think+make
User Experience by Design
Zack
Gort.
Senior UX & Product Designer
Navigation Systems
Information Architecture
E-Commerce UX
B2B Platforms
Design Systems
Client Workshops
Figma Prototyping
SAP Hybris
Shopify
Mobile-First
Agile / Scrum
Navigation Systems
Information Architecture
E-Commerce UX
B2B Platforms
Design Systems
Client Workshops
Figma Prototyping
SAP Hybris
Shopify
Mobile-First
Agile / Scrum
Zack
Gort
UX & Product Design · Philadelphia · ~20 years
∞
Problems Solutioned [sic]
I was an artist before I was a graphic designer — or a UX designer. I studied at Pratt Institute (briefly), built my own computer, taught myself Photoshop and Illustrator via piracy, and eventually landed at a startup in the suburbs of southeastern Pennsylvania shipping millions of dollars of automotive parts to a fanatical fanbase. That was my formal education.
Since then: agency life at 160over90, O3 World, WebLinc, FlightPath, LiveArea, Code & Theory, and Publicis Sapient. Enterprise. Startup. B2B. B2C. .EDU. iOS. The common thread is navigation systems and a refusal to let the UX process be boring for the client.
Disciplines
Information Architecture
UX / UI Design
Navigation Systems
Design Systems
Prototyping & Testing
Client Workshops
Product Strategy
Platforms & Tools
Figma / Adobe CS
SAP Hybris / SFCC
Shopify (Plus)
Workarea (WebLinc)
iOS (native)
WCAG 2.0 AA
Agile / Scrum
↓ Selected Work
Selected
Case Studies
2007—Now
1.0 Enterprise
2.0 E-Commerce
3.0 .EDU
4.0 Startup / iOS
1.1
BNY Mellon / Pershing X
Advisory Experience Platform
Principal UX Lead · Design Systems · Client Workshops
Publicis Sapient
2.1
Lead UX Designer · Mobile-First Navigation
Elva Design Group
2.2
Hardinge Inc.
B2B SAP Hybris E-Commerce
Principal UX · Cards Against Bad UX
LiveArea
3.1
Kent State University
.EDU Overhaul
IA Refactor · Navigation Design · Visual Design
160over90
3.2
Dana Foundation
Mobile-First Redesign + Bespoke Logo
Full-spectrum redesign · Brand Identity
FlightPath
4.1
Power Home Remodeling
Campaign & Digital Experience
Cross-dept. coordination · Video · Photography
160over90
7.1
AmericanMuscle.com
E-Commerce Platform · Full-Funnel UX
UI+UX · Photography · Brand Identity
Turn5 Inc.
Ethos
Navigation systems are my forté and my favorite. But it's not just about drawing boxes and arrows — it's about maintaining full communication with the team, diving deep into a new platform and/or client ecosystem, putting in the hours (not all billed) to make everything right, being patient despite egos and exceptional deadlines. It's about caring about the work.
I was an artist before I was a designer. That means I observe. I read the room. I gauge vocal inflections on client calls when everyone has their camera off. And then I go make something that hits closer to the mark than anyone expected — usually on the first pass.
1Translate data into conversation — then conversion.
2Think as scenarios for surfaces, states, and situations.
3Educate with efficacy; engage through candor.
4'radical candor' can kindly fuck off
5Read. Write. Do math. Design.
6Could you imagine if Cy Twombly designed a website?
What teammates say
Unsolicited. From the people who worked alongside me.
"Zack has a deep connection to emotions, imagination, and sensitivity — the quintessential idealist. His greatest strength is his depth of sensitivity and empathy, which allows him to give voice to human connections in a way that works with people on a profound level. Zack brings fresh perspective to things when I felt in a rut — a great person to work with."
Christopher Bayle — ACD UX, Publicis Sapient
"Zack is one of the most talented, hard working and knowledgeable individuals I have had the pleasure of working with. He has truly been excellent, trying to foster communication not only between us, but with the whole team; to set them up for success. He always gives his best and more."
Andrés Moros, MPS — Sr. UX Designer, Publicis Sapient
Zack
The Story
Behind the Work.
Background
Pratt Institute · Autodidact
Before I was a "UX Designer", I was a "Web Designer". Before that, a "Graphic Designer". Before that, a teenager who could draw well and had a passion for animation. What is animation? It is the creation of something in motion; something that requires forethought into the next step, while maintaining a frame of reference for that which has occurred. What is UX? Exactly that.
I didn't graduate from Pratt. I couldn't afford it. So I worked construction, the bowling alley, the hardware store, the grocery store, the gas station. Built my own computer. Installed pirated Adobe software. Studied typography by reading magazines on the train. Studied color theory from whatever I could find online. Landed a job via Craigslist at $16.50/hour, full benefits, a 401K, and my own cubicle. I had no idea how happy I was.
My formal education: Turn5 Inc., parent of AmericanMuscle.com, shipping millions of dollars of automotive parts to a fanatical fanbase out of a warehouse in southeastern Pennsylvania. I did everything — graphic design, product photography, email marketing, package design, catalog design, and eventually, web design with a specific focus on UX.
95.8% conversion rate. 14.6% bounce rate. That wasn't magic. That was iterative testing, Sutton's Law, and an obsessive attention to the conversion funnel from homepage through checkout to your doorstep. Also: I took all the product photos. The Raxiom logo too.
160over90. Center City Philadelphia. Hired as one of two "Interaction Designers" to stand up a newly minted Interactive Department. $12K less than my previous job, zero regrets. Kent State .EDU. University of Wisconsin–Madison. Power Home Remodeling Group. Cross-department coordination with photographers, motion designers, video teams. The level of coordination with Power was significant — nay, tremendous. "Power is a ______ company." That was my idea. The team liked it. Power loved it.
LiveArea: UX Manager, contracts exceeding $1M in value, $235/hr billable. Hardinge Inc. — B2B SAP Hybris. Board-level visibility. Cards Against Bad UX — a presentation format I invented to shift client conversations away from jargon and toward user-centric thinking. It worked. Client approved on the first call with two modest adjustments.
Then GNC: Shopify Plus, mobile-first navigation, post-bankruptcy. The brief was to shake things up. We did.
Publicis Sapient. BNY Mellon / Pershing X Advisory Experience Platform. I became the de facto Team Lead and Product Owner. Led research and discovery. Led client workshops. Collaborated across multiple concurrent tracks while mentoring junior and associate designers. My efforts were directly responsible for securing a contract extension and influencing the overall direction of the now-live product.
"Organizational Spaghetti" — a term I coined to describe the experience. But the work was real, and it showed. I was laid off. "Separated amicably," the exit contract said. C'est la vi, so they say.
Career
Timeline.
| Period |
Company |
Role |
Notable |
| 2023 | Publicis Sapient | Senior / Staff UX Designer, Lead | BNY Mellon · Pershing X |
| 2022 | Elva Design Group | Lead UX Designer | GNC · Shopify Plus post-bankruptcy |
| 2021 | Code & Theory | Senior Designer / ACD responsibilities | Top social media platform |
| 2020 | LiveArea | UX Manager | Hardinge · SAP Hybris · $1M+ contracts |
| 2019 | Huge | UX Designer (Contract) | Global enterprise |
| 2018 | FlightPath NYC | Senior UX Designer | Dana Foundation · Merck · Zoetis |
| 2017 | O3 World | UX Designer | WOVN iOS · SEI · La Colombe |
| 2014–16 | 160over90 | Interaction Designer | Kent State · Wisc-Madison · Power HRG |
| 2013–14 | WebLinc / Workarea | Senior Visual & UX Designer | Proprietary SaaS e-commerce platform |
| 2011–13 | Leadnomics | UX Designer | 95.8% conversion rate · Bootstrap |
| 2007–11 | Turn5 / AmericanMuscle.com | Web & Graphic Designer, Photographer | Built the whole damn thing |
What colleagues say.
"Zack has a deep connection to emotions, imagination, and sensitivity — the quintessential idealist. His greatest strength is his depth of sensitivity and empathy, which allows him to give voice to human connections in a way that works with people on a profound level."
Christopher Bayle — ACD UX, Publicis Sapient
"Zack is one of the most talented, hard working and knowledgeable individuals I have had the pleasure of working with. He always gives his best and more. I feel he should be recognized for his tremendous effort and for being such a great team player."
Andrés Moros, MPS — Sr. UX Designer, Publicis Sapient
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — Product Photography 01
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — Product Photography 02
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — Product Photography 03
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — Product Photography 04
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — Product Photography 05
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — Product Photography 06
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — Product Photography 07
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — Product Photography 08
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — Product Photography 09
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — Product Photography 10
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — Product Photography 11
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — Product Photography 12
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — Product Photography 13
↓ Wolfgang 14
↓ Wolfgang 15
↓ Wolfgang 16
↓ Wolfgang 17
Zack Gort
Wolfgang & Co.
2023
↓ Case Study
1.1
BNY Mellon / Pershing X
The most sophisticated work of my career. I became the de facto Team Lead and Product Owner on a platform that — two years prior — was only a thought. I led research and discovery, ran client workshops, collaborated across multiple concurrent tracks, and mentored junior and associate designers. My efforts were directly responsible for securing a contract extension leading into the next fiscal year and influencing the overall direction of the now-live product.
↓ Primary Deliverable
Extensive Industry Research
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Client Workshop Facilitation
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Design System Architecture
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Design Paradigm Refactoring
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Mentorship · Junior + Associate Designers
↓ Org Structure
↓ Competency Framework
↓ Heuristic Analysis
↓ Research & Support
↓ Use Case Flows
↓ Terminology
↓ Holistic POC
↓ User Data Flows
↓ Design System
↓ Systems Design
↓ BNY — 18
↓ BNY — 15
↓ BNY — 17
↓ BNY — 16
↓ BNY — 13
↓ BNY — 14
↓ BNY — 11
↓ BNY — 12
↓ BNY — 10
↓ BNY — 09
↓ BNY — 08
↓ BNY — 07
↓ BNY — 03
↓ BNY — 04
↓ Discovery Audit
↓ Duty & Diligence
↓ Live Figma — Advisory Experience Platform · Sandbox
↓ #BonCourage
SeizeTheSpace
I negotiated company-paid lunches for my in-office workshops. I was a remote employee who chose to be a consistent in-office presence. I coined the term "Organizational Spaghetti" to describe the operational reality. I was laid off. "Separated amicably." Happens. What doesn't happen is the level of care and output I put in — and that's evidenced by the product that launched.
Zack Gort
Wolfgang & Co.
2022
↓ Case Study
2.1
GNC
GNC leadership wanted to shake things up — a mobile-first navigation schema with conventional fallbacks. Post-bankruptcy, they needed to relaunch their brand and reinvigorate consumer interest. The directive: modernize, optimize, and make it feel like a real rebrand without blowing the budget.
I'm comfortable in not being comfortable. We made foolhardy decisions in favor of shaking things up, as directed.
↓ Primary Deliverable
Mobile-First Navigation System
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Discovery & Requirements Gathering
↓ Secondary Deliverable
E-Commerce UX Optimization
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Shopify Plus Architecture
↓ Mobile-First Navigation — Global Nav System
"Modernize, optimize, and make it feel like a real rebrand without blowing the budget."
↓ E-Commerce UX — Homepage Through Checkout
↓ Shopify Plus Architecture — Category & Product Pages
↓ Navigation Schema — Mobile & Desktop Fallbacks
↓ Discovery & Requirements Gathering
↓ UX Optimization — Conversion Funnel
↓ Mobile UX Flows — Post-Bankruptcy Rebrand
↓ Shopify Plus Redesign — Full System View
↓ Final Deliverables — Navigation & E-Commerce System
↓ GNC — 01
↓ GNC — 02
↓ GNC — 03
↓ GNC — 04
↓ GNC — 05
↓ GNC — 06
↓ GNC — 07
↓ GNC — 08
↓ GNC — 09
↓ GNC — 10
↓ GNC — 11
↓ Live Figma — GNC Project Summary · E-Commerce
↓ Mobile-First
Navigation.
GNC relaunched, reinvigorated its consumer base, and modernized its online shopping experience — even in lieu of continued shuttering of physical retail locations. Post-bankruptcy, every UX decision carried real weight. We built a navigation system designed for mobile first, with thoughtful conventional fallbacks — bold enough to feel like a genuine rebrand, disciplined enough to actually ship.
↓ Deep Dive — zackgort.com/dive
2.2
↓ The Challenge
Board-level visibility. SAP Hybris. A client so unfamiliar with the design process that jargon-laden spreadsheets were causing frustration and near-contract abandonment. Navigation system slated as a Drop 1 deliverable despite the actual taxonomy review being months away. Oh — and what the heck is a 5C Collet?
↓ The Invention
Cards Against Bad UX™
I shifted the conversation away from jargon and toward user-centric thinking. Simple visual cards — "As a shopper," "As a content manager," "As a guest user" — let stakeholders empathize with their end users. The client responded enthusiastically. Approved on the first call. Two modest feedback adjustments.
↓ Drop 1 Scope (partial)
Style Guide · Header (Default / Guest / Authenticated) · Type Ahead / Search Suggestions · Tools (B2B) Menu · Category Navigation · My Account · Account Registration · Guest Order History Lookup · Cookies/Tracking Consent · Footer · Homepage
↓ The Override
A ranking teammate insisted their version ship the night before the presentation. I stayed up all night and made both happen. We showed their version first. Client was pleased — but asked if we had anything else. Within minutes of showing my version: enthusiastic approval on the spot.
PDP — Desktop, Single Purchase Item
PDP — Mobile, Variable & Kit Items
Drop 1 — Navigation, Header & Search
ShopHardinge.com — High-Fidelity UI
↓ Final Deliverables — Navigation & E-Commerce System
↓ Final Deliverables — Navigation & E-Commerce System
↓ Final Deliverables — Navigation & E-Commerce System
↓ Final Deliverables — Navigation & E-Commerce System
↓ Final Deliverables — Navigation & E-Commerce System
I was given one week to produce a Product Detail Page accounting for single purchase items, variable purchase items, kit and bundled items — iterated in both desktop and mobile. That's normal fare. The quirk: the PM and Solutions Architect wanted to force it to dev sight-unseen. Obviously the client wanted to see it. We showed. They responded.
There are some folks who diligently take notes on calls, and then there are others who are engaged in the call — gauging vocal inflections and reading between the lines. Well, I am a user experience designer.
3.1
↓ The Brief
A massive project covering the full gamut of a .EDU overhaul. Complete IA refactoring, infusion of a fresh brand identity, ground-up redesign — with a green light to "do it different." 8 regional campuses, dozens of international locations, and multiple internal entities with unique priorities.
↓ The Nav (my forté)
Navigation UX/UI for a .EDU with atypical infrastructure. I explored base-line options, mega menus, full-screen takeovers, pop-outs. Then I dared to seek our own solution — a proprietary navigation system designed from ground-up for Kent State's unique complexity. It didn't make it to fruition, but it served as an invaluable thought experiment.
Psst... shout-out to my developer for that insane implementation.
↓ Contributions
IA Refactoring
Navigation System Design
Wireframe + Design Prototypes
User Flow Walkthroughs
Visual Design
Homepage — Desktop
Brand Refresh — Feature Headlines & Typography
Proprietary Nav System — Concept Exploration
Proprietary Nav System — Concept Exploration
Mobile-First — 8 Campuses, One System
"What happens when the client hands you this..."
Mobile-First — 8 Campuses, One System
Mobile-First — 8 Campuses, One System
Mobile-First — 8 Campuses, One System
Mobile-First — 8 Campuses, One System
Mobile-First — 8 Campuses, One System
Zack Gort
Wolfgang & Co.
2018
↓ Case Study
5.1
Dana Foundation
Full-spectrum mobile-first redesign: brand new identity, intuitive navigation structure, flexible layout for a comprehensive array of neuroscience content. The previous site hadn't seen a refresh in over a decade. I delivered a design system maintaining near 1:1 desktop-to-mobile experience while minding modern accessibility (WCAG 2.0). A traditional top-bar navigation was not going to work — my card-system interface accommodated both Dana.org and their Brain Awareness Week subsidiary with only modest CSS adjustments.
↓ Primary Deliverable
Sitemap & Content Architecture
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Mobile-First UI System
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Card-Based Navigation
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Bespoke Logo Concept
↓ Secondary Deliverable
WCAG 2.0 Accessibility
↓ Dana.org — Content Asset Module
↓ Dana.org — Mobile Mockup
↓ Dana.org — Mobile Navigation
↓ Brain Awareness Week — Mobile Mockup
↓ Brain Awareness Week — Hero
↓ Dana Foundation — Bespoke Logo Concept
↓ Typeface Primitives — Core Shapes & Stems
↓ Construction Grid — Letterforms & Circle Primitives
↓ Construction Grid — Color Overlay & Ratios
↓ Brain Awareness Week — Geometric Construction
↓ Brain Awareness Week — Optical Alignment Grid
↓ Dana Foundation — Final Lockup
↓ The Dana Alliance — Final Lockup
↓ Brain Awareness Week — Final Lockup
↓ The Logo
That Didn't Win.
I proposed a bespoke logo system — dots (circles) as individuals, many as humankind, as a metaphor for the mind. Avoided cliché brain icons. Thought modularly. Used general geometry relative to circle proportions to create a custom typeface. It lost by a few votes. I'm told it was close. I was an artist before I was a graphic designer. So while this didn't make the cut, it may offer a look into how I approach design.
Zack Gort
160over90
2015
↓ Case Study
4.1
Power Home Remodeling
The cofounders had one requirement: unlike anything else in home remodeling. Not an inventory of services — showcase the lifestyle benefits of achieving your dream home. They wanted video, animation, lifestyle photography, and had the budget and enthusiasm to see it through.
"Power is a _____ company." Rather than a singular brand statement, the blank becomes a canvas. Each visit fills it differently. A loaded sentence framework — "make every word count," as a copywriter once taught me. Since I'm not really a copywriter, I gave them a whole bunch of sentences.
↓ Primary Deliverable
Campaign Strategy
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Brand Voice & Messaging
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Digital Experience Design
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Animation & Video Integration
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Cross-Department Coordination
↓ Tremendous
Coordination.
Cross-department: brand designers, on-site photographers, motion designers, video team. The level of coordination was significant — nay, tremendous. Shout out to the dev team. (Okay, it was just Greg.)
Zack Gort
Turn5 Inc.
2011
↓ Case Study
7.1
AmericanMuscle.com
It's a ton of fun to focus your efforts on a single product, especially when that product is the face of an e-commerce platform shipping millions of dollars of merchandise to a fanatical fanbase — derr, userbase. With a need for a system that could accommodate thousands of uniquely complex online orders spanning a bevy of categories, I designed custom UI+UX solutions through iterative testing — everything from homepage through checkout, to your inbox. Or, in this case, your doorstep.
The site has changed since 2011, but the fundamental building blocks are still largely intact.
↓ Primary Deliverable
Full-Funnel E-Commerce UX
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Iterative A/B Testing
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Product Photography
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Brand & Identity (Raxiom)
↓ Secondary Deliverable
Custom Checkout Flow
↓ Full Throttle — Homepage Hero, Mustang Lineup
"Test. Sell. Optimize. Sell more. Rinse and repeat."
↓ AM Z Pro — Product Detail & Configuration
↓ Iterative Wireframes — Homepage Through Checkout
↓ Holistic Ownership — UX, Photography & Raxiom Brand
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 01
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 02
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 03
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 04
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 05
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 06
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 07
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 08
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 09
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 10
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 11
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 12
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 13
↓ AmericanMuscle.com — 14
↓ Holistic
Ownership.
Besides the UI+UX, I functioned as the product photographer. Having a holistic hand over photography, the website, and branding let me establish a cohesive design language throughout the site — essentially everything you see above, Raxiom logo included.
01
02
03
04
