Hertz

Engineering a Unified Global Mobility Platform

OVERVIEW:

The Responsive Evolution of the Hertz, Dollar, and Thrifty Ecosystem

Hertz is a global pioneer in the car rental industry, operating for well over a century with one of the most recognizable brands in the world. Facing fierce disruption from on-demand giants like Uber and Lyft, and a hyper-competitive rental market, Hertz engaged IBM iX for a massive digital overhaul.

The mission was to modernize an aging, fragmented infrastructure into a high-performance, responsive e-commerce platform that unified the Hertz, Dollar, and Thrifty brands into a singular, high-velocity digital ecosystem. Redefining travel velocity.

ROLES:

Senior Art Direction
Lead UX/UI Design
Design System Architecture (Common Core Library)
Omni-Channel Strategy (Web, iOS, Android)

INSIGHT:

The Fragmented IT Barrier

At the program’s inception, Hertz was burdened by a massive, disconnected IT landscape: 1,800 disparate systems, 30 different processing platforms, and 6 separate database vendors.

This complexity meant that launching a single product required manual changes across 18 different systems. The digital experience was flawed, lacking mobile-first thinking and a common core, which led to a "Decision Bottleneck" for travelers who demanded the same "one-tap" ease of use found in ride-sharing apps.

STRATEGY:

The "Common Core" Architecture

We moved away from bespoke site builds toward a Common Core Library (CCL)—a fundamental design principle that allowed for shared information and structures across all brands.

  • Unified Framework: We leveraged Angular for the front-end presentation layer and Adobe Experience Manager (AEM) to manage content, ensuring a consistent, high-performance experience across all device formats.

  • Responsive Multi-Tenancy: We engineered the platform as a flexible framework that could be "skinned" for Dollar and Thrifty using the same robust codebase, dramatically increasing time-to-market for multi-brand updates.

  • Streamlined Reservation Flow: I led the redesign of the reservation funnel, transforming it from a complex legacy process into a modern, mobile-first journey optimized for both leisure and business travelers.

  • The "Precision" Visual System: Leveraging the iconic Hertz Yellow alongside specialized palettes for Dollar and Thrifty, we established a clear visual hierarchy that prioritized speed and reliability.

OBJECTIVE:

Revitalizing the Market Leader

The goal was to deliver a seamless, contemporary digital interface that simplified the customer journey, eliminated technical debt, removing bloated code, and provided a future-proof foundation for Hertz to remain the dominant force in global mobility.

PROCESS + WORKFLOW:

The Agile Digital Engine

  • Iterative Squad Model: We operated in a rigorous Agile methodology, working daily with Product Owners (POs) to prioritize the backlog and deliver working code through constant sprint cycles.

  • Design/Development Synergy: The IBM iX design team led weekly "Design/UX Touch Bases" to resolve complex architectural issues in real-time, ensuring that the Angular and AEM implementations stayed 100% faithful to the high-fidelity vision.

  • Continuous Visual QA: To prevent the "commented-out code" failures of previous vendors, we performed exhaustive Visual QA on all screens within each sprint, ensuring every responsive breakpoint met our "Gold Standard" before PO acceptance.

  • AEM Component Architecture: We architected AEM components to identify high-reuse requirements, minimizing repeated code and ensuring that the Common Core Library lived up to its name as the "Single Source of Truth."

RESULTS:

Institutional Turnaround

  • Strategic Unification: The successful development of the Common Core Library (CCL) enabled Hertz to manage 1,100+ unique web and app instances with a unified design language, significantly reducing maintenance overhead.

  • Global Accessibility: By incorporating true responsive design, the platform became accessible to millions of travelers on any device—phone, tablet, or desktop—regaining the ground lost during previous failed implementations.

  • Operational Stability: The transition to a unified, cloud-based infrastructure (Digital Experience, CRM, and Reservations) allowed Hertz to move with the agility of a tech-native company.

  • User Engagement: The evolved reservation flow directly addressed user pain points, facilitating a more efficient path to booking for the 15 million+ Gold Plus Rewards members worldwide.

  • #1 in Customer Satisfaction: Following the rollout of the new digital experience at the start of the calendar year, Hertz was ranked No. 1 in Customer Satisfaction for Rental Cars by J.D. Power for the second year in a row.

  • Operational Efficiency: The transition to the "Common Core" architecture helped the company deliver annualized cost savings of approximately $3 billion by consolidating legacy locations and streamlining IT operations.

  • Digital Resilience: Despite a 48% drop in total revenues due to global travel halts in (leading up to the lengthy pandemic time period), the new digital platform allowed Hertz to pivot, with off-airport (local) revenues increasing to 45% of total revenue—proving the flexibility of the local-search and booking engine.

  • Rapid Recovery: Late in the year of the initial rollout, global revenue had nearly doubled from lows reported in April of that year, driven by the streamlined mobile-first booking experience that captured the rebound in domestic leisure travel.

Work Dashboard: