Specialization

AI Consulting & Innovation

Applied AI strategy to unlock business value and responsible transformation.

About This Offering

SYSTEMshift guides organizations through the complexity of adopting AI—with clarity, ethics, and strategic alignment. We work with founders, digital teams, and public institutions to identify use cases, map capabilities, and pilot AI solutions that serve real human needs.

Whether you're exploring generative AI, automating workflows, or designing AI governance, we turn AI ambition into measurable outcomes.

Services Include

→ AI Readiness Audits & Use Case Discovery
→ Automation Feasibility Mapping (RPA, GPT, NLP)
→ Data Architecture & Integration Planning
→ Human-in-the-Loop Enablement
→ AI Governance & Risk Mitigation Frameworks
→ AI Roadmaps & North Star Alignment Workshops
→ Ethical Design for AI Experiences

Featured Projects

TD Contact Centre AI Enablement (2022)

→ Led discovery across 60+ business lines for CCaaS transition
→ Mapped NLP needs using inclusive design and telephobia research
→ Delivered implementation playbooks and automation dashboards

YorkU SAVY Watson Chatbot (2020)

→ Co-designed 24/7 virtual assistant for students
→ Blueprinted conversational UX using academic + wellness intents
→ Scaled to 50,000+ student users

Air Canada Loyalty Research Automation (2020)

→ Automated transcription + synthesis across 60+ interviews
→ Improved onboarding and reward redemption flows with AI insights
→ Strengthened product-to-research feedback loop

MyServiceCanada AI Architecture (2020)

→ Unified federal vision across service and policy teams
→ Proposed proactive eligibility models using Watson/Curam stack
→ Delivered future-state blueprint with integrated AI triggers

About Bernadette

Bernadette Smail is the founder of SYSTEMshift and a certified AI Product Manager with IBM. As a former IBM iX consultant, she’s designed AI-driven systems and governance models for TD Bank, York University, Air Canada, and the Government of Canada. Her work bridges product, ethics, and technical feasibility to deliver sustainable AI outcomes.

Ideal Clients

→ Mid-size orgs exploring where AI fits
→ Government teams seeking responsible AI frameworks
→ Founders launching AI-powered platforms
→ Strategy leaders mapping future capabilities

Credentials

Testimonials & Recognition

Endorsements from UX, AI & Business Leaders

Helen Romano

Head of IBM iX

Bernadette is an exceptional UX/UI researcher and designer. Her strategic insights and design expertise consistently delivered impactful solutions, making her highly sought after by clients and product teams alike.

Ranvir Malik

Senior Managing Consultant

IBM Canada

You are outstanding—you make a difference. Your unselfish support introduced us to the Mural universe, leading to transformative collaboration.

TD CCaaS Genesys Integration

Uddipana Baishya

Senior Design Researcher

TD Invent

Bernadette, your blend of skills is truly impressive. Managing repository design, development, testing, and debugging as a one-woman team was remarkable. You handled a heavy workload under tight deadlines with composure and adaptability, always eager for feedback and continuous improvement.

TD UX Research Repository