Reshaping Tealium for analytics and AB testing
Took ownership of Tealium and rebuilt it around the UDO — standardized syntax, pruned unused extensions, introduced utag_sync helpers for AB testing, and structured the library/profile architecture for multi-brand scale.
- Streamlined
- Extensions + tags audit
- Standardized
- UDO syntax across teams
- utag_sync
- Helpers built for AB testing
- Multi-brand
- Library + profile architecture
Problem
As the lead — and at times sole — engineer on Analytics & Web Optimization, Tealium fell to me. The tool was already in place, but it had drifted: extensions and tags accumulated over years, the UDO (Universal Data Object) lacked syntax consistency, and the tool was primarily used for feature support and quick fixes rather than as a strategic data layer.
Because the UDO directly powered both personalization and AB testing, Tealium's quality was a ceiling on everything downstream.
Approach
I treated this as a series of disciplined cleanups rather than a single rewrite:
- Customized and streamlined data collection within the advanced JS extensions, so the data feeding business reports was reliable by construction
- Pruned unrelated extensions and tags — anything not contributing to data transfer came out, which improved site performance by removing inefficient 3rd-party integrations
- Introduced
utag_synchelpers purpose-built for AB testing, so experimentation didn't have to fight the tag manager - Standardized the UDO syntax so property names and shapes were predictable across teams
- Designed the library and profile architecture so Tealium could absorb integrations from newly acquired brands without restructuring
Tag managers rot quietly. Most of the win here wasn't building anything new — it was deciding what to delete, what to standardize, and what to formalize as a pattern. That's a lot of the work of being responsible for a tool nobody else owns: making it small enough and consistent enough that it stops being a liability.