Challenge

Alertness Solutions, a Silicon Valley-based scientific consulting firm specializing in alertness and performance strategies, needed an online tool to aggregate its vast amount of research and training material in the area of sleep and performance, while at the same time protecting the content as valuable intellectual capital. The online learning environment needed to offer powerful and engaging presentations to teach users about such topics as circadian rhythms, the effects of lack of sleep, how best to maximize sleep, and how to recognize the signs of fatigue.

Solution

Jiva Creative first worked with Alertness Solutions to design a new logo for the Z-Coach product. Once this identity was in place, Jiva designed and developed a robust, scalable, web-based application custom-built on a PHP framework. Jiva produced engaging interactive Flash-based modules, narrated by the scientists at Alertness Solutions. Other special features of the application include: interactive profile development to create customized sleep and alertness strategies; user tracking to ensure training completion for certification needs; achievement level tracking for reporting to managers; quizzing to gauge retention of key ideas and information; downloadable content for use on iPods; a user management system developed to allow highly detailed management and reporting on users from different groups and companies; as well as a customizable content path for each client, allowing for a custom client set-up without the need for custom programming per installation of the application.

Results

The Z-Coach application was launched in time for the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the product was rolled out to the U.S. Summer Olympic Delegation. Alertness received widespread praise from both athletes and coaches that utilized the application to maximize their performance while at the Games. Z-Coach has also been successfully launched for use by the employees of British Petroleum's refineries, as well as in the safety-work sector for police, nurse, and firefighter organizations.

Postscript

Based on our success with the Z-Coach project, Alertness Solutions has asked Jiva to augment the application with special features including a driving safety module and advanced user and session tracking analytics. Additionally, Jiva is currently engaged by the firm to create a travel planning application for its clients. (The Jiva partners were lucky enough to get Alertness' help while planning a recent European holiday... minimal jet lag = very happy partners!)

The Z-Coach logo that Jiva designed earned an Award of Distinction honor in the Communicator 2007 Awards competition and a Gold Award in the Hermes 2007 Awards competition.