On March 13–15, 2026, OXD’s Manager of UX and Service Design, Deb MacKenzie, joined designers, researchers, and problem-solvers at the Vancouver Service Jam—one of the local events in a global weekend of creative collaboration. Teams worked through an entire design process in just 48 hours, moving from a shared theme to tangible prototypes for real-world challenges.
The energy in the room reflected what makes Service Jam worth supporting year after year: people from different disciplines and working styles coming together, trying new approaches, and building things that may become real solutions in the near future.
We thank the organizers of our local Jam, Service Design BC, for another well-run event and for the opportunity to be a returning sponsor.
How his skills evolved from early-stage designer to creative leadership—moving from heavy focus on technical execution to providing strategic value beyond doing the work.
The interplay between design and development in UX work: “The big secret is communication. Learn to speak the same language, put aside egos, provide context, don’t assume people can read what you’re thinking.”
His best tips for landing that first job: “Connect the dots as to why you’re a good fit. Be confident in yourself, stand on the value you bring, but don’t be arrogant.”
What he wishes someone had told him when he was starting out: “Understand your ‘why.’ Why do you design? Why do you want to do this as a career? It’s hard to get a job, but understanding your why helps you to keep going, especially with how much the landscape is changing.”
The front-end development for interactive students finish their program with a professional development course—preparing them to join the workforce while completing their capstone projects.
Sharing our experiences is one of the ways OXD supports the next generation of local design and development professionals.
OXD is proud to return as a sponsor for the 2026 Vancouver Service Jam, a collaborative weekend where participants from across the globe turn ideas into working prototypes in just 48 hours.
Organized by Service Design BC, the Service Jam is an immersive experience where teams work together to address real-world challenges. Guided by a secret global theme announced on day one, Jammers use design thinking and service design methodologies to develop practical, human-centred solutions. By the end of the weekend, each team will have created a functional prototype and a strategic plan for implementation.
Who can join the Jam?
The Service Jam is open to anyone with curiosity and an open mind. Whether you’re new to design or a seasoned practitioner, you’ll work through an entire design process in one weekend—developing ideas with the potential to become real products or services.
At OXD, service design is at the heart of what we do. We partner with organizations to co-create solutions that truly meet user needs, and this Jam aligns with our commitment to human-centred innovation. By sponsoring this event, we’re supporting creativity, collaboration, and growth within the local service design community.
The Vancouver Service Jam runs from Friday, March 13 to Sunday, March 15, 2026. Service designers from OXD will be in attendance.
From January 20–22, 2026, OXD team members along with BC Parks’ product owner, participated in a hackathon organized by the British Columbia (BC) Government’s Digital Delivery Services team. The team’s challenge focused on improving how staff across ministries could create and share branded, critical, and time-sensitive content both internally and externally to citizens.
The problem: Balancing speed and quality in government communications
Staff across government face a significant challenge: with competing priorities and limited experience in digital content creation, many struggle to produce citizen-friendly content that meets BC Government writing guidelines. This often means web teams must provide extensive feedback, ask clarifying questions, or completely rewrite submissions—creating delays in getting crucial, time-sensitive information to both internal staff and the public.
Inspired by working with BC Parks and advisories to keep park visitors aware of conditions that may affect their safety and experience, our team wanted to create a solution where advisories and communications could be posted quickly while following specific writing guidelines to ensure clarity and usefulness for diverse audiences.
Our mission: Bridge the gap with AI
Embracing the hackathon’s fun ‘90s theme, our “8-Bit Editors” team—comprising a product owner, three developers, a QA engineer, a UX designer, a visual designer, and a project manager—identified an opportunity to use AI to bridge this gap. We needed a solution that could help staff across ministries write better communications from the start, reducing revision cycles and getting important information delivered faster.
Fun ‘90s theme for the 8-Bit Editors team participating in the Hackathon
Our goal was to create an intelligent writing assistant that could guide staff through the communications creation process while maintaining writing quality standards and voice.
Example use cases:
A regional BC Parks staff member reporting a bear sighting could receive real-time suggestions to improve clarity for essential safety alerts.
Staff across government who needed to post alerts or write service/program descriptions and reports in a specific writing style including tone, grammar, and active voice.
Staff with varying writing experience could produce consistent, high-quality content that serves diverse citizens’ needs.
Our approach: Assembling the right team and tech stack
The 8-Bit Editors team brought together expertise across product management, development, design, and quality assurance to tackle this challenge. We focused on understanding the specific pain points in the current workflow and designing a solution that would feel natural to use while dramatically improving output quality.
Our technology stack included:
FastAPI for the backend API
OpenAI API for natural language processing and content enhancement
Pydantic for data validation and ensuring content quality
Nuxt 4 (Vue.js) for a responsive, user-friendly frontend
Bootstrap 5 for consistent, accessible UI components
Our solution: A writing assistant that works in real-time
In three days, we developed a staff writing assistant prototype that demonstrates how AI can empower government staff to create better, on-brand communications with less friction. The tool provides intelligent, context-aware guidance throughout the writing process.
Example of the staff writing assistant showing a suggestion on how to improve writing.
Key features included:
Real-time writing assistance that suggests improvements while staff compose content
AI-powered content enhancement that can maintain BC government voice and standards
Validation to ensure all critical information is included
User-friendly interface designed specifically for staff workflows
Integration potential with existing government systems
The writing assistant helps staff produce clear, complete, and people-focused communications on their first attempt, reducing the need for extensive revisions and enabling faster publication of time-sensitive information.
The potential to transform government communications
Within the hackathon timeframe, our prototype showcased the possibility for AI to transform how the BC Government communicates internally and with citizens. The writing assistant enables staff to produce high-quality content efficiently, ensuring time-sensitive information can reach people without unnecessary delays.
By reducing the revision burden on web teams and empowering staff with real-time guidance, this tool has the potential to improve both the speed and quality of communications across ministries. Most importantly, it could help ensure citizens have the information they need to make informed, timely decisions.
We’re honoured to announce that OXD has once again been certified as a Great Place to Work® in Canada—our third consecutive recognition. Being awarded this for the third year running speaks to the heart of our company culture: a supportive, engaging environment where employee feedback genuinely matters and shapes how we evolve.
This isn’t just an award we collect—it’s validation from our team that the culture we’ve worked to build is resonating. Great Place to Work® certification is earned through confidential employee surveys measuring trust, pride, and camaraderie. Our people’s voices drive this recognition, and their feedback continues to guide our growth as a workplace.
What our team consistently values about working at OXD:
A psychologically safe environment where everyone belongs
Fair treatment and genuine respect across all levels
Authentic care for each other’s success and well-being
Work-life balance that’s protected, not just promoted
Leadership that’s approachable and invested in our growth
Three years in a row tells us we’re doing something right. At OXD, we’ve built a culture where people feel valued, supported, and empowered to bring their best selves to work. That’s the foundation of everything we do—and it’s why our team keeps choosing to stay and grow with us.”
Darren Gibbons, President, OXD
Achieving this certification three consecutive years demonstrates that exceptional workplace culture requires sustained commitment, not one-time initiatives. At OXD, we’ve built systems and practices that prioritize employee wellbeing, professional growth, and authentic connection—and we continually adapt based on what our team tells us matters most.
The data supports this approach: Great Place to Work® Canada reports that certified companies experience 50% higher employee retention compared to industry averages. For OXD, this translates to continuity in client relationships, deeper institutional knowledge, and a team that’s invested in our long-term success.
But the numbers only tell part of the story. What matters most is that our team members feel heard, supported, and empowered to do meaningful work while maintaining healthy boundaries between their professional and personal lives.
Thank you to the OXD team. This recognition belongs to all of you. Your feedback challenges us to keep improving, your collaboration makes our work possible, and your commitment to each other makes OXD the workplace it is.
We’re excited to announce that OXD has been named one of the Best Workplaces™ in British Columbia for 2025—our third consecutive year earning this provincial recognition!
This certification is based on confidential employee feedback measuring workplace trust, respect, and connection. Our team’s voices drive this recognition, and their input continues to shape the culture we're building together.
Image of OXD staff and leadership enjoying a workplace event.
Being recognized as Best Workplaces™ in British Columbia is an incredible honour. What makes it truly special is knowing this award reflects how our people feel about working here. Their feedback, their engagement, and their sense of belonging are what drive us forward every day.”
Julie Robinson Jones, CPHR, People Operations Manager, OXD
Earning Best Workplaces™ in BC two years running reflects our sustained commitment to creating an environment where people feel valued, supported, and empowered to do meaningful work. It's not just about policies or perks—it’s about the daily experiences our team has and the relationships they build with each other.
We’re grateful to our team for making OXD what it is, and to our clients and community partners for their continued support.
Want to transform your organization's service delivery? Join us for an exclusive session with Kate Tarling. Learn from the best in the industry about creating great service organizations.
Kate will speak about some of the key ideas from her bookThe Service Organization for designers, managers, and leaders interested in how to deliver better services and how to organize around them.
You'll leave with practical guidance for:
Showing the organization to itself to inspire change
Aligning teams by making service performance relatable to everyone and all the work
Putting services at the heart of the organization to drive effectiveness and efficiency
After the talk, join Kate for a 30 minute Q&A session.
About Kate
Based in London (UK), Kate works with global companies, public sector bodies and non-profit organizations to develop the conditions for everyone to deliver better services, including working practices, governance processes, service performance and leadership activities.
She does this through advisory and training, and works closely with boards, executives and teams as CEO and founder of The Service Org Group. She previously held senior service leadership roles in the UK government and the service industry.
Kate has spoken and guest lectured on service organizations, design and leadership at Harvard University, Google, the Estonian Government, the British Institute for Government, Ravensbourne University London and the Royal College of Art.
The event is free and open to the public! If you’re a Vancouver service designer, manager, or leader interested in how to create great service organizations, we’d love to see you there. Contact us with any questions.
Last year's pineapple-powered party was such a hit, we doubled down on the island vibes again. This time we brought even more tropical magic to Stanley Park—think tiki torches, reggae beats, and enough colourful drink umbrellas to make everyone feel like they just stepped off a plane from Maui.
Flip-flops, summery attire, and four-legged beach buddies were welcome too!
We came for the tacos, stayed for the sunset, and left with memories to last until next summer.
