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Unparalleled Experience Yields Exceptional Results.

Our grasp of your and your industry sector's key strategic issues drives impact as we apply insights to your brand, product development, customer experience and experience design decisions.

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Founded

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Clients

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Office Locations

Two White Ring-1

We help our clients by bringing together expertise in brand, innovation and user and customer experience research, along with advanced analytics and insights-based consulting.

We live and breathe our values to deliver only the best for our clients.

Smart and inquisitive

We are curious about the world, our clients, our colleagues and ourselves. We help our clients by asking the right questions and generating insights that move them forward. We think hard and learn in all situations.

Results-oriented

We focus on outcomes – for our clients and their business. We go beyond delivering work to understand the impact it can have. We work efficiently and effectively to drive results.

Client-focused

We have the best interests of our clients in mind, and understand that they are the heart of our business. We respond quickly and effectively to their needs and work to understand the challenges they face. We act ethically in their best interest.

Respectful and team-oriented

We respect our colleagues and our company. We recognize the unique strengths that others bring to the table, work together to deliver results, and share our knowledge and experiences to help all of us grow.

Creative and entrepreneurial

We are creative thinkers, both in meeting client needs and preparing our business for the future. We bring solutions to the table, and seek out new opportunities to benefit our clients and our business.

Meet the Phase 5 team.

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Michael

Partner, Brand Practice

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Steve

Partner, Innovation Practice

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Andreas

Partner, CX Practice

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Arnie

Partner, UX Practice

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Doug

Co-Lead, Innovation Practice

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Jo-Ann

General Manager

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Stephan

Chief Marketing Officer

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Aleta

Senior Consultant

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Caroline C.

Research Analyst

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Caroline D.

Senior Analyst

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Celine

UX Manager

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Christine

Vice President

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Colin

Senior VP

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Daniella

Research Analyst

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Gen

Senior VP

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Jesse

Senior Research Analyst

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John

Research Analyst

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Josh

Senior Research Analyst

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Louis

Vice President

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Nick

Vice President

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Paige

Controller

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Qing

Consultant

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Rachel

Senior Account Manager

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Rich

Vice President of Client Solutions

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Saloni

Research Manager

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Sam

Senior VP

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Schumaila

Vice President

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Shannon

Senior VP

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A long history full of new beginnings.

A renewed confidence.

Phase 5 launches our "Drive Bold Decisions" positioning to better reflect our value proposition and ability to satisfy clients' need for confidence in decision making in the context of a rapidly changing, hyper-competitive market.

2024

Focus on customer value.

We became a firm with offices in Ottawa, Toronto and Minneapolis with expertise in innovation, user experience design and customer experience serving national and global enterprises in all industry sectors. 

Although we have grown in both our scope and capabilities, our core mission of helping clients realize value by evolving with their customers remains as a guiding light for the future.

2010

A multi-channel world.

With the emergence of digital channels, we recognized that the customer experience involved an increasingly complex mix of channels and touchpoints, and that we had a unique mix of skills and services to help clients manage in a multi-channel environment.  Our expertise in customer experience and value measurement, along with our understanding of online channels, allowed us to better assist clients in managing the customer experience in this multi-channel environment.  Phase 5 was recognized for its expertise in customer experience by being chosen to conduct the first business experience study, Taking Care of Business, for governments across Canada in 2004.  This was followed by studies for government organizations in Canada and internationally to understand and improve on service delivery to their citizens.

2004

The rise of the internet.

Beyond helping organizations evolve with their customers, we realized that the business environment in the early 1990s was entering a period of seismic shift.  Phase 5 was one of the first research and consulting firms to track and advise clients on the emerging online market.  In 1995, we launched the Canada Information Monitor to track business use of the Internet across Canada.  We followed this with new services to help government and commercial organizations transition their products and services to the online world.  Starting in the late 1990s, we played an early role in helping the Government of Canada and companies in the information business migrate important products and services to the Internet. 

In 1998, we established our Toronto office in order to serve a growing base of clients in the emerging Internet space.  With growing recognition that online would become an essential channel for financial services, we became established as an important advisor to large companies in the financial services industry.  At the same time, Phase 5 continued to play an important role in bringing customers into product and service development for companies and organizations in Canada and the US that had the delivery of information and workflow solutions at their core.  This quickly expanded to include usability and user experience design services, and the establishment of usability lab testing capabilities.

1995

What's in a name?

Phase 5 was founded in 1991 in Ottawa, Canada, with a desire to help organizations constantly evolve to better meet the needs of their customers.  The very name was chosen with this mission in mind.  The development of businesses can be categorized on a continuum of phases ranging from a small, owner-operated enterprise (phase 1) to a large, multi-product, multi-unit, multi-market enterprise (phase 4).  Our original mission was to help large, complex enterprises aspire for a fifth phase of striving to remain customer-focused (hence the name).

1991