Hasta La Ideas

Images from (clockwise from top left) LUNAR, IDEO, Google X and frog

Yesterday, we ran the last of our nine Getting Hired interviews, in which we solicited job-seeking advice from key hiring personnel at LUNAR, IDEO, Philips, BMW Group Designworks USA, Smart Design, frog, Google X, Ziba and Teague (whew!). To wrap up the series, we asked our intrepid interviewer, Bryn Smith, to distill those conversations into a shortlist of essential strategies for landing your next design job. Did we miss something? By all means, share your own I.D.-employment wisdom in the comments.

1. Be proactive
Have you always dreamed of working at IDEO? Or perhaps Philips or frog seems like the perfect fit? Don’t wait for an invitation. Many of the firms I spoke to welcome unsolicited applications, so it makes sense to apply even if you don’t see a job opening. “As a consultancy, it’s important to keep a pipeline of candidates,” explains frog’s Kerstin Feix. Perhaps even more important than submitting an application, however, is doing whatever you can to connect with someone inside the firm, via your alma mater or good old-fashioned networking at conferences and other industry events. When something does open up, firms often start with people they already know, so having that foot in the door is a huge advantage. “It’s getting to know people and starting a conversation,” notes Paul Backett of Ziba. “So when the right place, right time comes along, the discussion can be our focus.”

2. Tell a compelling story
“A lot of designers have beautiful portfolios, but it’s really important for us to have an understanding of how they got there,” says Smart Design’s Sarah Szeflinski. Think about your portfolio as an exercise in storytelling, and be sure to highlight all the ups and downs along the way to the final product. “We love to hear about the challenges that people come across—failures even,” says Ziba’s Paul Backett. “We want to hear what they’ve learned,” adds Sean Hughes of Philips. Pacing is also important when laying out your book (or PDF or website)—don’t get too template-happy; instead, use different projects to showcase different skills. And then edit. “If you have weak work in your in your book it can bring down the whole portfolio,” says Lisa Olivia at Designworks USA.

3. Master the basics
Sometimes the most obvious step is the easiest to overlook. Before an interview, do background research on the firm so you have a solid understanding of the kind of work they do (as well as the kind they don’t). Practice walking through your portfolio with a friend, or on your own out loud. Then practice it again. Lisa Olivia recommends asking how much time you’ll have before the interview even begins. That way you can adjust your pace, and you won’t end up in a situation where there isn’t time to present your favorite piece. Once the interview begins, “stay in control of the dialogue,” advises LUNAR’s Jeff Salazar. Asking questions and being engaged in the interview as a conversation demonstrates your interest in the position, as well as your respect for the interviewer’s time. And don’t forget to make eye contact! As Teague’s Alysha Naples points out, those basic social skills are extremely important—the firm wants to know that it can feel confident putting you in front of a client, and that you can handle curveball questions with dignity and charm.

(more…)

By now one would think all great ideas have already been considered and executed in the world of denim. With this in mind, sometimes the best way to take a step forward in a saturated market is to revisit the most basic question…

Continue Reading…

Channel 4 has launched a spoof online sickie service encouraging UK viewers stay up late and watch its coverage of the Super Bowl next Sunday night.

Super Bowl coverage starts at 10.30pm on Sunday February 2 and runs until early Monday morning. 4 claims that more Brits call in sick on the day following the NFL game than any other day in the year, and has set up a site offering readers virtual sicknotes and advice on pulling ‘the perfect sickie’.

Visitors can choose from a range of spoof 24-hour illnesses that it claims will provide the perfect cover for staying up late and hosting a Super Bowl party.

Afflictions include bacon disease – which results in dehydration and a craving for salty food – nausea, headache and fatigue-inducing bibituria hangovurus and tinglititis, which is apparently known to cause sore throats and wind. Once users choose their desired illness, they are offered a virtual sicknote signed by ‘Dr Pigskine’, which they can download or share on social media.

The site also contains some amusing video tutorials offering advice on avoiding suspicion – one details the most convincing sick noises to make while at work, reminiscent of Ferris Bueller’s ingenious sickie sound system, while another warns of the dangers of returning to work with too much energy.

The campaign was produced in-house by 4Creative and directed by Molly Manners, and the responsive site was built by London and Edinburgh-based agency, Realise. 4 Creative is also airing a TV spot to promote the Super Bowl, showing a viewing party of epic proportions:

It’s a clever idea and the site features some excellent added details, such as spoof websites for each fake illness, links to hangover-friendly Channel 4 programming and a ‘duvet day’ Spotify playlist, providing further encouragement to enjoy a lengthy lie-in come Monday morning.

Clockwise from top: Tianducheng via Wikimedia Commons; Baugespanne; Bauprofils via Swicon & The Guardian

What’s the opposite of a scale model? A Bauprofil fits the profile: Guardian architecture critic Oliver Wainwright recently took a closer look at what he called ‘ghost buildings,’ a Swiss concept, also known as baugespanne, in which a life-size, low-cost ‘wireframe’ limns a proposed building project in situ. “Constructed from metal rods or wooden poles, fixed in place by wire guy ropes, the Swiss baugespanne or bauprofile are usually erected for a month, outlining the full height of the proposed development, with protruding markers to indicate the angle of the roof and direction of the walls,” Wainwright writes. “For taller buildings, tethered balloons can be used, and helicopters have even been employed to hover at a specified height for the tallest towers.”

Via io9’s round-up

Of course, I initially thought he was referring to the Chinese ghost town phenomenon, the utterly desolate planned communities that seem to crop up, mirage-like, in the hinterlands of the Mainland. Indeed, Wainwright had covered the closely related saga of Zaha Hadid’s Galaxy SOHO in Beijing—namely, that it’s but a parametric shell of a building—before I (full disclosure) met him during Beijing Design Week last October. Given the generally overambitious and bloated real estate development business in China, it’s egregious but perhaps not unexpected… and, in short, flies in the face of the highly prudent Swiss approach.

(more…)

One of the biggest home improvement companies on the planet, which also happens to be a FORTUNE 100 company, is looking for a junior level Industrial designer to join their Mooresville, NC team. This is an outstanding opportunity to bring impactful products to life by providing design expertise throughout the design and development process for Kobalt and other exclusive Lowe’s brands.

They are looking for someone who is highly skilled in visualization, has a keen eye for form and aesthetics, and a strategic perspective on improving customer’s lives through individual products and programs. A bachelor’s degree in Industrial Design, 2 years of experience and functional knowledge of hand tools/power tools (preferred) will bring you that much closer to landing this job. Apply Now!

(more…)