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The RGD's Career Development Conference for design graduates and professionals alike took place in May earlier this year. The recordings of the live sessions from the conference are now available in the Members Only section of the RGD website as part of RGD's extensive video archive.
Click here to access the Creative Directions Recordings
Keynotes
An Update from The Draplin Design Co.: And Other Fibs, Lies and Perjuries
Presented by Aaron Draplin
What a time to be alive! Thankfully, Draplin Design Co. was able to stay busy, focused and vigilant these last surreal 15 months. And yet, learned some weird lessons along the way. They show a spirited set of case studies of the stuff that kept them out of the red, inspired and somewhat sane. All from the lost year that is 2020.
Extra Bold: Redesigning Power Flows
Presented by Ellen Lupton, Kaleena Sales and Leslie Xia
Do you sometimes feel uncomfortable speaking up in class or sharing new ideas at work? Who feels confident and who doesn’t? What do you need to think about before coming out at work? How can you help build a more diverse and inclusive design field? Co-authors of Extra Bold: A Feminist, Inclusive, Anti-Racist, Nonbinary Field Guide for Graphic Designers discuss concepts like intersectionality, systemic racism and equity in the workplace. What can you do to share power, amplify the power of others and claim your own power?
Other sessions and panel discussions include:
Student Stream
Exploring Specialties by Tobias Frere-Jones, Leo Jung, Annie Wong
The Art of Building & Maintaining Your Professional Network in the Virtual World by Despina Zanganas RGD
Presentations & Discussion: Cultivating Confidence by James Cabrera and Diego Lopez RGD
Panel: Job Searching in a Pandemic by Dominic Ayre RGD, Paul Kawai, Laura Stein RGD and Jennifer Taback RGD
Giving Good Portfolio Presentations … Virtually by Victor Szeto RGD
Good to Great: Why some Designers Make the Leap... and Others Don't by Greg Dubeau RGD
Presentations & Discussion: Career Journeys by Diana Beltrán Herrera, Dani Hall and Richard Hatter
Panel: Hope in Uncertainty by Anthony Burrill, Vanessa Eckstein RGD, Howard Poon and Pamela Rounis
Early Career Stream
Simplify by Verònica Fuerte
Launch Your Own Design Empire by Stüssy Tschudin RGD
Presentations & Discussion: 9–5... and Passion Projects by Sami Christianson, Kevin Moran RGD, Lin Oosterhoff Prov. RGD and Paul Twa Prov. RGD
Panel: Staying Current from Home & How to Feel Less Disconnected by Lucas Carmona, Alex Center, Lauren Wickware RGD, Nancy Wu
Pre-recorded Presentation: How I Feel Most Connected to Design by Nancy Wu
Show Me the Money by Julian Brown RGD and Dan Mall
Presentations & Discussion: Designer Pain Points by David Nuff RGD and Fungi Dube
Panel: Agency, Studio, Freelance or In-House? by Daniela Buitrago Prov. RGD, Pansy Cheung Prov. RGD, Chrisanne Daniel Prov. RGD, Cedric Gagnon Prov. RGD
Creating Clarity for Impactful Designs Henry Chu
Mid-to-Senior Stream
Presentations & Discussion: Technology Tidbits by Kay Fleury, Dan Mall and Diana Varma RGD
Panel: What Happens When You Lose Your Passion for Design? by Sean Carter, Alison Garnett RGD and Mikey Richardson RGD
Panel: Shifting Your Business in Changing Markets by Anne Chou, Ian Chalmers RGD, Robert Smith RGD and Annie Wong
Untethering Financial Success From Effort by Blair Enns
How to Start, Grow and Scale Your Small Business by Mandy Gilbert
How to Earn $10k of Passive Income as a Designer by Jacob Cass
How to Sell Creative Services by Michael Janda
Creating Equity in the Design Industry as Senior Professionals by Gavin Barrett, Julian Franklin and Chino Nnadi
Creative Directions programming also included roundtables and portfolio reviews.