This Is A Prototype

“I think that this idea of cross-functionality may be a legacy framework.”Throughout this season of the series I’ve been looking at the impact of AI and other emerging technology on the future of design and design leadership, and I’ve been particularly interested in examining this through the lens of some of the top academic design programs in the US. I find that looking at how students are learning design in the classroom can be a great predictor for how they will show up in the workplace in the years ahead, which of course will have a major impact on how our design teams and scaled design programs will operate. My guest for this episode is Vivek Rao, director of the new Masters of Engineering in Design & Technology Innovation program at the Pratt School of Engineering at Duke University. A mechanical engineer by training, Vivek spent his early career at the design and innovation consultancy IDEO. He then did his PhD studies in design, innovation, and emerging technology at the University of California Berkeley, before joining Duke in 2023.We discuss the core idea of cross-functionality—blending design with engineering, business, data, marketing and other disciplines—a quality that Vivek himself embodies, and is instilling in his students.Doug Powell is an award-winning designer and executive design leader with more than 30 years of experience in a wide range of design disciplines. Learn more about Doug's practice as a consultant, educator, and coach at his website dougpowell.design.

In recent years AI has become the dominant disruptive force for businesses and scaled organizations in every industry and global region, and it’s having a dramatic effect on the profession and practice of design. Over multiple episodes this season, I’ll be examining the impact of AI on design and design leadership from a variety of angles.In this episode I look at how AI is showing up in the academic design environment. How are students responding to the possibilities presented by AI, and by the immediate access they have to it? How are design educators integrating AI into their curricula, coursework, and programs? Importantly for design leaders, what does all of this tell us about the generation of designers who will be stepping into the profession—and into our teams—in the years ahead? My guest for this episode is Professor Jonathan Hanahan of the Sam Fox School of Art & Design at Washington University in St Louis. Jonathan brings a deeply technical practice and experimental approach to teaching design—an approach that is sometimes at odds with the more traditional craft-oriented graphic design foundation that the Sam Fox School is built on and known for. Later in the episode, we’ll hear about the new cross-disciplinary graduate design program just launched at the school. Doug Powell is an award-winning designer and executive design leader with more than 30 years of experience in a wide range of design disciplines. Learn more about Doug's practice as a consultant, educator, and coach at his website dougpowell.design.

Any podcast episode that begins with “I was born in Dalton, Georgia, the carpet capital of the world…” must be a good one! Throughout Season 2 of this series, host Doug Powell is speaking with guests who have established themselves as leaders in design and then have become leaders in a completely different space. Nobody embodies this leadership journey more than Doug's guest for this episode, Bill Grant. Bill is the founder and president of Grant Design Collaborative, the award-winning design firm he has led for over 30 years, and he’s a former national president of AIGA, the professional association for design in the U.S. Bill is also serving his second term as mayor of Canton, Georgia, the small town outside of Atlanta where he lives and works.   In this wide-ranging conversation, Bill discusses his early influences as a designer, and how he has brought his core qualities as a designer into public service and civic leadership with remarkable success. In a time when many small towns are struggling, Canton is thriving under Bill Grant’s leadership, and now proudly carries the moniker of the coolest small town in America. Doug Powell is an award-winning designer and executive design leader with more than 30 years of experience in a wide range of design disciplines. Learn more about Doug's practice as a consultant, educator, and coach at his website dougpowell.design.

One of the best design books of 2023 was Centered: People and Ideas Diversifying Design, a remarkable collection of essays, interviews, and stories compiled and edited by my guest for this episode Professor Kaleena Sales. This amazing book spans geographical regions and cultures from Alabama to India, and from Kurdistan to Zimbabwe, illuminating designers, techniques, ideas, and artifacts that have previously gotten little or no attention by the established western design community. The book provides important context for all leaders building inclusive, human-centered design teams and programs. Kaleena Sales is Associate Professor of Graphic Design and Chair of the Art & Design Department at Tennessee State University, a historically black university in Nashville. Her research and writing are rooted in racial justice and equity, with a specific focus on the ways culture informs aesthetics.Kaleena and host Doug Powell are joined in the second half of the episode by one of the contributors to Centered, Sadie Red Wing, a Lakota/Dakota graphic designer and advocate from the Spirit Lake Dakota Nation. Sadie teaches at OCAD University in the Graphic Design and Indigenous Visual Culture programs.Doug Powell is an award-winning designer and executive design leader with more than 30 years of experience in a wide range of design disciplines. Learn more about Doug's practice as a consultant, educator, and coach at his website dougpowell.design.

Episode 2 of the new season is a continuation of our discussion with Kate Aronowitz of Google Ventures and Robert Fabricant of Dalberg.In part two, we dig deeply into a pair of articles written by Robert for Fast Company about the state of design leadership by examining the wave of contraction that has happened across the tech industry, and the emergence of grass-roots communities of designers seeking connection and guidance. Doug Powell is an award-winning designer and executive design leader with more than 30 years of experience in a wide range of design disciplines. Learn more about Doug's practice as a consultant, educator, and coach at his website dougpowell.design.

Design leaders Kate Aronowitz and Robert Fabricant discuss the growth of design profession, leadership succession, and the state of design leadership. They share insights on investing in startups, empowering design leadership, and the evolution of leadership strategies towards team-building and collaboration.

Season 2 of This is a Prototype: The Design Leadership Podcast is coming soon! The practice and profession of design in scaled companies continues to evolve in unexpected ways, and the role of the design leader in that evolution is more important than ever to the success of our teams and organizations. In Season 2 of This is a prototype, host Doug Powell continues to speak to the top design leaders in the industry about their life and career journeys into design. And he broadens the scope to explore cultural intersections in design; how design leaders are driving change in their communities; and how emerging technologies are changing our practices and our teams.Doug's guests in season 2 will include:Kaleena SalesSadie Red WingKate AronowitzRobert FabricantRich HollantBill GrantJonathan Hanahan ...and many more!Doug Powell is an award-winning designer and executive design leader with more than 30 years of experience in a wide range of design disciplines. Learn more about Doug's practice as a consultant, educator, and coach at his website dougpowell.design.

My guests for this Season 1 finale episode are Doreen Lorenzo and Mbiyimoh Ghogomu.Doreen Lorenzo is a pioneering design leader who is the Assistant Dean of the School of Design and Creative Technology at University of Texas, a role she started in 2016. Prior to joining UT, Doreen was the longtime President of Frog Design, one of the largest and most established global design consultancies in the world. Doreen is a columnist for Fast Company where she writes the Designing Women column profiling brilliant women in the design industry. Mbiyimoh Ghogomu is the co-founder and CEO of Tradeblock, the marketplace for collectible sneakers. Founded in 2019 the company has amassed more than 250,000 users and over a million sneakers available for trade on its digital platform. Tradeblock has raised more than 10 million dollars in VC funding. Mbiyimoh founded the company with childhood friends Tony Malveaux and Darren Smith after starting his career as a content design intern at IBM Design. This episode was recorded live at the offices of argodesign in Austin, Texas.Supporting partner for the live event was Pearl, the digital platform for proactive, effective, and inclusive hiring.Doug Powell is an award-winning designer and executive design leader with more than 30 years of experience in a wide range of design disciplines. Learn more about Doug's practice as a consultant, educator, and coach at his website dougpowell.design.

My guests in this episode are two legendary design leaders, Ann Willoughby and Mauro Porcini.Ann Willoughby is an AIGA Medalist who has been a leading voice in design for over five decades. In 1978 she founded Willoughby Design, one of the first woman-owned design firms in the US. In addition to her leadership of this award-winning firm, Ann has been an advocate for countless community organizations and academic programs throughout her career.Mauro Porcini is the first-ever Chief Design Officer of PepsiCo where he is infusing design thinking into the company’s culture and leading a new approach to innovation by design that is impacting it’s vast portfolio of products and brands. Mauro is also the author of the book The Human Side of Innovation: The Power of People in Love with People.We cover a remarkably wide breadth of topics from the important role leaders play in the building of company culture, to how designers respond to emerging technologies. Ann and Mauro share some delightful and inspiring stories about the people who have shaped their journeys as leaders. I open the episode with a special bonus segment: A short clip of a conversation I had recently with Professor Omari Souza, founder of the State of Black Design conference, which is happening for the first time ever as a live, in-person event March 15-16 in Nashville, Tennessee.Doug Powell is an award-winning designer and executive design leader with more than 30 years of experience in a wide range of design disciplines. Learn more about Doug's practice as a consultant, educator, and coach at his website dougpowell.design.

Guest Tom Scott, founder of Verified and host of Verified Insider, discusses challenges faced by design leaders, navigating the path to chief designer, access to budgets and tools, challenges of inflated titles, and measuring the success of design leaders.