A fast site shows that a brand is trustworthy. A fast site is a memorable experience.](https://vimeo.com/147754223) This is important for our clients. Performance is important. We want them to have a competitive edge, and not have users bail for the next site. To ensure these things for our clients, there are a few things we must plan for and communicate. As the saying goes, failing to plan is planning to fail. Instead of worrying about the performance of a site in the last 10% of the project timeline, we must incorporate it right from the beginning. We must make design decisions with it in mind, and have our clients on board with a performance budget by incorporating it into the project plan. This is a written guideline we can base our decisions on. For example, stating goals for page weight, goals for page start render, a fully loaded page, and a site’s speed index. Designers and developers must work together to adhere to this performance budget. (Read our developer Kevin’s take on it [here](../prioritizing-web-performance-lessons-from-drupalcon-la "Prioritizing Web Performance") Once we have a performance budget, we can be mindful of it and make design choices to use our budget wisely. Just as 5 hours of design time will use up x amount of money from the client budget, so too will different design elements eat up a performance budget, causing pages to load slower and users to become disillusioned. ## So, what can we be conscious of during the design process? ### 1. Optimizing images A smart use of images can go a long way. Can you reuse images to be used at a different size? Or does your design use three different aspect ratios of the same image? Cut out the clutter. Can you use a sprite sheet? Small files and fewer requests are important. The right file type can also make a big impact. If photography is an important element of your site, one file type that can often enhance experience is the progressive jpg. [Instead of jarringly loading a few pixels, pausing, and then the whole image loading, the whole image will load pixelated and slowly come into focus. This creates a perceived load time much faster than baseline jpgs.](http://csswizardry.com/2013/01/front-end-performance-for-web-designers-and-front-end-developers/#section:progressive-jpgs) Using apps to create optimized or compressed files that save even more space than what traditional programs like Photoshop can offer is also very helpful. It is also important to educate clients about these apps as they will often take over content uploading to the CMS after the site is launched. We want to prepare the client for a continuing successful site as much as we can. And if we have already talked about performance at the start of the project it shouldn’t come as a surprise. ### 2. Type packages Fonts need to be downloaded the same way images do on every page. Do you really need 10 different fonts? What is the best use of your performance budget? Katie Kovalcin, Sr Product Designer at Vox media and cohost of the Path to Performance podcast will generally not use more that [four total weights across a site](http://kovalc.in/2015/10/02/performance.html). Another great way to keep fonts light is to use system fonts when appropriate, perhaps for paragraph text, or [to look for a similar font that is a smaller size](http://cognition.happycog.com/article/7-alternatives-to-popular-web-typefaces-for-better-performance). Say if you want to use Futura which is 268k, and that is over budget, you could use Brandon grotesque which is very similar looking and only comes in at 133k. Some would call that winning. As the designer, you have the job of weighing the pros and cons of all of these options and choosing the best design that portrays the client’s brand, and also creates a great experience. ### 3. Icon fonts & SVGS Icon fonts are great. We use them a lot and even create our own. Instead of loading multiple rasterized images, we can load one font and get a wealth of images from it, all that are scalable and easily customized with CSS if need be. SVG image files, which are also vector images and can be scaled, are great to replace multiple sizes of graphics and can even be simply animated. One word of caution is to create these SVGs with as few points and curves as necessary, as more points can increase file size. ### 4. Constant editing and evaluating At zu we are a firm believer in style guides. This is where we keep track of our type styles along with all the elements we will incorporate in the site. We want to reuse design elements and modules to create consistency across a site which in turn can improve the performance and shorten dev time without decreasing quality. While designing, we want to be using the style guide as our reference. However, we always want to be editing designs to make sure that we pair down modules that can be substituted for something similar. When designing an alternate style we want to use enough variation to make something stand out, but be mindful that we do not go unnecessarily overboard in styling. We also want to evaluate features that we want to incorporate against our performance budget… and if a client politely demands a feature, we can now weigh our options. Do we have room for that in our performance budget or is the page too overloaded? Can we compromise something else to incorporate this new feature? With a performance budget, we can talk tangibly about the design and what it will take to implement it. For example, do we need two carousels, or can we have just one and a static image? Does that animation need to work on mobile? We have the goal of a total desirable performance and work towards that together. ## A brighter, lighter future together With these things in mind, and working with developers and clients as partners, designers can ensure we do our part to adhere to performance budgets. And in doing so, we fulfill our responsibility to create fast, beautiful, functional websites with the best overall experience for users. We do our part to help our design offspring flourish and to ‘Just say no’ to user disillusionment. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Explore the dynamic between design thinking and expert opinion in product development. Learn how to balance innovative user-centered approaches with specialized expertise to create effective, user-friendly solutions. Discover strategies for integrating both perspectives for optimal results. ## Design Thinking vs. Expert Opinion: Finding the Right Balance June 10, 2019 4 Min Read At zu, we use Design Thinking in the process of building digital products and services. This ensures what we produce will be well-received, appreciated, and easily adopted. In observing things in my daily life, however, I see many examples of brand new things failing to meet the needs of users. Though designed by experts on the specifications of senior decision makers, these innovations, nevertheless, fail for intended users such as employees. ## Learn from your users. I was recently giving blood at the new donation centre in our city, which replaces a more densely organized operation downtown. Located in a strip mall, the new facility has ample parking and an attractive, sweeping interior design. From a glance, it appeared to be an improved set up. I asked the nurse jabbing me, “Were you in the old place? Is this a lot better?”. She proceeded to point out deficiencies such as: the curved shape creating wasted space and awkward placement of necessary equipment, loss of storage areas, smaller staff lockers that are expected to be shared (doubly impractical with winter clothing), the staff bathroom not accessible via the locker room, and so on. “Did the designers have any sessions with you frontline folks?” “No,” she replied, “only with the supervisor”. Despite the modern, architect-portfolio-enhancing design, there were major issues inadvertently introduced by a lack of engagement with users. These deficiencies may impact the clinic’s operational efficiency, employee engagement, and overall job satisfaction. A decrease in the general enthusiasm of staff may, in turn, impact the donor experience. Had the frontline folk been engaged via a process like Design Thinking, the same space and budget could have easily accommodated their suggestions. In zu’s own building renovations, Toronto-based engineers designed our HVAC system. Local installers after-the-fact pointed out the system had many practical issues including outdated equipment choices. This has led to costly issues. Even a brief engagement with the stakeholders of the system – in this case, those who would be maintaining it – would have provided useful and cost-saving insights that improved the experience for the end-user: zu. ## So, what can we learn? So what do these observations tell us? Whenever you are building anything intended to meet the needs of a user other than yourself, you are going to get it wrong, by a little or a lot, if you don’t engage users in the design process. This is a Fallacy of Assumed Competency. Folks in charge of the budgets and plans tend to rely too much on their own smarts, and on the wisdom of hired experts. They choose to exclude the messiness and time commitment involved in organizing engagement with users and stakeholders. While expert involvement was totally necessary in these examples, the successes achieved were incomplete. They both missed an engagement step, which would have uncovered what users actually wanted. It’ll always be a partial win when management expects employees to be happy with what has been created for them. (Imagine the result of decorating your teenage daughter’s bedroom without involving her). Many projects, devices, and software systems can be produced to do similar things for a similar price point. The “best” one, ultimately, is the one that users prefer. With Design Thinking, we start by going through “all the trouble” of uncovering what users want. We offer expertise to understand limitations and necessary interactions. With users, we go through multiple rounds of design ideation. We create prototypes. Then it’s back to the users for prototype testing and then more testing during development. In early stages, we are weighting opinion and resulting direction about 2/3 users, and about 1/3 experts. (It occurs to me this might just be a really, really long way of saying: Measure Twice, Cut Once.) Experts are necessary in almost every undertaking, but they are not where projects should start or finish. The old approach will miss key insights. The assumptions of the boss/expert-only team will introduce risks, costly do-overs, increased training requirements, and require longer roll-out periods. High expectations will be replaced with employee disappointment. Projects will achieve only partial success – or worse – when decision makers plan, design, and innovate without involving actual users. ## / Author ### Tony Zuck Founding Partner & CFO Alongside Ryan, Tony began as a strategist and designer, working with some of the earliest versions of today’s software programs — leading the way for zu techies to come. These days, Tony leads zu’s Operations and Financial direction, combining operational excellence with creativity and nimble strategy for both ourselves and our clients. --- # / Article > Discover how you may already be using Design Thinking principles in your work. Learn to identify these practices and leverage them for better problem-solving, innovation, and user-centric design. Unlock the full potential of Design Thinking in your projects. ## Design Thinking: You’re Likely Already Doing It September 27, 2020 5 Min Read Changes implemented by governments and employers in response to [COVID-19](https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/events-as-they-happen) have left many people with newfound spare time on their hands. Depending on your perspective or situation, this could be a blessing or a curse: it’s either an opportunity, or pressure, to use this time to learn new things and build new skills. Whichever it is for you, if you’ve been meaning to learn about design thinking, you’re in luck: **you’re probably already design-thinking** your way through a pandemic, and you didn’t even realize it. ## Design thinking is an approach to problem solving As with most things, it’s not difficult to find some wildly varying opinions on design thinking. For us, it’s simply one of many **problem-solving approaches** in our toolkit. Design thinking is inspired by methods designers have used for years, but you don’t have to be a designer to understand or apply it. It’s a mindset that puts humans first, and advocates exploring many possible solutions before settling on the solution. Our approach is built on the foundation of five common design thinking pillars: Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test. Over the many years we’ve been teaching people about design thinking, we’ve learned it can be intimidating to get started. But there’s a good chance **you’re already doing it**, or at least parts of it, as you navigate lifestyle changes during the COVID-19 pandemic. ## Do some research For example, you might have needed to **learn** about remote work, home-schooling, the virus, how to stay healthy, or how to help others. You might have read, watched, or listened. You might have talked to others. All of that is **research**. In design thinking, research doesn’t have to be scientific or statistically significant — it just has to help you learn. We do research to help us empathize with users and better understand their problems. ## Identify insights Then, we try to better **define** those problems by identifying **insights** about what we’ve learned. What stands out? What’s most important? Where themes are emerging? If you’ve spent time considering what you learned, and **distilling** the most important information to help you make **decisions** about what to do next, you’ve done some design thinking. ## Come up with some ideas Once we have a better understanding of our users and their problems, we try to come up with as many different ways as we can think of to solve them. In our design thinking workshops, this often involves a lot of sticky notes and sketching. Maybe you haven’t gone to that extent, but you’ve likely thought about, talked about, or written down a whole bunch of **possible** ways to address the new challenges in front of you. If you’ve **generated many ideas** to solve the problem you defined, then **narrowed** down the best ones — you guessed it, you’re doing design thinking. ## Try them out and get some feedback Now, you may not think you’ve prototyped any of your ideas, but I bet you’ve done that, too. People tend to have some very specific notions about prototypes, but I love Jake Knapp’s definition from his book, [Sprint: How to Solve Big Problems and Test New Ideas in Just Five Days](https://www.thesprintbook.com/): > Quite simply, a prototype is anything a person can look at and respond to. If you put your best idea into some tangible form, then showed it to someone to get feedback — congratulations! You made and **tested** a prototype. Proper prototyping and testing are, of course, more involved (and somewhat of an art). But the key objective is to get **early feedback** that gives you new insights so you can refine your idea and make sure it’s truly going to solve the problem you identified — before you actually implement the solution. In this way, getting feedback also functions as a type of **research**. ## You’re using design thinking ingredients Design thinking is a mindset, not simply a linear process. The methods are more like ingredients that can be used in different orders and combinations, than a recipe. You’ve used a design thinking mindset and ingredients to adjust to pandemic life if you: - **Surveyed** your employees to find out how remote work is going for them, then thought of ways to **improve** their experience based on what you learned. - Made a schedule for your kids, then **adjusted** it after observing them in action. - Did a **trial run** of new physical distancing protocols with a small group of people, then made revisions before rolling them out to a large group. The list of examples could go on and on. Hopefully, you’re seeing the ways you’re already using an approach you may not have known about, or that you found intimidating previously. ## Want to get better? If you want to level up your newly realized design thinking skills and really put them to work, we can help with that. In addition to offering in-house design thinking training for teams and companies, we’ve recently launched the [zu Academy](https://www.zu.com/academy), with **remote** courses open to **anyone** with a desire to learn more about design thinking and how to apply it. Seats sell fast, but you can [sign up](https://www.zu.com/zu-academy) to be notified when new courses open up. We hope to see you there. Until then, we encourage you to continue rocking your covert design thinking superpowers to help you navigate whatever challenges lie ahead. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > In this keynote, Jayar La Fontaine demystifies futurism by highlighting the importance of strategic preparation rather than prediction. Grounded in strategic foresight, the session explores how organizations can thoughtfully anticipate emerging trends and make informed decisions. By connecting emerging technologies with user experience (UX), we illustrate how intentional design can ease cultural resistance and foster confidence in innovation. ## \[XCamp Keynote] Designing For Emerging Technologies August 07, 2024 45 Min Read ## Introduction In this keynote, Jayar La Fontaine, our speaker demystifies futurism by highlighting the importance of strategic preparation rather than prediction. Grounded in strategic foresight, the session explores how organizations can thoughtfully anticipate emerging trends and make informed decisions. By connecting emerging technologies with user experience (UX), we illustrate how intentional design can ease cultural resistance and foster confidence in innovation. ## Key Takeaways - Strategic Foresight: Adopt forward-thinking approaches to confidently navigate uncertainty and uncover new opportunities. - UX as a Catalyst: Leverage purposeful UX design to build trust and drive adoption of transformative technologies. - Radical Life Extension: Consider ethical and emotional dimensions in UX design, addressing the human impact of longevity advancements. - Commercializing Neurotechnology: Draw insights from practical examples that address user concerns and safety challenges in neurotech adoption. - Innovative AI Approaches: Move beyond hype by integrating AI thoughtfully to elevate user experiences and organizational outcomes. ## / Author ### Ryan Nieman Marketing Manager --- # / Article > Learn how to design meaningful moments that enhance user experiences. Discover strategies for creating impactful interactions that resonate with users, fostering engagement and satisfaction in your digital products and services. ## Designing Moments That Matter: Creating Impactful User Experiences December 12, 2018 3 Min Read ## What is your magic moment? This is the question that was posed at this year’s Google Sprint Con. We were lucky enough to draw another invite to this small but growing event centred around the problem solving framework, The Design Sprint. This year did not disappoint, as we were treated again to more inspiring talks and sessions around cross cultural design, psychological biases, advanced facilitation, etc. Though not entirely obvious, the overall theme of the conference was “Moments”. This was no better emphasized than through the morning keynote, [Tom Chi](http://www.tomchi.com), former Yahoo Exec, Google Xer and owner of a very sick ponytail. His practical approach to rapid problem solving is the embodiment of Design Thinking. He has that capability of making any other approach seem utterly ridiculous. What stuck with all of us was his observation about the ride sharing industry. For the past year, I’ve been using anecdotes from Uber in my presentations, mainly as an example of a business that is a perfect microcosm of the entire technical landscape. However, Tom’s insights injected new life into my exhausted stories. If you think about it, what Uber didn’t do, was disrupt the actual car ride. For 99% of the experience, there is nothing strikingly different between an Uber and a traditional taxi ride. Both pick you up and transport you in a very similar type of car, and for the entirety of the ride, you may never know the difference. There’s actually nothing magical about this part of the so called ‘uber experience’. > For 99% of the experience, there is nothing strikingly different between an Uber and a traditional taxi ride. What Uber focused on, is where the real pain point existed, booking and paying. We’ve all been there. We know the pain of being on hold, wondering the cost, fighting over cabs, blindly waiting in the cold, and doing the ‘tip dance’ before you leave. That in fact, is just a sliver of time compared to the actual ride. But it proved to be their ‘magic moment’. This is maybe only 10-20 seconds of actual time, however, it’s what mattered most and what they were ultimately able to build their $120B valuation on. They leveraged all the available technologies, made them sing, and the world collectively got on board the Uber/Lyft train, and it appears, won’t be getting off anytime soon. ## Consider mapping your customer journeys So my question is: what’s your magic moment? Is your company focusing on the right part of the customer journey? What part of the experience really matters? Is there a point where a better designed solution will disrupt your industry? Or can you completely rewrite a stage in the process? Tom Chi’s talk, only confirmed the importance of using journey maps to uncover the key steps to potentially expose your organization’s magic moment. Whether you’re a small retail business with a small footprint, a large institution with many on/offline touchpoints - your users all have a path that has a beginning and an end, and you should know them all, inside and out. ## / Author ### Albert Jame Partner & CXO Starting his career at zu in 2002, Albert’s journey spans from the era of static websites to digital ecosystems. Establishing zu as a pioneer in human-centered design, his deeply reflective nature and storytelling craft brings a dynamic blend of logic, reasoning, and humor, making him one of the most sought-after design leaders and speakers in Canada. --- # / Article ## Designing for sloths March 20, 2019 4 Min Read ## Humans are micro-lazy When we think of laziness, we tend to picture the classic couch potato, slouched with a remote in his hands, jowl-faced and armed with little ambition to do anything else. This is a generalization and a misrepresentation of laziness. I think humans suffer more from being “micro-lazy”. There’s something holding us back, making us unable to do very easy, almost effortless tasks that we’re designing around this passiveness. [Traffic lights on walkways](http://www.cnn.com/2016/04/27/europe/germany-smart-phone-traffic-lights/) are just the latest design solution to address this epidemic of idleness. ## I can relate Every morning I leave the empty packages for my contact lenses on the bathroom counter. I consciously know what I’m doing. I know very well that the garbage is to my left, yet my body almost refuses to spend the extra .5 joules to move my arm over 18” inches, across the counter and properly dispose of it. If I were left handed, maybe. Though I can’t underestimate my laziness. ## We work hard, so you don’t have to As UX professionals, we’re always challenged to make software perform better. “Better” to our department usually means converting users to engage in a call to action. Whether it means to buy, download, contact, comment, log in, engage, or share, it’s a continual struggle to make the experience flawless and increase the chances of a conversion. People in our industry go to great lengths to increase these conversions. We study human behaviour patterns, profile and target users, track paths, A/B test, heat map and so on, all in an effort to make your fingers click or tap that one cluster of pixels. Sound exhausting? It is, but it’s well worth it. There’s a point in time where users are faced with the decision to either click or tap to complete the conversion, yet we don’t zoom in enough to these events. I’m calling this the Last Effort Gap; the last stop between doing it or not doing it - and though it appears to be a small crack, it couldn’t be more important to the success of your digital asset. Your users have rounded the bases, but for some reason, they’re not stepping on home plate. Frequently you will see analytics that indicate high visitation to a page, but low conversion (i.e., lots of visits to the contact form, yet very few actual submitted inquiries). We may have worked extra hard getting them there, but it’s all for naught if they didn’t engage in the call to action (unless having them read the content was the ultimate goal). ## Eliminate friction In the case of my contact lenses, the garbage being slightly out of the way is apparently a major inconvenience for my heavy arms. Our goal, as designers, is to eliminate this type of friction that jeopardizes the chance for conversion. Friction could be the little annoyances, such as illegible security questions, or bigger deterrents such as broken links. Traditionally, we tend to focus more on major points of friction, while ignoring ones that are less obvious. We need to take a closer look at these micro-frictions that cause a widening of the Last Effort Gap. We need to ask Why. Why aren’t people clicking, downloading, rating, filling out, logging in? Why am I not putting my contact lens containers garbage? The solution may run deeper than the interaction design. We need to examine this last step in the process that blocks users from following through, and understand why that last effort gap exists and what can we control. This should be a part of your “Life after Launch” strategy. Accept that not every page of your site is going to perform how you’d like, but with some analytics and user engagement, you could narrow down the issues and design higher converting solutions. ## Trying is better than not For now, to address my own laziness (without self-help books) I’m experimenting by leaving no room on the counter to put my lense cases. I’ve crowded that space with other bathroom obstacles in hopes of giving me no option but the garbage. My counter may be cluttered now, but at least it won’t be caused by used lense cases anymore. ## / Author ### Albert Jame Partner & CXO Starting his career at zu in 2002, Albert’s journey spans from the era of static websites to digital ecosystems. Establishing zu as a pioneer in human-centered design, his deeply reflective nature and storytelling craft brings a dynamic blend of logic, reasoning, and humor, making him one of the most sought-after design leaders and speakers in Canada. --- # / Article ## Digital Transformation April 28, 2021 6 Min Read Because zu has been at the forefront of the digital space for over 20 years, it’s understandable that people think of us as a “website” or “app” company. And, rightfully so! We take great pride in the websites and apps we build for clients. However, our process goes much deeper than simply building pretty or functional things. If we’ve had the privilege of working with you, then you’ll know we do a lot before we ever design a wireframe or write a line of code. Of late, a big focus for zu has been around strategy and helping our clients with Digital Transformation. As a concept, Digital Transformation sounds simple. Build a new website or other digital tools. Maybe start a facebook page or twitter account for your business if you haven’t already done so. And sure, you might find some level of success, but unless you can equate your efforts to a significant and tangible net benefit to the business, these are merely digital initiatives. The impact of these initiatives are often stunted because they are executed in isolation of a broader, organization-wide, digital transformation strategy. So, the question remains, how can legacy companies embark on the digital transformation journey. ## Start at the top Large transformational initiatives require momentum. Momentum can only be created by leadership that portrays a sense of urgency and clearly articulates the importance of digital transformation for the survival of the business. This means that you may need to bring in the right leadership for such initiatives, such as a Chief Transformational Officer or Chief Digital Officer, who has the backing of the CEO. Look for individuals that aren’t just “trained” to think of new ideas and lead initiatives but rather live and breathe digital transformation and are able to inject that culture into your organization. Breaking down silos between different segments of an organization becomes an important task for such. True transformation requires change across an entire organization. It goes without saying that this would require all departments and locations to collaborate efficiently, but this is often met with great resistance and protectionism. The CEO must empower leaders to drive the change required while holding them accountable for creating collective, cross-functional collaboration. This will allow leaders to digitize and improve areas along various business process and all your customer touch points. In the process, they will also help attract and onboard new digital talent, and grow internal skills, all of which helps to keep the momentum moving towards transformation. ## Think big Resting on the laurels of a business’s current or historic success while only advocating incremental improvement simply encourages the status quo to thrive. It’s important to have a bold vision for what you want to accomplish. There is a reason people often reference Amazon as one of the most innovative companies in the world. It’s the same reason many legacy based companies also fear being “Amazon’d” and having their entire industry overrun by the digital giant seemingly overnight. Why? Because Amazon isn’t afraid to think big and pursue bold ideas. For example, when Amazon first introduced the idea of delivery by drone, people thought it was an April Fool’s prank. Yet, every few weeks we hear updates about how their continuing to inch closer to this goal. In the process, Amazon has also forced the hands of companies like UPS to pursue similar, innovative ideas. Boldness raises everyone’s game. ## Think specific As important as it is to think big, it’s equally important to think specific. For digital transformation to be successful, it’s important to have both. Thinking specific gives your entire organization a focus – a destination to drive towards rather than spreading resources thin without delivering results. Additionally, it’s best to have input from all areas of your organization to help identify the most impactful ideas. For example, a goal to double online sales is much more likely to lead to transformational ideas than a goal to have a better web presence. The specifics of the sales target goal encompass the entire customer experience from ordering online to how quickly and efficiently they receive their orders, so will generate many valuable tactics compared to the vague goal of “better website”. ## Think fast In my last startup, Farm At Hand, my co-founder and I made the phrase “progress, not perfection” our team motto. It was even written on a whiteboard in permanent marker. That’s because for digital transformation to scale, you must continue to make quick and regular progress. Continual progress is the single biggest differentiator and competitive advantage exhibited by young nimble startups. Searching for the perfect solution, product, or for “enough” analysis allows old processes to creep in and significantly hinder progress. The concept of a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and Rapid Prototyping are concepts well known across many industries. It’s import that these concepts are understood and central in your approach to digital transformation. As early as possible, you’ll get products and prototypes into the hands of potential customers to test ideas. When followed, not only will you receive valuable customer feedback, you will avoid costly mistakes and prevent development of unwanted assets based on assumptions and personal bias. These approaches preserve resources and help you adjust quickly to get to a product that provides the most value to your customers. ## Think customers first This brings me to the last and most important factor in the success of digital transformation, the customer. You must think about the customer first. In Design Thinking we give this the fancy name of “human-centred design.” Put simply, when you place your customer, external or internal, at the centre of your strategy the best ideas come to the surface. Think about the entire customer journey and all the different touch points they have with your organization and ways you interact with them. Think about how you can improve all aspects of how you service your customer. Doing so will keep your digital transformation focused and yield the best ROI. Like any other true transformation, there is no “easy” button to digital transformation. But starting on this path and using these methods to achieve some early wins will set up your organization to face the upcoming chapters where technology continues to accelerate change, and with it your customers expectations. If you are interested in embarking on a digital transformation, or wish to expose an executive or project team to these effective and energizing methods in a smaller engagement, we’re just one call, email, or tweet away. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Drupal 9 is set to launch soon, while support for Drupal 7 and 8 ends in November 2021. Discover how Semantic Versioning makes the transition easier and why you should upgrade now. ## Drupal 9 is Coming: Here’s What You Need to Know May 19, 2020 4 Min Read ## Drupal 9 is Coming… ### and Drupal 7 and 8 will soon be unsupported. In the past, version updates to Content Management Systems (CMS) brought about a stormy cloud with a silver lining: the promise of improved performance, but if ignored, the potential for website failure. Drupal is no exception, with version updates historically signifying a lot of heavy lifting for developers and retraining for content managers. That is, until Drupal 9, so what’s the catch? ### First, let’s talk Semantic Versioning. Drupal started using a new numbering system with Drupal 8 called [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/). Long story short, this is making the upgrading process easier as we head into Drupal 9. Warning! Developer mumbo jumbo in 3, 2, 1… A version number, for instance, “8.8.5” represents MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH increments. A software team will update the: - MAJOR version when they make incompatible API changes, - MINOR version when they add functionality in a backwards-compatible manner, and - PATCH version when they make backwards-compatible bug fixes. Drupal has been following this numbering scheme since 8.0 was released in 2015 and appears to be moving towards a new MAJOR release every two to three years. This has forced (in a good way) a development process that allows for gradual and easier feature upgrades and a smoother removal of old code. Previously, version releases would not offer future support for old code, leaving developers in a scenario where they must either upgrade or provide their own updates to legacy code. Simply put, Semantic Versioning = less headache (and $$) for everyone involved. ### What changes should I anticipate with Drupal 9? When Drupal 9 is released, code that’s been marked for removal in Drupal 8 will vanish and certain dependencies will be updated. This includes modules, APIs, and other code marked for removal between 8.0 and 8.8. Sounds scary but, due to Semantic Versioning, our developers are prepared for this cleanup. In reality, there won’t be any surprises coming with Drupal 9, because 8.9 will be a near-identical upgrade to 9.0, allowing developers to prepare for the full release. It seems pretty low-key, but implementing this update is more than necessary. ### Will my Drupal 8 site break when 9 is released? No. Well, maybe not. All existing core modules will function in Drupal 9. Websites moving to Drupal 9 will only be impacted if the non-core modules (also known as contributed modules) aren’t compatible. To help with identifying problem cases, there is a [development module available](https://github.com/mglaman/drupal-check) that provides info about installed modules and to help identify those that are not compatible. If you find yourself on a version less than 8, this would be the time to ensure that your website strategy is up to snuff and to reengineer the site. If you’re on versions 6 or 7, it’s time to get moving. ### The Catch. Security updates for Drupal 7 and Drupal 8 are only provided until November 2021. This means your Drupal site needs to be upgraded and launched by November 2021 to avoid a lapse in security coverage. Those still running on Drupal 7 ([63% of all Drupal sites as of April 2020](https://www.drupal.org/project/usage/drupal)) should start making critical decisions about the future of your website. To everyone on Drupal 8, you’ve been warned and see you on the other side! #### When is Drupal 9 coming out? As of this writing, Drupal 9.0 is expected to be released on June 3rd, 2020. #### Drupal for the long term. Drupal has positioned itself well for keeping websites operating long-term, as long as they remain updated. Providing you’re on a recent version, keeping your Drupal site on the most recent release no longer involves a tedious content migration process, nor requires relearning how to use the CMS. Content Editors and Developers rejoice! ### So, what do I do? With Drupal 7 and 8 security support ending soon, there’s time to get ahead, ensuring your website has an appropriate strategy and is executed well before the end of 2021. If you’re a developer, you know what to do. If you’re not a developer, call up your web team and get the conversation started. We’ve supported our clients through years of version updates on websites, web applications and mobile applications - [reach out](https://zu.com/contact) to find out how smooth this process can be. ## / Author ### Michael Hebert Developer --- # / Article > Protect your Drupal site from common threats like weak passwords, brute-force attacks, and generic admin accounts. Learn best practices and how zu can help you lock down admin access. ## Drupal Admin Account Security: Protecting Your Website from Common Entry Points August 27, 2025 2 Min Read Cybersecurity trends show a rise in credential stuffing, brute-force attempts, and bot-based login exploits against content management systems like Drupal. Once inside, attackers can inject spam, deface content, or access sensitive data, all without exploiting a code-level vulnerability. One of the most common ways to gain access to a system is from a poorly secured account. ## Best Practices for Drupal Account Security To help mitigate these risks, we recommend the following best practices: ### Strong Passwords - Use **long, complex, and unique** passwords for all accounts. - Avoid using names, dictionary words, or common patterns. - Consider **passphrases** for better memorability and security. ### Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) - Use modules like TFA or Google Authenticator Login. - 2FA significantly reduces the risk from password leaks. ### Avoid the Use of the generic usernames - Avoid using generic usernames like “admin” or “webmaster.” - Never use “test” or generic accounts in production. ### Monitor and Limit Access - Assign the **minimum level of permission** required to each user. - Regularly audit who has administrative privileges. - Deactivate or remove old or unused accounts. ### Don’t Use Test or Shared Accounts - Create named accounts and disable unused accounts. - Use secure role-based access and track account ownership. ### Want to Go Further? We can help you: - Implement 2FA and login attempt throttling - Set up real-time admin login alerts - Audit current admin accounts and harden permissions - Create an admin access policy tailored to your organization Security starts with prevention — and we’re here to help. Contact us today to review your admin access setup or explore advanced protection options. ## / Author ### Shane Giroux Technology Director Shane brings 20+ years of full-stack development and experience to zu. Leading the technology operations, Shane is passionate about engineering that empowers. With a wealth of cross-industry and product experience, Shane helps architect the infrastructure for modern web systems, guiding the development approach of any digital initiative. --- # / Article > Enhance your workshop facilitation skills with these 14 practical tips. Learn how to create engaging, productive sessions that leave a lasting impact on participants. From room setup to co-facilitation strategies, discover the key elements to successful workshop experiences. ## Expert Facilitation: 14 Tips for Successful Workshops January 13, 2024 8 Min Read A big part of the zu experience has been our workshops. Though we’ve been doing them for decades, it wasn’t until about five years ago that I realized that we are in fact facilitators. If you Google the world of facilitation, you’ll find an entire discipline that prides itself on formality and rules. But, what I’m talking about here is real-world facilitation, where it’s someone at the front of a meeting or working session, getting a room full of people to work together. Over the years, I’ve had to train other facilitators and our internal team, so I’ve spent a lot of time observing the art of facilitation. As straightforward as the concept is, facilitating is very nuanced. It’s not just one thing that makes an effective workshop experience. Of course, you want to meet the session objectives, but so much more goes into making a good workshop into a great workshop: timing, entertainment value, room energy, food, breaks, slide design etc. Most office people will have had to facilitate something one time in their career. So whether you are a seasoned practitioner, or simply want to run a more effective meeting, here are some of my off-the-beaten-path tips on making your next engagement more successful. ## 1. Never ever plan it the night before I should have titled this “Coming to terms with the required effort of a great workshop”. This is because I’ll keep reiterating that a great workshop is the result of great planning. I’ve heard too many stories of being caught off guard with something that threw off the entire workshop. Plan A, B, C etc all takes time to consider and create contingencies. With so much to do (agenda, slides, rehearsal/walkthrough, room prep) you’re ridiculous if you think you can start the day before. Typically, we are planning all the steps out a full week before. The day before is room prep and walkthrough/rehearsal. ## 2. It’s a performance No matter what the size, the more serious you treat your workshop, the better you’ll be prepared. You need to be BIG at the front to command the room and get people to follow your lead or listen to instructions. It might feel weird and overkill, but the bigger you treat it, the better you’ll do. Think of the time you would take if you were asked to perform a song in front of your staff, and nail it. ## 3. Timing is everything One giveaway of a novice facilitator is their inability to keep time. Being on schedule shows experience and builds trust. We’ve all been in a workshop where an ill-timed first activity sets the tone for the entire session, and you can feel the facilitator starting to lose the room. Make sure your first 2-3hrs are air tight. I often set the tone at the start by stating we’re here to get through busy day of activities, and we have to respect the timer. ## 4. Plan for ‘flex time’ Plan a few exercises that can be easily adapted to be longer or shorter depending on how much time you need to make up. Activities that run short are rare, but longer than scheduled breaks can be deflating. Having a flex activity planned closer to lunch or the end of the day will allow to control the time at important stage of the workshop. We often have activities where the group has to present their work or ideas, and we can control how long their presentations should be, depending on how much time we need to make up. ## 5. You are the SUN Facilitators are the source of energy for the entire day. But it’s not just about being lively and well projected, it’s about creating a non-judgemental space for people to comfortably share ideas. We like to play music where possible, we like to theme our days and carry it through (all the way to the slides, music and food), and we like to have give-aways and stretch breaks. We make it an event. The best compliment is when participants are sad to leave or ‘can’t believe we did all this in 6 hours’. ## 6. Room & A/V The space is often the X factor when it comes to energy. The wrong room can result in a bad experience. We take extra precaution when we’re facilitating in an unfamiliar room. We’ll often ask for photos or take a tour in advance. It might sound a bit overeager but we like to know what our A/V situation is, how sticky the walls are for post-it notes, are there logical areas for groups to separate etc. Leave no detail behind. ## 7. Every Maverick needs a Goose (or Rooster) If you can afford to have a co-pilot to help out, they are worth their weight in gold. The lead facilitator should be focusing on engaging the audience, much like a band on stage, while the co-pilot is like the guitar/sound tech who keeps the show running. Their duties can be on time keeping, note taking, distributing materials, leading breakout groups, organizing food, answering questions, and now that we’re doing so many remote facilitations - keeping an eye on the audience to see if they have any questions or comments. ## 8. Keep your break-out groups small We find that a good size for a break-out group is typically between 3-5. If it’s just a pair, then you lose that group work vibe, and if it’s over 6, then you’ll find people disengaged and on their phones. There’s a sweet spot right around 4 people that we find yields the best conversation. ## 9. Tie a bow before moving on As you move through activities, make sure to quickly wrap up the previous exercise or talk before you move to the next activity. Ideally, each activity should lead into each other, but you need to connect the dots for the participants. Try to answer “Why did we do that last activity?” and “How does this feed into the next one?” It might feel unnatural at first, but once you get used to it, you’ll never go back. ## 10. Facilitator vs Consultant? In workshops, we often find ourselves wedged between these two identities. Facilitators pride themselves on pulling out the best ideas from the participants, but sometimes your client will be looking to you for answers. Some facilitators are better at jumping in and being a participant and helping generate ideas or solutions. There’s no real tip here other than to ask yourself what your expected role is for the next session. Even go as far with your client to see what they expect from you. The best facilitators are ones who have some domain expertise or experience that they can jump in at anytime without feeling lost. So it’s always safer, if you’re strictly a facilitator, to do an ample amount of research to know the client or industry inside and out. ## 11. Invest in slide design There are so many reasons why having well designed slides matters, we don’t really have to get into that. But what I will say is that it’s more than just having pretty slides, it’s about having useful slides. Especially when it comes to activity instructions. If it’s a complicated activity with a few steps, we’ll go as far as showing an example of each step, so they have an idea of what the finished activity looks like. And keep in mind what slide needs to be up while people are actively working, you’ll often need to provide a guide, a legend, an example etc. Always assume that nobody is listening to you during the instructions (which is often true) and they’ll just wait until the word ‘go’ to actually start working. ## 12. Sketch it We love getting people out of their comfort zones and keep them on their toes. Nothing makes a group of office workers more uneasy than asking them to sketch their ideas. Whether it’s an ice breaker to design their own player card or to storyboard the future experience of a product or service, try to include a sketching exercise to bring energy to your next workshop. ## 13. Map the journey of your workshop participant This is definitely overkill if you are only running a simple internal meeting, but for those of you still playing along, go ahead and take a human-centred approach to your next workshop. If you’re a fan of Journey Mapping, think of the participant experience from the time they get invited, to the follow up email, to the minute they walk in the room to the afternoon wall they might hit, to the follow they’ll receive the next day. You’ll realize all the touchpoints and ways you can affect their experience. It’s an eye-opening activity and will guarantee a better workshop experience. ## 14. Forget everything I told you Now that we’re all virtual, everything is thrown out the window. Remote workshops have only increased the difficulty of facilitation, and hybrid (home/office) workshop are even more challenging. The energy needs to be cranked, the technical details needs to be triple checked/tested, and timing is even more important as nothing feels as dead as a gallery of people sitting in silence. So just make sure that when you hear a workshop is remote, that it only means that it’s more work. ## / Author ### Albert Jame Partner & CXO Starting his career at zu in 2002, Albert’s journey spans from the era of static websites to digital ecosystems. Establishing zu as a pioneer in human-centered design, his deeply reflective nature and storytelling craft brings a dynamic blend of logic, reasoning, and humor, making him one of the most sought-after design leaders and speakers in Canada. --- # / Article > Discover the top insights from Config 2024 in San Francisco! Explore highlights from Figma’s product launch, the impact of AI on design, and key trends in inclusive design. Read about our experience at this leading design conference and how it’s shaping the future of design innovation. ## Exploring Design Innovation at Config 2024 in San Francisco August 06, 2024 4 Min Read Attending Config 2024 in San Francisco this past June with my colleagues Amanda and Roberta was an exhilarating opportunity. As a trio of passionate designers, we were eager to immerse ourselves in the latest trends, technologies, and insights shaping the future of design. Config did not disappoint, offering a wealth of knowledge and inspiration, along with the electric atmosphere of a design festival in one of the world’s most iconic cities. Here are some of my key takeaways and highlights from the experience: ## Figma Product Launch Keynote One of the most anticipated moments of Config 2024 was the Figma product launch keynote by Dylan Field. Dylan introduced several exciting new features designed to enhance collaboration and creativity within design teams. He remarked, “Design is about creating an environment where creativity can flourish and where the best ideas can come to life.” His vision for the future of design tools is both inspiring and empowering, pushing us to think beyond traditional boundaries. ## AI as a Design Partner The relationship between AI and human creativity was a major focus across several talks, showcasing how AI can serve as a powerful tool that enhances, rather than replaces, the nuanced work of design professionals. AI can streamline workflows by automating repetitive tasks and providing data-driven insights. However, human creativity and intuition remain essential to evolving AI outputs into truly innovative designs. As Dylan Field, CEO of Figma, emphasised, “AI is not here to replace designers but to amplify our capabilities. It’s about creating a partnership where technology handles the mundane, allowing human creativity to flourish in unprecedented ways.” Additionally, Ryan Reid, in his talk on content design and AI, pointed out, “AI can augment our workflows by handling repetitive tasks and generating initial drafts, but the human touch is irreplaceable when it comes to refining and contextualising content to ensure it resonates with the audience.” ## Systems Thinking The concept of systems thinking was another highlight. By viewing design as an interconnected ecosystem, we can create more intuitive and harmonious user experiences. This approach ensures that every element works together seamlessly, enhancing overall functionality and delighting users at every touchpoint. Systems thinking pushes us to consider the broader context in which our designs exist, leading to more cohesive and effective solutions. ## Inclusive Design Inclusivity and accessibility were emphasised throughout the conference. Designing with empathy and inclusivity in mind is no longer optional; it’s a fundamental aspect of modern design. Emily Sneddon from Collins remarked, “Inclusive design is about creating spaces where everyone feels seen, heard, and valued. It’s about designing with, not for, people.” Ensuring that digital products are accessible to all users, regardless of their abilities, was a major focus from the very beginning of the design process. Taamrat Amaize added, “When we design inclusively, we unlock opportunities for innovation that serve a broader audience and create a richer experience for everyone.” This commitment to inclusive design not only broadens our audience but also enriches the user experience for everyone. ## Prototyping with Purpose Rapid prototyping and iterative testing were underscored as crucial practices. Tools like Figma enable real-time collaboration, allowing us to quickly turn ideas into testable models. This process facilitates immediate feedback and refinements, ensuring that our designs evolve efficiently and effectively. Prototyping with purpose helps us validate our ideas and make informed design decisions. ## Adventures Down by the Bay Of course, no trip to San Francisco would be complete without a bit of adventure. Between sessions, Amanda, Roberta, and I explored the city. We cheered on the Giants at a baseball game, took a fascinating tour of Alcatraz, enjoyed the iconic ride on a San Francisco trolley, and even experienced an autonomous ride-sharing vehicle. These experiences not only strengthened our bond as colleagues but also provided a refreshing break from the conference hustle. ## Wrapping Up Attending Config 2024 was an inspiring and enriching experience that deepened our understanding of design’s future. From AI innovations to systems thinking, we left San Francisco with fresh insights and a renewed passion for creating inclusive and impactful designs. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Drupal has always been known as a flexible, enterprise-grade CMS,and they’re about to be known as an AI-first CMS. Drupal has published their AI Initiative [https://new.drupal.org/ai/announcement] which is reshaping the editing and user experience. The AI tools available for Drupal aren’t just about grabbing on to the AI hype. They’re aimed at making life easier for content editors and delivering smarter, more relevant experiences for end users. ## How AI is Changing the Drupal Experience September 15, 2025 3 Min Read ## Smarter Content Editing with AI For content teams, AI in Drupal isn’t about replacing human writers. It’s about speeding up workflows, removing friction, and improving content performance. - **Smart Content**: AI-driven personalization is becoming increasingly practical in Drupal. With modules like Smart Content, editors can target different messaging and layouts to different audiences without needing development help. This creates an adaptive content experience that can adjust in real time based on context. - **Content Recommendations**: AI can analyze existing site content and suggest related articles or media, reducing the burden on editors to manually build links and related lists. - **Writing Assistance**: Integrations with AI writing tools are now making their way into the Drupal editing experience. Whether that’s drafting initial copy, suggesting improvements for readability, or helping with SEO optimization, these tools keep editors focused on strategy and messaging. The takeaway: AI in the editor’s workflow is practical, helping teams produce and manage content more effectively. ## AI-Powered Experiences for End Users On the front end, the AI impact is just as significant. Visitors expect relevant, personalized, and easy-to-navigate experiences, and Drupal now has tools to make that possible. - **AI-Enhanced Search**: Traditional keyword search often frustrates users. By adding AI search tools through modules that integrate with external AI-powered search engines or through custom setups, Drupal can deliver more accurate, intent-driven results. This means end users get to the content they actually need, faster. - **Personalization**: Beyond search, AI can shape the actual user journey. By tracking behavior and context, Drupal can surface the right content, calls to action, or products at the right time, making websites feel less like static pages and more like adaptive experiences. - **Accessibility Improvements**: AI tools can help with image tagging, automated transcripts, and content adjustments, ensuring users of all abilities can engage with your site. The result: websites that aren’t just beautiful or functional, but intuitive. ## Why This Matters For organizations running Drupal, AI isn’t an abstract trend. It’s a practical way to improve both efficiency for internal teams and outcomes for end users. The CMS remains the backbone, but AI is adding a layer of intelligence that helps sites perform better across the board. If you’re looking at Drupal for your organization or already have a site and want to explore what AI could unlock, reach out. We’d be happy to talk through options and help you find the right fit for your goals. ## / Author ### Shane Giroux Technology Director Shane brings 20+ years of full-stack development and experience to zu. Leading the technology operations, Shane is passionate about engineering that empowers. With a wealth of cross-industry and product experience, Shane helps architect the infrastructure for modern web systems, guiding the development approach of any digital initiative. --- # / Article > In a thought-provoking keynote at XCamp, Speaker Dre challenges the notion that artificial intelligence is here solely to replace jobs. Instead, he explains how AI transformation is revolutionizing work, creativity, and strategic thinking. In this post, we break down his key insights on prompt engineering, futures design, and ethical innovation. ## \[XCamp Keynote] How AI Will Take Your Job to a Whole ’Nother Level August 07, 2024 48 Min Read ## Introduction In a thought-provoking keynote at XCamp, Speaker Dre challenges the notion that artificial intelligence is here solely to replace jobs. Instead, he explains how AI transformation is revolutionizing work, creativity, and strategic thinking. In this post, we break down his key insights on prompt engineering, futures design, and ethical innovation. ## Key Takeaways - Continuous Adaptation: Jump in with AI now—it’s evolving daily. - Human in the Loop: Guide AI with your own expertise. - Prompt Engineering: Blend poetic expression with clear, procedural instructions. - Creative Collaboration: Use AI as your new mood board for brainstorming. - Document Analysis: Leverage AI to summarize and flag key details in contracts, NDAs, and RFPs. - Gathering Signals: Always be collecting and connecting everyday observations. - Ethical Use & Optimism: Think responsibly and remain hopeful about the future. ## / Author ### Ryan Nieman Marketing Manager --- # / Article > Explore the hidden costs and implications of opting for half-price digital solutions. Learn why investing in quality tools can save time and enhance user experience, ultimately benefiting your business in the long run. Discover the importance of adaptive planning in maintaining competitiveness. ## How Many Times do you Want to Pay Half Price? November 03, 2023 8 Min Read This thought runs through my head whenever we miss a contract because our price seemed too high to the decision maker. I understand the motivation behind that decision to save money. There’s an immediate sense of value attainment in getting something on the cheap. That giddy win of buying on a markdown. It also explains all the clothes we never wear in the back of the closet: they were a ‘good deal’. When we buy discount gasoline at the start of a long car trip, or have an unreliable friend drive us to the airport – well, the cash saved is insignificant in comparison to the risk we are introducing to the success of the undertaking. These examples are personal and put only our own experience in peril. But when things we buy off the discount rack are tools to be used by employees or customers to get work done, then those users might not appreciate our attainment of a ‘good price’ at the expense of their experience. For commodities, or arguably other identical purchase options, seeking the lowest pricing might make sense. But I’m starting to suspect that the RFP process for digital products leads decision makers to believe they are buying a commodity when they are not. “Well, we basically know what we want and have specified that. These seem to be roughly the same response from two different suppliers, but one’s cheaper, with shorter turnaround, hmmm. Go with the cheaper one.” Cha-ching. Value attainment. Well, we’ll see… (you later). The problem is, buying made-to-order digital products important to your organization is not a commodity purchase. To get what you actually require from a new digital tool or re-engineering an existing tool, you also need to be buying what (should) come before the project starts and what (should) come after it’s complete. Albert Einstein said: > If I had an hour to solve a problem I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and five minutes thinking about solutions. He would then likely assign a team of experienced craftspeople to build exactly what the situation needed. To stay in business, he’d need to charge for that initial 55 minutes. Contrary to Einstein’s approach, many vendors get straight to building what the client has asked for without substantially exploring the problem any further. If Albert were submitting a quote, most purchasing departments would determine Einstein and Co.’s price to be “too high”. And with that determination, they’ve already put the project off the rails. Purchasers of digital work would do well to consider that they are not going to end up where they need to go if they are just buying a vendor’s development time. They should instead be thinking about a package of three things: 1. Proper determination of what to build; 1. Project craftsmanship; and 1. Future-proofing the tool’s usefulness. These elements are part of what the savvy client seeks as necessary to a successful outcome in their software or innovation project. Einstein’s “measure 11 times – and cut once” determination of what to build is captured at zu in the Design Thinking stage of our development process. The second part – “project craftsmanship” – is not just about the build quality, it is also about the effectiveness of the project management, a ball that is often dropped with “value” vendors. The last element – “future-proofing” – recognizes the annoying thing about solving a technological problem and that’s that it only stays solved briefly. We’ve been paying to watch movies for 150 years. The technological solution for watching movies, though, has gone from silent black & white through the addition of sound, then colour, then onto video tape, laser discs, DVD’s, MPEG downloads, then portably streaming on phones with Netflix, and so on. Movie producers and “film” publishers have successfully skipped from technology to technology to ensure users could always buy their movies one way or another. Similarly, to extend the useful life of a digital capability you are planning to purchase, you need an adaptive path forward after purchase. You’ll want your offering to stay relevant to users even as their needs change and the technology of delivery changes. On the Internet, this happens incrementally and then abruptly with bigger advancements or hazards happening unexpectedly. Anyone with systems touching the Internet knows it doesn’t take a big change for something to break or much time to pass before your tools seem obsolete. If your mobile app or website in question has an impact on your end users’ experience, it has an impact on your business’s competitiveness. A commodity-minded purchase evaluation will seldom result in a good outcome. Now, most solution-seekers have a good idea of what they need and generally know who their users are. But this is about determining what users need, and never assuming what they need. If you proceed with your interpretation of what they need, you will likely end up with the wrong thing, or at best, a thing that could have been much better. From this start – likely poorly embraced by stakeholders – you’ll waste additional effort defending decisions and pointing fingers. You’ll double down with additional change management and training and further distort your budget by deploying additional development resources now shooting for even a minimal success. Instead of moving into the future, enhancing a solid beginning, your efforts will be diverted to fixing a tool with numerous congenital defects. But at least the price was good! Having a quality tool makes work a joy. Like my new bread knife. After laboriously cutting several dozen crusty loaves over the past year I purchased a [Shun Classic 8-Inch Offset Bread Knife](https://shun.kaiusaltd.com/knives/knife/classic-offset-bread-knife). _(Background: Usually twice a week I cook a hefty sourdough bread for the staff, which I like to cut it up precisely and kind of thin)._ Sure the knife cost a pretty penny, but it’s much easier to use and saves time. I have the pride of making the right choice, and the pleasure of having quality in my hand every time I use it. Plus it delivers a more inviting offering to the zu team and so increases their enjoyment as well. In this case, I was both the budgeting decision maker and the employee who uses the new tool, while zu staffers are the end user-customers. Admittedly it took nerve for the decision maker to buy the best tool, but the bread cutter loves the effectiveness and the customers enjoy a consistent, positive result. Whether your users are employees or customers or both, think about your digital products and services from their point of view. Is your plan to dress them in outdated, discount clothing, and then expecting them to like it? Are you giving them an average knife and disappointed when they can’t work miracles with it? Perhaps a little more training will make them appreciate their funny-looking duds or dull knives. If you really like shopping, buy on the cheap, because you’ll be back at the store when the thing breaks or is unusable. This is why at zu, we are patient when folks walk on price. As things deteriorate, they will either be cajoled into endless rounds of fixes by their current vendor’s sales team, or if what they need is actually important to them, they will have to hit the market again with a more experienced mindset. We will welcome them back. The issue with a failed purchase of client-facing software or other systems is not just the hassle factor or loss-of-face the decision maker encounters, it manifests as a failed service and an ongoing frustration. It grows into a loss of reputation. Cutting corners on the tools you provide to your employees or customers sends the message: “this is good enough for you”. Their lived experience undercuts the company’s claims that “the client is important”, or “our people are our biggest asset”. Spending on the system continues whether the purchase was a success or not, if the system is important. If you’ve built the right thing you will be making enhancements – not fixes – to optimize what you are offering. You will be investing in superiority and market leadership. If you didn’t get the thing right in the first place, however, you will be constantly repairing or trying to repair a minimum viable product. No one will be happy with this situation. It will be shuffled to the back of the corporate closet with no mention of the good of deal it once was. You want this new investment to be a process that delivers a tool that’s relevant to users before it’s built, relevant when it’s built, and, despite the speeding passage of Internet time, relevant long after it’s built. It’s not just about buying a solution; it’s about getting a solution to address the right problems. Additionally, it’s not just about having the right solution on Day 1; it’s about having the means to ensure it’s the right solution on Day 1000. It’s about taking time, like Einstein did, before any building begins. It’s about how the movie industry adapts delivery of its original product despite changing technologies and changing expectations of how their users want the experience to happen. Sure you can find a cheaper deal to get something done, but how many times do you want to pay half price? ## / Author ### Tony Zuck Founding Partner & CFO Alongside Ryan, Tony began as a strategist and designer, working with some of the earliest versions of today’s software programs — leading the way for zu techies to come. These days, Tony leads zu’s Operations and Financial direction, combining operational excellence with creativity and nimble strategy for both ourselves and our clients. --- # / Article > For years, the web development industry has been swinging between two ends of a spectrum: server-side rendering (SSR) and client-side rendering (CSR). We started with server-rendered pages, then embraced JavaScript-heavy single-page applications (SPAs), and now the pendulum is swinging back—this time, with a smarter, more efficient approach. ## JavaScript is Dead, Long Live JavaScript March 06, 2025 5 Min Read For years, the web development industry has been swinging between two ends of a spectrum: server-side rendering (SSR) and client-side rendering (CSR). We started with server-rendered pages, then embraced JavaScript-heavy single-page applications (SPAs), and now the pendulum is swinging back—this time, with a smarter, more efficient approach. At zu, we use the right tools for the job. That’s why we’re leaning into modern server-rendered architectures powered by tools like HTMX and Turbo. These tools allow us to build rich, interactive experiences without the performance pitfalls and complexity of traditional front-end frameworks. The result? Faster, more maintainable websites and web applications that deliver a better user experience. ## A Brief History of Web Development Trends ### The Early Web (Pre-2000s) Everything was server-rendered. A user clicked a link, the web browser made a request to the server, and the server responded with a full HTML page, which the browser then rendered. This was simple and effective but not always efficient as we were often re-rendering much of the same HTML. ### AJAX and Dynamic Pages (2000s) JavaScript enabled dynamic updates without fully refreshing the page, making websites feel more interactive. A user could click a link, the web browser would make a request, and the server responded with XML, which the browser would then translate into HTML elements to render without reloading the whole page. Websites now felt closer to traditional desktop applications. ### The Rise of SPAs (2010s) As this technique grew more popular, frameworks like Angular, React, and Vue fully took over some websites, loading a minimal HTML shell and fetching components dynamically - now returned as JSON - via multiple calls to the server. This provided fluid user experiences but at the cost of performance, complexity, and SEO challenges. You now had to handle routing on both the back and front end, write an API to bridge the two ends, and handle state management client side. ### The Rebirth of Server-Side Rendering (Today): Tools like HTMX and Turbo popped up which use the same underlying technique but instead encouraged the server to return HTML again. They also abstracted away the JavaScript, allowing the HTML elements to trigger the calls directly and swap in the new HTML snippet without developers having to write API calls, handle the responses (and potential errors), and translate those to HTML elements. You can now write a performant dynamic web application or website without writing any JavaScript! We have returned to where we began, but with more knowledge and better techniques to enable better experiences for our users. ## Why We’re Moving Away from Traditional SPAs ### Performance Matters More Than Ever Modern web users expect instant load times. The problem with traditional SPAs is that they require large JavaScript bundles to be downloaded, parsed, and executed before a page becomes interactive. With SSR-based approaches like **HTMX** and **Turbo**, we deliver meaningful content instantly, with minimal JavaScript overhead. ### SEO and Accessibility Benefits Search engines and assistive technologies thrive on server-rendered content. While SPAs often struggle with indexing and accessibility, SSR ensures that content is immediately available and readable by both search bots and screen readers. ### Lower Complexity, Fewer Moving Parts Maintaining a heavy JavaScript front end requires API endpoints, state management, hydration logic, and more. By relying on SSR-enhanced solutions, we can build interactive applications while keeping the architecture simple and maintainable. ### Less JavaScript, More Productivity The best JavaScript is the JavaScript you don’t have to write. With tools like HTMX and Turbo, we can progressively enhance our applications using familiar HTML attributes instead of sprawling JavaScript codebases. This means less time debugging state management issues and more time delivering value to our clients. ### The Future: A Balanced Approach JavaScript is not disappearing—it’s evolving. Instead of bloated client-side frameworks, the future lies in leveraging server-side rendering with lightweight JavaScript enhancements. This approach provides the interactivity users expect while keeping performance, maintainability, and scalability in check. At zu, we’re embracing this shift, crafting modern applications that balance efficiency and user experience. If you’re looking for a web solution that’s fast, scalable, and built for the future—[let’s talk.](https://zu.com/contact/) ### _JavaScript is dead, long live JavaScript._ ## / Author ### Shane Giroux Technology Director Shane brings 20+ years of full-stack development and experience to zu. Leading the technology operations, Shane is passionate about engineering that empowers. With a wealth of cross-industry and product experience, Shane helps architect the infrastructure for modern web systems, guiding the development approach of any digital initiative. --- # / Article > Discover how to create more human-centered digital experiences by designing with empathy. Learn the importance of understanding user needs, emotions, and behaviors to build connections and enhance user satisfaction. Explore strategies for making your digital interactions feel more personal and engaging. ## Making It Human: Designing Digital Experiences with Empathy October 21, 2018 3 Min Read A few months ago zu’s Strategic Director, Albert Jame, wrote about the power of stories and their ability to engender feelings of pride, ownership and desire in consumers towards brands, companies and products. Stories have long been used by companies to sell products and by sports teams to build fan support and loyalty. It’s hard to overemphasize the power that stories can have in connecting people to organizations that they are otherwise far removed from, to make the abstract relatable. This ability to turn the complex into something tangible reaches beyond businesses and consumers, though. Recently we’ve been using this ability to better understand the experiences that our clients’ user base are having, and communicate ways in which we can, and will, improve these user experiences. ## The building blocks All stories share a few key building blocks that can be applied to the practice of user experience design: - Characters (users, staff, managers, biz org) - Interactions & exchanges (website, apps, email, phone calls, in-person discussions, signage) - Context (place, device, desires, thoughts, emotions) - Time - Arcs and acts (beginning, middle, ending) Having a process and set of tools to identify and understand these building blocks allows us to focus on key moments that will deliver the most significant improvements and generate the most value for users, staff members and the organization at large. Tools such as personas, user archetypes, experience maps, and service blueprints help build a common understanding of the existing experience and highlight the pain points users are having. ## Why we use stories Being able to see and understand the experience your users have holistically, by taking into account all the story building blocks, can be incredibly valuable. As web designers, it helps us to identify key moments that could be improved and determine how best to improve it. In addition to adding clarity to the current state of an experience, stories can help us think through the future state of the user’s journey. Working through the future state as a story forces all stakeholders to see the future from the perspective of the user, thus making the changes and solutions to identified pain points user-centred - something nearly every organization struggles to do. ## Storytelling in web design There are many ways to use storytelling in the web design process. On the lowest fidelity end, you can have team members act out the interactions in real time. Sketching and storyboarding are also good low fidelity ways to communicate ideas to stakeholders and test them with users. An effective storyboard should include a series of key moments or interactions visualized, a description of each moment as well as the features or supports required to deliver that moment, and notes on the value created with this new experience for users, staff members and the business. Your storyboards can be anything from rough sketches and handwritten notes to highly illustrated graphics or fully rendered comics. For experiences that are more complex or represent high stake changes for your organization, animation and video can be a great way to tell the story of the future experience. Although they require significant effort to produce, videos and animations provide the clearest vision of the future, and can generate a great deal of excitement and buy-in for big ideas. ## Empathy builders Whether you’re embarking on a new venture and need to differentiate yourself from your competition, or your organization is established and you want to enhance experiences for existing users, utilizing stories to understand and shape the future can be extremely valuable. By focusing on the people involved, stories build empathy and provide insight into needs and desires. It’s through this empathy that we can imagine and design a future that delivers the best experience for our users. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Learn how to ensure your urgent communications remain user-friendly and effective. Discover strategies to balance urgency with clarity, accessibility, and user engagement. Enhance the impact of your critical messages with these essential tips. ## Making Urgent Communications User-Friendly: Best Practices and Tips February 19, 2020 2 Min Read March 19, 2020 If you have an email address, you’ve recently received an email from every single company that has access to that email address, telling you what actions they are taking in response to the [COVID-19 pandemic](https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019). If you’re like me, you haven’t read very many of those emails from start to finish. (You may have also identified this as an opportunity to go on a massive “unsubscribe” binge — silver lining!) It’s not that I’m disinterested in what the emails have to say. I’m genuinely curious what some companies are doing to prioritize my health and the health of their employees. Rather, I can’t be bothered to read continuous blocks of unformatted text that cause my eyes to glaze over. Walls of text tell your users, > We don’t think your time is **valuable**, and we don’t care about **user experience**. [Research from Nielsen Norman Group](https://www.nngroup.com/reports/how-people-read-web-eyetracking-evidence/) shows that people read online differently than they read print. Online, [people read more slowly](https://www.nngroup.com/articles/be-succinct-writing-for-the-web/), and they tend to **scan** or skim to find what they want to read more closely. Writing effectively for screens increases reader comprehension and improves user experience. It’s as easy as keeping these tips in mind: 1. Put the most important words and points **first**. People pay more attention to the first few words in a sentence and the first few paragraphs on a page. 1. Keep sentences and paragraphs **short** and **precise**. 1. Use **simple language** free of jargon, technical terms, and words with many syllables. 1. **Proofread** to build trust. Spelling and grammar errors suggest spam. 1. **Bold** important words and use **bulleted lists** to help people scan. Ironically, we’re particularly likely to drone on when time is of the essence. French philosopher and mathematician, Blaise Pascal, [famously wrote](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lettres_provinciales), > I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time. Urgent communication strategies naturally need to be devised quickly, but the experience you create for your audience will have lasting effects. As I [wrote](../why-user-experience-ux-is-everybodys-job) a few months back, user experience encompasses **all** interactions someone has with your company, and it’s **everybody’s job**. So before you send out that next time-sensitive communication, spend a few extra minutes editing it to be a little more screen-friendly. Your users will thank you — and retain more of what you have to say. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # Articles > Every once in a while, something occurs that’s worth reporting or getting off our mind. Check back for company announcements, highlights, methods, event recaps, media coverage etc. [March 18, 2026 7 Min Read](/articles/why-every-company-is-now-a-software-company/) [Why Every Company Is a Software Company](/articles/why-every-company-is-now-a-software-company/) [March 18, 2026 7 Min Read](/articles/why-every-company-is-now-a-software-company/) [Why Every Company Is a Software Company](/articles/why-every-company-is-now-a-software-company/) [March 03, 2026 7 Min Read](/articles/the-high-fidelity-human/) [The High-Fidelity Human](/articles/the-high-fidelity-human/) [March 03, 2026 7 Min Read](/articles/the-high-fidelity-human/) [The High-Fidelity Human](/articles/the-high-fidelity-human/) [February 26, 2026 5 Min Read](/articles/sound-vision-and-the-practice-of-taste/) [Sound, Vision, and the Practice of Taste](/articles/sound-vision-and-the-practice-of-taste/) [February 26, 2026 5 Min Read](/articles/sound-vision-and-the-practice-of-taste/) [Sound, Vision, and the Practice of Taste](/articles/sound-vision-and-the-practice-of-taste/) [September 26, 2025 58 Min Read](/articles/rethinking-digital-experience-in-the-age-of-ai/) [\[Webinar\] Rethinking Digital Experience in the Age of AI](/articles/rethinking-digital-experience-in-the-age-of-ai/) [September 26, 2025 58 Min Read](/articles/rethinking-digital-experience-in-the-age-of-ai/) [\[Webinar\] Rethinking Digital Experience in the Age of AI](/articles/rethinking-digital-experience-in-the-age-of-ai/) [September 15, 2025 3 Min Read](/articles/how-ai-is-changing-the-drupal-experience/) [How AI is Changing the Drupal Experience](/articles/how-ai-is-changing-the-drupal-experience/) [September 15, 2025 3 Min Read](/articles/how-ai-is-changing-the-drupal-experience/) [How AI is Changing the Drupal Experience](/articles/how-ai-is-changing-the-drupal-experience/) [September 04, 2025 4 Min Read](/articles/why-upgrading-to-drupal-11-matters-now/) [Why Upgrading to Drupal 11 Matters Now](/articles/why-upgrading-to-drupal-11-matters-now/) [September 04, 2025 4 Min Read](/articles/why-upgrading-to-drupal-11-matters-now/) [Why Upgrading to Drupal 11 Matters Now](/articles/why-upgrading-to-drupal-11-matters-now/) [August 27, 2025 2 Min Read](/articles/drupal-admin-account-security-protecting-your-website-from-common-entry-points/) [Drupal Admin Account Security: Protecting Your Website from Common Entry Points](/articles/drupal-admin-account-security-protecting-your-website-from-common-entry-points/) [August 27, 2025 2 Min Read](/articles/drupal-admin-account-security-protecting-your-website-from-common-entry-points/) [Drupal Admin Account Security: Protecting Your Website from Common Entry Points](/articles/drupal-admin-account-security-protecting-your-website-from-common-entry-points/) [June 05, 2025 5 Min Read](/articles/building-for-ai-preparing-your-services-for-the-conversational-future/) [Building for AI: Preparing Your Services for the Conversational Future](/articles/building-for-ai-preparing-your-services-for-the-conversational-future/) [June 05, 2025 5 Min Read](/articles/building-for-ai-preparing-your-services-for-the-conversational-future/) [Building for AI: Preparing Your Services for the Conversational Future](/articles/building-for-ai-preparing-your-services-for-the-conversational-future/) [May 14, 2025 4 Min Read](/articles/what-kind-of-salad-dressing-is-your-company/) [What Kind of Salad Dressing is Your Company?](/articles/what-kind-of-salad-dressing-is-your-company/) [May 14, 2025 4 Min Read](/articles/what-kind-of-salad-dressing-is-your-company/) [What Kind of Salad Dressing is Your Company?](/articles/what-kind-of-salad-dressing-is-your-company/) [April 23, 2025 5 Min Read](/articles/circling-forward/) [Circling Forward](/articles/circling-forward/) [April 23, 2025 5 Min Read](/articles/circling-forward/) [Circling Forward](/articles/circling-forward/) 1 [2](/articles/page/2/) [3](/articles/page/3/) [4](/articles/page/4/) [5](/articles/page/5/) [6](/articles/page/6/) ## / Work with us ### Let’s talk. Not sure where to start? Tell us a bit about yourself and your product or project. With over 30 years of experience, we’ve seen it all. No matter what stage you’re in, we’ll find a way to help or guide you to someone who can. [Contact arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ](/contact/)[Book Meeting arrow\_outward arrow\_outward](https://calendar.app.google/aJcqSfUfpLRmfBsXA) --- # Articles > Every once in a while, something occurs that’s worth reporting or getting off our mind. 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Not sure where to start? Tell us a bit about yourself and your product or project. With over 30 years of experience, we’ve seen it all. No matter what stage you’re in, we’ll find a way to help or guide you to someone who can. [Contact arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ](/contact/)[Book Meeting arrow\_outward arrow\_outward](https://calendar.app.google/aJcqSfUfpLRmfBsXA) --- # Articles > Every once in a while, something occurs that’s worth reporting or getting off our mind. Check back for company announcements, highlights, methods, event recaps, media coverage etc. [August 23, 2023 7 Min Read](/articles/balancing-early-adoption-of-emerging-technology-with-user-needs/) [Balancing Early Adoption of Emerging Technology with User Needs](/articles/balancing-early-adoption-of-emerging-technology-with-user-needs/) [August 23, 2023 7 Min Read](/articles/balancing-early-adoption-of-emerging-technology-with-user-needs/) [Balancing Early Adoption of Emerging Technology with User Needs](/articles/balancing-early-adoption-of-emerging-technology-with-user-needs/) [February 08, 2023 2 Min Read](/articles/zu-announces-new-positions/) [zu Announces New Positions](/articles/zu-announces-new-positions/) [February 08, 2023 2 Min Read](/articles/zu-announces-new-positions/) [zu Announces New Positions](/articles/zu-announces-new-positions/) [June 22, 2022 4 Min Read](/articles/the-art-of-simplicity-embracing-boring-technologies-for-effective-solutions/) [The Art of Simplicity: Embracing Boring Technologies for Effective Solutions](/articles/the-art-of-simplicity-embracing-boring-technologies-for-effective-solutions/) [June 22, 2022 4 Min Read](/articles/the-art-of-simplicity-embracing-boring-technologies-for-effective-solutions/) [The Art of Simplicity: Embracing Boring Technologies for Effective Solutions](/articles/the-art-of-simplicity-embracing-boring-technologies-for-effective-solutions/) [April 02, 2022 4 Min Read](/articles/why-user-experience-ux-is-everybodys-job/) [Why User Experience (UX) is Everybody’s Job](/articles/why-user-experience-ux-is-everybodys-job/) [April 02, 2022 4 Min Read](/articles/why-user-experience-ux-is-everybodys-job/) [Why User Experience (UX) is Everybody’s Job](/articles/why-user-experience-ux-is-everybodys-job/) [February 19, 2022 5 Min Read](/articles/rescuing-your-software-project/) [Rescuing Your Software Project](/articles/rescuing-your-software-project/) [February 19, 2022 5 Min Read](/articles/rescuing-your-software-project/) [Rescuing Your Software Project](/articles/rescuing-your-software-project/) [October 27, 2021 6 Min Read](/articles/protecting-your-organization-from-emerging-cyber-security-threats/) [Protecting Your Organization from Emerging Cyber Security Threats](/articles/protecting-your-organization-from-emerging-cyber-security-threats/) [October 27, 2021 6 Min Read](/articles/protecting-your-organization-from-emerging-cyber-security-threats/) [Protecting Your Organization from Emerging Cyber Security Threats](/articles/protecting-your-organization-from-emerging-cyber-security-threats/) [September 01, 2021 4 Min Read](/articles/what-open-source-software-marketers-perspective/) [What is Open Source Software? — a Marketers Perspective](/articles/what-open-source-software-marketers-perspective/) [September 01, 2021 4 Min Read](/articles/what-open-source-software-marketers-perspective/) [What is Open Source Software? — a Marketers Perspective](/articles/what-open-source-software-marketers-perspective/) [May 28, 2021 5 Min Read](/articles/understanding-the-halo-effect-cognitive-bias-in-website-design/) [Understanding the Halo Effect: Cognitive Bias in Website Design](/articles/understanding-the-halo-effect-cognitive-bias-in-website-design/) [May 28, 2021 5 Min Read](/articles/understanding-the-halo-effect-cognitive-bias-in-website-design/) [Understanding the Halo Effect: Cognitive Bias in Website Design](/articles/understanding-the-halo-effect-cognitive-bias-in-website-design/) [May 16, 2021 5 Min Read](/articles/5-key-takaways-from-drupalcon-na-2021-the-future-of-drupal/) [5 Key Takeaways from DrupalCon NA 2021: The Future of Drupal](/articles/5-key-takaways-from-drupalcon-na-2021-the-future-of-drupal/) [May 16, 2021 5 Min Read](/articles/5-key-takaways-from-drupalcon-na-2021-the-future-of-drupal/) [5 Key Takeaways from DrupalCon NA 2021: The Future of Drupal](/articles/5-key-takaways-from-drupalcon-na-2021-the-future-of-drupal/) [April 28, 2021 6 Min Read](/articles/digital-transformation/) [Digital Transformation](/articles/digital-transformation/) [April 28, 2021 6 Min Read](/articles/digital-transformation/) [Digital Transformation](/articles/digital-transformation/) [1](/articles/page/1/) [2](/articles/page/2/) 3 [4](/articles/page/4/) [5](/articles/page/5/) [6](/articles/page/6/) ## / Work with us ### Let’s talk. Not sure where to start? Tell us a bit about yourself and your product or project. With over 30 years of experience, we’ve seen it all. No matter what stage you’re in, we’ll find a way to help or guide you to someone who can. [Contact arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ](/contact/)[Book Meeting arrow\_outward arrow\_outward](https://calendar.app.google/aJcqSfUfpLRmfBsXA) --- # Articles > Every once in a while, something occurs that’s worth reporting or getting off our mind. 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Not sure where to start? Tell us a bit about yourself and your product or project. With over 30 years of experience, we’ve seen it all. No matter what stage you’re in, we’ll find a way to help or guide you to someone who can. [Contact arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ](/contact/)[Book Meeting arrow\_outward arrow\_outward](https://calendar.app.google/aJcqSfUfpLRmfBsXA) --- # Articles > Every once in a while, something occurs that’s worth reporting or getting off our mind. Check back for company announcements, highlights, methods, event recaps, media coverage etc. [February 19, 2020 2 Min Read](/articles/making-urgent-communications-user-friendly-best-practices-and-tips/) [Making Urgent Communications User-Friendly: Best Practices and Tips](/articles/making-urgent-communications-user-friendly-best-practices-and-tips/) [February 19, 2020 2 Min Read](/articles/making-urgent-communications-user-friendly-best-practices-and-tips/) [Making Urgent Communications User-Friendly: Best Practices and Tips](/articles/making-urgent-communications-user-friendly-best-practices-and-tips/) [June 13, 2019 3 Min Read](/articles/beyond-marketing-why-your-website-is-more-than-a-sales-tool/) [Beyond Marketing: Why Your Website is More Than a Sales Tool](/articles/beyond-marketing-why-your-website-is-more-than-a-sales-tool/) [June 13, 2019 3 Min Read](/articles/beyond-marketing-why-your-website-is-more-than-a-sales-tool/) [Beyond Marketing: Why Your Website is More Than a Sales Tool](/articles/beyond-marketing-why-your-website-is-more-than-a-sales-tool/) [June 10, 2019 4 Min Read](/articles/design-thinking-vs-expert-opinion-finding-the-right-balance/) [Design Thinking vs. Expert Opinion: Finding the Right Balance](/articles/design-thinking-vs-expert-opinion-finding-the-right-balance/) [June 10, 2019 4 Min Read](/articles/design-thinking-vs-expert-opinion-finding-the-right-balance/) [Design Thinking vs. Expert Opinion: Finding the Right Balance](/articles/design-thinking-vs-expert-opinion-finding-the-right-balance/) [March 20, 2019 4 Min Read](/articles/designing-sloths/) [Designing for sloths](/articles/designing-sloths/) [March 20, 2019 4 Min Read](/articles/designing-sloths/) [Designing for sloths](/articles/designing-sloths/) [February 16, 2019 3 Min Read](/articles/building-value-through-service-design-enhancing-customer-experience/) [Building Value Through Service Design: Enhancing Customer Experience](/articles/building-value-through-service-design-enhancing-customer-experience/) [February 16, 2019 3 Min Read](/articles/building-value-through-service-design-enhancing-customer-experience/) [Building Value Through Service Design: Enhancing Customer Experience](/articles/building-value-through-service-design-enhancing-customer-experience/) [January 04, 2019 4 Min Read](/articles/review-digital-transformation-using-design-thinking/) [Review: Digital Transformation using Design Thinking](/articles/review-digital-transformation-using-design-thinking/) [January 04, 2019 4 Min Read](/articles/review-digital-transformation-using-design-thinking/) [Review: Digital Transformation using Design Thinking](/articles/review-digital-transformation-using-design-thinking/) [January 04, 2019 7 Min Read](/articles/top-4-reasons-to-embrace-design-thinking-in-your-projects/) [Top 4 Reasons to Embrace Design Thinking in Your Projects](/articles/top-4-reasons-to-embrace-design-thinking-in-your-projects/) [January 04, 2019 7 Min Read](/articles/top-4-reasons-to-embrace-design-thinking-in-your-projects/) [Top 4 Reasons to Embrace Design Thinking in Your Projects](/articles/top-4-reasons-to-embrace-design-thinking-in-your-projects/) [December 12, 2018 3 Min Read](/articles/designing-moments-that-matter-creating-impactful-user-experiences/) [Designing Moments That Matter: Creating Impactful User Experiences](/articles/designing-moments-that-matter-creating-impactful-user-experiences/) [December 12, 2018 3 Min Read](/articles/designing-moments-that-matter-creating-impactful-user-experiences/) [Designing Moments That Matter: Creating Impactful User Experiences](/articles/designing-moments-that-matter-creating-impactful-user-experiences/) [November 22, 2018 6 Min Read](/articles/6-key-considerations-before-starting-your-next-web-project/) [6 Key Considerations Before Starting Your Next Web Project](/articles/6-key-considerations-before-starting-your-next-web-project/) [November 22, 2018 6 Min Read](/articles/6-key-considerations-before-starting-your-next-web-project/) [6 Key Considerations Before Starting Your Next Web Project](/articles/6-key-considerations-before-starting-your-next-web-project/) [November 22, 2018 5 Min Read](/articles/the-value-of-unused-data-turning-insights-into-action/) [The Value of Unused Data: Turning Insights into Action](/articles/the-value-of-unused-data-turning-insights-into-action/) [November 22, 2018 5 Min Read](/articles/the-value-of-unused-data-turning-insights-into-action/) [The Value of Unused Data: Turning Insights into Action](/articles/the-value-of-unused-data-turning-insights-into-action/) [1](/articles/page/1/) ... [3](/articles/page/3/) [4](/articles/page/4/) 5 [6](/articles/page/6/) ## / Work with us ### Let’s talk. Not sure where to start? Tell us a bit about yourself and your product or project. With over 30 years of experience, we’ve seen it all. No matter what stage you’re in, we’ll find a way to help or guide you to someone who can. [Contact arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ](/contact/)[Book Meeting arrow\_outward arrow\_outward](https://calendar.app.google/aJcqSfUfpLRmfBsXA) --- # Articles > Every once in a while, something occurs that’s worth reporting or getting off our mind. Check back for company announcements, highlights, methods, event recaps, media coverage etc. [October 21, 2018 3 Min Read](/articles/making-it-human-designing-digital-experiences-with-empathy/) [Making It Human: Designing Digital Experiences with Empathy](/articles/making-it-human-designing-digital-experiences-with-empathy/) [October 21, 2018 3 Min Read](/articles/making-it-human-designing-digital-experiences-with-empathy/) [Making It Human: Designing Digital Experiences with Empathy](/articles/making-it-human-designing-digital-experiences-with-empathy/) [October 13, 2018 5 Min Read](/articles/adapting-your-core-offerings-for-a-changing-market/) [Adapting Your Core Offerings for a Changing Market](/articles/adapting-your-core-offerings-for-a-changing-market/) [October 13, 2018 5 Min Read](/articles/adapting-your-core-offerings-for-a-changing-market/) [Adapting Your Core Offerings for a Changing Market](/articles/adapting-your-core-offerings-for-a-changing-market/) [September 18, 2018 5 Min Read](/articles/when-to-build-a-website-vs-a-web-application/) [When to Build a Website vs. a Web Application](/articles/when-to-build-a-website-vs-a-web-application/) [September 18, 2018 5 Min Read](/articles/when-to-build-a-website-vs-a-web-application/) [When to Build a Website vs. a Web Application](/articles/when-to-build-a-website-vs-a-web-application/) [August 06, 2018 4 Min Read](/articles/raising-the-ux-bar-meeting-higher-user-experience-standards/) [Raising the UX Bar: Meeting Higher User Experience Standards](/articles/raising-the-ux-bar-meeting-higher-user-experience-standards/) [August 06, 2018 4 Min Read](/articles/raising-the-ux-bar-meeting-higher-user-experience-standards/) [Raising the UX Bar: Meeting Higher User Experience Standards](/articles/raising-the-ux-bar-meeting-higher-user-experience-standards/) [June 04, 2018 4 Min Read](/articles/zu-x-mohawk-council-of-akwesasne-canadas-smart-cities-challenge-finalist/) [zu x Mohawk Council of Akwesasne: Canada’s Smart Cities Challenge Finalist](/articles/zu-x-mohawk-council-of-akwesasne-canadas-smart-cities-challenge-finalist/) [June 04, 2018 4 Min Read](/articles/zu-x-mohawk-council-of-akwesasne-canadas-smart-cities-challenge-finalist/) [zu x Mohawk Council of Akwesasne: Canada’s Smart Cities Challenge Finalist](/articles/zu-x-mohawk-council-of-akwesasne-canadas-smart-cities-challenge-finalist/) [November 22, 2017 6 Min Read](/articles/caching-drupal-8/) [Caching in Drupal 8](/articles/caching-drupal-8/) [November 22, 2017 6 Min Read](/articles/caching-drupal-8/) [Caching in Drupal 8](/articles/caching-drupal-8/) [May 11, 2015 4 Min Read](/articles/prioritizing-web-performance-lessons-from-drupalcon-la/) [Prioiritizing Web Performance: Lesson’s From DrupalCon LA](/articles/prioritizing-web-performance-lessons-from-drupalcon-la/) [May 11, 2015 4 Min Read](/articles/prioritizing-web-performance-lessons-from-drupalcon-la/) [Prioiritizing Web Performance: Lesson’s From DrupalCon LA](/articles/prioritizing-web-performance-lessons-from-drupalcon-la/) [1](/articles/page/1/) ... [3](/articles/page/3/) [4](/articles/page/4/) [5](/articles/page/5/) 6 ## / Work with us ### Let’s talk. Not sure where to start? Tell us a bit about yourself and your product or project. With over 30 years of experience, we’ve seen it all. No matter what stage you’re in, we’ll find a way to help or guide you to someone who can. [Contact arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ](/contact/)[Book Meeting arrow\_outward arrow\_outward](https://calendar.app.google/aJcqSfUfpLRmfBsXA) --- # / Article > Discover the importance of creating a performance budget to optimize web performance. Learn how setting early goals can improve user experience and help your project stay ahead of the competition. ## Prioiritizing Web Performance: Lesson’s From DrupalCon LA May 11, 2015 4 Min Read Back in May, I had the opportunity to attend [DrupalCon in Los Angeles](https://events.drupal.org/losangeles2015) with a couple of my fellow web developers. Not only did we learn about all the new and exciting features coming in [Drupal 8](https://www.drupal.org/8), but we also had a chance to mingle with great people from companies like [Pantheon](https://pantheon.io/) and [Acquia](https://www.acquia.com/). Oh, and we picked up some sweet swag in the process. ## Create a performance budget One of the key takeaways for me was the concept of a [performance budget](http://timkadlec.com/2013/01/setting-a-performance-budget/). A performance budget is a set of goals to be used as a framework, when making performance-related decisions, throughout the lifecycle of a project. As an example, a performance budget may include the following goals: - [SpeedIndex](https://github.com/WPO-Foundation/webpagetest-docs/blob/master/user/Metrics/SpeedIndex.md) < 2000, (overall experience) - Page load time for 3G < 3s, (user retention) - Page load time for Cable < 2s, (user retention) - PageSpeed score > 90, (best practices) - Time to Interact < 1s, (delivering the experience) These goals are defined early in the project by [researching competitors](https://v3.danmall.com/articles/how-to-make-a-performance-budget/) and learning about your target user base. As a general rule of thumb, you want to be [20% faster](http://timkadlec.com/2014/01/fast-enough/) than your fastest competitor. After budget goals have been established, they are referred to whenever a performance-related decision is to be made. For instance, if a new feature is to be added that will push you over one of your performance goals, you need to ask yourself: - Can we make room by optimizing an existing feature? - Can we make room by removing an existing feature? - Do we really need this feature, or can it be removed altogether? This way, you think critically about features that are added to your project. If you’re a web developer, you have probably experienced the horror firsthand, trying to fix these performance issues after a site has launched. It’s not fun, and can damage the reputation of your company. So, we have defined goals that the whole team is working towards. This is when great things start to happen: - We identify and address performance-related issues early - We are forced to consider performance as a constraint when designing for the web - We present the client with a more accurate representation of what they can expect to receive - We eliminate the common excuses of limited time or budget - We produce a superior product to that of our competitors Another key component is the use of an automated testing platform like [Travis CI](https://travis-ci.org/). It is crucial to run tests whenever new code is added to your repository. Ideally, these would be run after a pull request has been issued and tracked over time with a dashboard. There are a number of tools out there to help you test common metrics, here are a few of the big ones: - [sitespeed.io](http://www.sitespeed.io/) - [Google PageSpeed Insights](https://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/) - [WebPageTest](http://www.webpagetest.org/) By defining performance goals early and using them to make decisions throughout the course of the project, your web development team will focus on balancing user experience with the speed of its delivery. Over time, the team will see how different elements affect performance and will be able to use this knowledge to efficiently plan future projects. ## / Author ### Kevin Warrington Technology Lead Kevin combines over two decades of hands-on experience with a love for cutting-edge web development. Specializing in JavaScript, CSS, and PHP (Zend Certified Engineer), Kevin is passionate about implementing modern UI solutions that intersect creative and technology — creating digital experiences that exceed expectations and delight users. --- # / Article > Learn how to safeguard your organization from the latest cyber security threats with essential strategies like strong password policies, VPN usage, active monitoring, and fostering a cyber-secure culture. Stay ahead of potential risks with proactive measures and expert insights. ## Protecting Your Organization from Emerging Cyber Security Threats October 27, 2021 6 Min Read Individuals and organizations rely heavily on SaaS providers, vendors, consumer platforms, IT departments, and, well, employees, to ensure cybersecurity measures are being taken. Unfortunately, this has left us with [Facebook’s 533 million users’ data leaked](https://www.businessinsider.com/stolen-data-of-533-million-facebook-users-leaked-online-2021-4?r=US\&IR=T), [Microsoft’s 250 million customer records exposed](https://www.forbes.com/sites/daveywinder/2020/01/22/microsoft-security-shocker-as-250-million-customer-records-exposed-online/?sh=1e1ad3bf4d1b), [Capital One’s 100 million accounts breached](https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelsandler/2019/07/29/capital-one-says-hacker-breached-accounts-of-100-million-people-ex-amazon-employee-arrested/?sh=756d4e1341d2) and [many more examples](https://www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/worlds-biggest-data-breaches-hacks/). The most recent example is just recently, Colonial Pipeline’s US$5 million ransomware cheque to Eastern European hackers after a crippling cyber attack shut down the largest fuel pipeline network in the United States. Source: ([Bloomberg News](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-05-13/colonial-pipeline-paid-hackers-nearly-5-million-in-ransom)) Although these are large organizations that are regularly targeted for the data, information and deep pockets they hold, we are seeing these threats on a smaller scale as well. In 2020, the FBI saw a 300% increase in cybercriminal activity, with 80% targeted at small-medium-sized businesses. The rapid and exponential growth of digital use and the more recent shift to remote work due to the COVID-19 pandemic have left many unsecured gaps that hackers are constantly looking to exploit for financial or other gains. The saddest part? The chances of catching and prosecuting a cybercriminal is approximately 0.05% according to the [World Economic Forum’s Global Risks report](https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-global-risks-report-2020), meaning reactive strategy is only a small part of the equation. There is more responsibility than ever for individual, organizational and collaborative efforts to protect ourselves and each other from new threats including more and more sophisticated ransomware, malware, phishing and distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks. Working with a small portfolio of high-value clients in Saskatchewan and nationally here at zu, we must continually stay up to date with emerging technologies, trends, threats and practices in order to maintain strong information security controls. We do this to ensure zu’s and our client’s information, PI and PII, in transit and at rest, is custom-fit to requirements and policies (while continuously being updated & improved upon). This is a fitting topic of discussion both due to the latest headlines but also because a few of the zu crew recently attended IT World Canada’s MapleSEC virtual conference. This conference is aimed at business and government leaders interested in practical approaches to ensure organizational protection from growing cybersecurity threats. Below we will provide some simple yet practical takeaways for creating a risk management culture and protecting yourself from the new threats on the horizon. > Dollar for dollar, security awareness is among the best investments your firm can make > > — David Shipley, Founder of Beauceron Security Inc. ## 5 Ways to Help Protect You from the Emerging Cyber Threatscape. ### 1. Password & Computer Security It’s no secret that passwords have substantial value to criminals. The importance of secure, complex and unique passwords is key to ensure personal and organizational information is safe. - Platforms, Devices and Networks should also include two-factor authentication whenever possible. The use of multi-factor mechanisms such as 2FA adds further security constraints to a user’s login by verifying the user against a secondary source. - Passwords should include a minimum of 8 letters with upper and lower case letters, numbers and symbols, unique to other passwords across platforms. ### 2. Virtual-Private-Networks (VPN) A VPN gives you online privacy and anonymity by creating a private network from a public internet connection, including your own home network, and is highly relevant due to the number of remote workers today. VPNs mask your internet protocol (IP) address so your online actions are virtually untraceable. Most importantly, VPN services establish secure and encrypted connections to provide greater privacy than even a secured Wi-Fi hotspot. This will ensure internal resources and is doubly encrypted with both the standard encryption protocols in use for the given service as well as the encryption of the VPN connection. ### 3. Active Server & Site Monitoring Active server and site monitoring for penetration and intrusion detection are incredibly important to ensure your website, underlying software and information are safe from unwanted outside sources. These malicious attacks can include Code Injection, SQL Injection, Path Traversal and Application Denial of Service (ADoS). We recommend a couple of tools for security, penetration and intrusion testing/detection. - **OWASP® Zed Attack Proxy (ZAP)** is the world’s most widely used web app scanner. ZAP provides automated scanners as well as a set of tools that allow you to find and address security vulnerabilities. It’s designed to be used by people with a wide range of security experience and is ideal for developers and functional testers who are new to penetration testing. - **Nagios** is open-source software for continuous monitoring of systems, networks and infrastructures. Nagios provides the tools necessary to monitor a number of server health and functionality indicators to ensure there are no issues developing such as DDoS attacks attempting to bring down a website by flooding it with more traffic than it can handle. ### 4. A Cyber Secure Organizational Culture [According to a study from Willis Towers Watson](https://chiefexecutive.net/almost-90-cyber-attacks-caused-human-error-behavior/), nearly 90% of cyber-attacks are caused by human vulnerabilities—winning in cybersecurity comes from the top-down by stressing and communicating the importance of information security in your organization and each employee’s role in it. A truly cultural shift. It means creating an approachable environment for employees to come forward with security concerns. It means regular meetings and training prompting action towards known risks to ensure personal, coworkers, partners and vendor information is safe. And it means formalizing onboarding and offboarding manuals on top of regular testing and updating schedules. Cybersecurity both organizationally and individually should be a muscle reflex. ### 5. Reactive Cyber Security for WHEN an Attack Happens Many security experts say that it’s not a matter of ‘**if**’ a cyberthreat will impact your organization, it’s a matter of ‘**when**.’ Security, and specifically, cybersecurity is best approached in layers and being reactive is an important layer that a lot of companies ignore. This means reacting to minor, common attacks like email and ad spam, all the way through to roles and procedures when an urgent and critical breach of security happens. Here are a few tactics for reactive cybersecurity. - Having information & data backups in place with regular testing to make sure you can restore from them. - Creation of an internal and/or vendor Hour One Team (HOT)—a team that reacts to any potential security breaches in the first hour, as after that you may lose control depending on the threat. - Creating ‘Playbooks’ by addressing and simulating potential security scenarios and how the company will handle them. - Review and retrospect past instances, both internal and external, and the response that followed to ensure you are more prepared for the next threat, which is likely to be more sophisticated as well. ## / Author ### Ryan Nieman Marketing Manager --- # / Article > Explore how rising user expectations are elevating UX standards. Learn strategies to enhance user experience, keep up with industry trends, and ensure your digital products meet the growing demands for superior usability and engagement. ## Raising the UX Bar: Meeting Higher User Experience Standards August 06, 2018 4 Min Read Creating an amazing user experience (UX) is something we’re deeply passionate about. Not too long ago, we had the distinct privilege of redesigning and developing the City of Saskatoon’s website. More recently, we built the new economic dashboard for the Ministry of Economy. When your digital project is inviting, simple to use and provides an exceptional UX, it delights your customer - and that is good for business! Clients often approach their own website and digital requirements with a degree of skepticism. Not realizing a website is more than a marketing tool, at first glance, it may appear visually and functionally acceptable. But after a better understanding of the digital landscape, you’ll soon realize that you may be falling short of what your customers expects. Because your customers are using apps from Google, Facebook, Amazon, and others on a daily basis, yours needs to deliver the same user experience. The end user has does not pause to consider whether you’re a 10,000 person organization or 10 person startup, they simply move on and that results in lost opportunities! ## The challenge you’re facing is not unique Technology is changing at such a rapid rate that it’s fundamentally altering the way customers interact with businesses. Customer expectations are rising in parallel to [UX expectations of digital projects](../designing-sloths "Designing for Sloths"). Websites used to be a source of basic company information, a few details about some products and services, and contact information with hours of operation was enough. Websites today are often full blown applications. They are a place to do things and not just view things. They allow you to perform all kinds of actions and transactions, saving you in-person trips or time on hold on the phone. Think about your last vacation. You can purchase a flight, book hotels, purchase travel insurance, check into your flight, make reservations to a restaurant and so much more, all without having to leave your desk or even speak to someone. Next came the smartphone. Mobile opened up all kinds of new possibilities and companies rushed to the platform. The early days, however, were weak and misguided attempts to mimic traditional websites and make them accessible on mobile. Over time, the apps evolved into sophisticated applications and the UX bar rose. Apps became true product/service extensions that were designed around the needs of a person being mobile and on the go. They leveraged fast mobile data connectivity, increased processing powers, location data, and other technology to provide tremendous value while delighting the customers. With it, customers developed expectations of being able to do certain things from their phone with relative ease. Responsive web and mobile-first design went from being a nice-to-have to a de facto standard. ## Greater insights In the past year, you might have heard increasing mentions about things like artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), natural language processing (NLP) and others. So what does this mean for your digital solutions? Put simply, it means the UX bar is going up again, and with it, so are your customer’s expectations. ML and AI advances are allowing us to convert all of that “Big Data” into meaningful insights. This means programs are getting smarter and can intelligently recommend things based on a user’s past behaviours and a host of other data. People no longer want to search for things, they want relevant results to find them. It means smarter Netflix recommendations or timely and relevant product recommendations by Amazon. ## Hello, Siri It means there’s an entirely new user interface (UI) for us to interact with digital tools - our voice. With connected devices such Amazon’s Echo or the Google Home becoming more common and our cars becoming more sophisticated, we want to interact with technology by voice rather than tapping through multiple screens. We want to text a chatbot on our way to the airport to order travel insurance without using a “traditional” app or punching in our credit card information. It also means there are entirely new design and human interaction principles that need to be carefully considered. ## From innovation to expectation Companies like Facebook, Google, Apple, and others are innovating rapidly and applying these technologies into products we use daily. This subsequently has a direct impact on what we expect out of the digital products we are accustomed to using. So when users go to an app or website that doesn’t offer a similar experience, the overall product feels subpar and the user is left wanting more. Very quickly they move on to the next website, mobile app, or business. So as you consider your digital solutions, think about the experience they offer. How do they compare to the experience of Amazon, Facebook, Google or any of the other top-visited sites in the world? Sure you might be a very different and much smaller company, but when it comes to your customers and users, the expected experience is exactly the same. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Facing software project delays or breakdowns? Discover how zu’s expertise can rescue your project, restore calm, and deliver results when time and resources are running out. ## Rescuing Your Software Project February 19, 2022 5 Min Read ## Rescuing Your Software Project At zu, new client relationships can begin in a number of ways: sometimes it’s a call following an event where we presented, sometimes just a successful RFP bid, sometimes folks chatting over a pint or two. Or, it starts in a fashion we think of as: “Software Rescue”. ### The situation This is the situation where the client’s software team (internal, external or MIA) is on the verge of either failing to deliver a project that is important to the organization’s goals and milestones; or after far too long, the application must become fully operational NOW or else heads are going to roll. This may be software for internal use, external facing functionality or to do with the roll out of a new product. To meet the important deadline, the client software team usually requires injections in some measure of development expertise, coding speed, or project coordination. ### Why does this occur? We are, nevertheless, happy to start as the tow truck driver, charging over the hill to pull the frazzled occupants out of the ditch so they can reach their wedding on time. Or hit their product release schedule. - **The project is late**\ Predicting the completion date of software is near impossible. It is, however, far more likely for accurate predictions to be made by development teams that are practiced, have delivered many projects together, and have a process for building exactly what users actually need and expect. An experienced team ensures resources are spent moving forward, not retracing and redoing. In addition, successful dev teams have disciplined project management that protects the development plan from getting out of control with scope creep and injections. - **Project complexities beyond coding**\ Client developers, though individually skilled and committed to their craft, might not actually be well-practiced in creating software, especially as a team. The businesses they work for are not focused on software development, though software is important to them. The client developers are eager to create a solution, but software projects require many non-coding practices associated with planning and running the project. - **Acceptance criteria undetermined**\ Like the majority of software projects that fail, the team requiring a rescue was unknowingly building something bound to be late and that users would never find acceptable. Cross-functional contributions and key information came to light too late. User experience was only considered in final stages. Project management – in a gatekeeper sense – was non-existent, lost with the team’s willingness to please late requesters. Capabilities outside their job descriptions, information beyond their event horizon and simple lack of practice are ultimately what made the valiant efforts of the coders unsuccessful, and needing a little help. - **Loss of key person or vendor team**\ Project directors are often aware of certain weaknesses in their internal capabilities and so hire temporary contractors with particular strengths to overcome specific knowledge gaps. This may succeed in getting or keeping the project rolling, for a while. But when the consultant flies home or the original vendors go bankrupt and the project hits the ditch once again, the wheels can really fall off the wagon. Desperation leads to rash decisions that undermine the long-term viability and reliability of what is being built. - **Loss of continuity**\ Being under time pressure and then losing key skill sets can cause panic, hasty decisions and a flurry of band-aids being applied to the code. Without historical perspective on the decisions to this point, or memories of the technical dependencies things often get worse fast. When zu comes in for a rescue, we firstly bring calmness to the situation. Band-aid fixes must be removed and a little real surgery done to regain integrity in the code base. We are confident in our approach, our team and our ability to help. For many rescued clients, this relationship continues with zu supplying the missing and needed element of continuity. ### Rescue is the second best way for zu to become involved Our preferred engagement is to become involved in projects at the planning stage. Here we start with the ‘Why?’ of what’s going on. We engage users to identify pain points, opportunities and intended outcomes, and then layer in an understanding of the technical ecosystem. We are, nevertheless, happy to start as the tow truck driver, charging over the hill to pull the frazzled occupants out of the ditch so they can reach their wedding on time. Or hit their product release schedule ## / Author ### Tony Zuck Founding Partner & CFO Alongside Ryan, Tony began as a strategist and designer, working with some of the earliest versions of today’s software programs — leading the way for zu techies to come. These days, Tony leads zu’s Operations and Financial direction, combining operational excellence with creativity and nimble strategy for both ourselves and our clients. --- # / Article > AI is stepping into the foreground and becoming part of the digital experience. The challenge now is designing experiences that work for both people and AI. In this webinar, we explore how taskbots and the Model Context Protocol (MCP) are reshaping workflows, why content strategy is evolving into data strategy, and what organizations should consider as adoption accelerates. ## \[Webinar] Rethinking Digital Experience in the Age of AI September 26, 2025 58 Min Read AI is stepping into the foreground and becoming part of the digital experience. The challenge now is designing experiences that work for both people and AI. In this webinar, we explore how taskbots and the Model Context Protocol (MCP) are reshaping workflows, why content strategy is evolving into data strategy, and what organizations should consider as adoption accelerates. ## / Author ### Albert Jame Partner & CXO Starting his career at zu in 2002, Albert’s journey spans from the era of static websites to digital ecosystems. Establishing zu as a pioneer in human-centered design, his deeply reflective nature and storytelling craft brings a dynamic blend of logic, reasoning, and humor, making him one of the most sought-after design leaders and speakers in Canada. --- # / Article > Explore 30 years of web design evolution, from the early days of tables and Flash to mobile-first design, responsive layouts, and AI-driven experiences. Discover key milestones and trends that have shaped the web as we know it today. ## Review: 30 Years of Web Design October 03, 2024 7 Min Read Thirty years ago, the internet was still in its infancy. What began as a platform for text-based communication and simple designs has evolved into a sophisticated ecosystem of dynamic user experiences, responsive interfaces, and an interconnected digital world. From the early days of hit counters and Geocities to the current era of mobile-first, AI-driven design, we take a look back at three decades of web design evolution—and glimpse into the exciting possibilities still ahead. ## The Commoditization of the “What” Although the first website was published in 1991, the mid-’90s marked the beginning of websites as we know them today. Back then, web design was a rudimentary field. Websites relied heavily on tables as structural elements, resulting in cluttered layouts filled with spacer GIFs to create white space. Designers used slicing techniques, cutting large images into pieces to improve load times—a practice that was essential in a pre-broadband world. JavaScript made its debut as a promising new language for interactivity, but it was complex and slow, and the web remained largely static. However, this marked the beginning of a shift toward dynamic, user-specific content. ## 1996: The Age of Tackiness As more users flocked to the web, designers and developers sought to differentiate their websites with flashy, eye-catching visuals. This led to what we now lovingly call the “Age of Tackiness.” Animated text, dancing GIFs, neon colors, and those infamous hit counters became commonplace. The proliferation of DIY website builders like Angelfire and Geocities allowed anyone to create a personal webpage, often with little design experience. While this era was chaotic, it sparked widespread interest in web design, prompting educational institutions to introduce formal courses in the field. ## 1998: The Flash Revolution In 1998, Flash emerged as a game-changer for web designers. Finally, it was possible to create rich, interactive graphics and animations. Flash gave designers more creative freedom than ever, allowing them to experiment with user experiences beyond static pages. This was an exciting time, with many designers introducing dynamic splash pages, bouncing logos, and elaborate visual effects. However, Flash came with its own set of problems—long loading times and the need for frequent plugin updates. Despite these issues, Flash laid the groundwork for a more immersive web experience. ## Early 2000s: The Rise of CSS and Web 2.0 The new millennium brought significant changes to the web design landscape. With the introduction of CSS (Cascading Style Sheets), designers gained more control over the presentation of websites. CSS separated visual elements like colors and typography from the HTML structure, simplifying maintenance and enhancing design flexibility. This period also saw the birth of Web 2.0, which shifted the focus toward user-generated content—blogs, social networks, and photo-sharing platforms. Although some, including the web’s creator Tim Berners-Lee, criticized the term Web 2.0 as jargon, it was undeniably a time of growing democratization on the web. Design features like top navigation bars and dropdown menus gained popularity, while the overuse of ”“Enter” splash pages began to fade. ## 2007: The Mobile Revolution With the launch of the first iPhone in 2007, the web was forever changed. People began accessing websites on their mobile devices in droves, and businesses had to adapt quickly by creating mobile versions of their sites. This period also marked a shift in design aesthetics: typography became more prominent, color palettes were simplified, and icons gained widespread use. It was clear that mobile users wanted quick, streamlined access to information, leading designers to focus on clarity and simplicity. ## 2010: The Responsive Web Era By 2010, mobile web usage had skyrocketed, and the limitations of creating separate mobile sites became apparent. Enter responsive design. Rather than designing multiple versions of a website, responsive design allowed a single website to adapt fluidly across various devices. This revolution in web design forced designers to think differently about content prioritization and simplicity. Flat design, with its emphasis on minimalism and function over form, emerged as a dominant trend, removing unnecessary gradients and shadows in favor of cleaner, more user-friendly layouts. ## 2015: User Experience Comes Into Focus While visual trends continued to evolve, the mid-2010s marked a shift toward a more user-centric approach to web design. User Experience (UX) design became a key factor in the success of digital products, focusing on how users interact with websites and applications to ensure accessibility and enjoyment. Strategy and marketing increasingly influenced design decisions, blending form with function to create experiences that not only looked great but also performed well in terms of user engagement and conversion. ## 2020: The Pandemic’s Impact on Design 2020 will forever be remembered as the year of global disruption due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and web design was no exception. As the world moved online, the demand for digital solutions skyrocketed. Suddenly, websites became the primary interface for most businesses and services, from e-commerce to healthcare to education. This shift accelerated trends that were already gaining momentum. Design had to accommodate a surge in online traffic, ensuring that user interfaces were intuitive and accessible to a broader audience, many of whom were less familiar with digital interactions. Remote work also led to a boom in collaboration tools, and web design platforms became essential for team-based projects. Web design evolved rapidly to support virtual experiences—from online conferences to virtual classrooms—and new emphasis was placed on optimizing the user experience for digital-first, remote interactions. Speed, accessibility, and simplicity became critical design elements as users prioritized efficiency in their online interactions. This year also saw a surge in dark mode adoption, as users spent more hours in front of screens and sought more comfortable visual experiences. In addition, there was a significant push toward inclusive design, ensuring that websites were not only accessible to people with disabilities but also welcoming to diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. The pandemic forced designers to rethink the traditional user experience, placing even more value on human-centered design principles. ## 2024: A New Frontier of Web Design Fast forward to today, and web design has moved beyond aesthetics and into a realm where creativity, technology, and strategy converge. With AI-driven tools, we now have unprecedented access to customization and personalization options. Machine learning algorithms can optimize website layouts, tailor content to individual users, and even predict user behavior. While flat design and minimalist trends remain prevalent, designers are now exploring new horizons with immersive technologies such as Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), reshaping the way we interact with digital content. Mobile-first design has become the norm, as smartphones continue to dominate web traffic. But we are also seeing an increased focus on inclusive and accessible design, ensuring that the web is a space where everyone, regardless of ability, can engage meaningfully. ## Looking Ahead: The Future of Web Design So, what’s next for web design as we approach 30 years of evolution? One prediction is the continued rise of AI-driven design tools, which could automate many aspects of the design process, allowing for even more rapid iteration and innovation. At the same time, as automation takes over some of the more mechanical tasks, human designers will likely shift their focus to higher-level strategy, creativity, and problem-solving. We may also see the decline of traditional desktop web browsing as mobile devices, wearables, and other “smart” technologies become even more ubiquitous. This will push designers to think beyond the browser, creating experiences that transcend screens and integrate seamlessly with our daily lives. While some fear that technology will eventually replace the role of the web designer, there’s one thing that remains certain: no matter how advanced our tools become, they will never replace the creativity and human ingenuity that define truly great design. In the future, designers will continue to adapt, innovate, and inspire as they shape the digital world for the next 30 years—and beyond. ## / Author ### Ryan Nieman Marketing Manager --- # / Article > Explore how zu’s event in Regina showcased the power of Design Thinking in driving digital transformation, featuring talks from Albert Jame, Zach Perkins, and insights from FCC’s Krystal Kolodziejak. ## Review: Digital Transformation using Design Thinking January 04, 2019 4 Min Read ## Review: Digital Transformation using Design Thinking ### Lunch and launch event A progressive group of Regina technology movers and shakers came together to further explore Design Thinking. Hosted by zu, via our “Launch your Digital Transformation using Design Thinking” event CEO Ryan Lejbak sought to introduce new faces and old friends to our expanded strategy team and to help Regina organizations embrace digital transformation. The team – Albert, Chelsey and Zach – briefly covered the why, how and what all followed up with an interview of Krystal Kolodziejak, Director Innovation at FCC. Here’s a recap of their talks. ### Intro to Design Thinking - Albert Jame The presentations were led off by Director of Strategy at zu, Albert Jame. Albert described the state of Design Thinking in the world. Albert looked at why the Design Thinking approach is so powerful, and how it has led to the disruption of many industries. He pointed out how this often involves defining the “[magic moment](https://zu.com/articles/designing-moments-that-matter-creating-impactful-user-experiences/)”, which is encourages companies to find the key pain point in the customer journey. The Uber disruption example was explored as being focused on reimagining those crucial few moments around ordering, paying and tipping, while essentially delivering the same car ride and price. ### The evolution of digital and the role of design - Zach Perkins Zach, a UX Lead at zu, looked back over the changes he has experienced in his long career in design, and where things are going. He explains, “digital products and services have become more complex and occupy an increasingly important role in the lives of people. As a result design has had to adapt and evolve the way it works.” And one of the biggest evolution is, disappointingly for some experts out there, that “it’s no longer effective or appropriate to simply “design for users” in prescriptive and assumption based ways.” Zach goes on to describe the methods of designers are now deeply human centred, collaborative, holistic and experimental. “Human centred means doing research, learning about peoples’ needs, motivations and challenges”, he says. Collaboration requires bringing people with different backgrounds together, but then going past old methods of meeting to achieve new new levels of actual cooperation and communication. These new levels are achieved by way of the methods in the Design Thinking arsenal. “These unfamiliar exercises are often resisted by a few participants at the start of a session, but are then embraced as results become apparent”. Additionally, Zach claims “we need to zoom out and see how a product, touchpoint, or screen fits into a broader context and journey; to see how hidden people and systems play a role in delivering experiences – this is what we mean when we say “Holistic””. Zach also discussed the need to for both prototypes and the need to “test solutions before we commit and execute a final product or service to ensure that it does, in fact, address the challenge it hopes to”. Confirmation at this stage also improves the economics of the project, by building the right thing with the allowed budget, instead of seeking additional resources to get on the right track. He observes that the work is never really done. “As designers move to working on experiences and systems there continues to be the need for execution. Even new, innovative, and tested ideas require excellent follow through to be successful.” ## / Author ### Tony Zuck Founding Partner & CFO Alongside Ryan, Tony began as a strategist and designer, working with some of the earliest versions of today’s software programs — leading the way for zu techies to come. These days, Tony leads zu’s Operations and Financial direction, combining operational excellence with creativity and nimble strategy for both ourselves and our clients. --- # / Article > Explore the benefits and features of Sign In with Apple (SIWA). Learn why this authentication method is gaining popularity, how it enhances user privacy and security, and what it means for both users and developers. Get the full scoop on SIWA. ## Sign in with Apple: Let’s SIWA-t all the fuss is about June 22, 2020 11 Min Read June 22, 2020 If you’ve ever used an Apple product or service, whether to download music, stay connected via Facetime or develop an iOS app, you probably have an Apple ID. Previously, this account was used solely to manage your various Apple services and keep data synced across devices. Now, with the release of iOS 13, Apple has introduced [Sign in with Apple](https://developer.apple.com/sign-in-with-apple/) (SIWA), providing the opportunity for any application to support sign in using an Apple ID. ## Why should you care? ### As a user As with most third-party login services, one of the main appeals of SIWA is convenience—bypassing account forms or email verifications and instead, using an account that already exists. It’s like having your basic information tied up in a neat little bow. Now the next question, **why might you choose to use SIWA over other third-party services such as Facebook or Google**? For one, Apple puts emphasis on privacy and security. Apple’s **two-factor authentication process** is automatically applied to any account created with an Apple ID. Additionally, if you have face or touch ID enabled, you can take advantage of those sign-in methods when logging into a SIWA account on both native iOS apps and in Safari. If you are someone who hesitates to share your email address when signing up for a new app or website, Apple created its **private email relay service** with you in mind. As it is, only a user’s name and email address are shared when signing in with Apple, however, users also now have the option to [hide their email](https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210425) on a per-app basis. When selected, a random email address is generated as a stand-in. Apple then handles the forwarding of any communication to your true email address, allowing you to keep your address private, but still receive account correspondence. ### As a developer If you currently have an app in the App Store or are planning on submitting one, you may have to include SIWA as a login option. Updates to Apple’s [review guidelines](https://developer.apple.com/app-store/review/guidelines/#4.8) state conditions under which SIWA support is required. The good news is, if your iOS app exclusively uses your own sign-in workflow, you should be able to continue on your merry old way. If you currently use any third-party login services, you now also have to support SIWA as an alternative login option. The deadline for adhering to these new requirements for both new and updating apps has thankfully been extended to **June 30, 2020**. ## Getting Started Apple has made it relatively easy to implement SIWA with its [AuthenticationServices](https://developer.apple.com/documentation/authenticationservices) framework and available button resources. In-app modals make the workflow feel pretty smooth and the necessary configuration in your Apple developer account is even a breeze. Simply enable the SIWA capability for your App ID. Not only can this new framework assist with handling a new SIWA button, but an automatic prompt can now also be displayed that allows the user to log in with either their Apple ID _or_ a saved keychain password. While this ability to handle keychain passwords requires _a bit_ more logic behind the scenes to manage efficiently, it is yet another way to provide a convenient login experience. > Something to note is that SIWA is only available for iOS 13 and up. If your app supports versions lower than 13, you have a couple of options: - Versions of iOS lower than 13 can support SIWA with an implementation similar to Android and other platforms (keep reading to find out more about that). - SIWA buttons can alternatively be hidden or disabled on devices with older versions provided there is still an additional login method for those users. Due to Apple’s focus on protecting personal information, a user’s name and email address are only made available when a user grants your app permission to said data. After that, Apple assumes the user has already created an account on your platform and thus, you no longer need that user data. The only way to get a second shot at acquiring this data is for the user to revoke app permissions in their account settings. Finding a way to communicate this with the user should be considered when determining workflow and error messaging to ensure a positive user experience. Keep this in mind if implementing SIWA on platforms other than iOS as well. ## So What About Other Platforms? Adding this functionality to iOS is one thing, but what if you are developing a project that is cross-platform? Can you add SIWA to Android apps and websites? Yes, but it may not be quite as straight forward. For platforms other than iOS, Apple has provided a JavaScript library called [Sign in with Apple JS](https://developer.apple.com/documentation/signinwithapplejs) and a [REST API](https://developer.apple.com/documentation/signinwithapplerestapi), but the documentation leaves something to be desired. Alternatively, [Firebase](https://firebase.google.com/docs/auth/web/apple) also now supports SIWA for iOS, Android and web. Now, while there’s no explicit deadline, and it might feel odd adding SIWA to platforms other than iOS, it’s the use case that should be considered. The goal is always to **offer users the best experience**, which wouldn’t be the case if they were restricted to one platform based on their preferred login method. The most obvious solutions to remedy this restriction are providing some sort of account migration to a different login method or adding SIWA as an option. For the sake of simplicity, I won’t be going too in-depth on the specific implementations of adding SIWA to Android or web. If you are trying to incorporate this functionality, I _will_ point out some of the potential roadblocks and decisions: ### Additional Configuration Prior to implementation, you will need to create a Service ID in the developer console. This new ID will essentially act as a link between your existing App ID and corresponding apps or websites. During set up, it is crucial to have all the appropriate site domains and redirect URLs added to the configuration. These cannot be an IP address or localhost. Only the domains added here will be granted permission to request user info. Make sure these are domains you either have control over or you completely trust in. It’s also important to note, for a web implementation, that the redirect URL sent as part of the authorization request must match the domain that the SIWA button lives on. Mismatched URLs will result in loss of the response sent back from the authorization request. ### Web When beginning implementation for web, you must decide to what extent, if any, you want to take advantage of Sign in with Apple JS. While Apple encourages the use of its resources, there are times when it might be more beneficial to try and handle more of the workflow in a custom manner. Whichever approach you settle on, both have their own potential hurdles to be conquered. The manner in which Apple’s login page is displayed could potentially lead to one of these roadblocks. If choosing to redirect the current page to Apple’s login and eventually back, you will run into the loss of any session values that had initially been set. Most importantly, in this case, the state value. Along with the request to Apple’s authorization endpoint, you’ll want to include a state\*.\* This value will act as a unique session identifier to later compare to ensure the returned response hasn’t been tampered with. If those session values are lost on redirect, so is the valid state needed for said comparison. While there are various ways this issue could be resolved, one alternative approach is to use Sign in with Apple JS and the dialogue it defaults to for login credentials. When using a separate pop-up, the session values remain intact and ready for when you need them. Workflow aside, if you choose to use Sign in with Apple JS, be sure to **test your implementation** in a variety of browsers. As is to be expected, this library is optimized to work best on both desktop and mobile versions of Safari and includes the ability to use facial and touch identification when signing in with Apple. While in most cases, this library seems to work effectively but the most recent version of Sign in with Apple JS (at this time - v1.5.2) may cause some grief in Internet Explorer 11. Some of the JavaScript used is not supported by this browser. While this is an older version, and use of it is lower than in other browsers, you must consider **who your audience is and how many users this might affect**. Could the fact that SIWA may fail on IE 11 have a negative impact on your product? Is it beneficial to continue to support it? There is the possibility that Apple will remedy these issues in a future version, however, if not, you may have to handle any necessary adjustments. For example, Apple’s library uses CustomEvent, which is not supported by Internet Explorer. In this case, a [polyfill](https://www.npmjs.com/package/custom-event-polyfill) may be used to support this object on incompatible browsers. ### Android Somewhat similar to web, when implementing SIWA on Android you must determine: 1. Whether you will use Sign in with Apple JS. 1. If not, what response\_mode best serves your needs. If choosing to use Sign in with Apple JS, the workflow essentially consists of: - passing control over to a web domain (whichever one you set in the Service ID), - allowing it to handle the login workflow in a web browser window, - receiving the response at the chosen redirect URL, - adjusting it to a format that Android can understand, - and pass control back to the app. Thanks for bearing with me there! This approach requires communication and implementation on both the app and the web end of things. Once the redirect URL has reformatted the response, control can be granted back to the app using either an intent or a custom URL scheme if you have one established. If you are leaning away from using Apple’s JavaScript library, you have the option to just directly use the API; however, it can result in a workflow very similar to using the library, depending on the values you use as part of your request. Apple’s authorization endpoint has various required parameters, which you can read more about [here](https://developer.apple.com/documentation/signinwithapple/incorporating-sign-in-with-apple-into-other-platforms#3332113). I’m going to focus mostly on the response\_mode. The default value for response\_mode is “form\_post”. If this value is set, a POST request with the user data and an access token is sent to the redirect URL following a successful user login (this is also the case when using the JavaScript library). Android can’t directly handle a POST request very well, hence the need for logic existing at the redirect URL to reformat the user data before control is passed back to the app. Unfortunately, it’s not always possible or desirable to make implementation changes to the web domain being used. This is where the “fragment” value for response\_mode comes in handy. With this approach, instead of a POST, the login result is returned as a fragment at the end of the redirect URL you provided. If taking this approach, a WebView can be used to display Apple’s login page in-app. After a successful login, it is possible to then extract the appropriate data from that URL fragment that Apple has sent. Now, like the previously mentioned approaches, this one also comes with **a few cons**. If using the form post approach, the user can be taken out of the app to a separate browser window to enter their login credentials. With this method, to be able to intercept that redirect URL, an in-app WebView will need to be used, which some may argue isn’t always a smooth experience. Additionally, for security reasons, a user’s email and name can only be acquired if response\_mode = “form\_post”, not “fragment”. If this user data is a requirement for creating an account on your platform, it may be necessary to only allow sign-in with SIWA and not sign-up on Android. This is again where that effective user messaging I mentioned earlier might come into play. ## To wrap it up While SIWA is very convenient from a user’s point of view, it can bring about a set of new challenges for developers, potentially affecting products on various platforms. It isn’t as simple as adding a new button, as it may appear at first glance. This situation highlights the importance of finding a balance between a timely and effective response while still providing **the best possible experience for your users**. ## / Author ### Anja Gewers Senior Developer --- # / Article > This piece explores why taste, the ability to know what feels right before you can measure it, is becoming design’s most strategic advantage in an AI-accelerated world, and how vision turns that instinct into something a whole team can build around. ## Sound, Vision, and the Practice of Taste February 26, 2026 5 Min Read Most designers have felt the moment when data runs out, and intuition takes over. You’ve mapped the journeys, talked to users, tested the prototypes, but something still feels off (or occasionally, exactly right). That instinct is taste, and the ability to hold it across an entire product, brand, and team? That’s vision. Neither is innate. Both can be developed, and when they are, they become the difference between design that works and design that is loved. Great design often emerges between logic and intuition—the same space where David Bowie, George Nelson, and Hilma af Klint found creative clarity. Bowie, in his Berlin period, built emotional structure from restraint. Nelson, the modernist architect and writer, turned seeing into a discipline, teaching designers to perceive relationships rather than shapes. Af Klint painted what she intuited before abstraction even had a name, blending spiritual intention with methodical craft. Together, they define the foundation of design leadership: perception, experimentation, and coherence through feeling. These are not artistic luxuries. They are practical tools for leading design in fast, AI‑forward digital environments. ## Vision vs. Requirements Most projects begin with requirements. Features, functions, measurable goals. Few begin with vision. Requirements define what to build; vision defines why it should exist—a statement about how an experience should feel and what it should make possible. Apple’s ‘computers for the rest of us’ or Airbnb’s ‘belong anywhere’ weren’t specs; they were philosophies that shaped every decision downstream. Projects that start with vision align faster because the emotional goal is clear. Those that start with only requirements deliver output that works but rarely resonates. ## What a Design Vision Looks Like A design vision can take many forms: a manifesto, a short film, a prototype that captures feeling as much as function. What matters is the clarity it provides. When IDEO helped develop Apple’s first mouse, early prototypes weren’t mechanical tests. They explored what the interaction felt like. Was it natural, effortless, and kind to use? The final design was born from that calibration. Artifacts like these give teams of engineers, marketers, and designers something to point to and say, ‘That’s what we’re aiming for.’ Vision turns guesswork into guidance. ## Who Owns the Vision? Vision has many contributors but needs a steward. Product defines what to achieve. Stakeholders define what to deliver. Design defines how it should feel. In practice, that means being the person who holds the experience standard. The one who notices when something works on paper but feels wrong in someone’s hands. The one who keeps pulling the team back to the original intent. That stewardship works best when it’s collaborative. Bowie and Brian Eno are a good example. Eno brought systems, ambient structure, and processes. Bowie brought instinct and emotional risk. Neither tried to own the whole thing. The work was better because both pushed from their own side. That’s design leadership. You’re the one who holds the standard for how it feels. ## Vision as a Decision‑Making Tool A clear vision changes where a team spends its energy. Without one, most of the time goes to internal decisions. Which direction is right? What style fits? Whether this typeface or that one. The debates are well-intentioned, but they’re inward-facing. When vision is clear, those decisions get easier because they have something to answer to. The team’s attention shifts outward. Does this feel simple to use? Is the experience frictionless? Is it rewarding? The focus moves from how the design looks to the team to how the experience feels to the person using it. That’s the practical value of vision. It points the whole team in the same direction: toward the experience.” ## The Taste Economy: Vision as Applied Taste Taste is cultivated intuition. The ability to sense coherence before it’s measurable. In a world where AI can generate, scale, and iterate design faster than any team, taste is what decides which output actually feels right. That makes it a strategic advantage, not a soft skill. We felt this recently during a working session with our development, AI, marketing, and product teams. No formal critique. No scheduled review. Just the team live-jamming on website details, breakpoints, and interaction patterns in real time. AI accelerated the iteration, and taste guided what we kept and what we killed. When something clicked, everyone in the room knew it. Not because someone presented a rationale. Because it felt right. ## Vision in Professional Practice Making vision actionable takes intention: - Define what success feels like. Clarify the emotional standard at kickoff. - Capture it early. Create a story, prototype, or short film that embodies the desired experience. - Assign stewardship. Design guards coherence, in partnership with product and engineering. - Use vision as a filter. Test every choice against the intended feeling. - Refine continually. Vision evolves as collective taste matures. Vision and taste are not abstractions; they are mechanisms of leadership. Nelson taught us to see relationships, not shapes. Af Klint taught us to trust intuition and give spirit form. Bowie showed how discipline transforms emotion into structure. Professional design practice lives where those lessons intersect: clarity, courage, and craft. When AI can generate anything, the rarest skill is taste–the human ability to decide what belongs and why. Vision is how that skill scales across a team, a product, a brand. Both can be practised, both can be sharpened, and the work is exponentially better because of it. That’s what we believe. That’s how we build. ## / Author ### Roberta Barrington Design Director Roberta comes from a diverse creative background, spanning graphic design, art direction for advertising, editorial design for local magazines, and retail branding. Roberta is a modernist, critical thinker, and expert creative with a fascination for how design and user experiences intersect. --- # / Article > Discover the benefits of using simple, proven technologies in your projects. Learn how embracing ‘boring’ tech can lead to more reliable, maintainable, and effective solutions. Explore the advantages of simplicity and stability in technology choices for long-term success. ## The Art of Simplicity: Embracing Boring Technologies for Effective Solutions June 22, 2022 4 Min Read Here at zu, web developers love their ability to make choices; which technologies to use, which tools to develop with, which methodologies to adopt, deployment and server architecture choices… the list goes on. But the commonality of all these choices, and ultimately decisions, usually resonates around the idea of simplicity. We always strive for simplicity in our decisions - that doesn’t mean easy, and it usually leads to boring. First, I want to describe what simplicity really means when we talk about it from a technical point of view. The easiest way to describe it would be to describe the opposite, which is complex. When tackling problems here at the office, we never sit down and attempt to come up with the complex solution. That would be analogous to building a space shuttle when you really only needed a bottle rocket. Complexity has too much overhead, and will inevitably start moving away from the real problem you’re trying to solve. So instead, we strive for simplicity. When we get that right, there is an elegance about the code and the end product. A few other words crop up when thinking about simplicity, such as _easy_. When something is considered easy to you, you might also say it’s simple because you have a complete understanding of it. But if we think about this from a beginners perspective, something simple means a low barrier of entry to understanding the problem. _Easy_, on the other hand, is completely subjective, and relies a lot on experience. Someone with ten years of experience in a technology will likely say a lot of simple things are easy, but that’s not true for beginners, they might even say it’s _hard_. Even as seasoned developers we try to avoid hard problems, or making hard problems any harder then they have to be. ## Embracing boring Working in the web technology scene, we see a pile of new technologies, languages, frameworks, services, idioms, ideas…. everything under the sun! Everytime we visit web developer news sites like [Hacker News](https://news.ycombinator.com/) or [reddit](https://www.reddit.com), there is another framework, another technique, or another product that looks as if it would solve all our problems. Sometimes it’s hard to ignore what seems to be the latest and greatest, but there is always something to be said about the technology that we’ve being using consistently for the past few years. You could almost say it’s boring. Dan McKinley wrote a great article on [why boring technology matters](http://mcfunley.com/choose-boring-technology). When we drink the kool-aid for one of the new technologies on the block, we have very limited understanding of its stability and maturity, and that can cripple a project from the get-go. Instead, we should embrace the known and boring technologies that have proven themselves over the years, the technologies that we are familiar with. When we go down that road, we know what to expect and how to handle those unlikely edge cases that always have a way of popping up during a deployment. With all that said, I don’t mean to discourage you or become a luddite and say never use anything new. We need to evolve our technologies over time, and McKinley has a great take on how and when we should do this: > One of the most worthwhile exercises I recommend here is to consider how you would solve your immediate problem without adding anything new. First, posing this question should detect the situation where the “problem” is that someone really wants to use the technology. If that is the case, you should immediately abort. My team was tasked with a new web application build last fall. We had the option of suggesting any new technologies for use, and that prospect was very exciting for us. But after considering what benefits we would gain from changing our application stack, we came to our senses and realized we could write a better application by sticking to our regular, and somewhat boring stack. Change for the sake of change is never a good mantra. ## Slow and steady I can say firsthand that zu has evolved its technology offerings over time. I have a very unique perspective on this as I worked at zu for five years, then took a five year break before returning. If you asked me during my first tenure, I probably would have said we were not evolving at all. But after five years, it’s very evident that zu has evolved and become masters of new technologies. It’s that slow, wise, and methodical pace that makes the difference. If we can make websites and applications simple from a technology standpoint, we also gain maintainability and flexibility. The quicker a web developer can understand a given piece of code or functionality, the quicker they will feel comfortable and confident to bring positive change. This is why zu strives for simplicity. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > In this webinar, join Brian Kachur, Senior Design Strategist at zu, as he leads an exploration into the power of “surprise and delight” in creating memorable user experiences. ## \[Webinar] The Art of Surprise & Delight in Design October 29, 2024 2 Min Read In this webinar, join Brian Kachur, Senior Design Strategist at zu, as he leads an exploration into the power of “surprise and delight” in creating memorable user experiences. Brian shares actionable strategies on how thoughtful design details can captivate users, blending creativity with functionality to enhance digital products. What you’ll discover: - The role of subtle, unexpected touches in effective design - Techniques for storytelling and engaging users - Practical tips for incorporating high-fidelity mockups early on - How AI can spark creativity in the design process With a brief interview by zu’s Chief Experience Officer, Albert Jame, this session offers valuable insights for design professionals and enthusiasts looking to elevate their projects through user-centered creativity. ## / Author ### Brian Kachur Senior Design Strategist Brian is a versatile creative at zu, specializing in graphic art, strategy, and experience design. Known for his original illustrations and storytelling, he brings empathy and humor to each project, forging emotional connections. With 20 years of experience, Brian combines human-centered design with artistic excellence across various mediums. --- # / Article > Why qualitative research and human perspective are becoming the real competitive advantage in an AI-driven, data-saturated world. ## The High-Fidelity Human March 03, 2026 7 Min Read We have great arguments in my house. Not about whose turn it is to do the dishes (okay, we argue about that too), but about how we define “truth”. Years ago, my husband and I decided to go back to university together, unaware that we were embarking on a years-long debate. We both ended up in the Psychology department, but our paths soon diverged into what I can only describe as a friendly and very nerdy academic turf war. He went deep into the qualitative side of Health Psychology, while I went the quantitative route, exploring Cognitive Psychology and Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). We used to jokingly spar over whose methods were superior. He was firmly in the qualitative camp, armed with his interviews and thematic analysis. “Lived experience!” and “Contextual understanding!” were his battle cries. Meanwhile, I was the defender of objectivity. “Fundamental truths!” and “Statistical significance!” were my rallying cries. Honestly though, my heart was never truly in the fight. I knew then what I know even more clearly now: Qualitative and quantitative aren’t enemies. They are two sides of the same coin, both trying to solve the puzzle of human behavior. ## The Commoditization of the “What” Quantitative research is very good at measuring the “what” and the “how” in ways that are objective, standardized, and replicable. Think of A/B testing two website flows to see which results in a higher conversion rate. It’s efficient, and it gives you a number you can hang your hat on. But it often lacks context. You might find that Version A outperformed Version B, but users still aren’t completing their purchase any more than before. Quantitative tells you the race is being lost, but it can’t always tell you why the runners are stopping. In the digital world, I’ve noticed a shift toward this “hard” quantitative approach. We love metrics and conversion rates because they feel easy to grasp. “63% of users did such and such a thing” sounds like a solid fact. And now, AI has become incredibly good at this kind of quantification. I’m not ashamed to admit how long it took me to grasp the principles behind confidence intervals or regression analysis, and I’m more than happy to hand that over to a computer to do a more reliable job than I ever could. But because AI has made this so accessible, everyone now has a robust quantitative practice at their fingertips. Quantitative data has become a commodity; it’s no longer the differentiator it used to be. While I hesitate to proclaim a “winner” in my old household debate, I can firmly declare that meaningful qualitative research has become much more precious. It represents the “why we must get this right” side of the story. ## The Human Instrument In the world of quantitative research, “bias” is a dirty word. We try to scrub the researcher out of the data to keep things objective. But in qualitative research, we flip that on its head and acknowledge that the researcher is the primary instrument of data collection. This is where the concept of Positionality comes in. Positionality is just a fancy way of saying that your background, your history, and your personal quirks shape how you see the world. They aren’t “biases” to be hidden, they’re a specialized lens. Your unique history allows you to recognize signals that a purely quantitative approach or a neutral computer would just categorize as “noise.” For example, I can’t quantitatively measure the weight of a participant’s silence, but I can feel the weight of that silence. I can feel the awkwardness in a group when one participant starts ranting, or the subtle shift in energy when someone mentions a specific pain point. That ability to resonate with another human is a high-fidelity sensor for identifying unmet needs. The “human instrument” detects the emotional and cultural drivers that give meaning to the “what.” ## Depth in a Flattened World During my experimental days, I was trained to find averages and treat outliers with suspicion. An uncritical quantitative approach looks at aggregates, smoothing out the rough edges and often disregarding the outliers. “If a behavior only happens 2% of the time”, we think, “it’s safe to ignore it.” The temptation is to accept that version of reality at face value, and the result is a flattening of the human experience. But since shifting to a qualitative-first approach at zu, I’ve realized that those “rough edges” are where the real insights live. Qualitative research provides the rich and messy context that actually explains why humans do what they do. Imagine you are looking at data for a new grocery delivery app. The quantitative data shows a drop-off at the “select delivery time” screen. You could spend months A/B testing different layouts to fix it. But as a qualitative researcher I would sit down with a user and perhaps discover that she isn’t confused by the layout; she’s stressed because she’s at home with a fussy infant and she doesn’t know if she’ll be available to receive the delivery, and the app doesn’t explain the “leave at door” policy clearly. That unique insight capturing the emotional context of being a busy parent is something numbers often miss. This allows for Creative Synthesis. Humans are incredible at connecting disparate, non-linear things to create new narratives. While quantitative data tells me how to optimize what already exists, qualitative insights provide the space where my team and I can play around and imagine entirely new categories of solutions. Organizations that invest in these messy human stories are the ones that find the “weird” insights where the next breakthrough comes from. ## Intuition and the Soul of the Product Numbers are great for efficiency, but people don’t love products because they are efficient. They love products because they feel understood. Quantitative research can tell you if a feature is being used, but it lacks the intuition to understand the subtle social frictions or moral implications of that feature. This is where the researcher uses their positionality to apply Moral Imagination. I think back to a memorable interview with a participant who had a cognitive disability. A quantitative report would have shown a “high error rate” for this user. But the qualitative experience revealed how that interface made him feel. It was a blow to his dignity when he couldn’t complete a simple task, and it caused significant emotional, practical, and financial ripple effects in his life. His experience informed important and impactful design decisions that we felt proud to stand behind. Using our own humanity to advocate for the user’s humanity is how we move from raw information to wisdom. It’s the difference between a product that works and a product that has a soul. ## The Future is Personal We are living in a time where “what the data says” is becoming a baseline. If you want to build something that people actually love, and that stands out in a crowded, AI-optimized market, you have to go deeper. The most valuable thing you bring to a project is your humanity. It’s your “bias,” your history, and your ability to look at a sea of data and ask, “What is our humanity telling us the data is missing?” Now that everyone has access to the same automated insights, the real competitive edge isn’t being “objective.” It’s being brave enough to use your own humanity to find the truths that the data is too flat to see. My husband and I still have our debates, but the tenor has changed. While I spent years defending the “cleanliness” of experimental truths, my work at zu has shifted me firmly into a qualitative-first approach. My husband was right about the “lived experience,” but we aren’t competing for territory anymore. Instead, we’re two people using our unique lenses to get closer to the heart of the human experience. ## / Author ### Christianne Rooke Research Strategist --- # / Article > Explore the dynamic between design thinking and expert opinion in product development. Learn how to balance innovative user-centered approaches with specialized expertise to create effective, user-friendly solutions. Discover strategies for integrating both perspectives for optimal results. ## The Power of Plain English: Tips for Simplifying Your Writing March 20, 2020 4 Min Read While attending the [Annual CIRI Conference](https://www.ciri.org/web/web/03Prof-Development/Events/Event_Display.aspx?EventKey=0d128955-f85e-489e-8d19-308be46bb4f9) in Banff, I was introduced to the practice of writing in plain english. Since the conference, I’ve noticed plain English writing coming up in news articles, in conversations with friends, and internally from our design team. I tried the concept on a recent document and, while it seems simple, in practice I found writing in plain english very challenging. ## The workshop At the conference, I attended a few sessions offered by [Michael Sider](https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-sider-a538a812/), Assistant Professor, Management Communications, Ivey Business School. Sider stressed the importance of crafting compelling, personalized communication for brands and businesses, and used a few case studies to illustrate the do’s and don’ts of effective writing. I really connected with the session material because I could relate to this idea that businesses tend to come off as robotic when communicating with their audiences. For years, our Strategist Albert has told me that I become the T-1000 when I present to clients. So, although I know I’m engaging, fun to be around and generally awesome ;), the qualities that make me unique and interesting are often lost on the audience I’m presenting to, because I feel the need to ‘be professional’. In reality, my ability to communicate isn’t judged by the words I use, but by the message I’m trying to convey. This is precisely what Sider outlined in his workshops, by comparing a few different Letters to Shareholders from Fortune 500 companies. ## Plain English in practice We began the workshop portion of the session by looking at a Letter to Shareholders that Sider had butchered from its original format. In groups, we worked through the letter, trying to leverage the following tips to simplify the language and extract the essence of the message: - Use pronouns - Bad: “Maturity and duration management decisions are made.” - Better: “We will try to profit.” - Be verb-centered rather than noun-centered - Bad: “The maturity structure of the portfolio is adjusted.” - Better: “We will hold,” “We will concentrate,” “We will buy.” - Avoid the passive - Bad: “Adjustments made to shorten portfolio maturity and duration are made to limit capital losses.” - Better: “We will focus on the big picture and won’t make moves based on short-term considerations.” - Minimize your use of prepositions, as they tend to make sentences noun-centered - Bad: “The maturity structure of the portfolio is adjusted in anticipation of cyclical interest rate changes.” - Better: “And, conversely, if we expect a major shift to lower rates, we will buy long bonds.” The letter we dissected was Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos’ Letter to Shareholders from April 2015, which is a case study for the effectiveness of writing in plain English. In the letter, Bezos compares Amazon’s relationship with its three pronged business offering to marriage. Here is a comparison between the introduction Professor Sider drew and altered from Bezos’ letter , and the letter itself. ### Professor Sider version: > Four characteristics are to be maintained by every offering a business makes: it is loved by the people who buy it, it can metamorphe in scale, its capital returns are strong, and it is both long-term and very robust—with the potential for decade over decade growth. When such a business offering is found, it is to be seized almost like matrimony, rather than merely “approved of” like one does on Tinder when you like someone. ### Jeff Bezos Letter to Shareholders: > A dreamy business offering has at least four characteristics. Customers love it, it can grow to very large size, it has strong returns on capital, and it’s durable in time—with the potential to endure for decades. When you find one of these, don’t just swipe right, get married. Sider’s version is how you would expect the CEO of a multi-billion dollar company to address his shareholders and supporters. However, Bezos’ version, the actual introduction, defines Amazon’s ideal business offering with such simplicity and clarity. With few prepositions, proactive language and the use of pronouns, the introductory paragraph is engaging. It draws you in. Give the full letter a read [here](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1018724/000119312515144741/d895323dex991.htm). ## Try it out We worked through most of the letter before the session ended. Now, weeks later, I’ve had time to digest the workshop and I think it’s a good exercise for anyone in a marketing or communications role. Obviously, the goal is not to go so far that your business sounds illiterate. Although, Billboard Top 100 song lyrics average a third-grade reading level, so there’s something to be said for really plain English. But I’m confident Professor Sider’s guidelines for writing in plain English will help you simplify your writing and clarify your message. Pull up a recent email, newsletter, or proposal and work through it using Sider’s tips. Compare the final product and see which version has more impact. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Explore how businesses can leverage untapped data to drive growth and innovation. Learn strategies for identifying and utilizing hidden data assets to gain insights, improve decision-making, and enhance competitive advantage. Discover the value of harnessing data effectively. ## The Value of Unused Data: Turning Insights into Action November 22, 2018 5 Min Read Data: humans are generating more and more of it and at an increasing rate. So much in fact, that 90% of the data that exists today was generated in the last two years alone.[1](#further-reading) Big corporations have taken advantage of the huge value this data represents by focusing their efforts on collecting it - including intimate details of our lives. From our likes, dislikes, location, and political leanings, to our “private” conversations, data mining has stimulated a buzz around privacy concerns. ## An infinite resource I recently read two articles that provided an interesting perspective on how BIG “big data” has really become. The Economist makes the bold claim that “The world’s most valuable resource is no longer oil, but data”, and draws many analogies between the two industries. Both oil and data fuel our way of life and are responsible for countless products and services that have become indispensable, reliance upon which has become mission-critical in some cases. The sheer dominance of the biggest tech companies over the data streams they control has even prompted some to ask for their breakup, similar to the perceived threat of powerful monopolies like Standard Oil over a century ago. Both articles are well researched and well worth the read (links at the end of this article), but they got me thinking about one important difference between O\&G and the data economy. Oil _is a finite resource_. It exists in limited reserves and deposits, and the process of accessing and deriving value from it is expensive and complicated. Data, on the other hand, is a [non-rivalrous](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rivalry_\(economics\)) resource and in some cases also [non-excludable](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excludability). The quantity of data, unlike oil, is actually increasing. Companies of all kinds are sitting on vast amounts of historic data, while also generating new. **So why aren’t more non-tech companies taking advantage of this?** ## A competitive advantage and a moat Data can be used to gain insights that were previously difficult or impossible to discover. These realizations help companies improve their products, services, and delivery, and provide advantage over competitors. Facebook and Google started out by using basic demographic data to target advertising at a subset of consumers. But now, based on our likes, and in combination with countless other interactions through the range of their “free product” suites, they’ve fine-tuned ad targeting and improved their personalized newsfeeds. One of the best and more recent examples of this type of data-based competitive advantage is the rise of “digital assistants.” Amazon’s Echo device and Alexa assistant has been runaway successes for that company. Google has followed suit with the Google Home, and Apple is set to introduce their standalone device, Sire. The race is on to collect the most raw data. The more data collected, the more intelligent these digital assistants become at performing tasks. The advantage comes from having a more capable device operating off of well-informed insights, which can then better monetize their system through accessory products, services or third party marketplaces. These product improvements draw more customers, increase device sales and fuel an even greater engagement that feeds the flow of data. This effect has now been coined as the “data-network effect.” Not only can data help with product and service improvement, it can also provide important insight into the current state of your industry. By helping you to spot trends early, data can allow you to preemptively pivot your direction, and maybe even prevent you from getting blindsided by the competition. Used effectively it can surface opportunities for interesting partnerships. Or for larger companies, it can help form the basis of an M\&A strategy, in a similar fashion to how Facebook scooped up startups like Instagram and WhatsApp. ## He who has the data wins It’s a matter of introspection and looking at one’s own data to draw analogous comparisons to your own business and industries. What’s clear is that data will continue to play an increasing role in business. A significant amount of value will be placed on data as a core asset. Tesla sold only 25,000 cars in Q1 compare to GM’s 2.3 million, and yet Tesla is valued more than GM. This is in no small part due to the 1.3 billion miles of self-driving data Tesla has accumulated.[2](#further-reading) Thanks to the advent of machine learning and other AI techniques, companies no longer need a small army of analysts combing over the data. Further, there are third party platforms such as IBM’s Watson that apply machine learning and other AI principles to extract more value and new insight from your data. Unlike O\&G, every company has data and can find even more data sources, both internal and external. It is imperative that companies have a data strategy. Think about the data points that your company is or isn’t collecting. More importantly, this is about what decisions are currently based on data and what you might be able to do if you just had more insight into X, or data on Y. This can form the beginning of your data strategy. And of course, [give us a call](tel:+13066534747). We would love to talk data with you. ### Further reading [The world’s most valuable resource is no longer oil, but data](http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21721656-data-economy-demands-new-approach-antitrust-rules-worlds-most-valuable-resource) [Data is giving rise to a new economy](http://www.economist.com/news/briefing/21721634-how-it-shaping-up-data-giving-rise-new-economy) 1 [Big Data Analytics](https://www-01.ibm.com/software/data/bigdata/what-is-big-data.html) 2 [The Tesla Advantage: 1.3 Billion Miles of Data](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-12-20/the-tesla-advantage-1-3-billion-miles-of-data) ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Discover the top four reasons why Design Thinking is essential for your projects. Learn how this user-centric approach fosters innovation, enhances problem-solving, and improves collaboration. See how Design Thinking can drive successful outcomes and create more impactful solutions. ## Top 4 Reasons to Embrace Design Thinking in Your Projects January 04, 2019 7 Min Read Full Disclosure: We are believers, proponents and practitioners of Design Thinking. Because it works. In looking at the state of disruption organizations face: the need to change, the challenge to innovate, to find a new vision; the insistence managers do more with less; the call to consolidate, to go digital, to integrate diverse services; to re-imagine the future and then make it real – well, those challenges probably explain that deer-in-the-headlights expression on the faces of many leaders I meet. As most of our projects are software oriented, we are keen observers of the roadkill on the information highway. Those many species of fatality exhibited by innovation project failures. Those cost saving enterprise solutions that collapse in budget overruns. Shiny new applications that aren’t adopted because they are harder to use then what was replaced. The half successes that stop functioning from lack of support. Or, those projects that are enthusiastically and promptly built but are then re-engineered to add someone’s missed feature, and again for another’s missed capability, and again until their purpose has been forgotten and forward momentum stalled. Then there are the digital pedestrians – the employees and end users – whose frustrations become a weak cynicism and wonderment at all the digital wheel spinning that seems to result in not much forward movement for them at all. And here comes the change management and training bus that follows in the dust of the efficiency producing projects that have made things less efficient for users. All with an increase in the corporate malaise. What happened to those bright-eyed and bushy-tailed newbies? They joined the organization with the ideal of making a difference, only to get bogged down by the apathy of their co-workers, at least in regard to cycles of change and re-visioning driven from the top down. I know there is a better way forward. We might be talking about a vast organization or a small team that needs change. The challenge may be identified or could be in a state of internal contention. It may even be a political football, with a huge public audience to take into account. “Strategic Visioning” has likely been tried before and failed to gain traction. Yet, there IS a way forward. And, the way to move forward in a productive way, to foster group cohesion and enthusiasm, to propel things forward is **Design Thinking**. > After building digital products and services for 20+ years, we know how to execute on successful projects, and it involves a user centered approach. What is success in this context, anyway? We’d say it’s a few things. For the user, it means getting the thing they need – that thing that makes them better at what they’re trying to do – with little need for explanation or training in its use. For the purchaser, it means the process of attaining the new product or service went smoothly – that it was completed on time, on budget and with all parties agreeing they received what they were expecting, or more. And from zu’s point of view, the journey’s a success if the client is all revved up and ready to tackle the next challenge because of what their team accomplished, and how pleased their end users and bosses are. If you are wondering what exactly goes on in these User Centered Design engagements, our own Design Thinking team can provide the details. Here, I want to jump straight to four of the key benefits that will be most helpful for decision makers stuck enroute to innovation. ## Collaboration People sometimes expect innovative ideas to come from consultants. Maybe. Sometimes. But, the innovation you need is already close at hand. It’s latent in the minds of your end users, the staff that works with them, and all of your team that touches the issue. Design thinking just surfaces it and pulls it all together. When your team is guided through a Design Thinking engagement, it will go far, far beyond water-cooler discussions and inter-departmental meetings about the challenge. It’ll take your team past annual planning sessions, and certainly beyond the opinion of experts. This adventure of discovery will leave the silos of specialization in the rearview mirror, and the org. chart back at a rest stop. Design Thinking goes all the way to the destinations of Trust, Creativity, and Unity of Purpose. Your project team has probably never made it this far before, has never really had to spend this much time together, listening to one another – comparing ideas and goals. Without the guided (and fun!) process of Design Thinking your team is unlikely to generate the collaborative results you need to succeed. ## Insights Whether these sessions start with examining where you’ve been – such as with findings from research, surveys, and interviews – or these sessions start with nothing: the process will generate insights. The Design Thinking approach consistently delivers an accurate and deep intuitive understanding of an issue or opportunity. These insights form the basis of breakthrough understandings and innovative approaches. The varied exercises of Design Thinking will coax all the tiny flakes of insight out of any cross-functional bunch of strangers or colleagues, gathering and melting them into a single compass needle of direction. The process is done once for initial problem identification, and once for choosing the best solution. ## Success by any measure Having the right direction makes getting to the destination so much easier. It also means your planned resources will be sufficient fuel for the distance you need to cover. Additionally, during the entire journey the Design team asks your team if they are still happy with where we’re headed. If they want to make adjustments, now is the time. User Centered Design keeps a prototype of where you’re going front and center the whole trip. In most corporate trips, the destination is chosen for you. You’re taken there, dropped off, and trained to like it. Sometimes your company will need to pay for another trip to a different location after it’s apparent that the first destination was not suitable. With Design Thinking, the right direction leads to predictable costs, predictable arrival and assured satisfaction for the users. User Centered Design is how one company’s free software beats another’s. It’s why you’re not using Yahoo for searches or Blackberries as your smartphone. It’s why folks like Uber better than taxis, though they are nearly the exact same thing. From the perspective of the user, the approach that wins was better. Solve the user challenge first and all other definitions of success follow. ## The future The last top reason organizations should use Design Thinking is that it makes people believe – as they used to – that they can make a difference. Most people want to improve things, to do more with their time, for things to run smoother, for clients to be happier, for the organization’s vision to be something they can truly stand behind. When I witness a client team emerging from the final session of a week long Google Sprint, it looks like they just finished an Outward Bound adventure. They are pumped and ready for more challenges. Outward Bound’s motto, incidentally, seems equally suitable for Design Thinking and is: “There is more in you than you think”. Every organization will benefit when their employees are activated by the belief that effort and cooperation can produce change and improve things. Every organization should want their people to pitch in that discretionary personal effort that emerges when they are engaged. Nothing increasing engagement like an experience of success and a knowledge that they had a hand in choosing the direction forward. So, when you need to define vision, build a brand from the ground up, or clarify a problem; when you are undertaking product, interface ,or software design; when you seek process improvement, or service design – we hope you remember these top 4 reasons to use Design Thinking. ## / Author ### Tony Zuck Founding Partner & CFO Alongside Ryan, Tony began as a strategist and designer, working with some of the earliest versions of today’s software programs — leading the way for zu techies to come. These days, Tony leads zu’s Operations and Financial direction, combining operational excellence with creativity and nimble strategy for both ourselves and our clients. --- # / Article > Explore the differences between coupled, decoupled, and headless CMS architectures. Learn about their unique features, benefits, and use cases to help you decide which CMS architecture best suits your business needs and digital strategy. ## Understanding Coupled, Decoupled, and Headless CMS Architectures April 28, 2021 3 Min Read Coupled (or Traditional) Content Management System (CMS) architectures have been the gold standard in website development since the mid-1990s. They accomplish (and still do) the need to display content through a templated solution that is tightly ‘coupled’ to the CMS database on the back end. Coupled CMSs are very suitable for blogs, personal sites and basic corporate websites. They support the fastest development and often provide the best non-technical design experience. Due to plug-and-play built-in themes and templates, the design decisions you make will conform to the stack as a whole. If all you plan to do is add new and edit existing content, you can do so and keep up with some of the largest content sites in the world. However, coupled CMSs don’t break out of their lane very well. As soon as you want to scale the experience by offering custom elements of delight or allow your users to interact with content on other platforms, you’ll have to break large portions of the “coupled” relationship. Digital solutions such as social apps, wearables, virtual reality, personal voice assistants and business intelligence software are being released, improved and integrated faster than businesses are ready for. This accelerates digital transformation and the demand for better backend and frontend UX grows with it, making it necessary to think about the systems separately and treat them as detached projects. This is why decoupled, including headless, architectures are taking off — in order to support the next generation of digital delivery. It’s important to note that headless site development wasn’t really ‘invented’ until 2010 and took a while to catch on. So for the longest time, developers didn’t have any alternatives and coupled was the only way to go. ## What’s the difference between a Traditional CMS, a Headless CMS and a Decoupled CMS? **Traditional or Coupled CMS:** Content Managers create content through an editor and store it in a database. The content is then served to the front-end through a rendering layer that is tightly coupled to the backend. **Headless CMS:** Content Managers create content through an editor and store it in a separate database, fronted by APIs. The content is then retrieved from a completely separate front-end rendering layer through those APIs. **Decoupled CMS:** This is known to be the best of both worlds. Content Managers create content through an editor and store it in a database. This content can be served to the front-end through the existing coupled rendering layer and/or be retrieved from a completely separate front-end rendering layer through an API. ## Pros and cons of Traditional vs Decoupled & Headless CMS Architectures TYPE | PROS | CONS Traditional (Coupled) CMS | Simple development and content management experiences | Content types and delivery channels are limited Fast development due to plug-and-play themes and templates | Increased effort and complexity for customization, maintenance and enhancements Good non-technical control over the content & data of the website | Limited reusability of content in the database Better out-of-the-box SEO and a simpler path to authentication Decoupled & Headless CMS | Fast and flexible content delivery for multi-channel, platform and device experiences | More development & IT effort and reliance Future proof | More complex than traditional CMS to configure and deploy Integrates easily with new technology and innovations | Website re-designs or updates can be more demanding & frequent Reduces risk - if a portion of the application needs to be replaced you can efficiently do so | Greater reliances on IT, security and privacy Considering which architecture type to leverage is dependant on the problem, goals and/or proposed solution. Determine your organizational and/or project’s goals for omnichannel and/or device experiences including how features, functionality and scalability align with your strategic roadmap. This is what we do at **zu.** We partner with leading organizations in their digital transformation journey, ensuring we future-proof their digital ecosystem and help them adapt as the complex world of digital rapidly changes around us all. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Discover how the Halo Effect influences user perceptions in web design. Learn strategies to leverage this cognitive bias to create positive first impressions and enhance user experience. Understand the impact of visual appeal on user behavior and decision-making. ## Understanding the Halo Effect: Cognitive Bias in Website Design May 28, 2021 5 Min Read Your customers are people. Your website visitors are people. Users are real people from all walks of life and they come with unique collections of experiences, preferences and biases as they encounter information and, inevitably, your brand. So, let’s talk about cognitive biases and why you need to consider these when building, refreshing or maintaining your website—arguably the most impactful representation of your brand. A cognitive bias refers to how the framing or context of information influences a user’s decision-making, perception and/or judgment. Individuals who interact with your website have a myriad of biases - we all do - many of which have been researched and documented on a mass social scale. Me, as a designer and problem solver, and you, as a business owner, need to be aware of these common social biases and how they can help or hurt your business. ## The ‘Halo Effect’ One bias to consider is the Halo Effect, first studied in 1920 by American Psychologist Edward Thorndike, and further theorized by Solomon Asch. As NNG states, the Halo Effect bias “causes people to be biased in their judgments by transferring their feelings about one attribute of something to other, unrelated, attributes”. In other words, judging a book by its cover. We’ve all seen this at work in our everyday life, in both positive and negative ways: - A well-designed wine label = good wine - An expensive car = successful person - A nicely manicured yard = well-kept home - A beautiful brand = a company that has their sh\*t together - A celebrity-endorsed product = a reputable, high-quality item This can work in your favour, as in when you “dress for success” for a job interview or for your first day of work. In an office setting, people might infer from your formal outfit that you have a good work ethic or strong leadership skills. Cognitive biases not only affect our personal lives but in areas of business such as, and especially in, marketing. It has been documented that organic labels produce a more positive image of a product. “The way a [brand labels](https://www.healthline.com/health-news/policy-food-labels-can-affect-our-perception-of-health-040413#1) and markets their products can also determine whether you like the end result. For example, a food study published in [Food Research International Trusted Source](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30716882) labelled the same food products (yogurt, potato chips, juice) ‘organic’ or ‘conventional’. The ‘organic’ products received higher ratings overall, and consumers were willing to pay more for them.” ([source](https://www.healthline.com/health/halo-effect#marketing)) ## User bias and your website As it relates to your website and other brand touchpoints, NNG brings up an example of a user tester’s comment in their video. They give the example of a spelling mistake on a web page affecting a user’s opinion of the quality or integrity of a moving company. Two unrelated aspects of the business—web content and the moving service itself—likely managed by two different departments, but now connected and transferred in a user’s mind. As a designer, I want to ensure that a client’s website and digital user workflow is creating a good first impression through a positive experience. The goal is to use the positive benefits of the Halo effect to win over the user. Almost every aspect of a digital interface can influence the portrayal of an organization’s brand identity or ‘personality,’ including: - Visual design: how the UI looks - Content design: how the UI sounds - Interaction design: how the UI feels It’s easy for companies to focus on the visual design and neglect the content, or to focus on interactions but forget to budget for quality photography. These, along with the performance of your site, will balance to create an incredible experience. We test this experience (the website) with users to ensure usability and to gauge impressions. > If users like one aspect of a website, they’re more likely to judge it favourably in the future. Conversely, if users have a particularly bad experience with a site, they’ll predict that the site will treat them poorly in the future as well and, thus, will be reluctant to return to the site. When users visit your site, we want them to have a positive impression, gain that positive Halo effect and have it reflect on and transfer to your company as a whole. As an owner or stakeholder in your brand, you must audit your site and all of your brand touchpoints to make sure that you are not leaving yourself vulnerable to a **negative Halo effect**, sometimes called the Horns effect. As shown in the NNG video, this is where inconsistencies in your content or visuals can cause a negative association to transfer to your brand. Continuity and cohesive systems create a good impression and create trust between a user and your brand. It’s important to listen to your users’ feedback, regularly check your analytics and routinely monitor your site and brand touchpoints to make sure you are putting your best foot forward. One loose end can unknowingly hurt your reputation. One good impression can build your business. Want to check out other cognitive biases that could be affecting your customers? Check them out [here](https://thedecisionlab.com/biases/). ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Discover how to optimize your website for both user satisfaction and SEO by focusing on Web Vitals. Learn the key metrics that Google uses to assess performance and how improving these can lead to better user experiences and higher search rankings. ## Web Vitals: Delighting Google and your Users May 13, 2020 9 Min Read May 13, 2020 Last week, Google introduced a new program called [Web Vitals](https://blog.chromium.org/2020/05/introducing-web-vitals-essential-metrics.html). As [web.dev](https://web.dev/vitals/) describes it, “Web Vitals is an initiative by Google to provide unified guidance for quality signals that are essential in delivering a great user experience on the web.” With this, Google is simplifying the clutter of metrics found in various tools and putting the ones most essential for a quality user experience front and centre. These metrics are called Core Web Vitals. ## The d-word 2000 or so years ago, an architect named Vitruvius wrote a famous line in his treatise, _De architecture_, often translated as “Well building hath three conditions: firmness, commodity, and delight.” Delight has persisted as a design concept to the present day. There is debate, of course, over its importance and what it even means. Some see it as referring to finishing touches or “a cherry on top.” When delight is viewed this way, it can become associated with superficial embellishments and attract criticism, like in John Pavlus’s article “_[‘Delightful’ Interaction Design Needs To Die.](https://www.fastcompany.com/3042849/delightful-interaction-design-needs-to-die)”_ To make a distinction between embellishments and a more holistic view of delight, Therese Fessenden differentiates **superficial delight** and **deep delight** in her article _“[A Theory of User Delight: Why Usability Is the Foundation for Delightful Experiences](https://www.nngroup.com/articles/theory-user-delight/).”_ She describes deep delight as being achieved once all user needs are met, including functionality, reliability, usability and pleasurability. When it comes to the web, Google has embraced the D-word in presenting its opinion of what makes a good user experience. It defines **[the core foundations of a delightful web experience](https://developers.google.com/web/fundamentals)** as: - Fast - Integrated - Reliable - Engaging To delight its users, Google needs to be able to reliably guide them towards positive experiences on the web. Considering its role as gatekeeper, **site owners would be wise to aim to meet Google’s standards**. However, there are a lot of tools and metrics to measure the quality of a web experience, and it can be hard to know what’s most important. ## So, what are the Core Web Vitals? Google has established **three Core Web Vitals** (for now). They seem to be focused on the _Fast_ and _Reliable_ elements of the delightful web experience recipe. ### LCP - largest contentful paint - Measures loading performance - Recommended: <2.5 seconds - Measured in the lab or the field Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) measures perceived load speed. Web pages tend to load in bits and pieces, and the LCP occurs when the image, video or text block that takes up the most visible space appears. This metric is considered important because when this largest piece loads, it’s likely that the page’s main content has loaded and it’s assumed that the page is now useful to the user. Although it may take more time for additional smaller elements to appear, having the main elements load quickly creates the perception of a fast load speed. ### FID - first input delay - Measures interactivity - Recommended: <100 milliseconds - Measured in the field First Input Delay (FID) measures load responsiveness. It’s how long the web browser takes to respond to the first input a user attempts on an interactive element on the page—typically this would be click or a tap. Imagine the frustration of trying to click the “Buy” button for concert tickets the second they go live only to have to wait for ads to load in before you can continue. Once a user can see something on the page, they assume they can interact with it without delay. A high FID is confusing and frustrating. A low FID helps ensure the page is usable. ### CLS - cumulative layout shift - Measures visual stability - Recommended: A CLS score <0.1 - Measured in the lab or the field Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) measures the stability of page content. Imagine reading a paragraph of text as other elements on the page continue to load in, and the block of text jumps down, and you lose your place. Have you ever gone to tap a button and some unseen force compels an ad to appear and moves the button immediately before your tap? Let’s just say it’s _not_ delightful. Every time a layout shift happens that isn’t the result of user input, a layout shift score is calculated. The layout shift score is determined by multiplying two fractions. One is the total portion of the user’s viewport that was affected by the element shift, and the other is the portion of the user’s viewport that represents the distance that the shifted element moved. All of these scores are added together to form the CLS score for a page. ## What is lab measurement? Lab measurement refers to running automated tests in a simulated environment. These tests are impacted by the performance and network connectivity of the machine running the tests, so they don’t always match up with the results seen in the real world. Lab tests are most useful during the development process to get performance metrics before launching a new site, or a change to an existing site. ### How to run lab tests [Lighthouse](https://developers.google.com/web/tools/lighthouse) is a tool that can be used from the command line to run lab performance audits on a site. It can be configured to be automatically run regularly to detect changes to performance over time and can also be integrated into a site’s continuous integration process to catch performance issues that might be introduced by launching a new feature or bug fix. Lighthouse audits can also be run directly in the Google Chrome browser’s DevTools: 1. Navigate to the page you would like to test in Chrome. 1. Open DevTools by opening the Chrome menu in the browser window, selecting the option “More Tools,” and then selecting “Developer Tools.” 1. Select the “Audits” tab. 1. Click “Generate report.” LCP and CLS metrics are available in Lighthouse. As FID is based on real-world user inputs, it cannot be measured in the lab. There is, however, a lab metric called Total Blocking Time (TBT) that can be used as a proxy. When TBT improves, generally FID will improve. ## What is field measurement? Google states that the Core Web Vitals are **first and foremost field metrics**. Field measurement refers to collecting performance data from actual users of a site. The Chrome User Experience Report collects anonymized data from users of Google’s Chrome browser who have consented to share their statistics. ### How to measure field data Chrome User Experience Report data is provided on [Google BigQuery](https://bigquery.cloud.google.com/dataset/chrome-ux-report:all?pli=1). Anyone can access this, but it requires a Google Cloud Platform account and is geared towards technical users. [PageSpeed Insights](https://developers.google.com/speed/pagespeed/insights/) provides a basic summary based on this data publicly, without requiring an account or technical knowledge. The Speed Report in [Search Console](https://search.google.com/search-console/about) also provides some of this information in a user-friendly way, and with more granular, detailed data than PageSpeed Insights. Search Console is only accessible to site owners who have verified their site ownership. The Chrome User Experience Report includes LCP, FID and CLS data. Both PageSpeed Insights and Search Console include FID, with LCP and CLS coming soon. To get more valuable, specific information to help solve performance issues, sites can also collect these metrics using JavaScript. The logic can be written manually, but Google provides a [library](https://github.com/GoogleChrome/web-vitals) called web-vitals to make it easier. This data can be stored however and wherever the site owner wishes. It can be paired with existing analytics, so when diagnosing issues, developers have access to important context. For example, it would allow you to analyze which pages the performance issues affect, whether the issue is only impacting a subset of users (such as logged-in users) and which devices and web browsers are associated with issues. ## Why is this important? When a site starts loading, the clock is already ticking. For example, in a [study](https://royal.pingdom.com/page-load-time-really-affect-bounce-rate/) of select eCommerce sites, the bounce rates (users who view a single page and left) were compared to how long the sites took to load. At a load time of 3 seconds, the bounce rate was 11%. For 4 seconds, it was 24%. For 5 seconds, it was 38%. **Users have high expectations of speed and reliability.** A low LCP will give users the perception that the website is loading quickly and will help keep them around. It’s pretty easy to see how FID and CLS are important metrics too. Nobody likes to be frustrated by unexpected delays or trying to chase buttons around the page. Google is always tweaking its web search ranking logic, and its first announcement regarding using site speed as part of its formula came back in 2010. The emphasis that Google is now placing on these Core Web Vitals signals that these metrics are **very likely to form part of its ranking algorithm** now, or in the future. So, it might be a good idea to have a look at how you’re doing in these areas. Google even has a [Chrome Extension](https://github.com/GoogleChrome/web-vitals-extension) in developer preview to show these three metrics for any site you visit. > Paying attention to Core Web Vitals will help drive more people to your site and, if you play your cards right, provide them with deep delight once they get there. [August 20, 2020 update](https://blog.chromium.org/2020/08/highlighting-great-user-experiences-on.html): Google will begin to identify pages that have consistently met or exceeded the recommended measurements for the Core Web Vitals in future versions of the Chrome browser, starting as an experimental feature that can be enabled in Chrome 85 Beta on Android. Pages that meet the criteria will be identified with a new “Fast page” label, with a checkmark icon. This announcement further demonstrates the importance for site owners to monitor and improve their Core Web Vital scores. When little checkmarks are up for grabs, you know things are getting serious. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Is your organization truly collaborative—or just a mix of siloed parts? Discover how Design Thinking helps companies move beyond potential to become purpose-fit, high-performing teams. (Also, eat your salad.) ## What Kind of Salad Dressing is Your Company? May 14, 2025 4 Min Read That was kind of a trick question. It should actually be “If you think your company is a Salad Dressing Company, are you in fact fooling yourself? Okay, now let me take you down my way of analogizing this concept. What is salad dressing but a mix of a few things, oil, vinegar, some spices, but let’s think about the oil and vinegar, mainly. Here’s a picture of “salad dressing” in its, let’s say – “collaborative state”. In picture 2 you might say this dressing is so “siloed” that it is not really a salad dressing. It’s just the parts that can, under the right conditions, form salad dressing. Is your company more than an accumulation of siloed services or job functions? Are you really the company that you think you are? Or are you more the potential to become the company you think, mistakenly, you are. Are you a multiple set of Oils and Vinegars or are you the collaborative mix that’s fit to the purpose. At zu, we lead companies in Design Thinking, a type of collaboration that is long on listening and communication with the cross-functional teams for whom this particular innovation project will touch. This is the shaking action that makes the outcome a “whole company” solution. This proper shaking is why our projects succeed where others seem to fail: they didn’t start with collaboration properly accomplished. Software projects, as well as any projects which require innovation, or widespread change across an organization need the participants—stakeholders, employers, users, whatever you want to call the whole lot—to become Salad Dressing at the beginning, middle and end, so that the initial direction, the path forward and the tools created have addressed the siloed ingredients as one system, producing something that that is a greater whole. Whatever the point is of your company or organization—whatever conversion factor defines your success—better collaborating companies are likely to out-evolve and out-perform you. Getting the most out of your organization’s unique groups involves making them into a cohesive decision making entity. To let the metaphors run free: Are you herding cats when you think you’re racing a sled-dog team? Our Design Practice team has assisted companies tackle all manner of for profit and not-for-profit software system re-designs, change management challenges following mergers, consolidation of health regions into one internet presence, and so forth. Our approach worked because we took the challenge to the group, not its departmentally focussed parts. Silencing the silos and flattening the hierarchies gave rise to a team mindset of understanding each others’ challenges, bringing the group to common ground and purpose. Whether that’s to coalesce into a new vision of your organization or version of your offering, (or to flavour a salad), it is a proven approach. (Also, please eat your salad.) ## / Author ### Tony Zuck Founding Partner & CFO Alongside Ryan, Tony began as a strategist and designer, working with some of the earliest versions of today’s software programs — leading the way for zu techies to come. These days, Tony leads zu’s Operations and Financial direction, combining operational excellence with creativity and nimble strategy for both ourselves and our clients. --- # / Article ## What is Open Source Software? — a Marketers Perspective September 01, 2021 4 Min Read Implementing open-source technology allows organizations to be flexible in navigating the rapid changes in the digital landscape all while custom-fitting digital experiences to current and emerging platforms. This article will catch you up on all things open-source, including what it is, where it started, open-source software today and how it works here at zu. ## Open Source & Closed Source Software **Open-source software (OSS)** is released through a specific license that makes its source code legally available to developers—meaning developers can examine, copy and enhance the software’s code. The source code can be repurposed to help in the creation of new websites, intranets or platforms but it’s important to note that the code of the original source cannot be changed. **Closed Source Software (also known as proprietary software)** falls on the other side of the spectrum. It’s software that is developed exclusively by a single company or group. How it’s created is kept secret from the general public and is available only to the developers that created it. No one, other than the owner, can see the underlying source code, and other users cannot easily (and potentially legally) examine it, copy it or enhance it. ## Like Sharing Recipes You can think of open-source and closed-source as sharing recipes. Closed source recipes are closely guarded secrets. Companies keep their recipes hidden away, locked in a vault, only accessible by their team, and the only way you can enjoy these recipes is to buy the finished product. On the other hand, open-source companies freely share recipes so that anyone can see the ingredients, make changes and create their own versions. Some of the largest companies in the world leverage open-source technology, and share recipes, by contributing back to the project, including the likes of [Spotify,](https://www.spotify.com/us/home/) [Tesla](https://www.tesla.com/), [General Electric,](https://www.ge.com/ca/) [The Government of Australia](https://www.australia.gov.au/), [Mint.com](http://mint.com/) [NASA](https://www.nasa.gov/) and [Twitter](https://twitter.com/?lang=en). ## Origins of Open-Source Software Software started as solely proprietary where non-disclosure agreements (NDA) were required to receive it and see how it ran. Companies would distribute software on tape and once the NDA was signed, recipients were free to compile and run the software. In the mid-1980s, one programmer at MIT, Richard Stallman, had issues with this. He wanted to be able to modify the software that controlled a printer. He was unable to do so as the source code was restricted by the software license and an NDA. This restriction and frustration led to Stallman creating the GNU Project. He used the GNU Project as a means of publishing numerous software tools and releasing the source code as “free”. Instead of a proprietary license that required an NDA, the code was released with a license that explicitly forbade making the code proprietary. This meant that anyone that wanted to use it had to contribute their work back to the project. This license is the GNU Public License (GPL) and it is still in use today. The “Free Software Movement,” as it had been termed, continued to grow. During the 1990s, a software developer named Eric S. Raymond published an essay titled The Cathedral and The Bazaar. It discussed different development models for Open Source Software and laid the groundwork for open source development. In the late 1990s, one of the biggest open-source projects was released. The Mozilla Foundation released the source code for Netscape, a popular web browser. This code eventually became the Firefox browser we know today—one of the securest browsers in the world. From this point, corporations began to invest in Open Source Software—IBM, Intel, Red Hat and **zu** are a few good examples of organizations that began leveraging OSS for major projects. On top of the sites listed at the beginning of this piece (and millions of other examples), your web browsers are very obvious uses of open-source software. All of [Mozilla Firefox](https://github.com/mozilla/gecko-dev), [Google Chrome](https://github.com/chromium/chromium), and parts of Apple’s browser [Safari](https://github.com/WebKit/WebKit) are open source. I’ve linked to their source code so that you can see that it’s available to read and modify. In fact, if you can think of something that you do on the computer, from writing a document to watching a video to communicating with friends, it’s likely that it either utilizes Open Source Software, or there’s an Open Source alternative. ## So, Why Open Source? At **zu**, we evaluate software not only based on its cost but on its maturity, its commitment to security, its ability to achieve business objectives and the health and activity of the project. We are an open-source agency fully committed to technologies that provide ambitious, rich, engaging, and functional user experiences for our clients and client’s clients. ## / Author ### Ryan Nieman Marketing Manager --- # / Article > In this keynote, Kai Haley—former Google UX leader and current VP of Design and Research at Alto Pharmacy—shares his journey of transforming design thinking into actionable strategies. This post offers a comprehensive breakdown of his talk, detailing how design sprints, rapid prototyping, and strategic vision can reshape innovation and collaboration in today’s fast-paced environments. Have a watch to uncover practical insights, real-world challenges, and actionable takeaways to enhance your team’s creative process and product development. ## \[XCamp Keynote] When Design Thinking Fails August 07, 2024 45 Min Read ## Introduction In this keynote, Kai Haley—former Google UX leader and current VP of Design and Research at Alto Pharmacy—shares his journey of transforming design thinking into actionable strategies. This post offers a comprehensive breakdown of his talk, detailing how design sprints, rapid prototyping, and strategic vision can reshape innovation and collaboration in today’s fast-paced environments. Read on to uncover practical insights, real-world challenges, and actionable takeaways to enhance your team’s creative process and product development ## Key Takeaways - No Magic Formula: Design thinking and design sprints are powerful frameworks but are not cure-alls. They must be adapted to fit real-world challenges. - Rapid Prototyping & Validation: Embrace iterative prototyping to test assumptions early and often, ensuring that every solution is treated as a hypothesis until validated. - Strategic Vision: A compelling vision—whether through a vision deck or strategic prototype—serves as a roadmap that aligns teams and drives actionable outcomes. - Empowered Collaboration: Effective facilitation, driven by unbiased UX researchers and program managers, is key to uniting diverse perspectives and steering projects toward success. - Beyond Metrics: While quantitative metrics are useful, true success is measured by the impact on customer experience and the broader goal of making the world a better place. ## / Author ### Ryan Nieman Marketing Manager --- # / Article > Ensure the success of your next web project by considering these six critical factors. From defining your goals and target audience to planning your budget and timeline, these essential steps will help you create a more effective and efficient web development process ## When to Build a Website vs. a Web Application September 18, 2018 5 Min Read The other day, I had a spirited rant discussion with my friend who is a franchisee of a supply chain company. She was looking for business advice and had to decide between staying with the current system or developing one of her own. One of her advisors mentioned that the current website platform (a service that manages franchises and deliveries for customers) can easily be recreated for between $10-20K. I got worked up (as usual) and offered my two cents. Though this was a web-based system, it was far from a simple website. I was dumbfounded at how effortlessly this was passed off as a simple bump in the road. The system provided a very customized service, and I could identify at least 13 significant features, which could be broken down into hundreds of user stories. One of these features was the ability to automatically identify inefficient transportation routes, and print route sheets for drivers across different franchises and locations. Because of this, it was clear to me that the advice my friend had been getting was ill-informed. Maybe it’s because I work in this industry every day, advocating for the complexity of simple things, that I sadly see this disconnect all too often. Some consultants are convinced that you can recreate Facebook with a Weebly theme. It occurred to me that, in the short 10-15 years that websites have been used seriously by corporations and businesses, they have quietly evolved from basic one-way communication platforms to full-on integrated business software. ## Websites vs applications I like to think of it this way: a website is something you read, an application is something you use. Some websites are applications and vice versa, and some happen to be on a scale that is better described as an application. It’s often a struggle to get clients to fully understand the true scale of a project until they are midway through planning. For the majority of users, they can rarely assess the size of a website or application if it’s executed well. They will effortlessly browse between a local taco shack’s website and then transition to Facebook, without recognizing that they have essentially gone from a camping tent to the Taj Mahal with the click of a button. People are often shocked when I explain how many web developers are staffed at most companies like Amazon, Etsy, eBay, etc., and even more surprised when they learn how the creation of the smallest feature such as a ‘like’ button dwarfs their entire website budget. There isn’t a universally accepted distinction between a website and a web application. You could argue that every website is an application, just to varying degrees. However, when you refer to websites as software, it tends to elevate its position from merely a communications vehicle, to a more centralized business function. Calling it a website often undermines its importance and can jeopardize the success of a project. ## Consistently underestimated Most of us know people who have gone through some sort of website redesign in their past, and “piece of cake” is never used to describe it. From long delays on decision making, to full staff meetings to discuss ‘how fast the carousel will rotate’, to testing and deploying, and the guaranteed content lag - the general consensus for first timers is usually “more effort than I expected”. To gain serious consideration and engagement of management, we need to stop thinking of complex applications as ‘just websites’. This will not only make for a higher quality end product, but will result in smoother delivery. If we look at most websites being developed today, it’s obvious that the days of brochureware are behind us. Most\* projects involve some sort of: - Secure customer, member, or employee authentication - Integration with third party services such as inventory management, HR database, APIs, or analytics - Content management, automation, syndication, workflow - Multiple authors with different user permissions - Financial transactions - Security - Information design from third party data sources - Custom forms and backend database creation - Multi-page transactional design - Varying levels of social media integration - Data capturing - Rich front-end user experience, optimized for multiple devices and browsers - GPS mapping and geolocation If my friend and her business advisor were to look at their current website and compare it to the above list, they would quickly recognize that it’s definitely a web application, and one should think twice about trying to recreate it without a serious investment. ## Service blueprints Lately, my colleague and Design Director, Zach Perkins, and I have been running more workshops\*\* aimed towards digital managers. We find that [Service blueprints](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Service_blueprint) are a good way to realize the size of your digital footprint. By mapping out key interaction points, you are forced to think about all the backend systems that are affected with each touchpoint. Service Blueprints aren’t new by any means, as they are traditionally done in the world of IT and Business Analyst consulting, but we find that they are a quick way to present the importance of the website as a core system, which stimulates management buy-in. We need to collectively rethink what digital means for an organization. For most enterprises, it embodies the core of operations and is a foundational piece for future success and survival. For other organizations, the application IS the business, which should bring on a whole new level of effort and madness. Another topic for another time… \*I do realize there are plenty systems that exist which can be leveraged and reduce the amount of custom web development, yadda yadda modules & plugins yadda. Future blog topic, I’m sure. \*\*We just happen to be running a UX Planning Workshop **on May 21st**. If you’re interested in joining us, send us a [message](/contact). If you do any sort of website planning or project management, you will find this very helpful as you will learn different design strategy planning methodologies that you will be able to apply to your own project. ## / Author ### Albert Jame Partner & CXO Starting his career at zu in 2002, Albert’s journey spans from the era of static websites to digital ecosystems. Establishing zu as a pioneer in human-centered design, his deeply reflective nature and storytelling craft brings a dynamic blend of logic, reasoning, and humor, making him one of the most sought-after design leaders and speakers in Canada. --- # / Article > Discover why data is crucial for business success in today’s digital age. Learn how leveraging data analytics can drive informed decision-making, enhance customer experiences, and provide a competitive edge. Explore key strategies for effectively utilizing data in your business. ## Why Data is the Hottest Commodity in Business Today May 26, 2020 12 Min Read _Jumping into the world of data science has been a big leap for me over the past year. I’ve felt like the humble tortoise watching the Crossfit-trained hare sprint past me. And with each passing lap, the hare is growing and advancing in form and function. But from the vantage point of my steady pace, I’ve noticed a fundamental flaw in data science practices today — a lack of user-centred design. This article is a meaty 2400 words, outlining some basics, a few insights from leaders in our network and my perspective on how human-centred principles can improve organizations’ efforts to derive meaning from data. So grab a cup of coffee (_[_or a beer_](http://store.9milelegacy.com/)_), sit back, and enjoy this long read._ The term “Big Data” has been bounced around for some time now. I first heard about it at an eConsultancy conference in New York in 2013. What’s interesting is that the challenges the speaker debated then are still present today. As she professed, data is a bunch of meaningless numbers until someone makes sense of them. Fast forward to 2020 and Big Data’s relevance, accessibility and governance is still hotly debated in every organization. Factor in artificial intelligence, Cambridge Analytica and Power BI and everyone’s experience and understanding of what Big Data is and how it can be used are different. In 2009, Hal Varian, Google’s chief economist and UC Berkeley professor of information sciences, business, and economics [predicted the importance](https://datascience.berkeley.edu/about/what-is-data-science/) of adapting to technology’s influence and reconfiguration of different industries: > The ability to take data — to be able to understand it, to process it, to extract value from it, to visualize it, to communicate it — that’s going to be a hugely important skill in the next decades. Big Data, and the field of data science, is emerging as the hottest commodity in modern business enterprises. The role of Data Scientist is a trendy job title but there are no universally-accepted standards, methods, programs and requirements that govern the role. We’re seeing data products and services sprout up and major players such as Google, Amazon and Microsoft are investing heavily in building capabilities for enterprise organizations to use _—_ for a fee. ## How is data science being used? From our vantage point, we’ve recently watched our clients quickly ramp up their understanding and utility for data science within the enterprise. Every company is producing massive amounts of data in every facet of their organization. Theoretically, with all this data, organizations should be able to learn more about their own work in order to drive efficiency and optimize business processes. Analyzing sales and market data should lead to improved foresight in deal-making, strengthening negotiating positions and positively affecting margin. We’ve witnessed data analysis on procurement spend to show immediate returns through better supplier management and spend channel optimization. But how do organizations make sense of their data in order to learn from it? This is where the accessibility of third party software, consultants and data scientists comes into play. There are a whole bunch of very smart people with diverse backgrounds in math, computer science, accounting and business management consulting using their skills to find meaning in data. ## What are some of the problems? But overwhelmingly, we’re hearing that there is **no standard approach**, no Allen key for taking your organization’s data and turning it into gold. There are a few **issues** we’re hearing about. 1. First, going back to the ambiguity of the data scientist role, there is no advanced university program pumping out readymade data scientists, although these programs and courses are emerging due to demand. It’s hard to find people who can blend the cross-functional skills necessary to be _good_ data scientists. Tougher yet, try to find these people locally. 1. Second, organizations are at very different stages of transformation. Data is siloed and, in some cases, inaccessible due to the age and diversity of business-critical systems that are the backbones of most organizations. The maturity of your company’s data analysis (more about this in a minute) affects your ability to derive meaning from it. The old saying, “garbage in, garbage out,” perfectly describes the problem many organizations face in the early stages of business transformation. 1. Third, interpretation is a seemingly impossible activity to align on. Anyone with access to Excel, Power BI, or other charting tools have the ability to plug in numbers and derive meaning. Add on typical breadth and depth of departments and teams and insight depends on the user inputting the data and their point of view within the organization. Centralizing data is hard enough. Establishing trust in a single source for interpretation is very difficult. How does an organization establish data integrity and security through centralization while also allowing for personalization and customization? Tell me, I would love to learn for a project we’re working on. These challenges come directly from leaders in various organizations who I’ve spoken with and research I’ve done over the past couple of years. Moving beyond the challenges (I’ve only mentioned a few, there are many more) and into practical advice, I have some insight to share. ## Data maturity A common theme that I’ve picked up on is the concept of data maturity. It happens to be where most organizations **start their business transformation journeys**. Getting to a set of core or master data is a massive undertaking — but it’s where most successful transformations begin. Once the core data is established, organizations can begin to adapt. This goes for any organization, big or small, as we’ve seen in our own transformation over the past decade. Data maturity follows these **three stages**: 1. **Data acquisition** - Sourcing data is step one. Finding out where data exists and identifying the business-critical systems your organization uses should be your first activity. In our case, back in 2012, it was all over the place. We had a _buggy_ proprietary in-house time tracking system, Excel-based accounting and sticky note sales data. Modernizing these tools was critical to our company’s maturity (grab a beer with Tony for the full story), but this transition moved us to data-driven management that has scaled over the years. Once a comprehensive list of data sources is documented, **obtaining data** is next. This part is what makes data acquisition so tricky. Over the years, systems were added by IT, Marketing, Sales, Operations etc. and few organizations had the foresight 10 to 20 years ago to set up systems with data portability in mind. On top of that, the emergence of SAAS and web tools means that some companies might not own the data they produce. Today, ask any IT leader, this is something they take very seriously when procuring software. 1. **Aggregation** - Funneling all of that acquired data into a single source is next. Moving everything into a data warehouse or data lake is common practice and every major tech company is offering this service. From Google to Amazon, IBM and Microsoft, they all offer services for data aggregation. This is the stage where we find many zu clients. We’re exploring Google BigQuery ourselves and starting the process of automating the transfer of data from the various systems we use _—_ I’ll let our team comment further on that process in a future article. This step is important and becoming a **best practice** because every organization should own their data. Getting it out of the systems that run your business and into a single source is critical for security, portability and flexibility. It’s a critical step that leads to interpretation and visualization—how meaning can be derived from your data. 1. **Interpretation** - The third stage of data maturity is interpretation, where business value increases exponentially. Having clean data in a trusted, central source is the foundation for developing meaning. It opens the door to leveraging artificial intelligence for predictive and even prescriptive modelling. It allows you to create dashboards and high-touch visualization that can align broad groups of stakeholders around key metrics and themes. It’s the area that most of us read about but few are able to achieve without going through the first two stages of data maturity. Now, let’s assume your organization has achieved a high level of data maturity. There are a lot of companies that have _—_ and pat yourself on the back if you’re one of them. Most consumer-driven organizations and tech companies are at this stage. But challenges in interpreting data properly and finding actionable insight still emerge. This is where I believe User-Centred Design and Design Thinking methods come into play. ## How can human-centred design help? As I’ve noted, data analysis projects begin by cultivating swaths of data and combing through it to derive meaning. This is where the data scientist is paid big bucks to find patterns and make sense of numbers. **“Why did our sales drop last quarter?”** Surely the answer to the question must be present somewhere in all the sales figures, customer data and market data we aggregate every day. Well, yes and no. While researching, I came across [this quote](https://medium.com/data-science/a-design-thinking-mindset-for-data-science-f94f1e27f90) that perfectly encapsulates the challenge of using Big Data to answer business questions: > As the available quantity, quality and variety of data has increased, effectively eliminating the need to start a research process with the limitations of the data, the approach to framing the data science project has not evolved. With so much data at our disposal, how do we answer critical business questions? The answer lies in **how we frame the problem**. This is where Design Thinking methods provide an advantage. One such method, the Google Design Sprint, is intended to gather the right people, problems, insights, and materials to understand, identify, ideate, prototype and test solutions in one week. It’s intended to be quick, hence the term ‘Sprint’. To run an effective sprint, a significant amount of time should be dedicated to problem framing. You must slow down to move fast. Data science would benefit from applying the same logic. Properly framing the problem to ensure you’re asking the right question is a critical element that is largely overlooked. But how do we reframe the problem? ### Problem framing Problem framing is the process of asking business questions through a human/discovery lens. Data science projects often begin within the closed system of data that exists _—_ it may not take into account the limitations of existing data sets. So back to our question, “why did our sales drop last quarter?” It’s a valid business question, but it may not be the right one. If the question is business-critical, teams should have the latitude to explore a number of potential answers but should begin with problem framing. While at Google Sprint Conference in October, Tricia Wang of Sudden Compass provided this example of reframing business questions to human/discovery questions: The goal is to align stakeholders around the right question(s) to answer. With the right question, Design Thinking methods can be applied to find answers and arrive at conclusions. As our main priority in reaching data maturity is to **derive meaning**, we need to combine [**Big Data** with **Thick Data**](https://medium.com/ethnography-matters/why-big-data-needs-thick-data-b4b3e75e3d7). Tricia Wang promotes the idea that Thick Data brings businesses and customers closer together to achieve a greater understanding of problems. The Big Data approach to answering our sales question would highlight market trends, customer purchase behaviour and leading and lagging product skews, while the Thick Data approach would swing the other way. Who are our customers/users? What are the motivations, frustrations, needs, wants and pain points with our current sales experience? What questions can we ask our customers to either validate or invalidate assumptions in our sales data? Thick Data is used to develop understanding and empathy. Tricia compared the two like this: Design Thinking provides us with the vehicle to cultivate Thick Data, combine it with Big Data and answer our business questions by advancing possible solutions. Our spin on the classic Design Thinking framework goes like this: 1. **Do Some Research** - Customer/stakeholder surveys, interviews, test the current state 1. **Identify Insights** - Group sharing, affinity mapping, How Might We statements 1. **Come Up With Some Ideas** - Rapid ideating, group, align 1. **Try Ideas Out** - Prototype with sketches, low fidelity objects, workflows 1. **Get Some Feedback** - Test prototypes with users/customers/stakeholders Through this lens, our question about declining sales will be answered _with_ customers. Applying Design Thinking to data projects enables us to validate or invalidate Big Data assumptions, come up with possible solutions to problems and get feedback quickly. These solutions may be new products, a reimagined sales experience, new marketing materials or key messages. And **placing customers in the centre of this process** enables leadership to make insight-driven decisions. Decisions that can be made confidently, validated, tested and adjusted in a much more rapid sequence than waiting to analyze quarterly earnings. The idea here is that all data, including customer feedback, should be used in a tangible way to arrive at conclusions. ## Conclusion Data is such a hot topic right now, and I’ve only scratched the surface. In writing this novel of an article, I’ve been able to reflect on how we at zu can tie human-centred design principles to the process of using data to derive meaning. Our journey is just beginning and it’s exciting. I/we will continue to learn by engaging with others and hearing about their journeys. So, please, if you have any insights from your own experiences, transformations and challenges please share them with me. And, if you’re still with me, congratulations, you must have bought Howard Berg’s speed reading guide in the 90s. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Every company now relies on software—from SaaS tools to custom systems—to deliver value. Learn how to map your digital ecosystem, reduce inefficiencies, and turn your tech stack into a strategic advantage. ## Why Every Company Is a Software Company March 18, 2026 7 Min Read It used to be easy to spot a “software company.” They sold software. They built apps. Their product was code. That line has blurred. Today, almost every organization depends on software to deliver value. A law firm managing client files, a construction company coordinating crews and equipment, and a nonprofit running donor campaigns all rely on software in ways that directly affect outcomes. Even if you don’t write code in-house, you’re relying on a web of tools, integrations, platforms, and vendors to serve customers, run operations, and make decisions. The real question isn’t whether software is part of your business but whether you understand it well enough to treat it like a strategic asset. ## The Digital Footprint You Didn’t Know You Had Many companies still think of IT as a cost center, necessary overhead for email, laptops, and security patches. But that framing misses what’s actually happening day to day. Most workflows and customer touchpoints now run through a mix of: - Custom-built applications and legacy tools - Subscription SaaS platforms - Backend systems connected through APIs - Vendor-managed systems with limited visibility - “Shadow IT” workarounds created by teams trying to move faster These systems rarely start out as a coherent design. They accumulate over time. When the pieces don’t fit cleanly, you get hidden costs: extra tools, brittle integrations, manual workarounds, and customer friction. ## Signs Your Software Ecosystem Is Costing You More Than You Think If any of these sound familiar, you’re not alone: - You’re paying for multiple tools that overlap, but none feel like a perfect fit - A critical process depends on spreadsheets, copy/paste, or “the one person who knows how it works” - Teams build workarounds because the official process is too slow or too rigid - Integrations fail quietly, and you only notice after a customer (or a downstream team) feels the impact - Reporting takes longer than it should because data lives in too many places None of this means your organization is “bad at tech.” It usually means your stack grew faster than your ability to make sense of it. ## Mapping the Digital Ecosystem One of the most valuable exercises we do with clients isn’t writing code. It’s mapping their digital ecosystem: every system, tool, integration, and key user touchpoint in one place. A simple visual inventory often surfaces things like: - Multiple tools paying for the same capability - Integrations that fail quietly (and only get noticed when something breaks downstream) - Manual handoffs that burn capacity - Customer experiences that stall because of invisible internal steps This isn’t just IT hygiene. It’s a practical way to see where technology supports, or blocks, your business goals. ## A Simple Approach: Visibility → Control → Leverage When companies want to improve their technology stack, the instinct is often to jump straight to “pick a new tool” or “build the missing feature.” The better sequence is usually: - **Visibility:** Make the ecosystem legible. What systems exist, who uses them, what data moves between them, and where customers touch them. - **Control:** Reduce fragility. Clarify ownership, simplify integrations, add monitoring where failures are currently invisible, and retire duplicates. - **Leverage:** Invest where it matters. Prioritize changes that reduce operational drag, improve customer experience, or increase speed to delivery. The goal isn’t to get to perfect. It’s getting the stack to a place where it reliably supports the business, and changes can be made without fear. ## What a “Map” Actually Produces When we do this well, you get a clearer operating picture that includes: - A one-page ecosystem map (systems, owners, and touchpoints) - An integration list (what connects to what, how, and what can break) - A short set of risks and failure points (including where visibility is missing) - A prioritized improvement roadmap tied to business outcomes From there, the path forward becomes much easier to discuss. You can consolidate tools, improve integrations, add automation, modernize a legacy system, or build something custom where it creates real advantage. ## From Cost Center to Value Enabler When you view your tech stack as an ecosystem instead of a pile of subscriptions, the conversation changes. IT stops being “the team that fixes things” and becomes a value enabler. It reduces operational drag, improves customer experience, and helps teams move faster with less risk. But you can’t improve what you can’t see. Clarity comes first. ## How We Help We help organizations make their technology easier to understand and easier to improve—whether that means custom development, better integrations, or untangling a messy stack so it supports the business instead of slowing it down. Because the companies that win aren’t always the ones with the biggest IT budgets. They’re the ones who treat technology as part of strategy, not a line item to minimize. You may not think of your organization as a software company. But your customers and your competitors experience you that way. If you want a clearer view of your digital ecosystem, or a plan to improve it, we’d love to talk. ## / Author ### Shane Giroux Technology Director Shane brings 20+ years of full-stack development and experience to zu. Leading the technology operations, Shane is passionate about engineering that empowers. With a wealth of cross-industry and product experience, Shane helps architect the infrastructure for modern web systems, guiding the development approach of any digital initiative. --- # / Article > Upgrade to Drupal 11 now for better security, performance, and flexibility. Avoid risks, cut costs, and future-proof your website. ## Why Upgrading to Drupal 11 Matters Now September 04, 2025 4 Min Read The release of Drupal 11 is more than just a technical milestone. For organizations that depend on their websites to deliver services, tell their stories, and reach their audiences, Drupal 11 represents an opportunity to strengthen digital foundations while preparing for the future. But there’s also risk in standing still. Drupal 10 will reach end-of-life in **November 2026**, which means the security updates and community support you rely on will disappear. Unsupported software doesn’t just make your IT team nervous — it leaves your organization exposed. Security breaches, rising maintenance costs, and last-minute emergency rebuilds can drain budgets and damage reputation far more than a planned upgrade ever would. For those still on Drupal 7, the situation is even more urgent. You’re already operating on software that is long past official support. Every day you wait, the risk compounds. This is the moment to get ahead of the curve. ## What Drupal 11 Brings to the Table Each new Drupal release is about more than just a version number — it’s about ensuring that organizations have a modern, secure, and easy-to-use digital platform that keeps up with a rapidly changing technology landscape. Drupal 11 improves the way your teams work, with a smoother editorial experience that makes content publishing faster and more intuitive. It streamlines media management, saving your staff valuable time while delivering faster-loading pages for your audiences. Under the hood, it runs on the latest frameworks, which means better security, higher performance, and a platform designed to last. And because Drupal 11 is built for future integration from mobile apps to emerging digital tools your investment today keeps paying off as your needs evolve. ## Why Waiting Costs More Delaying upgrades rarely saves money. In fact, it usually has the opposite effect. We’ve seen organizations that postpone until support ends and then scramble, paying higher costs for expedited work, rushing projects through without strategic improvements, and dealing with avoidable downtime. Unplanned upgrades eat into budgets, frustrate staff, and often result in a “lift-and-shift” that misses the chance to improve. By contrast, planning your move to Drupal 11 now means you control the timing, spread costs strategically, and use the upgrade as an opportunity to strengthen your website’s structure, workflows, and digital strategy. You can either invest on your terms today, or be forced to spend more under pressure later. ## Taking the Pain Out of Migration Upgrading to a new version of Drupal can sound intimidating, especially for those on older versions. There’s data to migrate, designs to rebuild, and technical updates to manage. But this doesn’t have to be a painful process. Our team has guided organizations through upgrades of every size and complexity. We’ve developed proven processes that ensure smooth migrations with minimal disruption. From careful planning and content mapping to design updates and testing, we handle the technical details so your team can stay focused on what matters most: your organization’s mission. With zu, migration isn’t just a technical task — it’s a strategic improvement. ## Drupal as a Platform for Growth One of Drupal’s greatest strengths has always been its flexibility. It’s trusted by global organizations for large-scale platforms, but it’s also a fantastic choice for smaller sites like blogs and campaign microsites. That flexibility makes Drupal a future-proof investment. Your website can start simple and scale into something more sophisticated without needing to switch platforms or invest in a rebuild. With Drupal 11, you’re not just upgrading to a new CMS — you’re investing in a digital platform that grows with you. ## More Than Just Technology When you choose to upgrade with zu, you’re not just getting technical expertise. You’re getting a partner who understands the business stakes: security, cost control, brand reputation, and long-term digital strategy. We believe migrations are an opportunity to improve, not just maintain. That means looking at your site holistically: your content strategy, your workflows, your audience needs, and your organizational goals. Our role is to make sure Drupal 11 doesn’t just meet today’s needs but sets you up for tomorrow’s opportunities. ## Now Is the Time to Plan The countdown to the end of Drupal 10 support is already ticking. Whether you’re on Drupal 7, Drupal 10, or considering Drupal for the first time, now is the moment to start planning your path forward. Waiting until deadlines loom creates unnecessary risk. Upgrading now ensures your website stays secure, stable, and ready to meet the demands of your organization and your audiences. ### Don’t wait for risk to become reality. If you’re ready to talk about what Drupal 11 means for your organization, we’d love to help. [Get in touch with us](https://zu.com/contact) for a free migration assessment or upgrade roadmap. Together, we’ll make sure your website is ready for the future. ## / Author ### Shane Giroux Technology Director Shane brings 20+ years of full-stack development and experience to zu. Leading the technology operations, Shane is passionate about engineering that empowers. With a wealth of cross-industry and product experience, Shane helps architect the infrastructure for modern web systems, guiding the development approach of any digital initiative. --- # / Article > Explore why user experience (UX) is not just the job of designers but a shared responsibility across all team members. Learn how fostering a UX-focused culture can enhance collaboration, drive better project outcomes, and create more user-friendly products. ## Why User Experience (UX) is Everybody’s Job April 02, 2022 4 Min Read “Just make it really simple and easy to use. Make sure it has a good _**user experience**_.” In my role as a User Experience (UX) Lead at zu, I hear this from clients a lot when we’re scoping or kicking off a project. Sounds like a natural request, right? Who **doesn’t** want that for their product or service? “User experience” is a term loaded with assumptions, and I’ve been thinking about it a lot since attending a [Nielsen Norman Group UX Conference](https://www.nngroup.com/ux-conference/) in Vancouver a few weeks ago. After 5 days of intense deep dives into design thinking, leadership, mapping, service blueprinting, and strategy, the phrase that continues to live in my head like an earworm was uttered on the very first day by the exceptional Nancy Dickenson. (That’s the Nancy who’s had a major impact at little companies you may have heard of, such as Apple and eBay.) She said, > UX strategy is business strategy. The power in this statement lies with the recognition that people often take a far too narrow view of what UX really means. UX is frequently used in the following ways: - As something that’s just seen as a designer’s job - As a way to talk about how it feels to use a digital product - Incorrectly, as a term that’s interchangeable with “user interface” and “usability” [Don Norman](https://www.nngroup.com/people/don-norman/) — who is [credited](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User_experience#cite_note-4) with popularizing the term “user experience” in the mid-90s when he was at Apple — explains in this [2-minute video](https://youtu.be/9BdtGjoIN4E) that UX was intended to refer to a **holistic, end-to-end experience with a system or company** that extends far beyond simply using a product. I think these few sentences sum up his position nicely: “\[User experience] is everything that touches upon your experience with the product, and it may not even be near the product. It may be when you’re telling somebody else about it. That’s what we meant when we devised the term, ‘user experience,’ and set up what we called the User Experience Architect’s Office at Apple to try to enhance things.” More succinctly, Norman and his Nielsen Norman Group co-founder, [Jakob Nielsen](https://www.nngroup.com/people/jakob-nielsen/), provide this [definition](https://www.nngroup.com/articles/definition-user-experience/): > ‘User experience’ encompasses all aspects of the end-user’s interaction with the company, its services, and its products. With that in mind, if you have a UX **strategy** for your product or service — a set of **time-bound, coordinated actions** that will guide it to a future state — I’d be willing to wager a guess that you can (and should) push its boundaries further. If user experience “encompasses **all aspects** of the end-user’s interaction with the company,” as Nielsen and Norman state above, then it’s not just a designer’s job, **it’s everybody’s job**. The user experience is influenced by everything from marketing, to customer interactions with employees, to physical environments, to decisions made by leadership that affect all of _those_ things. In that context, the link between UX strategy and business strategy becomes pretty clear, pretty fast. An article I read recently called [Don’t confuse digital transformation with customer experience](https://www.usertesting.com/blog/digital-transformation-customer-experience/?\&utm_medium=newsletter\&utm_source=\&utm_campaign=\&utm_content=\&utm_term=\&mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiTm1WbVl6QTFPVFZqWVdVeCIsInQiOiJcLzVIZWRJSUl0Z1FtenN3ZGdXR0taZCtoWmJ1Q1gwU2ZudEV0akNJeGszWklJd2NIT0NYeFhVakF0ZVwvdkMyVDNEdERVamFMejVTdG5BQ3RPVFp3VEVmRFJacTg2MnZsWlVzOGEwQzVRcUhZdFZlYXp6azNZdWk1QXViYjhHeEdiIn0%3D) explores similar notions. In much the same way that user experience is about more than just your user’s direct interactions with your product or service, the author argues that **digital transformation is about more than digital**. Digital transformation strategies don’t, in and of themselves, drive customer experience. Human insights do: “The most important trend when it comes to customer experience isn’t digital transformation but customers themselves. Technologies, and how we interact with them, will change, but it’s a timeless truth that to stay relevant to customers, companies must keep their fingers on the pulse of consumers’ constantly evolving needs and expectations and build those insights into their offerings.” Human insights come from **human-centred practices**. At zu, we rely heavily on [design thinking](https://www.nngroup.com/articles/design-thinking/) philosophies in our human-centred methods. Though our way isn’t the only way, we find design thinking practices keep users front and centre — both digital and non-digital solutions should serve the people, after all, not the other way around. And since design thinking is an approach to problem solving that you don’t have to be a designer to use or understand, it’s also a great way for non-designers to play a role in delivering a strong user experience. My favourite piece of swag I brought home from the UX Conference is a sticker that says **“UX is people.”** That may bring to mind the aspirational “people are our business” tagline and its variations. While it’s arguably overused, it’s popular because it rings true. So if UX is people, and people are your business, then UX is your business. And no matter what your title, UX is your job, too. ## / Author ### zu Crew On behalf of the team --- # / Article > Discover the invaluable lessons from user research that highlight the hidden challenges and unexpected insights in user experience design. Learn why skipping research can cost both your organization and your users more than you might think. ## You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know: Lessons From User Research August 13, 2024 8 Min Read People are endlessly unique, varied, and surprising. My favourite part of doing research at zu is talking to people and learning about them. I’ve had the pleasure of speaking with all kinds of individuals, from lettuce farmers to gymnastics coaches, and from registered nurses to steel fabricators. Each interaction has taught me something new and unexpected. Sometimes an organisation might opt to skip user research. “Let’s cut the costs and jump straight to design.” Not a great plan! Creating solutions based on assumptions is like flying blind. It can cost the organisation more in the long run because their product, tools, or platform are created without knowing the users. After talking to people, I’ve also learned that a bad experience also costs the users. The cost comes at the expense of their time, their finances, and even their well-being. So why do research? Because you don’t know what you don’t know. What users want, need, and feel isn’t always obvious. These things may seem obvious in hindsight, but are anything but obvious when the client is staring down complex problems with uncertain solutions. So here are some of the obvious and not so obvious things I’ve learned from talking to users. ## 1. You’re creating ripple effects in people’s lives. If you’re putting anything out there for people to use, you are accountable for how it affects their lives. I’ve heard people talk about serious downstream effects that extended well beyond a bad digital interaction: - Taking time off work for an in-person appointment because the digital experience wasn’t working. - Being charged late fees for missed bill payments because the automatic payment signup was onerous. - Overpaying for insurance because the options were confusing and overwhelming. - And, of course, just having a downright grumpy day because a terrible interface pissed them off. (Don’t judge—you’ve been there too!) These downstream effects might seem small and mundane, but they ripple out and impact the user’s life in ways we don’t always see. ## 2. You are not your users. When it comes to your product, service, or platform, you’re actually kind of weird. No normal person knows as much as you do about whatever it is you’re working on. You expect them to know, but they don’t. I can’t emphasise this enough. One of the most common issues I see is when the structure and navigation of a website reflect a client’s organisational structure. The client looks at the website and thinks, “Yes, this seems like the most obvious and reasonable way to organise the information.” But their users? They don’t think that way, and they inevitably struggle to find what they’re looking for on these sites. You are not your users! Engage with them and learn how they think, and how their knowledge differs from yours. ## 3. Most users are guided by feelings, not logic. When you design a system, you’re (probably) going about it in a thoughtful, reasonable, and methodical way. You’re in a cool and rational frame of mind. Your user, however, is not. They interact with your logical system in erratic and unpredictable ways, randomly trying one thing after another. They’re guided by intuition and gut feelings, forming impressions based on emotion. I’ll never forget one user who was wrestling with a confusing interface before she said, “I’m so stupid.” The UI was at fault, but it made her feel stupid, and she blamed herself. Moments like this shape the emotional relationship users have with products. If that relationship is negative, they might never come back. Your reputation largely hinges on how your experience makes people feel. ## 4. Users are individual humans. I dislike the term “user” because it dehumanises the individuals using the product, but people react weirdly when I say things like, “This is how the humans are using the app.” In my time talking to individuals across every kind of project, they’ve invited me to peek into their rich, interesting, inspiring, imperfect, contradictory, and messy lives. They are each the main character in their own story. But we often fail to humanise our users because we’re distracted by the system that’s placed between us and them, turning these real people into an abstract extension of our business goals. The user’s real goals, wants, needs, and struggles become fuzzy and imprecise, leading to designs tailored to that abstraction. ## 5. Being distracted is your user’s default state. We like to imagine someone quietly using our product in a peaceful, distraction-free environment, focusing on each word with the attention of a practised monk. Reality is much different. A colleague recently told us about a usability test where a mother persistently worked her way through tasks while juggling constant disruptions from a lively toddler and a barking dog. Her lived experience was alive, imperfect, and distracted. Users don’t have much cognitive capacity for digital interactions. This has been referred to as the “toilet theory of the internet,” which posits that the majority of online interactions happen while the user is sitting on the toilet. You can take this literally or metaphorically, but it’s meant to remind us that our content, tools, and carefully planned interactions are just a minor blip among the deluge of online distractions vying for the user’s attention. Asking users to describe the context of how they use your platform or product is a great way to gauge the degree and nature of the distractions you’re competing with. Fortunately, I’ve only literally encountered the toilet theory once in all my user research. ## 6. Your user’s main goal is to participate in an exchange from one human to another. A user’s goal is not, “I will navigate this platform,” or, “I will use this tool.” Their main goal is, “I will get what I need from this organisation,” and the platform is just a step along the way. Your central product, tool, platform, website, or whatever is not as important as you might think. I get it, you go to work every day and think about it. But it’s little more than an interface that facilitates the more important piece of the puzzle: the communication between you and another individual. Whatever you’re doing, if you have an end-user, it all boils down to this: an exchange from you to them, and an exchange from them to you. We often get tunnel vision on the tool itself, but if you shift your focus to the person on the other side of the exchange, you can adjust the tool to better facilitate that human connection. ## 7. Users hold grudges. It isn’t that they’re petty; negativity bias is an evolutionary mechanism: remember this very bad thing so you can avoid dying from it in the future. And while a bad online bill payment experience isn’t a matter of life or death, our brains are wired to prioritise and hang onto negative experiences nonetheless. If you’ve created a pain point in a user’s life because you didn’t understand their needs, they will remember that. I often hear people telling woeful stories about bad experiences they’ve had with organisations, sometimes carrying these stories around for years. They’ve been offended and injured, and they won’t forget it. Oh, and they’ll tell their friends about it too. ## 8. Users with cognitive challenges feel ignored and forgotten. An estimated 16% of the world’s population lives with a disability. These are your end-users too. They already face many challenges day-to-day. By failing to engage with them, you risk adding another challenge to their lives, with potentially dramatic and harmful ripple effects. I once interviewed a user with a language processing disorder who mistakenly chose an insurance plan ill-suited to his needs because the website content was confusing and complex. He ended up losing coverage for important medication, creating a financial hardship. His description of the humiliation, frustration, and resignation was heart-wrenching. Don’t cause this kind of problem—make the effort to engage with these users. They may be hard to reach, but as I said in the first point: if you’re putting content, products, or services out there for people to use, you are accountable for how it affects their lives. ## 9. People always surprise me. Expect the unexpected. What a cliché, right? But it’s true! I’ve talked to many end-users, and I’ve learned to set aside my expectations. I encounter new and unexpected perspectives every single time. People are diverse, varied, and unique. If you think you know what to expect, you need to engage with your users. Research makes you humble. Your assumptions, ideas, creative solutions, and expectations about how your product or platform should work will be challenged the moment you start talking to real people. So there you have it: my favourite lessons I’ve learned from users. These insights have taught me that user research is indispensable because we don’t know what we don’t know. Sure, we can bypass user engagement and move forward based on our own assumptions. But this is a risk, not only for the business but for the end-users as well. At zu, we’ve taken on many “rescue operations” from organisations that took that risk. ## / Author ### Christianne Rooke Research Strategist --- # / Article > Discover the latest leadership changes at zu as we appoint new positions to support our growth and strategic goals. Learn about the new roles and responsibilities within the team, including the creation of a CXO position and key promotions that align with zu’s vision for the future. ## zu Announces New Positions February 08, 2023 2 Min Read From our beginnings as a print shop in 1994 to Western Canada’s first digital agency, zu knows about the importance of innovation and remaining relevant. That is why we are pleased to welcome Albert Jame to the position of Chief Experience Officer (CXO) and as a member of the senior leadership team. As the CEO and co-founder of zu, I have seen the accelerated transition to digital services during the pandemic and the resulting growth in demand for our strategy and design services - upwards of 300%. The creation of the CXO position will ensure that zu has the resources and expertise to meet the needs of our clients now and in the future. Albert, a well-known figure in Western Canada’s business community, has been with zu for over 20 years and a shareholder for the past 15. He brings expertise in Service Design and User Experience (UX) and has overseen the development and growth of zu’s Strategy and Design unit from the beginning. “I am driven by helping our clients continually improve. Whether that is the adoption of a digital road map, researching our client’s consumers or developing customer service standards, my greatest reward is helping companies evolve,” said Jame. “By using Design Thinking and User Experience knowledge, zu has been able to help dozens of companies across Canada make better decisions more quickly. What can sometimes take a client several months can be done in a week with our team.” In addition to Albert’s appointment, several other employees have received new titles and responsibilities. - Jennifer Korney has taken over the Resource Manager role; - Megan MacLean has added more responsibilities as the Human Resource Manager; - Candace Walz has moved into the new Process Manager role; - On the production side, Roberta Barrington is now the Design Director; - Brian Ohlmann moves up to Principal Designer; - Shane Giroux the Technology Director - Rebecca Ready takes over the Strategy Director; and - Kit Hillis was named Growth Strategies Director. “All of these changes solidify the future of zu, and align our human expertise with our companies’ priorities,” said Tony Zuck, Co-founder and CFO. “We are really happy with the team and the depth of talent we have at zu. zu has grown from 33 employees in January of 2020 to 44 employees today.” As a digital products and services firm, we use user-centered design to drive innovation within organizations. We work with clients committed to building modern digital solutions for mature industry problems. ## / Author ### Ryan Lejbak Founding Partner & CEO Ryan’s start at zu was a humble one — designing for Saskatoon small businesses while exploring the uncharted Internet in ‘95. A true community builder, Ryan played founding roles in BarCamp, Moso Conference, TEDx, and SaskInteractive, all while serving on boards for SREDA, ITSA, STEP, and SaskTech — tirelessly promoting our industry. --- # / Article > Celebrate the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne’s achievement as a national finalist in Canada’s Smart Cities Challenge. Learn about their innovative initiatives and commitment to creating a smarter, more sustainable indigenous community. ## zu x Mohawk Council of Akwesasne: Canada’s Smart Cities Challenge Finalist June 04, 2018 4 Min Read zu has been working with the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne for the past six months on developing ideas and a proposal for the Smart Cities Challenge through Infrastructure Canada. On Friday, June 1st, it was announced that the Akwesasne community is a finalist for the $5 million prize of the Smart Cities Challenge. Our team is excited to support the community of Akwesasne on building the final proposal for the Smart Cities Challenge. For more information, please see the media release below. _The Mohawk Council of Akwesasne is excited to announce that it has been named one of five national finalists in Infrastructure Canada’s Smart Cities Challenge. Infrastructure Canada asked communities from across Canada to enter their ideas and proposals for improvement projects that would address their community’s issues using a “smart cities approach.”_ _“A smart cities approach means achieving meaningful outcomes for residents through the use of data and connected technology,” Infrastructure Canada said in its challenge description._ _Beginning in July 2017, MCA began researching ideas for the challenge._ _“We are proud to be one of the communities selected as finalists in the Smart Cities Challenge,” noted Mohawk Council of Akwesasne Grand Chief Abram Benedict. “We have and will continue to engage with our community, and as a result, are confident that our Challenge Statement represents an innovative solution to address community priorities.”_ _“We first reached out to the Akwesasne community itself, by posting a Facebook contest in which community members were asked to share their ideas or visions on what smart improvements would be best for Akwesasne,” said MCA Executive Director Jordan Wapass. “The contest generated many ideas and helped MCA staff have direction in what was lacking in the community in terms of technology and access. A previous community survey – through the Comprehensive Community Development Plan – also indicated that health was a key priority to Akwesasne community members.”_ _MCA’s staff, leadership and technicians discussed the Smart Cities challenge over the course of several months and recruited zu, a digital products and services firm, to lead the team in Design Thinking workshops and to help frame the final Challenge Statement submitted for the $5 million category of the Smart Cities Challenge._ _It was important that the challenge statement (proposal) would be beneficial to the community at large, would use technology, improve access to services and information, have measurable data to track improvements, incorporate Akwesasne’s culture and values, and, be adoptable by other communities or First Nations as a requirement of the Smart Cities Challenge._ _MCA’s Smart Cities Challenge Statement, which is now one of five finalists, is to:_ _Decrease the rate of new cases of diabetes per year in Akwesasne to the Canadian average (0.5%; 5.9/1,000) by improving community wellness using traditional approaches encompassing holistic Indigenous practices, improved access to community services and health diagnostics._ _The statement requires new technologies and services to be implemented, including:_ - _an integrated web/mobile system that will improve access to health information and track progress_ - _use of electric vehicles_ - _smart greenhouses_ - _food delivery services_ - _health & diabetes education in modernized methods_ - _improved access to health services and physical fitness_ - _Wholistic & culturally-based approaches_ _(MCA’s full submission can be read here: [www.akwesasne.ca/smartakwesasne](http://www.akwesasne.ca/smartakwesasne/))_ _Infrastructure Canada’s Parliamentary Secretary Marc Miller, well-known for his strides to learn the Mohawk language, congratulated Akwesasne via teleconference this past Monday with Executive Director Wapass and part of the technical team at MCA. (See Infrastructure Canada’s announcement here: )_ _zu is excited to continue working with MCA on the Smart Cities Challenge project. “As a digital services firm, we are thrilled to use digital first to help improve the health and well-being of the Akwesasne community and decrease the number of new diabetes cases. This is a great opportunity to bring a wholistic, culturally based approach to healthy living and use technology to make the educational aspect more accessible and available to the entire community,” says Ryan Lejbak, CEO and Co-Founder of zu._ _“Akwesasne’s proposal will allow Akwesasne to begin leading, empowering and supporting other Indigenous and Canadian communities to enhance diabetes prevention approaches,” said MCA’s Director of Health Keith Leclaire. “We have a unique strength in that we have been offering health services based on Akwesasne’s cultural and wholistic strengths by targeting prevention approaches for over 40 years. We intend to strengthen and share this using smart technology for the benefit of all.”_ _As a finalist, MCA receives $250,000 to further the development of its proposal over the next several months for final submission. Infrastructure Canada will announce the winner of the $5 million award in the spring of 2019._ _Grand Chief Benedict added, “The collaborative effort between our community and organization has resulted in this positive outcome. We are excited to further develop our ideas into a final proposal and look forward to earning the $5 million prize.”_ For information contact:\ Mohawk Council of Akwesasne\ Ashley Tarbell Communications (Media) Officer,\ 613-575-2250 Ext. 2212\ [ashley.tarbell@akwesasne.ca](mailto:Ashley.tarbell@akwesasne.ca) ## / Author ### Ryan Lejbak Founding Partner & CEO Ryan’s start at zu was a humble one — designing for Saskatoon small businesses while exploring the uncharted Internet in ‘95. A true community builder, Ryan played founding roles in BarCamp, Moso Conference, TEDx, and SaskInteractive, all while serving on boards for SREDA, ITSA, STEP, and SaskTech — tirelessly promoting our industry. --- # Assessments > Take our free assessments to evaluate your organization's readiness across key areas like AI, digital strategy, and more. 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Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings to take the assessment. --- # Audit Services > Enhance your digital products with expert UX, AI & Accessibility Audits. Based in Saskatoon, we create inclusive, engaging web and software experiences. ## / What is an Audit? An audit is a structured evaluation of a digital product (portal, system, interface, website, application, etc.) identifying usability issues, AI readiness, accessibility gaps, and areas for improvement. 100:1 return on investment (ROI). Every dollar spent on UX can bring back up to $100. By understanding what users want and delivering it in a way that feels effortless, you’re not only making customers happy—you’re building lasting value for your organization. Source: Forrester 2X faster growth through design. Companies that put design at the heart of their process can grow twice as fast as their competitors. When your digital experience works seamlessly for users, it drives real results and keeps your business ahead of the curve. Source: McKinsey 48% lower customer acquisition costs. By prioritizing user experience, you can cut your acquisition costs in half. When customers find your product simple and helpful right from the start, they’re more likely to stay—and you’ll spend less bringing them on board. Source: NICE ## / Featured Audits - Essentials - Comprehensive - Enterprise #### PROVINCIAL UTILITY PROVIDER ##### Portal & Mobile App Audit Smooth, efficient digital experiences are vital for everything from billing to meter exchanges. This audit streamlined the customer portal and mobile app — reducing confusion, simplifying processes, and improving customer satisfaction. To achieve this, we conducted usability reviews, gathered real customer feedback, and facilitated co-design sessions with stakeholders. These insights shaped a clear roadmap that made digital interactions more intuitive and efficient. [CHOOSE YOUR AUDIT PACKAGE arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](#audit-packages) #### GLOBAL LOTTERY PLATFORM ##### Website Audit Global lottery providers must engage users seamlessly across channels. This audit enhanced how customers discover, play, and manage their accounts online, with recommendations that improved accessibility, simplified navigation, and elevated overall player engagement. To get there, we analyzed user journeys, reviewed platform usability, and mapped customer pain points. By combining industry best practices with direct user insights, we built a roadmap that guided design and development teams toward a more engaging and intuitive digital experience. [CHOOSE YOUR AUDIT PACKAGE arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](#audit-packages) #### NATIONAL TELECOM PROVIDER ##### Mobile App Audit Telecom providers serve millions of customers with complex service offerings. This audit streamlined self-service portals and support channels — reducing friction, improving accessibility, and strengthening customer loyalty. To achieve this, we mapped end-to-end customer journeys, reviewed service platform usability, and gathered feedback from real users. These insights informed clear recommendations that guided the provider toward a more seamless and user-friendly digital ecosystem. [CHOOSE YOUR AUDIT PACKAGE arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](#audit-packages) ## / Clients Nutrien FCC Ministry of Advanced Education SaskEnergy S.O. Asher MySasktel Nutrien FCC Ministry of Advanced Education SaskEnergy S.O. Asher MySasktel ## / Our Team Albert Jame Partner & CXO Brian Ohlmann Principal Designer Rachel Elson UX Strategist Christianne Rooke Research Strategist Brian Kachur Senior Design Strategist Roberta Barrington Design Director Rebecca Ready Strategy Director Erin Bennetto Designer Daniel Alvarez Designer Amanda Ede Designer ## / Our Audit Packages ### Tier 1 #### Essentials ##### 1-2 Weeks - Recommendation Report - Heuristic Evaluation - User Testing Analysis - AI Readiness Assessment ### Tier 2 #### Comprehensive ##### 3-5 Weeks - Recommendation Report - Heuristic Evaluation - User Testing Analysis - AI Readiness Assessment - Analytics Analysis - User Engagement & Testing - WCAG Accessibility Review - Competitive Benchmarking ### Tier 3 #### Enterprise ##### 6-10 Weeks - Recommendation Report - Heuristic Evaluation - User Testing Analysis - AI Readiness Assessment - Analytics Analysis - User Engagement & Testing - WCAG Accessibility Review - Competitive Benchmarking - Additional User Testing - Prototype Workflows & UI - Final Design Presentation “ > zu's approach to research, user testing and prototyping helped us find clear ways to improve our website, customer portals, and overall digital delivery. They simplified our complex processes, making it easier for our customers to independently tackle important tasks—leading to higher customer satisfaction, and a significant reduction in support. --- # Careers > Work with us. Exceptional experiences start with an exceptional team. Which is why we’re always looking for talented people to join our zu crew. ## / Team Values ### Craft We consistently refine our craft to deliver top-tier technology and user experiences. We grow together, sharpen our skills, and collaborate with talented people to push boundaries and realize potential. ### Team On the zu team you make an impact. We value efficiency, smart collaboration, and open communication. Feedback fuels growth, and our culture fosters happiness, making zu an awesome place to work. ### Client We bring value to clients with innovation and efficiency, creating transformational experiences. Strong communication, quality work product, and expertise drive long-term success, moving clients forward with every interaction. ## / Highlights ### Career Mobility We foster an environment that encourages both lateral and upward mobility, empowering our employees to explore a wide range of career paths and seize opportunities for professional growth into leadership roles within our company. ### 50% Women We pride ourselves on our commitment to gender diversity, boasting a workforce that is 50% female. This reflects our core value of equality and inclusivity, fostering an environment where talent thrives and perspectives are celebrated. ### Student Sponsorship We support and invest in the tech community through multiple student scholarships, including those recognizing men & women in tech and Indigenous students as they pursue careers in computer science – embracing diversity for a brighter future. ## / Benefits ### Comprehensive Mental Health Benefits We prioritise the mental well-being of our employees by offering comprehensive mental health benefits, including unlimited mental health practitioner spending, ensuring that our team has access to the support they need to thrive. ### Competitive Salaries Offering competitive salaries ensures our employees feel valued and motivated, driving top performance and job satisfaction. By compensating our team fairly, we attract and retain top talent, creating a dedicated and skilled workforce. ### Flexible Work Schedule A flexible work environment helps our employees balance their personal and professional lives, enhancing overall well-being and productivity. By offering adaptable schedules and remote work options, we model a culture of trust and support. ### Work Abroad Our policy allowing employees to work abroad for 30 days enables them to explore the world while maintaining their professional responsibilities. This unique benefit encourages a healthy work-life balance, making travel more fulfilling while enhancing personal growth. ### Safe Ride Home We love to have a good time, but we love our team’s safety even more. With our ‘Safe Ride Home’ program, we’ve got your ride covered after staff functions—whether you’ve been sipping on a soda or something stronger. Hop into a free Uber on us and get home safe and sound. ### A Culture Like No Other In our industry, the bar is set pretty high, so it says something when you are widely known for your company culture. It’s our secret sauce and the foundation of everything we do. It’s hard to explain, but once you experience it firsthand, you know. ## / Open Roles / There are no open roles at this time ## / Work with us ### Let’s talk. Whether we have an opening or not, we’re always looking to hire great talent. Leave us a message along with your LinkedIn handle, and we’ll keep in touch if something opens up. [Contact arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ](/contact/)[Book Meeting arrow\_outward arrow\_outward](https://calendar.app.google/aJcqSfUfpLRmfBsXA) --- # Contact Us > Whether you’re starting a new project or exploring options, we’d love to connect. Share your details below, and we’ll direct you to the right team member. Full name Organization Phone number [ ]() Email Where are you located? How did you hear about us? Message Add a file No file chosen Browse Browse for file Send arrow\_forward arrow\_forward --- # Drupal > Build smarter, faster digital experiences with our CMS of choice, Drupal. An open-source platform built for scale, flexibility, and the future. ## / Drupal Projects ### Group Medical Services Refreshing the brand and digital presence of a long-established Saskatchewan insurance provider through a cohesive identity, engaging website, and expanded marketing platform. [Explore This Case arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/group-medical-services/) ### Group Medical Services Refreshing the brand and digital presence of a long-established Saskatchewan insurance provider through a cohesive identity, engaging website, and expanded marketing platform. [Explore This Case arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/group-medical-services/) ### Moms & Kids Health SK Creating a friendly name, brand, and website for Saskatchewan’s maternal and children’s programs, designed to be clear, supportive, and easy to navigate during critical moments. [Explore This Case arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/moms-and-kids-health-saskatchewan/) ### Moms & Kids Health SK Creating a friendly name, brand, and website for Saskatchewan’s maternal and children’s programs, designed to be clear, supportive, and easy to navigate during critical moments. [Explore This Case arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/moms-and-kids-health-saskatchewan/) ### Sandbox Mutual Insurance An end-to-end platform and brand transformation for a 100-year-old insurer, redefining the category through seamless digital integration and delightfully simple customer experiences. [Explore This Case arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/sandbox/) ### Sandbox Mutual Insurance An end-to-end platform and brand transformation for a 100-year-old insurer, redefining the category through seamless digital integration and delightfully simple customer experiences. [Explore This Case arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/sandbox/) ### Saskatchewan Cancer Agency Designing and developing an intuitive front-end website that prioritizes the needs and experiences of patients and clients, creating a welcoming and supportive online environment. [Explore This Case arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/sask-cancer/) ### Saskatchewan Cancer Agency Designing and developing an intuitive front-end website that prioritizes the needs and experiences of patients and clients, creating a welcoming and supportive online environment. [Explore This Case arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/sask-cancer/) ### Saskatchewan Health Authority Designing and delivering a unified digital platform that consolidates 12 regional public websites and 8 employee intranets into a single, integrated experience for staff and citizens. [Explore This Case arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/saskatchewan-health-authority/) ### Saskatchewan Health Authority Designing and delivering a unified digital platform that consolidates 12 regional public websites and 8 employee intranets into a single, integrated experience for staff and citizens. [Explore This Case arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/saskatchewan-health-authority/) ### Cameco Corporation Evolving the digital strategy of the world’s largest uranium producer through multiple website generations that continue to grow, adapt, and mature alongside a changing global industry. [Explore This Website arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](https://www.cameco.com/) ### Following Their Voices Building a web application that supports Indigenous student success by enabling feedback-driven insights to help improve outcomes and First Nations graduation rates. [Explore This Website arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](https://www.followingtheirvoices.ca/) ### Lüm Mobile Refining the digital-first experience for SaskTel’s online carrier Lum through UX audits and developing a responsive Drupal website to streamline customer purchasing and engagement. [Explore This Website arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](https://lum.ca/) ### Prosperity Credit Union Unifying three regional credit unions under one scalable digital platform, supported by a shared design system, modular content strategy, and future-ready user experience. [Explore This Website arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](https://prosperitycu.ca/) ### Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation Transforming over 60 sites into a single member-first platform that improves access to benefits, pensions, events, and resources for more than 15,000 teachers. ## / All Drupal Clients Group Medical Services Sandbox Mutual Insurance Saskatchewan Cancer Agency Saskatchewan Health Authority Cameco Corporation Government of Saskatchewan Lüm Mobile Prosperity Credit Union McDougall Gauley Group Medical Services Sandbox Mutual Insurance Saskatchewan Cancer Agency Saskatchewan Health Authority Cameco Corporation Government of Saskatchewan Lüm Mobile Prosperity Credit Union McDougall Gauley ## / Drupal Services ### Drupal Website Development We design and build responsive, content-rich websites on Drupal. Engineered for performance, accessibility, and scale, our work balances user needs with business goals, ensuring every site is built to evolve. ### Custom Features and Integrations When out-of-the-box isn't enough, we extend Drupal's core. From search to scheduling, we design and develop custom modules that solve real problems, built to integrate cleanly and scale effortlessly. ### AI Integration We help teams bring AI into their Drupal ecosystem, safely and strategically. Whether it's content recommendations, intelligent search, or automation, we design AI workflows that add real utility. ### Drupal Migration & Upgrades We handle complex Drupal migrations end to end. From legacy platforms to the latest version, we ensure data integrity, minimize downtime, and modernize your site for what's next. ### Drupal Staff Augmentation Plug in experienced Drupal developers and strategists, fast. We embed directly with your team to fill skill gaps, move faster, and ship smarter. ### Headless & Decoupled Drupal We separate the front end from Drupal's backend to give teams full control over the user experience. Whether using React, Vue, or Next.js, we architect decoupled systems that deliver faster performance, better design flexibility, and future-proof scalability. ## / Why Drupal ### Enterprise-Grade Security Drupal is trusted by global organizations for its security. With regular updates and fine-grained access controls, it keeps sensitive data safe and secure. ### Cost-Effective Solution Drupal ships with robust features and customization options. You get enterprise functionality without the cost of building from scratch or relying on expensive proprietary platforms. ### Scalability and Performance Built for growth, Drupal handles high-traffic sites and complex content structures with ease. Whether you're starting small or scaling up, the platform stays fast and reliable. ### Open-Source Advantage No licensing fees. No vendor lock-in. Drupal's open-source model gives your team full control, plus access to a global community driving continuous improvements. ### Multilingual Capabilities Drupal makes going global simple. With built-in language support and flexible translation workflows, it's easy to manage localized content across regions. ### API Integration Drupal integrates cleanly with CRMs, analytics tools, and marketing platforms. Its API-first architecture makes it easy to connect your site to the rest of your stack. ### Streamlined Workflow From content drafts to final approvals, Drupal keeps teams aligned. Built-in workflow tools simplify publishing and help maintain quality at scale. ### Multi-User Management Multiple users, defined roles, and clear permissions make Drupal ideal for team environments. Everyone gets what they need, without stepping on toes. ### Accessibility Drupal supports WCAG standards out of the box. That means your site works for everyone, including users with visual, motor, or cognitive impairments. --- # Privacy > Our Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your data when you visit zu.com or interact with any other form of media related to our site. ## Information We Collect ### Personal Data We may collect personally identifiable information that you voluntarily provide to us when subscribe to our newsletter, fill out a form, or otherwise enter information on our Site. This information may include: - Name - Email address - Organization - Mailing address - Phone number - Demographic information ### Derivative Data Our servers automatically collect information when you access the Site, such as your IP address, browser type, operating system, access times, and the pages you have viewed directly before and after accessing the Site. ### Mobile Device Data If you access the Site via a mobile device, we may collect device information, including your mobile device ID, model, and manufacturer, and information about the location of your device. ## How We Use Your Information We use the information we collect in the following ways: - To personalize your experience and to allow us to deliver the type of content and product offerings in which you are most interested. - To improve our website to better serve you. - To send periodic emails regarding your order or other products and services. ## Disclosure of Your Information We may share information we have collected about you in certain situations: By Law or to Protect Rights: If we believe the release of information about you is necessary to respond to legal process, to investigate or remedy potential violations of our policies, or to protect the rights, property, and safety of others. Third-Party Service Providers: We may share your information with third parties that perform services for us or on our behalf, including data analysis, email delivery, hosting services, customer service, and marketing assistance. Marketing Communications: With your consent, or with an opportunity for you to withdraw consent, we may share your information with third parties for marketing purposes, as permitted by law. Business Transfers: We may share or transfer your information in connection with, or during negotiations of, any merger, sale of company assets, financing, or acquisition of all or a portion of our business to another company. ## Security of Your Information We use administrative, technical, and physical security measures to help protect your personal information. While we have taken reasonable steps to secure the personal information you provide to us, please be aware that despite our efforts, no security measures are perfect or impenetrable, and no method of data transmission can be guaranteed against any interception or other types of misuse. ## Your Rights and Controlling Your Personal Information Under PIPEDA, you have the following rights regarding your personal information: Choice: By providing personal information to us, you understand we will collect, hold, use, and disclose your personal information in accordance with this privacy policy. You do not have to provide personal information to us, however, if you do not, it may affect your use of our website or the products and/or services offered on or through it. Access: You have the right to request access to your personal information that we hold. Information from Third Parties: If we receive personal information about you from a third party, we will protect it as set out in this privacy policy. If you are a third party providing personal information about somebody else, you represent and warrant that you have such person’s consent to provide the personal information to us. Correction: You have the right to request correction of any inaccuracies in your personal information. Non-discrimination: We will not discriminate against you for exercising any of your rights over your personal information. Unless your personal information is required to provide you with a particular service or offer (for example providing user support), we will not deny you goods or services and/or charge you different prices or rates for goods or services, including through granting discounts or other benefits, or imposing penalties, or provide you with a different level or quality of goods or services. Notification of data breaches: We will comply with laws applicable to us in respect of any data breach. Withdrawal of Consent: You have the right to withdraw your consent to our processing of your personal information at any time. Challenge Compliance: You have the right to challenge our compliance with PIPEDA. Unsubscribe: To unsubscribe from our email database or opt-out of communications (including marketing communications), please contact us using the details provided in this privacy policy, or opt-out using the opt-out facilities provided in the communication. We may need to request specific information from you to help us confirm your identity. ## Policy for Children We do not knowingly solicit information from or market to children under the age of 13. If we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under age 13 without verification of parental consent, we will delete that information as quickly as possible. --- # Services > From proof-of-concept to full software development, zu employs a wide variety of services to ensure project success as we, together, innovate, build and adapt. ## / What We Do ### Custom Solutions We partner with teams to build digital products from scratch or untangle what’s already there. Designing, developing, and connecting the systems that keep things moving. [Our Approach arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/services/end-to-end-custom-solutions/) ### Drupal Websites We design and build Drupal platforms that anchor your digital strategy. Connecting content, systems, and tools to deliver flexible, personalized website experiences. [Our Drupal Projects arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/?filters=Drupal) ### UX & AI Audits We help teams spot what’s broken and why, uncover where AI can make good experiences even better, and highlight upcoming trends that shape how people use your product(s) every single day. [Our Offerings arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/audits/) ### Brand Systems We create brand systems that unify your identity, bringing clarity and consistency to design, messaging, and execution across platforms, teams, and touchpoints. ### zu Academy We equip teams with a practical, repeatable toolkit, breaking down silos, surfacing insights, and accelerating better decisions through creative experimentation. [Our Courses arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/academy/) ### Staff Augmentation We embed trusted zu talent into your team, adding capacity, new capabilities, and a collaborative mindset to help you move faster, reduce risk, and ship with confidence. ## / Capabilities ### Strategy & Research Cutting through assumptions and biases with qualitative research to bring insight for better experiences. - UX/CX Research & Engagement - Digital Strategy & Transformation - Proof of Concept - Rapid Prototyping - User Journey Mapping - Brand Strategy - Workshop Facilitation - Heuristic & Usability Testing - Design Thinking Training ### Experience Design Creating seamless and memorable development ready experiences for digital-first spaces. - UX & UI Design - Product Design - Concept Design - Service Design - Brand Design - Information Architecture - Design Systems - Animation & Motion Design - Advertising & Creative ### Technology & Development Building and powering websites, web applications, and mobile applications through full-stack development - Website Development - Drupal CMS Development - Web Application Development - Custom Portals & Intranets - API Integrations - Mobile Application Development - Headless CMS Development - AI Audits & Integration - Cloud Hosting Management ## / Principles ### Design-led We’re the driving force of human-centered design and design advocacy in your organization. In a world of perpetually changing user demands, this is your competitive advantage. ### Technology-driven Although technology isn’t predefined, successful digital products engage developers and project stakeholders early to align on technical strategy and forward looking architecture. ### Down with siloes Our approach to teamwork is infectious. We reach our destination through highly collaborative workshops, co-design sessions, and weekly touch points. Peeking is allowed and encouraged. ### Clear, Impactful KPIs Our product strategists and accounts teams work to shape exceptional digital experiences by setting clear objectives and aligning teams around a streamlined set of metrics. ### Multi-disciplinary Teams Small, senior teams play off each others’ strengths, collaboratively defining digital direction — prototyping, testing, and refining until a natural solution evolves. ### Long-Term Partnership Many of our client relationships span decades. We help keep their assets relevant, secure, through constant evolution, innovation, and ongoing collaboration. ## / Certifications ### Service Organization Control Type 2 (SOC II) Compliant We have the highest standards of data security and privacy, ensuring sensitive client information is protected with the strictest controls and processes that secure the integrity and privacy of the data we handle and store. ### Nielsen Norman Group (NN/g) Trained and Certified Affirming our proficiency in creating user-centered designs based on the latest usability research. This certification highlights our dedication to enhancing user experiences and ensuring our designs meet the highest standards of accessibility and effectiveness. ### Human Factors International (HFI) Trained and Certified Signifies our deep expertise in applying human-centered design principles to create intuitive user interfaces. This recognition underscores our commitment to delivering solutions that prioritize user needs and enhance usability through scientifically grounded design practices. ## / Work with us ### Let’s talk. Not sure where to start? Tell us a bit about yourself and your product or project. With over 30 years of experience, we’ve seen it all. No matter what stage you’re in, we’ll find a way to help or guide you to someone who can. [Contact arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ](/contact/)[Book Meeting arrow\_outward arrow\_outward](https://calendar.app.google/aJcqSfUfpLRmfBsXA) --- # Custom Solutions > Connected ecosystems through strategy, design, and development. We build software from the ground up, reengineer legacy systems, design custom front-ends, and facilitate integration to deliver best-in-class digital experiences. ## / Phase 1: Discovery, Research & Problem Identification ### You're still defining the problem or preparing for a future build or procurement process. We work with your team to understand root challenges, map out user and stakeholder needs, and define what success looks like. You'll leave with strategic clarity and a blueprint you can act on. #### Deliverables May Include: - Journey and process maps - User and stakeholder insights - Requirements documentation - Clickable UI prototypes #### Why it matters: Without this step, projects risk costly misalignment and low adoption. #### Use it as: Standalone engagement to inform an RFP, pitch, or internal approval—or as Step 1 in a full build. [See how we helped Nutrien arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/nutrien-procurement/) ## / Phase 2: UI & UX Design for Validated Requirements ### You already know what you need built but want to ensure it's intuitive and usable. We translate your requirements into user-centered designs, wireframes, and developer-ready specs. We focus on clean, accessible, and effective experiences. #### Deliverables May Include: - Interactive wireframes & high-fidelity mockups - Design systems and accessibility support - Front-end documentation for developers #### Why it matters: Well-designed apps get adopted. Poor UX leads to costly post-launch fixes. #### Use it as: Standalone UX/UI engagement or packaged with zu-led development. [See how we helped SaskTel arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/sasktel/) ## / Phase 3: Custom Front-End Experiences for Existing Systems ### Your backend works but your interface is dated, clunky, or doesn't work on mobile. We build sleek, branded web or mobile front ends that connect to your existing systems via APIs. We can also add middleware to boost performance and security. #### Deliverables May Include: - Custom front-end application - API integration & middleware layer - Implementation roadmap #### Why it matters: You don't need to rip and replace. Just modernize the parts your users see. #### Use it as: A modernization project with minimal system disruption. [See how we helped Sandbox arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/sandbox/) ## / Phase 4: Full-Cycle Custom Web App Development ### You need a fully custom app and want it done right, from idea to launch. We plan, design, build, and support custom web apps that align with your operations and scale over time. You'll have one team, from start to finish. #### Deliverables May Include: - Application architecture & planning - Full-stack development - QA, launch, and documentation #### Why it matters: You get control, flexibility, and a purpose-built system that fits your needs. #### Use it as: A complete build partner, with no handoffs or vendor silos. [See how we helped the SK Gov arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/saskatchewan-crop-report/) --- # Work > We’re proud of our work, from complex websites to custom apps. See the ambitious projects we’ve tackled, with high expectations and success in every one. ## / Select Projects Applications Branding Drupal UX Strategy Websites Education Financial Government Healthcare Mining and Agriculture ### SaskTel A long-term partnership with Saskatchewan’s largest telecommunications company to design and deliver new digital experiences, including a redesigned flagship mobile app and customer-facing website. [Explore this Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/sasktel/) ### Nutrien Procurement Transformation A human-centered change management strategy uniting Agrium, CPS, and PotashCorp, streamlining procurement processes and communications to unlock over $1.0MM in annual measurable savings. [Explore this Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/nutrien-procurement/) ### Saskatchewan Health Authority Designing and delivering a unified digital platform that consolidates 12 regional public websites and 8 employee intranets into a single, integrated experience for staff and citizens. [Explore this Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/saskatchewan-health-authority/) ### Sandbox Mutual Insurance An end-to-end platform and brand transformation for a 100-year-old insurer, redefining the category through seamless digital integration and delightfully simple customer experiences. [Explore this Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/sandbox/) ### Saskatchewan Dashboard A dynamic web application improving public-sector transparency by automating data aggregation and visualization for six Government of Saskatchewan ministries. [Explore this Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/saskatchewan-dashboard/) ### Cameco Corporation Evolving the digital strategy of the world’s largest uranium producer through multiple website generations that continue to grow, adapt, and mature alongside a changing global industry. [Explore this Website arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](https://www.cameco.com/) ### Saskatchewan Government Insurance Leading a digital overhaul of SGI’s core insurance platforms, applying pragmatic UX and UI practices to deliver modern, repeatable experiences for customers and administrators. ### Farm Credit Canada A technology-agnostic engagement focused on inspiring customer obsession, user-experience principles, and design leadership within Canada’s largest agriculture lending institution. ### Government of Saskatchewan A 15-year partnership delivering native apps, dashboards, and digital platforms that serve students, citizens, newcomers, and civil servants across multiple ministries and public programs. ### Docshare Modernizing legislative document management through a custom web and mobile platform that streamlines collaboration, improves accessibility, and supports effective governance workflows. ### Group Medical Services Refreshing the brand and digital presence of a long-established Saskatchewan insurance provider through a cohesive identity, engaging website, and expanded marketing platform. [Explore this Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/group-medical-services/) ### City of Regina Partnering with the City to build an accessible, welcoming municipal website that supports two-way engagement and makes navigating services and civic information easier. [Explore this Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/city-regina/) ### Conexus Credit Union Reimagining the digital experience and designing a member-first website that reflects the values, ambition, and progressive vision of Saskatchewan’s most personal credit union. ### Prosperity Credit Union Unifying three regional credit unions under one scalable digital platform, supported by a shared design system, modular content strategy, and future-ready user experience. [Explore this Website arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](https://prosperitycu.ca/) ### Crop Report Dashboard Reengineering Saskatchewan’s Crop Report to reduce operational costs, improve efficiency, and support proactive decision-making for farmers, analysts, and government leaders. [Explore this Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/saskatchewan-crop-report/) ### Innovation Saskatchewan Digitizing the Technology Startup Incentive through a custom web portal that improves data accuracy, streamlines internal workflows, and simplifies application tracking. [Explore this Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/innovation-sask/) ### Saskatchewan Polytechnic A full website redesign focused on simplifying navigation and information architecture so students, faculty, and staff can find what they need faster and with less friction. ### Saskatchewan Cancer Agency Designing and developing an intuitive front-end website that prioritizes the needs and experiences of patients and clients, creating a welcoming and supportive online environment. [Explore this Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/sask-cancer/) ### Ministry of Advanced Education Leading a comprehensive UX strategy for the Ministry of Advanced Education’s student portal, delivering accessibility-led improvements grounded in research, design, and real student needs. ### Moms & Kids Health SK Creating a friendly name, brand, and website for Saskatchewan’s maternal and children’s programs, designed to be clear, supportive, and easy to navigate during critical moments. [Explore this Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/moms-and-kids-health-saskatchewan/) ### Mohawk Council of Awkesasne (MCA) Partnering with Canada’s second-largest First Nation to design a Smart Cities strategy grounded in community-driven design, technology, and improved health outcomes. ### Following Their Voices Building a web application that supports Indigenous student success by enabling feedback-driven insights to help improve outcomes and First Nations graduation rates. [Explore this Website arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](https://www.followingtheirvoices.ca/) ### Aski's World Designing immersive iOS and Android applications that bridge culture and technology, supporting early childhood literacy through interactive storytelling and play. ### Pisim Power Developing a brand and website for an Indigenous-led clean energy company focused on empowering communities to build equity in Canadian infrastructure projects. [Explore this Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/pisim-power/) ### Prairie Centre Credit Union Fostering a culture of innovation through UX audits, leadership summits, alignment workshops, and Design Thinking training that supports collaboration and growth. ### SaskEnergy Delivering deep customer insight through UX audits, personas, and journey mapping to strengthen service delivery and improve understanding across customer touchpoints. ### Rio Tinto Shaping a strategic narrative and custom visual system for a groundbreaking diamond mine, helping engage stakeholders and communicate impact at a global scale. ### Adero Architecture Repositioning a 120-year-old architectural firm with a bold brand identity that reflects innovative thinking and strengthens client and community connections. [Explore this Project arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](/work/adero/) ### Lüm Mobile Refining the digital-first experience for SaskTel’s online carrier Lum through UX audits and developing a responsive Drupal website to streamline customer purchasing and engagement. [Explore this Website arrow\_forward arrow\_forward](https://lum.ca/) ### Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation Transforming over 60 sites into a single member-first platform that improves access to benefits, pensions, events, and resources for more than 15,000 teachers. ### Saskatchewan Roughriders From designing the first Rider App in 2009 to consulting on the design of the digital, in-store and festival experience for the 2022 Grey Cup, we’ve always been melonheads. ### No matches found Try selecting different filters to see more projects. ## / Work with us ### Let’s talk. Not sure where to start? Tell us a bit about yourself and your product or project. With over 30 years of experience, we’ve seen it all. No matter what stage you’re in, we’ll find a way to help or guide you to someone who can. [Contact arrow\_forward arrow\_forward ](/contact/)[Book Meeting arrow\_outward arrow\_outward](https://calendar.app.google/aJcqSfUfpLRmfBsXA) --- # Adero > Revitalizing over 120 years of architectural expertise with a bold new brand identity—positioning the firm to lead with innovative, functional design, and building even stronger connections with clients and the community for the future. Close close close ## Client Overview Adero Architecture is the new name and identity for a long-established Saskatchewan practice, formerly Henry Downing Architects. With over 60 years of work behind it, the firm had deep credibility in-market, built through steady delivery and long-term client relationships. ## Challenge The challenge was not to reinvent that trust. It was to align the public-facing identity with the quality of the work and the culture behind it, and to introduce the new name with clarity across every touchpoint. ## Solution We designed the brand and the website as one connected system. The identity starts with a small vocabulary of forms that can do real work across applications. A circle that signals unity and connection. A pointer that draws focus inward and represents purpose and precision. A pillar that stands for strength, care, and support from initial vision to final form. Built this way, the mark is not a single precious symbol. It is a set of parts with rules, so it can scale, repeat, and stay recognizable on everything from a sign to a proposal cover. The supporting language was built to feel calm, contemporary, and human. Mona Sans anchors the typography with clarity and range. Midnight provides a grounded base, with Mint and Citrus adding contrast and lift when the brand needs energy. Patterning extends the identity quietly, derived from the same curving geometry, used more like a material layer than a graphic flourish. Photography guidance keeps the work honest and optimistic, with clean lines, clear focal points, and candid moments that feel purposeful rather than posed. The website carries the same logic. It is designed for scanning and for depth. Projects lead with a clear summary and then open into detail, with navigation that makes it easy to move between work, team, and news without losing your place. The visual system is spacious and restrained, built from modular components so content can evolve without redesigning the experience each time. Under the hood, the site was designed for speed and maintainability, using a lightweight build approach and a CMS that gives the team direct control over Projects, Team bios, and News updates. What emerged is a durable system for presenting the practice. One that makes the new name feel established across everyday touchpoints, and a digital home that communicates the work with clarity while staying easy to operate day to day. ### Strategy & Research - Design Research & Engagement - Brand Strategy ### Experience Design - Identity Design System - Brand Guidelines - Collateral and Templates - Information Architecture - Website UX and UI Design ### Technology & Development - Web Development and CMS Configuration - QA, Content Support, and Launch Readiness ### Sector - Architecture ### Client - Adero Architecture (Formerly Henry Downing Architecture) --- # City of Regina > Teaming up to build a welcoming and intuitive platform for Saskatchewan’s Capital — an accessible and engaging two-way website that makes navigating life in the city a bit more manageable. Close close close ## Client Overview The City of Regina is the municipal governing body for Saskatchewan’s capital, serving more than 230,000 residents and supported by nearly 1,600 employees. For the City, Regina.ca is where civic life happens. Residents come to pay parking tickets, check transit schedules, find recycling and road information, apply for permits, and register for recreation. In late 2017, after twelve years of stagnancy, the City engaged zu to redesign and rebuild Regina.ca, including a full CMS replacement. The work ran into early 2019 and focused on one goal: turn an aging, hard-to-use municipal website into a clear, citizen-first service platform that City teams could sustain long after launch. ## Challenge Regina.ca was showing its age. After twelve years without meaningful evolution, the site was difficult to navigate, not built for mobile use, and shaped by internal departments and insider language rather than citizen tasks. Content sprawl intensified the problem. Thousands of pages had grown over time without a strong governance model, creating duplication, dead ends, and an information architecture that made common tasks harder than they should be. The City also needed to consolidate multiple municipal web properties into a single experience and integrate essential services such as transit, utilities, and payments, with a foundation City teams could sustain after launch. ## Solution We rebuilt Regina.ca with a mobile-first, user-centred approach guided by one rule: craft the experience with citizens, not for citizens. Navigation and language were tested with the public through surveys, interviews, electronic card sorting, and Treejack validation, engaging more than 1,000 residents and stakeholders. The feedback was consistent, residents wanted a utilitarian website that made essential services fast to find and easy to use. That direction drove a complete re-architecture of the platform. Approximately 2,500 pages of content were audited and reduced to roughly 300 purposeful pages. Three municipal subsites were consolidated into one, and 25 lines of business and 60 services were reorganized into seven task-based categories, replacing a department-first structure with a citizen-first one. The rebuild was delivered on OpenCMS, the City’s required Java-based CMS, with Apache Solr search. Templates and custom components established a consistent foundation, while integrations connected residents to the services they rely on, including a custom accessible interface for Google Transit and tools for parking, water usage, leisure programming, and road reporting. To make the work durable, zu paired the build with governance through a comprehensive style guide, documentation, and training that equipped City teams to manage and evolve the platform confidently. The result is a civic utility built for real tasks, where three sites became one, 2,500 pages became 300, and 60 services became seven clear pathways. ### Strategy & Research - UX Workshop & Facilitation - User Research - Journey Mapping - Experience Principles - Project Management ### Experience Design - UX & UI Design - Web Design - Sitemap & Information Architecture - Visual Communication - Design System ### Technology & Development - Technical Strategy & DevOps - OpenCMS Development - API & Custom Development ### Sector - Government - Public Sector - Civic Technology ### Client - City of Regina --- # Group Medical Services (GMS) > Overhauling the entire visual identity and establishing the digital foundation for a century-old organization. From a rebrand to website to portal design and integration, GMS will be ready for the next 100 years. Close close close ## Client Overview GMS has been in the business of looking after people since 1949. Health insurance when the provincial plan falls short. Travel insurance when you're far from home. Group benefits when you're a small business trying to do right by your team. Nobody talks about their insurance company until something goes wrong. GMS built a business on that silence, but by 2023, they needed to show up online the same way they'd always shown up in person. ## Challenge Insurance has always been a relationship business. But the way people find, evaluate, and buy coverage has changed. Policyholders expect to research on their own, compare options without calling anyone, and make decisions on their own terms. When the digital experience doesn't support that, they leave. Established insurers feel this pressure differently than startups. They can't just build something new. They have to modernize without breaking the trust and the relationships that made people stay in the first place. GMS saw it clearly. The website wasn't built for how people find and buy insurance today. Navigation reflected internal departments, not member needs. Group benefits had limited visibility online. The buyflow was functional but rigid. Brokers were working with public-facing tools that weren't designed for them. The DNN platform underneath had served the organization well, but its architecture made it difficult to evolve at the pace the business now required. GMS had outgrown its digital presence and was ready to do something about it. ## Solution At the heart of GMS’s transformation was a visual identity balancing its legacy with a modern appeal. A refreshed logo, vibrant color palette, and updated typography all convey trust, care, and boldness. This new identity flows across every customer interaction, reinforcing GMS’s dedication to accessible service and community support. The newly designed website is the digital centerpiece of GMS’s rebrand, with a clean, user-centric interface built on Drupal CMS. Its intuitive navigation and tailored content help users explore health insurance options, manage policies, and find support with ease, echoing GMS’s values of simplicity and service from the first click. To ensure the brand’s message reached every audience, zu implemented GMS’s identity across digital, print, video, and audio channels. This cohesive rollout connected internal teams and external audiences alike, creating a consistent and impactful experience for everyone, from brokers to loyal customers. ### Strategy & Research - Brand Sprint - Digital Strategy & Transformation - User Journey Mapping - Workshop Facilitation - Heuristic & Usability Testing ### Experience Design - UX & UI Design - Product & Concept Design - Brand Design - Information Architecture - Content Strategy & Governance - Design Systems - Advertising & Creative - Design Advocacy ### Technology & Development - Website Design & Development - Drupal CMS Development - System (API) Integration - Technical Strategy ### Sector - Health Insurance - Financial Services ### Client - Group Medical Services --- # Innovation Saskatchewan > Streamlining the Saskatchewan Technology Startup Incentive process by digitizing tax credit applications through a custom web portal, improving data accuracy, workflow efficiency, and internal tracking. Close close close ## Client Overview Innovation Saskatchewan supports the growth of innovative businesses and research to create jobs and diversify Saskatchewan’s economy. One of the ways they do that is through the Saskatchewan Technology Startup Incentive (STSI): a program designed to attract early-stage investment by offering Saskatchewan based investors a non-refundable 45% tax credit when they back eligible technology startups. ## Challenge As the program matured, participation grew quickly, surpassing 410 investors and startups, and the operating model that once worked at a smaller scale started to show its limits. The back-end of the experience relied heavily on spreadsheets and local document storage, with staff manually routing information between forms, folders, and stakeholders. It was time-consuming, hard to audit, and increasingly exposed the program to clerical errors and data integrity issues. Around the same time, the program’s capital cap expanded from $3.5M to $7M, increasing demand for processing and issuing of tax credit certificates. The risk was clear: without a modern system, the program’s success would continue to amplify administrative burden. ## Solution The result was a secure web application and administrative dashboard that replaced manual spreadsheets with structured, workflow-driven program management. Purpose-built forms now support every core submission type—startup applications, investment applications, annual returns, and tax credit certificate requests—paired with clear status tracking and administrative review tools. Program staff can find, filter, review, and manage companies, investors, annual returns, and approvals in one place, supported by automated email notifications and generated outputs such as tax credit PDFs. Where the previous process depended on coordination and memory, the new platform makes progress visible, consistent, and far easier to manage. Just as important, the platform was designed for iteration. After the core workflows shipped, enhancements extended the system’s durability: administrators can request changes on submitted applications, authorized users can manage access and roles, and annual report notifications can be tracked directly in the system, reducing follow-up effort while strengthening governance. In under four months, Innovation Saskatchewan moved from an unscalable manual process to a modern digital foundation, automating 90% of the former workflow and launching on time (slightly early). The STSI program now has a platform built to support ongoing growth, with cleaner data, fewer handoffs, and a stronger operational backbone for one of Saskatchewan’s most important early-stage innovation incentives. ### Strategy & Research - Workshop Facilitation - Requirements Validation - Workflow and User Story Definition ### Experience Design - UX & UI Design - Design QA and Consultation - Data Visualization ### Technology & Development - Web Application Development - Administrative Dashboard Development - Automated Notifications and PDF Generation - Cloud Hosting and Security Maintenance ### Sector - Public Sector - Economic Development - Innovation ### Client - Innovation Saskatchewan --- # Moms & Kids Health Saskatchewan > Creating a friendly name, brand, and website for Saskatchewan’s maternal and children’s programs, designed to be clear, supportive, and easy to navigate during critical moments. Close close close ## Client Overview Moms & Kids Health Saskatchewan is a provincial portfolio within the Saskatchewan Health Authority, supporting people through pregnancy, birth, newborn care, and child health across Saskatchewan. The work landed at a moment when the system around families was changing quickly. A new children’s hospital was coming online in Saskatoon, while the province was also consolidating multiple regional health authorities into one. Information that used to live in many regional sites needed to become one dependable destination. ## Challenge The tension was scale versus vulnerability. The experience had to carry the authority of a provincial health system while meeting people in a heightened emotional state. It also needed an identity that could stand on its own while fitting within two larger ecosystems: Saskatchewan Health Authority as the parent brand, and Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital as the public anchor for pediatric care. ## Solution We designed the brand and the digital experience as one effort to make the system easier to navigate and easier to trust. Empathy first, information second. That meant building structure and language for people who do not have the time or energy to decode how healthcare organizes itself. The most consequential shift was structural. We moved away from internal medical taxonomy and toward how families actually look for help. By life stage and by questions. Navigation centered on journeys like pregnancy, birth and newborns, and infant and child health. When users do not know which specialty treats what, a condition-based lookup bridges everyday language and clinical pathways. A facility finder makes local options visible, reducing unnecessary travel and the sense that care only exists in one city. Content drove the experience. Writing is built for scanning, with conclusions first and details last, and grade-level targets that keep guidance accessible under stress. Governance made it sustainable. Subject matter experts provide the facts, while content leads translate those facts into consistent web content that can be maintained over time. Visually, the identity needed to feel welcoming without losing authority. The handprint became the anchor, a human signal inside a large system. Colour stays locally grounded. Small rules carry real weight in daily use, from an ampersand-based clear zone to avoiding a single-tone green logo that would blend into the SHA brand. What emerged is a public-facing system designed for real conditions. A platform that helps a parent start with a question and still end up in the right place, without learning the bureaucracy first. ### Strategy & Research - Discovery and Stakeholder Alignment - User Research and Journey Mapping - Content Strategy and Content Governance - Voice, Tone, and Writing Standards - Accessibility and Usability Review ### Experience Design - Information Architecture and Navigation Design - UX and UI Design - Visual Identity and Brand System - Design System and Component Library ### Technology & Development - Drupal Web Development and CMS Configuration - QA, Content Support, and Launch Readiness ### Sector - Public Health and Healthcare ### Client - Saskatchewan Health Authority, Moms & Kids Health Saskatchewan --- # Nutrien Procurement Transformation > Uniting Agrium, Crop Production Services, and PotashCorp through a human-centered change management strategy that unlocked over $1.0MM in savings by streamlining processes, communications, and technology adoption. Close close close ## Client Overview Following the merger of Agrium and PotashCorp, Nutrien became the world's largest provider of crop inputs, services and solutions; but behind that headline, more than 20,000 employees across three legacy organizations were being asked to change how they work, all at once. The mandate was to align Agrium, Crop Production Services, and PotashCorp onto a single suite of policies and technologies, and deliver the savings promised to investors. The new ecosystem included Ariba, Amazon Business, SAP S/4HANA, and a new Card and Expense Management system, all rolling out to a workforce that was still learning how to be one company. ## Challenge Employees were overwhelmed, uncertain, and deeply distributed. Information lived across more than 50 decentralized SharePoint sites: duplicated, outdated, and hard to find. The organization was under pressure to move fast, which made it harder to justify the time required for meaningful user research. Through retros on past change management efforts, interviews and persona workshops we understood why change management for a freshly merged organization of over 23,000 employees wouldn't be easy. - Employees were experiencing information overload through the constant communication of changing policies, procedures and resources. - Communications were often lost on employees as they acknowledged a lack of a single source for training and support. - End-users did not see how they benefited from change and how their compliance fit into the larger value proposition. - Messaging across regions was inconsistent and varied. - In Retail specifically, there was a general mistrust of communications coming from "Corporate". - Employees expressed varying levels of digital literacy and learning preferences. ## Solution Combining design thinking principles with traditional change management methods, we identified cross-platform personas, communication channels, and methods to ensure communication assets designed, developed and delivered were informed by users — achieving buy-in from the ground up. Following a prototyping and testing phase, the feedback from users allowed our team to confidently build print and digital assets, communication materials and a full brand extension for multiple system rollouts. Assets included: - Email communications & template design - Training video production & delivery - Custom SAP / Ariba interface design - Placemat, booklet and slide deck design & development - Nutrien Ariba persona creation - Custom SAP / Ariba interface design & development - SmartBuy brand development, guidelines & asset library ### Strategy & Research - Design Research & Engagement - User-Centered Change Strategy ### Experience Design - UX & UI Design - Communication Design ### Brand Design - Internal Brand Development ### Technology & Development - SAP / Ariba Interface Design - Digital Enablement Tools ### Sector - Mining ### Client - Nutrien --- # Pisim Power > Partnering with Pisim Power, an Indigenous-led clean energy company to design a new brand and website to support in public relations efforts. Close close close ## Client Overview Pisim Power is a newly formed, Indigenous-led company advancing Saskatchewan's clean energy future. Built with the ambition to become a leading force in Canada's infrastructure and clean energy sectors, the organization needed to establish credibility quickly; speaking with authority to government leaders, industry partners, and utilities, while remaining deeply rooted in Indigenous values and community partnership. ## Challenge From the outset, the challenge was balance. Pisim Power operates in a highly regulated, technically demanding sector, where trust, safety, and performance are essential. At the same time, its vision is grounded in Indigenous self-determination, creating economic opportunity through clean energy development in partnership with First Nations communities. The brand needed to carry both realities with equal weight. ## Solution zu worked closely with the Pisim Power team to define a brand strategy that positions the company as both future-facing and culturally grounded. Rather than leaning on generic infrastructure aesthetics, the identity draws from Indigenous symbolism in a thoughtful, contemporary way, avoiding pastiche while honoring meaning, story, and connection to the land. At the center of the identity is the logo mark: a segmented "p" form that represents unity, energy, and collective progress. The symbol brings together distinct elements into a single, balanced whole, reflecting Pisim Power's role as a connector between communities, industry, and opportunity. Radiating orange forms reference the sun as a source of life and energy, while cooler blue tones ground the mark in water, trust, and natural systems. A central circle anchors the composition, expressing stability, focus, and shared purpose. The visual system extends these ideas through a disciplined color palette, strong typography, and flexible layouts designed to work across government, industry, and community contexts. Every element was shaped to communicate confidence without dominance, and cultural respect without nostalgia. The website translates the brand into a clear, accessible digital experience. Structured around Pisim Power's mission: Indigenous economic prosperity, clean energy leadership, and workforce development, the site balances storytelling with clarity. Messaging speaks directly to decision-makers while remaining inclusive and transparent for community members and partners alike. The result is a digital presence that feels credible, modern, and grounded. It positions Pisim Power not just as an energy company, but as a long-term partner, one focused on building infrastructure, opportunity, and shared progress across Western Canada. ### Strategy & Research - Brand Strategy - Workshop Facilitation ### Experience Design - UX & UX Design - Brand Design - Information Architecture ### Technology & Development - Website Development - Technical Strategy - Website Hosting and Maintenance ### Sector - Energy ### Client - Pisim Power --- # Sandbox Mutual Insurance > End-to-end platform and brand development to transform 115-year-old Saskatchewan Mutual Insurance, into Sandbox, an organization that redefines insurance through invisible integration and delightfully simple experience. Close close close ## Client Overview Sandbox Mutual Insurance is a 115-year-old insurer serving families, farms, and businesses across the Canadian Prairies through a network of more than 600 independent brokers. As customer expectations shifted toward more transparent and self-service digital experiences, Sandbox partnered with zu to help transform the organization into a physically available, digital-forward insurer built around a simple ambition: delivering what they call “delightfully simple insurance.” The collaboration evolved into a broader transformation spanning brand, experience, and technology, including a bold rebrand from Saskatchewan Mutual Insurance to Sandbox Mutual Insurance, a new public website, and a connected digital ecosystem designed to bring policyholders, brokers, and internal teams into a single modern service experience. ## Challenge Despite its long history and strong reputation, Sandbox’s digital ecosystem had not kept pace with the needs of modern policyholders and brokers. Customers often relied on mailed letters to track claims or receive billing updates, brokers navigated multiple disconnected systems to manage their clients, and internal teams depended on manual workflows that slowed service delivery. At the same time, any modernization effort had to integrate with legacy policy administration systems and meet strict regulatory, security, and privacy requirements. Sandbox also recognized that meaningful transformation would require internal alignment, ensuring that employees, technology, and customer experience evolved together rather than in isolation. ## Solution We worked to rethink Sandbox's brand, digital experience, and supporting technology. The work began with broker interviews, competitor analysis, and multi-day process-mapping workshops with internal teams to understand operational workflows and identify opportunities for improvement. These insights informed the design of a fully integrated digital ecosystem built around role-based service hubs. Policyholders gained a secure self-service portal where they can manage policies, access documents, make payments, and track claims online. The platform introduces a visual claim status tracker that translates complex backend claims workflows into clear, step-by-step updates. Instead of waiting for phone calls or mailed letters, policyholders can see exactly where their claim stands and what happens next, providing transparency during one of the most stressful moments in the insurance journey. Brokers received a parallel portal that mirrors the policyholder experience while providing tools to manage their full book of business and support clients more efficiently. Internal teams were equipped with a secure staff interface that allows support teams to see exactly what customers or brokers see in real time, dramatically reducing friction during service interactions. Behind the scenes, the platform integrates with Sandbox’s core insurance systems through secure APIs connecting policy administration, authentication, payments, and broker tools. The transformation delivered measurable results across the organization. The new claims portal achieved an 80% customer adoption rate, overall customer satisfaction increased from 3.0 to 4.5, and Sandbox reported 25% year-over-year growth following the launch. Today the platform continues to evolve as the foundation of Sandbox’s digital strategy, enabling new services, integrations, and ongoing improvements to the customer experience. ### Strategy & Research - UX Research & Engagement - Digital Strategy & Transformation - Brand Strategy - Workshop Facilitation - Design Thinking Training ### Experience Design - UX & UX Design - Product Design ### Brand Design - Design Systems - Animation & Motion Design ### Technology & Development - Website Development - Drupal CMS Development - Claims Portal Development - Broker Portal Development - Technical Strategy - Cloud Hosting Management ### Sector - Insurance - Financial Services ### Client - Sandbox Mutual Insurance --- # Saskatchewan Cancer Agency > Designing and developing an intuitive front-end website that prioritizes the needs and experiences of patients and clients, creating a welcoming and supportive online environment. Close close close ## Client Overview The Saskatchewan Cancer Agency (SCA) delivers cancer care, treatment, and prevention services across the province. It’s a complex system, serving patients, families, clinicians, and internal teams, all at once. We partnered with SCA to rethink that system digitally. Not just a website refresh, but a connected ecosystem: public site, staff intranet, and a prevention-focused microsite (Healthy Future's Saskatchewan). The goal was simple on paper. Make it easier for people to find what they need during challenging times, and give internal teams a platform that actually works the way they do. ## Challenge The experience had grown uneven over time, shaped by different audiences and needs but without a clear structure holding it together. For patients and caregivers, that meant friction at the moments that mattered like, finding parking, booking appointments, or understanding your next step in the process. Internally, the same issues showed up in different ways. Systems didn’t connect, content was hard to maintain, and governance struggled to keep pace across teams and sites. SCA isn’t serving a single audience. It supports patients, families, clinicians, researchers, and staff, each with their own expectations, and the existing structure wasn’t built to handle that range. ## Solution We started by listening. Stakeholder interviews, patient feedback, and internal workshops gave us a clear view of how the system was actually being used, where it was breaking down, and where frusteration occured. From there, we simplified information architecture and pathways, and reworked content to remove noise, rewer clicks, provide clearer routes, and direct people to what they actually came for. That thinking carried into the design. This isn’t casual browsing, people are often stressed, tired, overwhelmed and looking for answers quickly. The experience is built around clarity, accessibility, and restraint, so users can move forward without friction or second-guessing. At the same time, we built the foundation to support it. A Drupal multisite platform connects the public website, staff intranet, and Healthy Future Sask microsite through a shared system of components, templates, and governance. Creating consistency across the experience while still giving each site the flexibility to serve its audience properly. Shared components reduce duplication and speed up development, structured workflows make content easier to manage, and a clear system underneath it all means the platform can evolve without becoming harder to maintain. ### Strategy & Research - Content Strategy - User Journey Mapping - Stakeholder Interviews - User Surveys ### Experience Design - UX & UI Design - Information Architecture - Concept & Product Design ### Technology & Development - Drupal Multisite Development (Domain Access) - Web Application Development - Single Sign-On Integration (Entra ID) - Solr Search Implementation - Role-based Access Control - Automated Notifications and PDF Generation - Cloud Hosting and Security Maintenance ### Sector - Specialized Healthcare ### Client - Saskatchewan Cancer Agency --- # Government of Saskatchewan Crop Development Report > Partnering with the Ministry of Agriculture to overhaul the Saskatchewan Crop Development Report, creating a real-time, automated platform that reduces costs, boosts efficiency, and supports proactive decision-making for farmers and industry stakeholders. Close close close ## Client Overview The Ministry of Agriculture’s Crop Report is one of those quiet public services that a lot depends on. Every week, it translates hundreds of field observations into a snapshot of conditions across Saskatchewan—used by internal teams, industry, and thousands of people checking the public report online. ## Challenge The process behind it had become the bottleneck. Administrators were spending too much time reviewing data by hand, correcting inconsistencies, and wrestling historical information into shape. The public experience had its own gap: the data mattered, but the way it showed up—especially on maps and visual dashboards—wasn’t keeping pace with how people expect to explore information now. ## Solution zu partnered with the Ministry to modernize the system end to end: survey creation, survey management, and report creation. The guiding idea was simple—make it easier for a small group of internal users to run the whole cycle, so the public gets clearer, more timely insight. We designed and built a two-part experience: an internal administration tool for the people who run the Crop Report, and a public-facing dashboard experience intended to surface data in a more interactive way. Inside the admin tool, we introduced a structured question bank, repeatable survey workflows, and role-based access across administrators, resource agents, and data viewers. For reporters, we supported straightforward submission through unique survey links, with an offline pathway (phone/fax) that resource agents can enter on their behalf—because real-world connectivity is part of the job. To reduce downstream cleanup, we moved data quality upstream. Validation rules (like percentage totals and format checks) help catch issues at the point of entry, instead of during late-night review. We also aligned report production with the way approvals actually happen—supporting exports that fit existing review workflows, so managers can edit and sign off without forcing a change in process mid-season. On the visualization side, we worked alongside GIS stakeholders to support integration patterns that allow map and image outputs to be generated consistently from the new data source—setting the foundation for richer public reporting over time. The result is a more reliable reporting engine: streamlined administration, stronger data integrity, and a clearer path from field input to public insight. Built to support over 200 crop reporters and serve thousands of public users a day, the new platform helps the Ministry publish with more confidence—and spend less time fighting the workflow. ### Strategy & Research - Discovery & Requirements Gathering - User Engagement & Workshop Facilitation - Requirements Analysis & Prioritization ### Experience Design - UX Strategy - Workflow & Role-Based Experience Design - Public Dashboard Design Direction ### Technology & Development - Full-stack Web Development - Technical Architecture & System Design - Historical Data Migration Planning & Execution - SSO / Role-Based Access Implementation - Integration Support for GIS Workflows - Deployment Planning & Release Support ### Sector - Government - Agriculture - Civic Technology ### Client - Government of Saskatchewan - Ministry of Agriculture --- # Government of Saskatchewan Dashboard Design and Development > Increasing public-sector transparency for citizens through a single-page web application — automating data aggregation and visualization for six Government of Saskatchewan ministries. Close close close ## Client Overview For years, Saskatchewan's economic, health, education, and agricultural data lived in disconnected systems across ministries. Each department managed its own reporting processes, often relying on manual workflows to validate, aggregate, and publish information. By the time data reached the public, it was frequently outdated, difficult to interpret, or inaccessible outside of static PDF reports. Citizens had no single place to go for accurate government information, and ministries had no shared infrastructure to publish it efficiently. ## Challenge In 2016, the Ministry of Economy approached zu with a specific problem: how to make economic data accessible to the public without creating unsustainable reporting overhead. But the challenge extended beyond a single ministry. Saskatchewan needed a platform that could serve as reusable infrastructure, capable of absorbing new data sources, new ministries, and shifting public information needs without requiring a rebuild each time. The system had to be designed for growth from the start, not retrofitted later. ## Solution zu co-designed the Saskatchewan Dashboard as a single-page web application built to scale indefinitely. The architecture was intentionally open-source and API-driven, allowing ministries to connect their existing databases without migrating data or overhauling internal systems. Each ministry could plug into the platform, map their datasets to a standardized interface, and publish to the public through one consistent tool. The design prioritized clarity under pressure. Workshops with ministry stakeholders revealed a gap between how government organizes information internally and how citizens actually look for it. zu restructured the interface around user intent, not departmental hierarchy. Information architecture followed accessibility standards (WCAG 2.0 AA) and visual design applied Gestalt principles to make dense datasets scannable and legible. The goal was to reduce cognitive load so citizens could find what they needed without translating government language first. The platform's design was tested in 2020. When COVID-19 created urgent demand for real-time public health data, the existing dashboard infrastructure absorbed the load. In under four weeks, the system expanded from quarterly economic reporting to daily health updates. It began publishing over 66,000 health data points across 120 indicators, updated seven days a week for nearly two years. This wasn't a new build. It was the same architecture, extended. The API integrations, modular front-end components, and scalable hosting infrastructure that supported economic data in 2016 handled pandemic reporting in 2020 without breaking. During a period of intense public scrutiny, the dashboard became Saskatchewan's primary source for COVID-19 information, proving that infrastructure designed for transparency can adapt to crisis without compromise. The platform continued to grow beyond health. Education and Learning dashboards integrated post-secondary enrollment and credential data, freeing institutions from proprietary reporting tools. Agriculture and Environment dashboards brought real-time crop conditions, livestock data, and market information to producers across the province. Each new ministry leveraged the same core system, the same API framework, the same design patterns. No duplication. No parallel builds. Today, the Saskatchewan Dashboard operates as foundational digital infrastructure. It connects multiple ministry databases, reduces manual reporting overhead, and gives citizens one reliable place to access government data. More than that, it demonstrates how designing for reuse from the start turns a single project into a scalable public service. The platform didn't just solve one ministry's reporting problem. It created a model for how government shares information at scale. ### Strategy & Research - UX Research & Engagement - Co-design & Workshop Facilitation - Proof of Concept - Rapid Prototyping ### Experience Design - UX & UI Design - Information Architecture - Concept & Product Design ### Technology & Development - Web Application Development - Data Visualization & Dashboards - API Integrations - Technical Strategy ### Sector - Government - Public Sector - Civic Technology ### Client - Government of Saskatchewan --- # Saskatchewan Health Authority > Designing and developing an intuitive front-end website and complex digital experience for the Saskatchewan Health Authority, unifying 12 regional websites, and 8 employee intranets onto a single integrated platform. Close close close ## Client Overview The Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) is the largest organization in Saskatchewan, responsible for delivering safe, high-quality healthcare to more than one million citizens. With over 40,000 employees spread across the province, SHA operates at a scale where clarity, consistency, and access to accurate information are essential, both for the public and for internal teams. ## Challenge At a critical organizational moment, SHA was tasked with amalgamating 12 former Saskatchewan Health Regions into a single authority. While the organizational structure had formally unified, the digital experience had not. Twelve regional websites and multiple intranet systems, built on different technologies and governed independently, created fragmentation, duplicated effort, and inconsistent information. This disconnect became especially urgent during a global pandemic, when timely, trustworthy communication was mission-critical. ## Solution SHA engaged zu to help design and deliver a unified digital platform capable of supporting this transformation. The challenge extended beyond technical consolidation. It required aligning diverse stakeholder groups, reconciling thousands of pages of content, and creating an experience that empowered users to find what they needed quickly, without unnecessary barriers. The work began with extensive discovery and engagement. zu conducted one-on-one stakeholder interviews, gathered thousands of public survey responses, and facilitated co-design workshops across the organization. This process surfaced not only structural issues, but a shared desire for simplicity, accessibility, and user self-sovereignty: the ability for people to navigate health information confidently on their own terms. These insights shaped a single guiding principle: unification without friction. The solution replaced fragmented regional systems with one centralized digital experience platform, consolidating content, governance, and publishing workflows while reducing duplication across teams. A comprehensive content audit ensured that only accurate, clinically reviewed information carried forward, strengthening trust and consistency across the province. Design decisions emphasized inclusivity and ease of use. Building on SHA’s existing brand, the new platform uses plain language, clear typography, welcoming imagery, and accessible layouts to serve a broad and diverse audience. Unnecessary logins were eliminated for non-sensitive content, reinforcing the site’s role as a self-serve resource for citizens and staff alike. Under the hood, a centralized Drupal CMS introduced tiered permissions, streamlined authoring, and interconnected content, dramatically improving publishing efficiency and reducing administrative burden. What once required significant coordination across regions became a shared, scalable system. The result is a foundational digital platform that supports SHA’s unified mandate. By bringing structure, clarity, and accessibility to a complex ecosystem, the work helped align people, processes, and information, ensuring Saskatchewan’s healthcare system can communicate with confidence, consistency, and care. ### Strategy & Research - UX Research & Engagement - Digital Strategy & Transformation - Workshop Facilitation ### Experience Design - UX & UX Design - Product Design - Web & Intranet Design ### Technology & Development - Website Development - Drupal 10 Development - Intranet Development - API Integrations - Technical Strategy ### Sector - Public Sector - Healthcare ### Client - Saskatchewan Health Authority --- # SaskTel > An ongoing relationship with Saskatchewan’s largest telecommunications company to create and ship new digital experiences, including a redesigned flagship app, and website. Close close close ## Client Overview SaskTel is Saskatchewan’s leading telecommunications provider, serving over a million customers across consumer and business lines. For years, both audiences were managed through the same digital ecosystem, one portal, one app, one set of assumptions. It was a practical approach that worked when expectations were lower and the experience surface was simpler. As self-serve became the primary channel for billing, support, and account management, that model started to strain. Consumer and business needs were diverging, but the system still treated them as one. SaskTel responded by separating the two into distinct divisions. The experience was still catching up. ## Challenge The issue wasn’t a single product. SaskTel’s portal, mobile app, website, and payment systems had been built and evolved separately, but customers experienced them as one. That gap showed up most clearly around billing and payments. Users were pushed between environments, forced to reorient, and often left unsure of what they owed or what would happen next. What made it difficult was that these weren’t isolated issues. The experience was tied to legacy systems and third-party dependencies that couldn’t simply be redesigned or replaced. Improving one part of the journey exposed gaps in another, including for internal teams trying to support customers. The problem wasn’t usability in the conventional sense. It was structural. ## Solution Consumer and business paths were separated where the differences were unavoidable, such as billing structures, account management, and service complexity, while continuing to share a common foundation elsewhere. Treating them as entirely distinct systems would have introduced a different kind of overhead without resolving the core issue. Billing was where users felt it most. Customers experienced it as part of SaskTel, but key parts of it were handled by a third-party system. Moving users out of the experience to complete a payment created hesitation at a point where clarity mattered most. Instead of replacing the billing engine, its functionality was brought into the product through integration. The underlying system remained in place, but the experience of it changed. We worked inside SaskTel’s product teams, contributing directly to ongoing releases rather than operating as a separate stream. Design decisions were shaped alongside technical and operational constraints as they surfaced. Other changes followed the same pattern. Navigation shifted away from internal terminology toward language customers already use. The internal admin tool was adjusted to reflect the same views customers see, reducing gaps between support and experience. In the mobile app, stability was prioritized over adding new functionality. The complexity is still there. It just sits behind the interface now. ### Strategy & Research - Design Research & Engagement - Digital Strategy & Roadmaps - Workshop Facilitation ### Experience Design - UX/UI Design - Service Design ### Technology & Development - Web, Portal & Intranet Design - Technical Strategy ### Sector - Telecommunications ### Client - SaskTel --- # Get the XCamp Vol. III Package > Decks, photos and summaries from zu's premiere customer and user experience conference, XCamp Volume III. [ ]() Enter your business email Open Keynote recordings, decks, photos, and summaries from zu’s annual experience design conference.