Genesys Rebrand
My role
Senior Visual Designer
Software
Figma, Adobe Creative Suite, Bynder
As the Senior Visual Designer at Genesys, I played a leading role in the rebrand of a major enterprise company. Initially, I was the only full-time designer focused exclusively on the brand, working closely with the part-time art director. Over time, the team grew to include contract and full-time designers, but I remained central to shaping the strategy and conceptualization of the new visual system.
The company had been working with an agency for over a year on a rebrand, but their efforts had stalled, leaving nothing concrete except for a 3D threads concept favored by the CEO. My role was to take this existing element and build an adaptable, scalable brand system around it while defining a cohesive visual direction that resonated across all touchpoints. This required balancing creative problem-solving with strategic collaboration across teams as the rebrand evolved.
The 3D threads were one of the only existing elements that had been developed before I joined the project, and the CEO was adamant about keeping them as a core part of the rebrand. However, the challenge was that the 3D threads, as they stood, were not scalable for all brand applications. To address this, I developed several design concepts, one of which retained the 3D threads, while others explored more scalable alternatives. One of these alternatives used a flat version of the threads that I custom-designed to preserve the visual essence of the original but in a way that could be scaled across various media. Two other concepts completely moved away from the 3D threads and used linework and pill shapes (derived from the logo) to communicate the "Experience Orchestration" theme, which became the company’s tagline. Ultimately, the 3D threads remained a central feature, but I helped to develop additional visual elements to complement them, ensuring the design system was more flexible and adaptable.
A key part of the rebrand was the creation of the Figma component library, which was designed to ensure consistency and ease of use across all brand materials. I built the entire Figma library, thoroughly thinking through how each component would be used and ensuring the components could be applied across various brand touchpoints. This included considering how these components would be employed in both digital and print formats. Given that the design team was new to Figma, I made sure the system was set up in a clear, accessible, and user-friendly way, with intuitive naming conventions, styles, and reusable components.To ensure that the design team could easily adopt the new system, I created detailed documentation within the Figma library itself. This documentation provided clear instructions on how to use the components correctly, how to apply brand elements like the 3D threads and glass effect, and best practices for maintaining brand consistency. This user-centric approach ensured that even designers unfamiliar with Figma could work confidently and efficiently within the system.
To modernize the Genesys brand, I refined the logo to improve its usability and visual appeal. Retaining its recognizable pill and circle shapes, I transitioned the logomark from outlined to filled shapes, enhancing its legibility, particularly at smaller sizes. Adjustments to the proportions and alignment between the logomark and wordmark resulted in a more cohesive and balanced design. Additionally, we darkened the wordmark for enhanced readability and softened its corner radii to better reflect the brand’s approachable style. These updates maintained the logo’s core identity while elevating its functionality and modernity.
Building upon interim guidelines, we expanded the Genesys color palette to ensure consistency across the brand and UX teams. The secondary palette drew inspiration from the 3D threads, with careful testing of color contrast to create a cohesive and versatile system.
The project also required the development of two distinct icon sets to meet the needs of both branding and functionality. The illustrative icons, featuring a custom glass effect, were created as abstract graphic elements aligned with the brand’s signature pill and circle shapes. These icons added depth and dynamism to the design language. Separately, I sourced icons from an external library to ensure alignment with the UX team’s existing tools, saving time and maintaining uniformity across platforms.
With the brand launch deadline approaching, I was tasked with redesigning the homepage to reflect the new branding. This redesign replaced outdated elements with visuals that embodied the refreshed brand. The hero section prominently featured an animated 3D thread with a glass effect overlay, showcasing the brand’s core elements from the start.I restructured other sections of the homepage, including the product features area, where I implemented an interactive layout that reduced scrolling by revealing descriptions and supporting images upon hover. This approach, validated by UX research, improved usability and engagement. Additionally, I redesigned thumbnails and media assets to align with the updated brand and provide more accurate, visually compelling previews.
Replacing low-value lo-fi visuals, I worked closely with product managers to create product abstractions that effectively communicated key features. These designs balanced storytelling and visual appeal, using minimal text to accommodate localization needs. Through iterative testing, I developed a faux-glass effect compatible with SVG formats and determined appropriate fidelity levels. Low-fidelity designs were used on the website to encourage engagement, while high-fidelity screens were reserved for demos to showcase the product interface in detail.
