Celebrating the future of UX

OpenRoad co-hosts the 3rd Annual Vancouver User Experience Awards

OpenRoad (OXD) hosts the 2016 Vancouver User Experience Awards

On November 16, 2016, we were thrilled to co-hosted the third annual Vancouver User Experience Awards. Professionals, practitioners, and students came together to celebrate achievements in the field of user experience across categories for marketing, emerging experiences, products, non-profit, and students. (And let’s not forget the great food and beverages shared by all!)

Way back in 2003—before most people even knew that User Experience was a thing—a few OpenRoadies helped establish a little roundtable of folks in Vancouver passionate about things like “user-centric design” and usability. VanUE was born. And since then OpenRoad—along with and our partners and friends at Habanero—has helped VanUE grow in membership year after year, culminating in a premiere event that recognizes and celebrates the high calibre of work done right here in Vancouver.

Virtual reality and beyond

Kharis O’Connell, Head of Product at Archiact, took the stage as our energetic keynote speaker at this year’s awards. Kharis led us into his world of designing for mixed reality, challenging the audience to consider the differences between designing for the ‘unseen systems’ of a three-dimensional experience versus known approaches of designing for 2d interfaces. His advice? “Suspend looking cool from UX. It’s about increasing efficiency, not replicating reality”.

Kharis O’Connell, Head of Product at Archiact presenting at the 2016 Vancouver User Experience Awards
“Suspend looking cool from UX. It’s about increasing efficiency, not replicating reality”.

A few of the big winners this year were Wiiv in the UX for Products and Best UX categories for their scan and customize insole app; a group of up-and-comers from Simon Fraser University won UX by Students and the People’s Choice award for their project IKEA Stay; and Burnkit won in the UX for Emerging Experiences category for their fully immersive display at the Port of Vancouver Discovery Centre. Visit the Vancouver User Experience Awards website for the full list of winners.

OXD team members at the 2016 Vancouver User Experience Awards
The OpenRoad team at the 3rd annual Vancouver User Experience Awards.

Improve your experience with VanUE

VanUE is a diverse community of professionals and students passionate about building better experiences and advancing their skills. With over 2,200 members, we host popular monthly meetup events and an annual awards gala. VanUE events are open to anyone who’s passionate about user experience—regardless of profession, industry, or role.

Find out more about OXD's events and partnerships.