Scaling Design Across an Enterprise SaaS Portfolio
Following Intertek’s acquisition of Alchemy and continued platform growth, users increasingly moved between connected applications as part of a single workflow. Although integrations worked technically, differences in branding, navigation, and interaction patterns often made connected products feel like separate applications.
For example, users could launch a feature directly from one application into another without opening a new tab, yet the visual transition often made it feel like they had left the platform.
To address this disconnect, I created the Degrees of Separation (DoS) Framework, a governance model for evaluating and improving continuity across Intertek’s SaaS ecosystem.
The Challenge
As products evolved independently over time, inconsistencies in branding, navigation, typography, and interaction patterns created a fragmented experience across the platform.
This introduced several challenges:
- Connected products felt disconnected
- User confidence decreased during workflow transitions
- UX decisions lacked a consistent evaluation model
- Modernization efforts often implied costly redesign projects
The challenge was to improve platform continuity while respecting existing workflows, technical constraints, accessibility requirements, and product roadmaps.
The Solution
I developed the Degrees of Separation (DoS) Framework, a structured model for evaluating how closely products aligned with the Intertek SaaS experience. It’s a governance framework for creating seamless experiences across interconnected SaaS products.
The framework established four levels of alignment and provided teams with a shared method for:
- Auditing existing products
- Measuring alignment maturity
- Prioritizing modernization opportunities
- Guiding phased implementation efforts
Rather than pursuing disruptive redesigns, the framework focused on targeted improvements that balanced customer experience, implementation effort, and technical feasibility.
Establishing a Baseline
Products were evaluated against common criteria including:
- Logo usage
- Color alignment
- Typography
- Navigation patterns
- Visual consistency
This created a measurable baseline that helped teams identify where modernization efforts would provide the greatest value.
Applying the Framework
The framework introduced a repeatable process for auditing products, collaborating with engineering, evaluating implementation options, validating solutions, and planning phased rollouts.
This approach allowed teams to improve alignment incrementally while maintaining functionality and accounting for platform-specific constraints.
RESULTS
The Degrees of Separation Framework transformed platform alignment from a subjective discussion into a measurable, repeatable process.Organizational Impact
- Established a scalable governance framework adopted across UX, Product, and Marketing discussions.
- Created a repeatable process for auditing and modernizing products across the SaaS ecosystem.
- Reduced estimated modernization timelines from 6-8 months to approximately 10 weeks, accelerating delivery by 60-70% compared to a traditional redesign approach.
User Impact
- Improved continuity across connected products, helping experiences feel like a single platform instead of separate applications.
- Reduced implementation risk by modernizing incrementally rather than requiring disruptive redesigns.
- Created a consistent foundation for future products entering the ecosystem.
Framework Applied Across the Platform
The framework was applied across multiple products, helping create a more cohesive experience while preserving each product’s unique functionality and technical requirements.
Modernized from 3rd Degree toward 2nd Degree alignment.
Legacy product elevated with the DoS framework.
New modern feature designed with 1st Degree alignment.
New experience designed using platform alignment principles.
This project demonstrated that platform consistency isn’t achieved through redesigns alone. By creating a shared governance framework, teams could evaluate, prioritize, and modernize products incrementally, improving both the user experience and delivery efficiency across a growing SaaS ecosystem.
