Also currently experimenting with: AI-assisted workflows, digital optimisation systems & questionably-necessary Python automation.
Customer Insight · Performance · Optimisation
Cas Nolan — socially-aware, strategic systems designer who uses data, technology and human insight to improve how organisations, services and experiences work for the people who genuinely depend on them.
I've spent the past 15+ years working across digital platforms, customer journeys, analytics, content ecosystems and service transformation initiatives — somewhere between strategist, analyst, optimiser, systems-thinker and professional finder-of-things-that-should-probably-work-better.
My work tends to sit at the intersection of behavioural insight, experimentation, measurement, technical auditing and digital operations; translating messy organisational, customer and operational problems into clearer systems, measurable improvements and better experiences.
Following recent large-scale reform work within the NDIA, I'm now looking to move more directly back toward digital strategy, optimisation, innovation and experimentation-focused work — particularly where data, behavioural insight, AI-assisted workflows and customer experience improvement are central to delivery.
I'm especially interested in how organisations can use analytics, experimentation, emerging technologies and operational thinking to better understand behaviour, reduce friction and build digital ecosystems that are actually useful to the people using them.
I'm a Newcastle-based digital strategy and optimisation lead with a background spanning government, healthcare, education, not-for-profit and enterprise digital environments.
Over the past 15+ years I've worked across everything from digital transformation programs and behavioural analytics through to SEO audits, CMS ecosystems, experimentation frameworks, service design, customer journey optimisation and measurement strategy. Which is a slightly long-winded way of saying: I like understanding how complex digital systems work, where they break down, and how they can be improved.
Professionally I tend to gravitate toward environments with:
…and then slowly try to untangle them using data, behavioural insight, technical analysis, experimentation and structured prioritisation.
I've led and contributed to more than 100 digital and transformation initiatives across federal and state government, health, education, electoral, legal and public-sector environments — including work with NDIA, NSW Electoral Commission, Australian Electoral Commission, Department of Health, TAFE NSW and the National Breast Cancer Foundation.
Outside of formal project work I spend a probably-unhealthy amount of time experimenting with automation, analytics, AI-assisted workflows, optimisation systems and weird Python projects that begin as "quick little ideas" and somehow spiral into existential infrastructure exercises.
A lot of my work sits in the uncomfortable middle: between what people need, what organisations want, what systems allow, what data suggests, and what delivery teams can actually build. I’ve spent years translating between these worlds — turning messy signals into clearer decisions, shared language, practical direction and work that has a better chance of surviving contact with reality.
The below case studies were authored by me and represent projects I either led or was heavily involved in during my time at Folk — spanning digital transformation, behavioural analytics, optimisation, accessibility, customer experience and measurement strategy across government and enterprise environments.
A recurring theme across most of this work is improving clarity within complex systems: better understanding customer behaviour, reducing friction, improving operational visibility and creating more measurable digital ecosystems.
A large-scale analytics and optimisation initiative focused on helping TAFE NSW move from fragmented reporting toward a more structured, evidence-based approach to digital performance and continuous improvement.
The work involved developing shared KPIs, analytics frameworks, reporting models and optimisation approaches that connected customer behaviour, organisational priorities and operational decision-making across a complex digital ecosystem.
Read case study ↗Large-scale digital transformation and optimisation work supporting the NSW Electoral Commission leading into the 2019 State Election.
The project focused on accessibility, usability, operational resilience and high-volume customer interaction across critical public-facing services — balancing customer experience improvements with governance, risk and significant operational complexity.
Read case study ↗A behavioural analytics and optimisation project focused on improving conversion across Joust's digital sign-up journey.
Using analytics, behavioural observation and experimentation, we identified friction points within the onboarding process and developed optimisation recommendations that ultimately contributed to a 140% uplift in sign-ups. One of my favourite examples of how relatively small digital improvements can create disproportionately large customer and commercial outcomes.
Read case study ↗Accessibility, navigation and digital experience transformation work for Redfern Legal Centre, focused on improving access to legal information and support services for vulnerable and disadvantaged cohorts.
The project balanced accessibility, usability and information architecture improvements within a highly sensitive and operationally constrained environment.
Read case study ↗A national data initiative designed to explore societal wellbeing beyond purely economic indicators.
The work involved synthesising complex datasets into more accessible, understandable and strategically useful forms — helping support broader policy discussion, public understanding and long-term decision-making.
Read case study ↗I normally avoid dumping a list like this into résumés, mostly because there’s a fine line between “broad operating range” and “this idiot has eaten a keyword spreadsheet.” I actually got an LLM to farm a few versions of my resume and generate assumptive, categorised lists with ‘generic’ labels — it came back with over 35 for each (I did write my own ‘Personal & Creative’ ones).
Still, this is weirdly enough a condensed version of the slightly unreasonable toolkit I’ve picked up across digital strategy, service design, analytics, optimisation, transformation, research, platforms, content, delivery, and the occasional questionably necessary rabbit hole. In practical terms, it means I’m usually somewhere between strategist, analyst, systems-thinker, translator, fixer, facilitator and professional finder-of-things-that-should-probably-work-better.
Not everything here gets used every day, but when messy systems, fragmented journeys, disconnected reporting or operational weirdness appear, it’s handy to have a few blades available.
For brevity sake/ psychological comfort: Each category pulls 15 skills, traits and ‘things’ at random — click again to reshuffle 🃏
A small collection of articles, experiments and semi-controlled digital spirals covering analytics, optimisation, Python, AI workflows, experimentation and the occasional accidental systems rabbit-hole.
Most of these started as "quick little side projects" and escalated from there.
A very normal and sensible project involving Python, NLP, image generation, Cormac McCarthy and the gradual realisation that automating book illustration might not be entirely practical. Explores experimentation, automation, AI image generation and the dangers of giving yourself unrestricted access to Python on weekends.
Read on LinkedIn ↗An investigation into data visualisation, mathematical chaos and the important life lesson that just because something can theoretically be generated with Python doesn't necessarily mean it should be. Part technical exercise, part psychological event.
Read on LinkedIn ↗What began as a fairly straightforward attempt to streamline job searching slowly evolved into a multi-source scraping, filtering, classification and optimisation system. A useful illustration of how quickly curiosity, automation and mild overengineering tendencies can escalate.
Read on LinkedIn ↗Understanding how people actually behave inside digital systems — not how organisations assume they behave. Much of my optimisation work has focused on identifying behavioural friction, improving journeys and using analytics to support measurable outcomes, including projects contributing to a 140% uplift in conversion and 350% growth in engagement.
Particularly interested in practical AI implementation beyond the current "put AI in the heading and see what happens" phase. Exploring how AI can improve workflow efficiency, operational visibility, content systems, analysis and decision-support within real-world delivery environments.
Broadly fascinated by systems that continuously improve themselves through measurement, experimentation and feedback loops — whether that's customer journeys, analytics ecosystems, operational processes or content structures.
A lot of digital problems are actually operational problems wearing slightly nicer clothes. Interested in how teams, workflows, governance, delivery rhythms and technical ecosystems interact to shape customer outcomes.
Strong believer that most organisations either measure the wrong things, measure too much, or don't connect measurement to meaningful operational decisions. Much of my work has focused on building frameworks that make analytics more useful, actionable and human.
Interested in how organisations create environments where testing, iteration and optimisation become normal operational behaviour rather than occasional project activities.
A recurring theme across much of my work has been identifying where digital systems create unnecessary effort, confusion or abandonment — and then systematically reducing that friction through analytics, content, UX and operational improvements.
Currently experimenting with automation, scripting and AI-assisted systems designed to reduce repetitive operational work, improve visibility and make digital ecosystems slightly less chaotic than they were previously.
The name comes from Manufacturing Consent by Herman and Chomsky — specifically their idea of the "five filters" shaping mass media, public perception and the way information moves through society.
I first came across the concept while studying Communications at UTS and the name stuck with me long after the assignment probably should have.
Broadly speaking, the "fifth filter" referred to fear ideology, propaganda and the ways institutions shape narratives through selective amplification, simplification and outrage. Which, depending on how long you've spent online recently, may or may not still feel mildly relevant.
That said, if I'm being completely honest: I also just think it sounds cool as sh*t. Something about the quasi-alliteration & numeric mystique ™ of names like The Seventh Seal (Bergman classic) or The Seventh Letter (graffiti brand) lodged itself permanently in my brain somewhere around university and never really left.
Thankfully "The Fifth Filter" also turned out to be available as a domain name, which in hindsight was probably the universe enabling bad decisions.
A small collection of extremely talented people I've worked with, collaborated with, learned from, or occasionally dragged into strange digital conversations over the years.
If you need genuinely good humans who are very good at what they do, these are good places to start.
Rare hybrid of strategist, designer and builder working fluidly from concept to coded prototype, with a sharp instinct for cutting through process and focusing only on what makes a product genuinely worth using.
Exceptionally thoughtful digital designer with a rare ability to make complex interfaces feel calm, coherent and human. Charms the pants off clients (for better or worse).
Capable of calmly solving problems that would normally cause most people to quietly close their laptop and go outside.
Creative director at Studio Biggie, branding and visual guy with a strong conceptual backbone and a healthy disregard for generic agency aesthetics.
Leads with humility, never lets the work become dull, and always feels like part of the team rather than above it. Incredibly sharp and wide-ranging attention to detail, prepares painstakingly for everything he takes on, perseveres (and inspires) through the hard parts, and throws down hard $$$ generously outrageous bar tabs!
Deep systems-thinking across design infrastructure, scalable digital systems and the invisible architecture that keeps complicated things functioning properly.
End-to-end UX/Product designer with extensive experience. Passionate about leading and supporting cross-functional teams (and building really nice and useful digital stuff).
Cowboy Nick 🤠 as he was once affectionately known (quite rightfully) subscribes to the notion that ‘magic’ is found in understanding the struggles of his customers. He also stepped in as the go-to ‘IT Guy’ (thank f*ck) whilst part of my team (usu. falls on myself).
Artist, tattooist and one of the few people I know capable of making chaotic creativity look completely under control.
If you live in the Outer Western Sydney area, f*ck up and lock yourself out of something — Dave can break into it for you (at an alarming speed).