A dystopian commentary on surveillance in the workplace.
A 2-week design jam–winning Employee Monitoring System using surveillance to boost employee productivity and retention.
DURATION
10 Days, May 2025
ROLE
Lead UX/UI Design, Research, Prototyping
TOOLS
Figma, After Effects
TEAM
Joann Vu, Amy Zhao, Natalie Kayda, Caleb Wu
(OVERVIEW)
In a dystopian future where Gen-Z struggles with burnout and digital fatigue, companies invest in onsite wellness facilities to increase employee retention.
THE PROBLEM
Gen-Z is increasingly struggling with burnout and digital fatigue, resulting in employee dissatisfaction and lower productivity.
THE MISSION
How can we use neuro-marketing techniques and advanced surveillance to boost productivity and retention?
(PROCESS)
CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT
Employee Monitoring Systems (EMS) are used by 80% of companies today. How will this look 30 years from now in a world where privacy is a luxury?
We conducted a brief survey with ~40 Gen-Z participants, who shared that although they are concerned about data leaks, they do not expend much effort guarding their privacy.
My secondary research also showed that surveillance is increasingly prominent in the workplace setting. Through interviews with corporate employees, we then identified 3 main pain points in existing EMS to improve and highlight the invasive nature of this service.
OUR APPROACH
An Employee Monitoring System with invasive neuro-marketing metrics to address the root of fatigue and burnout.
SKEUOMORPHISM
Combat digital fatigue by blending modern interfaces with skeuomorphism.
To counter digital fatigue, we combined modern corporate minimalism with retro tactile elements.
The sterile colour palette contrasts the nostalgic warmth of skeuomorphism, mirroring the unsettling detachment between corporations and their workers in this dystopian society.
RECOMMENDED ACTIONS
Turn metrics into subtle and easy alerts that boost productivity with evidence.
PERSONAL INSIGHTS
Advanced neuro-marketing technology allows for deeper, personal insights.
LIVE SITE MAP
Visualize how employees are interacting with the office amenities and one another.
I led the design of this feature, with maps 3D modelled by Natalie Kayda and prototyped by Amy Zhao.
LOGIN ANIMATION
Sign in with a biometric scan
Biometric passkeys reduce the amount of information users need to remember and enhance security surrounding this invasive software.
This is a short login animation I made with After Effects.
OUR VIDEO PITCH
View the onboarding video
This video was primarily led by Natalie Kayda.
(reflection)
WHAT I LEARNED
You need to define a clear problem space before creating solutions...
With the prompt of designing for the future, our team went wild with imaginative ideas that ultimately had no supporting evidence and were held up by numerous assumptions.
After a brutal first few days of feedback sessions, I realized just how important it is to ground our ideas in research, even if it’s set in a speculative future. Thankfully, this revelation led me to iterate our wild ideas into a winning concept!
(view my other projects)
Rufus Guitar Shop
(2025)
A visually and sonically immersive shopping experience.
Munch!
(2024)
Make the most out of your dollar through easy budgeting.
(CONTACT ME)
Let's create something extraordinary together!
Let's create something extraordinary together!
Joann vu © 2025
Designed by Joann Vu