Digital Solutions Agency Universal Mind Announces Continued Growth With Addition of Solutions Strategy Director, Acquisition of User Experience Design Company Tuft & Co.

ORLANDO, Fla., Oct. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- GARTNER SYMPOSIUM/ITxpo -- Universal Mind, an award-winning agency known for creating enterprise-grade, interactive applications for the web, desktop, kiosks, and mobile and embedded devices, is growing its team of world-class design and technology experts. The company announced today at Gartner Symposium/ITxpo 2010 that it has hired technology strategist Andy Wager as Director of Solutions Strategy. In this role, Wager will continue to expand the strategic services capabilities of the company to keep up with the growing client demand for early-stage multi-device application strategy support. Wager was previously with Deloitte Consulting's Strategy practice, advising clients on competitive strategy initiatives in the areas of innovation, product development, customer experience, and growth strategies.

Universal Mind also announced recently that it has acquired interactive design agency Tuft & Co., an award-winning San Francisco-based interactive agency that specializes in end-to-end experience sites, rich internet applications, customer focused web sites, and interactive marketing. Tuft and Co. has designed rich digital experiences for leading brands including Adobe, NBC, Time Warner Cable, and Cisco Systems.

The addition of Tuft & Co.'s team and technology strategist Andy Wager comes at a time of exponential growth for Universal Mind.  The company has seen tremendous traction in 2010 as enterprises grapple with serving customers in a mobile environment, with companies such as Houghton Mifflin, TMobile, Verizon, Kodak, EnerNOC and many others relying on the company for strategic advice, high-impact user experience design and technology development services.

The company's growth has also been driven by industry and media recognition for its design work. A project by Universal Mind has been nominated for the prestigious Adobe MAX award – the company's fourth consecutive nomination. Universal Mind's work on Kodak Photo Books with SmartFit Technology was recently featured on the CBS Early Show. And the company's social media geolocation mapping application for the $250,000 ArtPrize competition was featured in the Wall Street Journal and various other publications.

"As enterprises strive to serve the needs of their customers and users in the mobile era, many are struggling to determine the best way to make strategic use of the various devices and technologies available today, and do so in a way that leverages their existing business systems.  With the acquisition of Tuft & Co. and the addition of Andy Wager to the team, Universal Mind is better positioned than ever to address these challenges and enable our clients to serve customers anytime, anywhere and from any device," said Brett Cortese, CEO of Universal Mind.

Universal Mind will be demonstrating many of its client applications this week at Gartner Symposium/ITxpo 2010 in Booth #226.

To download Universal Mind's guide to digital solutions in the mobile era, please visit: http://www.cio.com/white-paper/618664/Digital_Solutions_for_the_Anytime_Anywhere_Customer

About Gartner Symposium/ITxpo

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ABOUT UNIVERSAL MIND

Universal Mind is a digital solutions agency that brings together the technical expertise of a systems integrator and the design capabilities of an interactive agency to deliver enterprise-grade, interactive software applications for the web, desktop, kiosks and mobile and embedded devices.  Universal Mind works with clients to create best-in-class solutions that provide an exceptional user experience while overcoming complex technical challenges across a wide variety of devices.  The Universal Mind team has developed applications for many of the world's leading enterprises that help them strengthen their relationships with customers, reduce their operating costs and open new revenue streams.  Founded in 2003, Universal Mind is a privately held company.  For more information, please visit www.universalmind.com.

SOURCE Universal Mind