Hello. My name is

ZakElyazgi


I am an accomplished UX, product design and research leader with over 20 years of experience tackling design challenges across a wide array of industries.

I am based in the Washington, D.C. metro area and my current role is with Verisign, where I am the Director of UX and Creative Services, leading all branding, UX and creative projects.

I focus on transforming complex, messy experiences into simple, engaging and satisfying ones.


A good user experience designer needs to be able to see

both the forest and the trees.

That means user experience has implications that go far beyond

usability, visual design, and physical affordances.

— Eric Reiss, Author & Information Architect

ZakElyazgi

Illustration

Notable Roles & Clients


  • Director, UX & Creative Services
  • Verisign
  • Oct. 2021 - Present
Versign logo
  • Currently leading a team of UX designers, researchers, graphic designers, and managers to provide UX, brand and creative solutions across the entire Verisign suite of websites, web applications and marketing projects.
  • Reform the way the team does business internally and externally, providing guidance to improve process and efficiency, taking on more responsibility on projects previously outsourced to agencies.
  • Director, User Experience
  • Halfaker & Associates
  • Sep. 2018 - Oct. 2021
Halfaker logo
  • Lead, mentor and manage a distributed team of UX designers matrixed across a mix of public-facing website and enterprise web application/product teams.
  • Provide thought-leadership including publishing blog articles which secured key strategic partnerships and additional revenue streams.
  • Attract, hire and train UX talent, build a UX practice, and advocate for a user-centered design culture for the company, to serve the needs of federal government clients.
  • Develop UX processes, procedures, design systems and infrastructure to support rapid design activities that integrate into Agile development sprint cycles.
  • Director, User Experience
  • SiriusXM Radio Inc.
  • Jan. 2014 - Sep. 2018
SiriusXM logo
  • Founded an in-house UX practice: built and developed user experience team responsible for digital properties with average traffic of 12MM unique visitors a month.
  • Helped drive digital transaction mix from 18% to 50%, resulting in millions of dollars in cost savings (through call deflection), and a measurable incremental lift in trial subscription conversion.
  • Co-founded SiriusXM’s digital A/B testing and usability testing programs.
  • Leading a team of UX designers, drive the UX strategy and user research (including digital A/B and multivariate testing, surveys, usability studies and analytics) and synthesize actionable insights from various data sources, within an iterative Agile process for the SiriusXM.com account management web application and marketing website.
  • Define UX style guide, pattern library and design principles for use by designers, front-end web, and web application developers across all SiriusXM.com web properties.
  • Proactively took on front-end development as part of efforts to elevate quality of products being deployed to production.
  • Sr. User Experience Designer
  • SiriusXM Radio Inc.
  • Mar. 2012 - Jan. 2014
SiriusXM logo
  • Design the user experience for SiriusXM.com’s account management mobile and desktop web application, translating requirements and user needs into design artifacts including task flows, wireframes, clickable prototypes and high-fidelity mockups.
  • First UX Designer hired by the company.
  • Sr. Consultant (UX)
  • Acumen Solutions
  • Jun. 2011 - Mar. 2012
Acumen Solutions logo
  • Primary engagement was as a contract UX consultant to SiriusXM Radio, Inc. (June – December).
  • Provided UX guidance for Acumen’s iPad application FAST (Field Assistance for Sales Teams), a digital sales and acquisition tool for in-the-field sales staff.
  • UX Designer (Consultant)
  • National Student Clearinghouse
  • Apr. 2010 - Mar. 2011
National Student Clearinghouse logo
  • As part of a newly-formed Agile development team, develop accessible user experience for degree, enrollment, and professional certificate verification web applications.
  • UX/Information Architect (Consultant)
  • Personal Pathways, LLC
  • Aug. 2007 - Jan. 2010
Personal Pathways logo
  • Lead UI/UX Designer and Information Architect for emerging corporate social networking product with extensive database backend.
  • Responsible for auditing design, functionality and information architecture, and usability of previous enterprise-level website and designing the interaction flow, wireframes, low and high-fidelity prototypes, user experience and visual design.
  • UX Designer / Creative Director (Freelance)
  • Daze Studios, LLC
  • Jun. 2001 - Mar. 2012
Daze Studios logo
  • Lead new user interface designs through the full design and development cycle (including concept, information architecture, visual design and interaction design).
  • Develop style guides and work closely with the development team, business analysts and executive leadership to ensure design and UX intent is carried through to production.
  • Redesign the entire user interface, interaction flow, information architecture and user experience of several enterprise-level web sites and applications.
  • As Creative Director, lead the design, development and production teams involved in all print, online, interactive and video projects from concept to launch.
  • Design websites, logos, business cards, stationary, ad slicks, promotional and advertising materials, signs, multimedia presentations, direct mail, email campaigns, and other deliverables.
  • Produce, direct and edit promotional and music videos.
  • Sr. Systems Administrator
  • Aol, Inc.
  • Sep. 1997 - Mar. 2007
Aol logo
  • Served as team lead and mentor for multiple teams simultaneously within Network Operations Center (NOC), and as a liaison to Operations teams.
  • Co-founded and built DBA Operations support (monitoring and troubleshooting) team within NOC; co-founded Storage Systems Operations support team.
  • In addition, played a significant contributing role in the formulation of companywide Diversity and Inclusion policies and initiatives, including presenting committee ideas to top leadership in the company.
  • Certified as a Sybase Database Administrator.
  • Aol logo
  • SiriusXM logo
  • George Mason University logo
  • National Student Clearinghouse logo
  • Trium Entertainment logo
  • Hult Prize logo
  • One Laptop Per Child logo
  • Clinton Global Initiative logo
Illustration

Recent Work Samples


icon
Grab
View Project
icon
Falafel Inc
View Project
icon
Hult Prize / Clinton Global Initiative
View Project
icon
Strictly Ebikes
View Project
icon
ShopLens.com
View Project
icon
District BBQ
View Project
icon
Oklahoma Joe's
View Project
icon
Optiva Health
View Project
icon
The Edens Group
View Project
icon
NameStudio
View Project
icon
Changility
View Project
icon
DSLO Enterprise Web App
View Project
icon
Align
View Project
icon
Century City
View Project
icon
Mo Amer - Legally Homeless Tour
View Project
icon
SiriusXM Radio
View Project
icon
SiriusXM Radio
View Project
icon
Various
View Project
Client:
Grab - 15 Minute Delivery

project:
iOS App Design

Services:
UX Design, Art Direction, Creative Direction
Falafel Inc website
Client:
Falafel Inc

project:
Website

Services:
UX Design, Art Direction, Product & Site Photography
Portfolio Gallery - Hult Prize competition website
Client:
Hult Prize / Clinton Global Initiative

project:
Responsive Website

Services:
UX Design, Art Direction
Strictly Ebikes website
Client:
Strictly Ebikes

project:
Website

Services:
UX Design, Art Direction, Model Photography
Client:
ShopLens.com

project:
Branding

Services:
Logo Design
District BBQ website
Client:
District BBQ

project:
Website

Services:
UX Design, Art Direction, Product Photography
Portfolio Gallery - Oklahoma Joe's website
Client:
Oklahoma Joe's

project:
Responsive Website

Services:
UX Design, Art Direction
Client:
Optiva Health

project:
Website, Brand Identity, Naming

Services:
Creative Direction
Portfolio Gallery - The Edens Group print collateral
Client:
The Edens Group

project:
Company Branding

Services:
Business Card Design, Print Marketing
Client:
Verisign

project:
NameStudio App

Services:
UX Direction, Creative Direction
Client:
Changility

project:
Branding

Services:
Logo Design, Brand Guide
Client:

project:

Services:
Client:
Align Consulting

project:
Branding

Services:
Logo Design, Business Card Design
Portfolio Gallery - Century City mobile app
Client:
Century City / Smart Enabler

project:
Mobile App

Services:
Art Direction, Visual Design
Portfolio Gallery - Legally Homeless website
Client:
Mo Amer, Comedian

project:
Marketing Website, Branding

Services:
Website Design, Logo Design
Portfolio Gallery - SiriusXM landing page
Client:
SiriusXM Radio

project:
Responsive Mini-Site

Services:
UX Design, Art Direction
Portfolio Gallery - SiriusXM landing page
Client:
SiriusXM Radio

project:
Landing Page

Services:
UX Design, Art Direction
Client:
Various

project:
Cinematography Reel

Services:
Cinematography, Editing

Hello. My name is

ZakElyazgi

close

Want to see more?

Additional samples of wireframes, clickable prototypes, visual web and app design, logo, branding and print design work available upon request

Illustration
Zak Elyazgi portrait

Get in touch