IBM,
Doing Business Things
For two years I went corporate and worked in the Center of Competency of IBM's iX division as a Global Associate Design Director. It was my unofficial business degree. Something different.
I did a lot of this during this time.
I was in a lot of workshops that looked like this stock video.
I found my way into a lot of high-level corporate board rooms, for some reason.
In the summer of 2015, an opportunity came knocking: IBM offered me a position as a Global Associate Design Director in the Center of Competency (CoC) of their IBM iX division. What does that mean? Well, it means that I found myself in some very high-profile corporate board rooms, often furrowing my brow to look important and intelligent.
Most of the output during my two years there is tied up in NDAs working on you shall not know what for you shall not know whom.
What I can say, though, is that this was my unofficial business degree.
I worked alongside some of the smartest people around and learned how to present myself and my work to executives in the most clear and comprehensible way possible. Because, as I was told, there is nothing more precious than an executive's time.
Along the way I was certified in Design Thinking (not for me) and spent two weeks at the Apple headquarters learning best practices designing for apps. I also consumed way too much hotel coffee during this stint.
What'd I Do?
Design, Business
Where'd I Do It?
IBMiX
Who'd I Do It With?
David Bradley, Greg Gennaro, Rob Harrigan, Chris Degnen