Sitecore_PowerGrad_MobileBG.jpg

Sitecore

Sitecore is a leading enterprise digital experience platform (DXP), powering global websites through products like XM Cloud, Search, and Personalize. As a long-standing Platinum Partner, Hugo & Cat had supported Sitecore on numerous client engagements. But when Sitecore set out to reinvent their own website, they invited partners to pitch for the work — a rare opportunity to shape how a technology leader presents itself to the world.

Website page with the logo 'Sitecore' and the headline 'Creating a digital-first brand for an identity-less technology giant' over a gradient background.

Background

Following a successful competitive pitch, we were appointed to lead the redesign of Sitecore.com — initially framed as a pattern library and component refresh. But it quickly became clear that Sitecore needed more than new UI. The project expanded into a full experience strategy, information architecture overhaul, and visual brand evolution. I led UX across this effort, overseeing the experience strategy, structural planning, and design execution alongside a collaborative internal dev team at Sitecore.

A digital presentation slide split into three sections: on the left, a chart of audience types with engagement levels and influence roles; in the middle, a list of priorities with descriptions of each audience; on the right, a summary of common feedback and insights from industry stakeholders.
Screenshot of a business report page showing three sections: a benchmarking chart with company logos and G2 ratings, a positioning graph with companies plotted on a 2D chart, and a perception quote from Forrester Wave DXP Q4 2023.
A journey map titled 'Journey Atlas' depicting stages: Learn, Consider, Decide & Justify, Purchase, and Realise Value. It includes sections on audiences such as Leadership, Core Buyers, Daily User, with roles and mission descriptions, and page flow steps for exploring products, learning about them, comparing, and building credibility, with associated icons and pathways.
Collection of presentation slides with titles such as "Powering Potential" and "Power to Build," featuring text, diagrams, and colorful graphics.
A presentation slide with the text 'Power to Build' in large, bold letters, accompanied by smaller text discussing the company's mission and impact, and a statement that they use their power to influence the world.

Insight

Our early strategic work helped Sitecore define a new positioning — “The Power to Build” — which reframed their platform as the invisible force behind customer experiences. This concept was expressed visually through a new design language based on modular grids and an abstract “power gradient.” It wasn’t just a tagline — it informed how we structured journeys, shaped modules, and planned page interactions across the site.

To support this, we created a Customer Journey Framework based on interviews, analytics and experience mapping. Rather than mapping traditional funnel stages, we focused on user missions — the real reasons people come to a platform site — and used those to inform page types, messaging strategy, and prioritised content design.

A complete content audit followed, reducing tens of thousands of legacy URLs to a manageable ecosystem. We restructured the site using IA activities like card sorting and tree testing, reorganising product information around user needs, not internal structures.

Screenshot of a website homepage for Sitecore with a menu, navigation options, and content sections about DXP overview and products.
Screenshots of a website named Sitecore showing customer stories, featuring images of a luxury car, a woman's face, a vehicle with luggage, and text describing innovative company choices on both desktop and mobile views.
A man with glasses and a beard wearing headphones is working at a desk. The background shows a bookshelf and pink wall decor. On the screen, there are various design and editing interface elements such as A/B testing options, page layout, user data analysis, and content templates.
Series of four digital advertising posters for Sitecore XP 10.4, featuring event details, registration announcement, update news, and promotional offers with text and images on colorful backgrounds.
A digital interface screen showing a color gradient background with the text 'Associated Assembly' and a slider below it. To the right, there's a graph illustrating an easing curve for animation, with labels explaining the easing process and a color parameter section.

“Hugo & Cat expressed our identity better than we've ever been able to. It gave me goosebumps.”

— Kathie Johnson, CMO Sitecore

Result

The final experience was delivered in an agile sprint model, with close collaboration between our design team and Sitecore’s in-house developers. Page templates, content modules, and journeys were prioritised and designed in sync with development — allowing us to launch the entire site in just a few months, an extraordinary timeline for a global enterprise CMS.

Beyond the site, our work extended into branding, conference materials, launch assets and a keynote film for Sitecore’s global brand symposium — turning a web project into a pivotal brand relaunch.

Increase in page views per user

+38%

Longer average sessions per user

+22%

Higher engagement rate

+9%

Good stuff

It’s rare to redesign the site of a company whose product is digital experience. This was more than a website — it was Sitecore’s own best use case, delivered through deep partnership and strategic clarity.

Sitecore Brand & Digital Experience

Date: 2024
Company: Sitecore
Project: Digital Brand evolution, Website redesign.
Role: UX / UI Design oversight, Experience design strategy,


Team:
Dan Simkins
(Design)
Matt Molloy (Visual Design)
Charlie Harding (Visual Design)
Amy Deng (Visual Design)
Matt Malindine (UX Design)
Mark Mathieson (Motion Design)
Pao-Han Chen (Motion Design)
Philip Kassapian (Account Director)
Louise Kirk (Project Management)