Proximity Lab

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the SVP Product Strategy Innovation of a healthcare company

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

A leading health solution and care delivery organization.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Proximity Lab to accomplish?

• Product Strategy for a new platform

SOLUTION

How did you find Proximity Lab?

worked with this team before

Why did you select Proximity Lab over others?

• High ratings
• Great culture fit
• Company values aligned
• high ethics

How many teammates from Proximity Lab were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Proximity Labs was hired to help us understand a fast-changing marketplace in healthcare, evaluate our current technology stack, establish a product vision and strategy for our next generation platform, and create a workflow and path forward on how to execute against that vision.  Key deliverables included primary and secondary market research, wireframe of a modernized platform, product roadmap recommendations.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Proximity labs always delivers high quality vision, strategy, UI/UX design and research at key milestones, on time.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Excellent project management, they assign a lead to project manage. Yes always on time.  Will have a discussion if things are changing in scope and adjust together.

What was your primary form of communication with Proximity Lab?

• In-Person Meeting
• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

They are not afraid to push my thoughts or ideas.  They educated me along the way.  They deeply listen.  Lean, mean team, led with high quality, innovative, and high ethics intention.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Proximity Lab could have done differently?

Their work is very deeply thought out and based on research.  Sometimes we need speed over quality, perhaps one area where we could have iterated with less perfection.  I would hire them every time I can get a chance.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the VP of Brand and Design of VSCO

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

VSCO is a community-driven platform that equips photographers to expand creatively and professionally with a suite of creative tools and a network for connecting with other creatives and businesses.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Proximity Lab to accomplish?

• Website design
• Brand messaging

SOLUTION

How did you find Proximity Lab?

Referral

Why did you select Proximity Lab over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• High quality work

How many teammates from Proximity Lab were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Proximity Lab drove the redesign of our marketing website. They led creative direction, design production, and web development.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Proximity Lab was able to balance time to market, high quality output, and budget to ensure the project was delivered on time and met the exacting needs of our brand.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Proximity Lab is extremely professional to work with. Their work was always delivered on time, allowing time to review prior to meeting. They are organized and thoughful in their presentations. They are conscientious about following up on open items, tracking tasks, and communicating progress regularly.

What was your primary form of communication with Proximity Lab?

Virtual Meeting

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

The quality of the work, attention to detail, and time to delivery. Typically, to get the professional quality of work that Proximity Lab delivers you need to work with much larger, much more expensive creative agencies. However, Proximity Lab has been able to retain exceptional talent and stay reletively small, allowing them to produce world-class output, quickly, at a very reasonable cost.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Proximity Lab could have done differently?

N/A

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP and head of investigative and evidence management solutions for Cellebrite. Cellebrite is the global leader in partnering with public and private organizations to transform how they manage digital intelligence in investigations to protect and save lives, accelerate justice, and ensure data privacy.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Proximity Lab?

We were looking to build a new UX and a new platform that could be used by law enforcement and took on a more holistic approach to identify needs in the market.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We utilized Proximity Lab for their market research and UI/UX design services. We started with a discussion about the strategies we wanted to implement regarding UX research and their design services — we also identified project goals, a statement of direction, and expectations.

We mainly used Figma for the project's design process and video documentation.

What is the team composition?

We mainly interfaced with Nick (Partner & Research Director) and Evan (Founder & CEO).

How did you come to work with Proximity Lab?

I'd worked with Proximity Lab from a previous company, so I’m already familiar with their work. They’ve grown their portfolio exponentially since then, so it was a no-brainer for me to hire them for this project.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested about $500,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

This partnership ran from October 2021–July 2022.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

The success of this engagement is based on the overall reception of the design, and we’ve garnered a lot of positive feedback from customers and company stakeholders.

How did Proximity Lab perform from a project management standpoint?

They exceeded my expectations from a project management perspective and in many different ways throughout the partnership. They were consistent in their communication through Slack and responsive when it came to providing feedback and updates on the progress.

Moreover, they went above and beyond the scope to further improve the finished product. We liked how we always received several status reports on the project and how they gave us high-quality dashboards when it came to achieving our milestones.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We were impressed with their ability to do market research and independently operate with little to no guidance.

The quality of their work was top-notch, their process was easy, and the execution of their tasks was flawless.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything they need to improve on.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Providing them with background details and accessibility to the stakeholders is key to a successful partnership, so I would advise you to be as upfront with the necessary information as you can.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of product design for an online car sales company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Proximity Lab?

We needed help with UX/UI design, specifically UX.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Proximity Lab has worked in two engagements for us. The first one was the enhancement to our search results page. It was a six-week engagement, and the deliverables were market audits, research, and wireframes that we shared back and forth with our stakeholders to give feedback and discuss concepts.

The second engagement has been longer; we’ve spent more than 10 weeks and are still working with them. This project focuses on internal tools and getting them from a zero to one execution. It’s a future exploration in nature, and we’re collaborating deeply in Figma to push the project forward.

Initially, we walked them through our problem statement and the business’ areas of opportunity. They took it and ran with it. We checked in to ensure they weren’t proposing ideas we’d already presented. The original scope was just helping us to extend our design resources to take that first step forward. Now, we’re still determining where we’ll go from here.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with Evan (Founder & CEO), a project manager, and anywhere from 2–5 designers at various points of the project.

How did you come to work with Proximity Lab?

During COVID-19, we were looking for a bit of design help. I can’t remember how we came across them; it was through an organic search or a friend’s recommendation. We got in touch, and they were certainly what we were looking for.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we’ve spent about $500,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in September 2021, and our relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Nothing has gone live yet, but the relationship has been positive. We’ve received positive feedback, and they’ve strengthened and extended what we expect as a design organization with our product partners. They don’t have any metrics to hold up, but they’ve been efficient and provided a high quality of work — they’ve met a high standard. Overall, we’ve enjoyed the engagement.

How did Proximity Lab perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re great. Proximity Lab is a clear and concise communicator. They’re good at setting up schedules and sticking to them. The team helps us move along when we need to. From that perspective, it’s been nice not to worry about the designs or progress.

We’ve used a combination of Slack, email, and Zoom to get the job done. Also, Figma has been a great medium to communicate the design parts.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They take the time to understand what’s happening and are efficient at getting to the source of the problem. They can break it down, present it, and communicate it. Also, they offer a couple of options and deliver on time. It’s a recipe for success. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think so. They’ve been great.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Meet them. We initially did a smaller project to test them out, and it was an easy way to test the relationship and figure it out from there. Overall, they’re great collaborators and partners in negotiation. It doesn’t have to be one thing; you can have the conversation first and then start building from there.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the former VP of solution innovation and delivery for an IT company based in New Hampshire.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Proximity Lab?

We hired Proximity Lab for two UI/UX design projects. One was related to reporting and analytics visualizations. The other involved rebuilding an internal and external management console. We needed to design that console and gather both internal and external feedback on how to move legacy features forward. We had constraints on our resources, expertise, and time, so we leaned on Proximity Lab for their UI/UX expertise.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Proximity Lab provided us with a team and gave us an SoW overview. We then agreed on the scope and key asset deliverables, which involved running internal and external surveys. Proximity Lab provided phone and video interviews as well as iterative design reviews with our customers.

Proximity Lab combined our feedback with best UI/UX practices to create their designs. Proximity Lab then provided the full UX outline with a sample code for each of the elements, and they created a style guide for us so that we could leverage core concepts and carry them forward into future projects. I believe that Proximity Lab used InVision for the design work.

We then implemented segments of their design work incrementally. We had allocated time in our contract with Proximity Lab for them to provide us with feedback and support during implementation.

What is the team composition?

We were in contact with five people at Proximity Lab. My main point of contact was Nick (Partner & Director of Research) who was my strategic account lead, and we also worked with a project manager, two interviewers, and one UX expert.

How did you come to work with Proximity Lab?

Proximity Lab had previously done some work for us when we were moving one of our products from client-server into the cloud, and I enjoyed that experience with them. Whenever I had a UI/UX need after that, I talked to Proximity Lab first as a trusted partner.

We accepted multiple bids for both projects, and Proximity Lab’s bid was comparable to or lower than the two other bidders. Proximity Labs also offered more comprehensive service.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested approximately $500,000 with Proximity Lab.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with Proximity Lab in 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

All of the internal and external feedback on Proximity Lab’s design was positive. They were a really great partner, and we were extremely satisfied with everything that we got from them at every stage of the project.

How did Proximity Lab perform from a project management standpoint?

Proximity Lab did really well at sticking to our standard budget, scope of work, and timelines. They were flexible as we adapted our priorities to accommodate user feedback. We had room in our budget to make sure that we could adapt to those changes. 

We posted deliverables in Teams, held weekly Zoom calls, communicated via email, and held further Zoom calls to review the design. They gave good executive presentations. Proximity Lab recorded user feedback sessions and documented those in Teams so that we could leverage them in the future.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Proximity Lab was a very well-rounded UX firm. They had a really great UI/UX team, and they also knew how to conduct user interviews to ensure that our project met user expectations — that was extremely helpful. Their project management was key. Proximity Lab’s ability to meet timelines and stay on budget was essential to our project’s success.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of any areas Proximity Lab could improve. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It’s helpful to start with a business brief that explains your overall goals and objectives. If you have user personas or knowledge about your users, share it. That gives them a structure to be able to provide the best guidance. Set timelines and let them know whether or not you have resources available. Proximity Lab can work independently or they can be an extension of your team, depending on which way you want to partner with them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CXO of Bottomline Technologies; we are transforming business payments and processes for companies and financial institutions around the world.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Proximity Lab?

We needed help with staff augmentation for our internal UX team.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Proximity Lab provided proof of concept work, including UI/UX design and other usability testing tasks. In terms of technologies, they used Adobe XD primarily.

What is the team composition?

We collaborated with 3–5 members of their team among the different projects.

How did you come to work with Proximity Lab?

We’re both located in the same city, and a friend referred them to me. After speaking with them it was apparent they were a mature and experienced UX agency.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from January 2018–January 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We don’t have any metrics, but I can say that we were pleased with their work.

How did Proximity Lab perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management was excellent; they dedicated a project manager to our partnership, and she did a great job. In terms of tools, we used Slack as our primary communication channel to keep everyone updated in the process, but we also had emails and phone calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their client handling was mature and outstanding. They didn’t come in to preach anything; they integrated into our team, helped us accelerate many things, and enabled us to get a new perspective on others, which we appreciated.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think there’s anything they can improve on — they did a great job, and I highly recommend them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be clear with your goals for the project so they can meet your requirements quickly and efficiently.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I was the CEO of a SaaS company that mainly delivered cloud-based middleware that connects CRM, ERP, and marketing automation platforms.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Proximity Lab?

We had a cloud data integration tool that was functioning well, but it needed a more approachable UX for our non-technical audience to accomplish complex technical tasks.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Proximity Lab provided us with UX research and design to enable our users to build technical integration systems.

They started with an analysis of our business and the current product to understand what we needed to accomplish. They then interacted with systems integration companies who would provide the outcomes for the end-users and did some competitive market reviews to acquire similar solutions to our challenges.

What is the team composition?

We mainly worked with Evan (Founder & CEO) and Nick (Partner & Director of Research).

How did you come to work with Proximity Lab?

We were looking for someone who had experience with MIT Scratch and came across Evan, who was involved in the original design paradigm for it.

Proximity Lab was also known in the local community for exceptional design, and that made them the obvious choice for this project.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested about $150,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from April–October 2016.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We ended up having a very successful business outcome thanks to Proximity Lab. We sold the product we worked on to a large enterprise and we were able to grow our revenue off that product by 60% YOY.

How did Proximity Lab perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management was executed flawlessly. They pushed my team in a positive way which resulted in them delivering more than what was expected.

They managed the project through JIRA and we typically communicated through Google Meet and in-person meetings.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their design capabilities and diverse perspective are way better than the other companies I’ve worked with in the past. They didn’t just make our product look nice, they also optimized it for enhanced productivity.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything they need to improve on because they were really unique.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I advise you not to cut the research phase short and spend your energy doing the upfront research.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I lead Product Management for Adobe's Creative Cloud Enterprise and SMB business.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Proximity Lab?

I have hired Proximity Lab for multiple engagements, ranging from defining and designing concepts for future product experiences, to conducting customer and user research for business strategy, to executing on UX design and usability testing.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

They had worked on another project for Adobe and came highly recommended.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

A usual engagement involves working with stakeholders across the organization to align on goals and outcomes for the project, followed by customer research, concepts designs, followed by user validation of the concepts to provide recommended directions for the business and products.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

A typical engagement involves a 2-4 people across research and design for 3-6 months.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

They worked on a redesign of some of our admin console features. There was some internal resistance to their recommended approach as it differed from preconceived ideas that didn't reflect contemporary design patterns and user expectations. Through their process, they were able to validate their approach, gain trust from early dissenters and deliver a design that was implemented and significantly improved the core metrics we wanted to deliver on.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Proximity Lab did a great job aligning with the core working group, meeting deadlines and incorporating feedback. They share work in progress via slack in between meetings which keeps iterations fast.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Proximity's is very strong with design strategy. They understand how market dynamics and business strategy inform product design and can provide solid recommendations that change stakeholders views and delivers business success.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

None at this time.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Director UX Research & Design of Intel

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

design and manufacturing of semiconductors

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Proximity Lab to accomplish?

• Conduct a competitive analysis of highly complex software developer tools to better understand the target persona user experience and evaluate the perceived value and relative usability.

SOLUTION

How did you find Proximity Lab?

Online Search

Why did you select Proximity Lab over others?

• Close to my geographic location
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost

How many teammates from Proximity Lab were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

In depth workshops with prouduct owners and stakeholders to clearly define project scope and better understand business drivers.  The Proximity team:

• developed interview discussion guides
• conducted in-depth analysis
• developed report out.

the qualitative user interviews were conducted using a series of one-on-one interviews to better understand users' beliefs, expectations, needs, pain points and opportunities for a set of features and functionalities.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

User requirements, journey maps, actionable insights to improve feature and capability usability.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

The team was very professional, flexible, knowledgeable, organized, and responsive.

What was your primary form of communication with Proximity Lab?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Detail oriented, clearly articulated business needs and objectives.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Proximity Lab could have done differently?

no