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roundtable
AIGA Atlanta
May 6, 2010
Please briefly describe the participants in your roundtable. How

many attended? How and why did they get involved with AIGA?
Approximately how long have they been involved with the
organization? How do they describe themselves on a scale of
involvement with AIGA (1 = not at all; 10 = completely)
I tried to get a good cross-sampling of our membership. We
had about 13 people attend of which 4 were just out of school,
young professionals, 4 mid-career professionals, 4 seasoned
designer, educators and board members rounding it out. All
participants are active in AIGA, some more than others. Many of
them spoke of spikes of support at times in their carrer and
then times of ‘neglect’. They all want to make an impact and
find AIGA to be there to help them.
AIGA’s impact at the personal level
What chapter resources do participants identify as supporting

them in growing as a designer (creatively) and as a
professional (business/career)? What additional resources do
they think would be helpful to make the chapter their local go-
to resource? What type of programming would they like to see
offered in the future?
There was an overwhelming consensus that there is not enough
being done for the seasoned veterans. They are still in it and
they now have the time and resources and the desire to share
their thoughts with the up-and-coming designer. Some of the
senior designers mentioned that seeing young designers as a
great source of inspiration and way to ‘stay fresh’ if you will.
Our chapter is doing a good job at offering a wide array of
events that support the growth in a designer creatively. Our
more business oriented events have been incredibly successful
(our ‘The business of design’ series just drew 180 people at a
luncheon on a Tuesday) and we see a definite desire of the
design community to offer those types of events.
What was the most valuable AIGA program attendees

participated in in the past year? Why was it valuable to them?
We had a number of responses ranging from Buzz events (the
particular event was a design trivia night where we teamed
random designers from the crowd to form teams and
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everybody found that to be a wonderful way to get to know
somebody on an informal level) to panel speakers, green salon
roundtables, and with Doug Grimmett our current president we
have been screening a ton of really interesting movies at a
local family-owned movie theater. There was not one event that
stood out as the most popular.
How do participants feel the chapter can help them feel more
involved in the design community? Move involved as citizens?
The key to being involved is getting involved. That is really it,
the members that participate in the events and are involved in
some capacity do feel that the chapter offers them ‘that
involvement’. I for one keep in touch with a ton of people
through events, there is always the someone you know you’ll
run into at the events. Anyone who would sort of take a
‘leaning back’ approach and expects to be served with
meaningful connections in the design community is crazy. The
citizen part is, where it gets a little more interesting. We need
to establish bigger and better ties with the business
community in order to focus on the social issues at hand and to
do something about it. Some of our members feel that our
chapter has not done enough to further those business
connections.
AIGA’s impact at the community level
Do participants feel that the chapter’s programming

accurately reflects the membership? Are there other types
of programming they feel would better serve the variety of
audiences within the membership or that would draw in
those from other design disciplines?
We have a lot of student members and professionals of all
levels. There were a few comments from the seasoned
designers that they feel that there is not enough that is being
offered to them in terms of programming. They want to get
more involved and give back (mentoring, or ‘ask 5 questions to
your local design hero’, etc.) So we actually spend some time
discussing possibilities to bundle that need with the desire of
the up and coming and students to get those words of advice
and transfer of experience.
What do participants feel are the strengths and weaknesses

of the chapter’s online community? What
features/resources could be used to build a stronger
community through online media?
We have a 10-year-old site and are in the process of
redesigning it. Our technology chiar on the board Carl Marxer is
an avid tweeter and we have a good handle on social media via
Facebook and LinkedIn. We just do not have the site support all
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of out media yet. We currentry either tape or photograph at
most of our event and would like to more seamlessly offer
those assets to our members after the event and even utilize
that platform to offer online webinars and things of that nature.
All this things are mostly done and we hope to launch our new
site soon.
How is the chapter perceived by the non-design community?

Do participants feel the chapter helps designers connect
with community leaders, creatives, vendors and potential
clients? What more could the chapter do to strengthen these
connections (or) provide more opportunities for making
connections?
That is maybe the one weak spot of our chapter. The current
situation is not of a nature that we would call our connections
to the non-design community as strong or even existing on a
level where we would be able to utilize them in any way. We
spoke about the ‘seasoned designers’ that have all been
involved with the local community of non-designers and
potential clients throughout their careers wanting to reach out
to those and real them in. Maybe it is a combination of
mentoring-sponsoring-young talent fostering-making the
company look good-partnership thing.
AIGA’s impact at the national/global level
What efforts have participants seen AIGA make to

communicate the role that design can play in creating value
in business, government and civil society? How about at the
global/ international level?
We have a very strong offering of events thanks to our
sustainability chair Linda Doherty. We try to offer meaningful
events ranging from roundtables to speakers that touch on
those points. There is always room for improvement but I feel
we have a good handle on that and our members felt the same.
I think at this moment we are relevant only on the local or
national level, can't speak of any global or international level,
yet.
How important do participants feel it is for AIGA to make

these efforts on behalf of the profession?
We all pretty much agreed that this is important for us as
designer to take on that role and that we supported by AIGA as
the official voice of our profession as a whole. The importance
of design thinking and its potential to do good is something we
as designers need to understand and find way to facilitate the
process to get involved and make a change.
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Did the roundtable inspire or encourage participants to
become further involved with AIGA and our chapter? What
ideas did they put forward?
Absolutely! As I mentioned our ‘seasoned designers’ voiced
their desire to think up something that would reconnect them
to the young ones with an outcome that could be of mutual
interest and benefits and therefore being a potential catalyst in
reaching out to those in the business community.
If you asked additional questions, please list the

question(s) and response(s) here.
page 4 of 4
roundtable
AIGA Austin
March 30, 2010

We had 5 participants.
Angela is design faculty from a local university. She’s been a
member since 1997 and has been fairly involved this year,
attending our film series events and helping to host a portfolio
review at her university.
Ellen is a staffing agent from Aquent. She’s been involved for
several years, and got involved because her company is an
AIGA sponsor, but her involvement has been mainly our annual
bowling event which her company often sponsors.
Marcie is a designer for a nonprofit (Goodwill). She got involved
when her company used to pay for her membership. She’s very
busy and wishes she could be more involved, but she attends
many networking and informational events.
Erica is a designer at a public institution. She’s been a member
for a few years. She got involved when her job paid for her
membership, and a former board member got her more
involved. Then she begun to volunteer.
Ernesto is a young designer just starting his career. He was
involved with AIGA Boston, then moved to Austin where he
used the AIGA directory to jumpstart his job search. He has
been very involved, coming to lots of events and entering work
in the Texas show. He agreed as of the roundtable event to take
on a chair position on the board.

Most find our informational series, Small Talks, a great resource
for information and inspiration. Erica, for example, has found
Small Talks a to be a good way to gain knowledge about things
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that she doesn’t do every day at her public institution job, and
she has found the more workshop-like Small Talks events to be
a creative and fun diversion from the every day. As a job-
seeker new to Austin, Ernesto finds AIGA to be a great way to
meet some of the key players in the design community and
appreciates that they are so approachable at these events.
However, he prefers program-based events to strictly mixer
events, because he can by shy, and the program-based events
give him something to talk to people about. Angela and
Erica both really enjoy our film series events, Reel Design,
because they love movies, and they can bring their non-
designer friends with them. Both Ellen and Angela really
appreciate the free job board. Marcie gets all of her interns
from the job board; Ellen posts her Aquent jobs on there; and
Angela suggests it as a resource to her students. Ernesto
and Erica found the Hatch Poster show at the Austin Museum of
Art very inspiring. As for future programming: Angela
would like to see more programming that brings students and
young designers together with the vendors and other
professionals they will outsource to and collaborate with
(illustrators, photographers, copywriters, etc.) to help
“demystify” the concept of these “others.” They’d like to
see an intensive technical workshop on a variety of topics that
young designers just graduating have not received in school,
like printing, color correction, and postage requirements, etc.
This would help young designers transition into the workforce.
In addition, Ernesto suggested an online resource or
booklets/pamphlets (like the ones he received from AIGA about
business ethics and professional practice) geared toward
students with information about kinds of vendors, print
production terms, etc. Both of the workshop and the
informational resource would give students and young
professionals an idea of the things to know and to expect as
they enter the design field. The panel would also like to see
info or events regarding the transition to interactive, for those
print-only designers that need help breaking into the
interactive world. Another suggestion was an event on how to
get freelance work.

For Angela, the instructor, it was the Student Portfolio Review
event. For Ernesto it was a different portfolio review event
cohosted with a partnering organization, the first review he’d
received as a professional rather than a student. For Erica, it
was Design Ranch, which served as a creative outlet, a break to
the every day, and a refresher of her hand skills which she was
able to bring back to her job. Marcie was really inspired by
what a local design studio leader had to say at a Small Talks
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discussion. As a staff person for Aquent, one of our
sponsors, Ellen’s most valuable event was our Bowling Event.
Since she’s a non-designer, the purely social stuff is most
valuable to her.
The panel didn’t have a quick answer to this question. Their
initial answers were that we offer a lot and that they couldn’t
think of much more we could be doing, then they started
naming programming we are providing that they’d like to see
even more of. They think more of the Finding Work events
would be helpful, because that was very successful and
informative. Ernesto and Erica would like to see even more
workshops where you create something that you can take home
with you. Something that came up later that would get
Marcie more involved is if we had more programming that
reached out to the non-profit sector. She has grown a
propensity for being involved with charities since she got her
job at Goodwill.

Ellen mentioned that she would like to see more lunch-time
events, which are easier for her to attend since she has kids.

This group seemed to really utilize our job bank. Ernesto
enjoys the iCal syncing so he has all the up to date information
in his calendar at all times. Ernesto also finds the directory of
members to be extremely helpful. When he moved to Austin,
he used this resource as the starting place for his job search.
4 of the 5 panel members are friends with AIGA Austin on
Facebook. Only 1 out of 5 has a portfolio in the AIGA Member
Gallery. This individual is Ernesto because he was recently
looking for a job. (Ernesto thinks that Behance is a much better
format than Coroflot.) Ellen uses Facebook for personal use
only, but is very involved professionally on LinkedIn. Erica, on
the other hand, almost never goes to our website but uses
Facebook to get event information. Most agreed it’s confusing
and/or laborsome that we have to RSVP to an email address in
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addition to marking on Facebook that we are attending.
Someone suggested an iPhone App, which will likely not be
possible.

connections?
Someone mentioned a great Small Talks we had with Go9 Media
on working with web developers. Ellen thinks we should be
partnering more with marketing professionals, through their
organizations such as AMA, because it’s the marketing
professionals that need to know the value of graphic design
talent. The whole group agrees that AIGA has brand
confusion. Most people think we’re saying AIG or AIJ. And they
think it’s confusing that we can’t say “the American Institute of
Graphic Arts” but instead say “the professional association for
design.” People want to know what those letters stand for.
Someone suggested we have a vendor directory as an online
resource to help establish this connection. Of course that
brings up issues like, Do you have to be a member to be on the
list, Do you have to pay for a listing, and Does AIGA endorse
these vendors…. Perhaps we have an online resource for
programming information.

The group mostly agreed that good design is seen as hip and
fun but not a necessity that can positively impact their bottom
line. Ernesto agrees this is an issue, and that we’re largely
talking to ourselves when we talk about the value of design. He
recently saw the redesigned election ballot, but it was
showcased on a design blog. He doesn’t really know how we’re
perceived by non-designers, but he thinks the way to show our
value to them would be through direct examples such as the
redesigned ballot. Angela things we could find a way to bring
non-designers to the Gain event. She also suggested having
design exhibits showcased in libraries and public places in
order to reach all audiences. Again, Ellen believes the most
important group to prove our relevancy to is marketing
professionals. Marcie suggested we could communicate the
value of design by doing pro bono design work and find a way
to showcase the before and after. Angela added that it’s about
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the bottom line, so we’d have to make sure everyone knew the
value of this design, perhaps by creating a fake invoice.

Everyone seemed to agree that this is important work for AIGA
to be doing, but most did not want to see this work done at the
expense of the networking, inspirational, and educational
programming our chapter offers. The events and online
resources seemed to be more important to most of them.
Ernesto believes it is economically necessary to communicate
the value of design to the community, and he thinks that we
can make these business development issues relevant in our
programming by educating chapter leaders on how to approach
their events with the intention of communicating to the
community. Ernesto also suggested we communicate the
value of design to those entering the profession so they enter
it not just thinking it’s a “cool” profession, but with ideas of
social responsibility.

We were able to recruit Ernesto to join the chapter board as the
chair of Creative Mass, our networking happy hour event, so I
guess we did inspire him to be more involved. Ernesto
seemed inspired by the discussion of the value of design. He
mentioned that he would like to get involved with advocacy in
social responsibility for design. He’s interested in
communicating that design isn’t just hot, but also good for the
bottom line. Angela will stay involved as long as we keep up
the film series events and keep providing resources for her
students. Erica reiterated the inspiration she gets from
hands-on workshops rather than lectures and happy hours.
Marcie agrees that events with a specific task are good.

There was discussion about how many non-members think the
only benefit of being a paid member is $5 off here and there.
Sounds like our chapter needs to better communicate the value
of a paid membership.
page 5 of 5
roundtable
AIGA Baltimore
April 28, 2010

I had 4 participants. Rob: University of Baltimore Grad Student
(member). Joe: Morgan State Teacher (member). Jessica:
Towson university teacher (member). Isabel: MICA Grad
student (non-member). They all got involved in various ways:
AIGA was an avenue to help grow there network, and meet new
friends. They were able to meet people in the industry. One
attendee's Grandmother made an endowment for membership
for students for AIGA at Morgan. They all love designers, and
there is life long learning in the process. There is an ability to
meet people within the industry, and the ability to do pro-bono
work and project for the community. Last but not least they all
are involved because they feel that AIGA can impact the
community. Rob felt like he was a 7, Joe a 7, Jessica 8, and
Isabel 4. Each want to be more involved and help AIGA become
more of the “popular kid” and be the go-to place for all things
design.

What is currently supporting them: Blends (networking happy
hours), Flash workshop, networking, lecture series, mentoring
program, Create Don’t Hate billboard contest, client-designer
relationship, Urban Forest Project (AIGA sponsored). What they
feel they need as additional resources: Local listserv/forum,
more online participation: blog, twitter, Facebook, Design
Education influence, professional engagement with actual
projects, get into schools more, partner with the universities
and colleges, more opportunities to give back.
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Blends were very helpful to them for networking and
involvement in the chapter. Meeting people within the
industry. Create Don’t Hate felt like it connected the
community, even though there were some cost issues with end
results, the process of mentorship with students and designers
was very rewarding. Flash workshop was extremely valuable and
learned a lot from the all day instructional session.
Participation while the lecture was going on. Pulp Ink and Hops:
allows for networking and socializing with industry
professionals and ability to meet vendors and talk with the
chapter about design.
involved in the design community? More involved as citizens?
There needs to be more professional engagement with actual
projects. Design education influence for insuring a level of
feasible and practical talent and knowledge that will help
ensure quality design work in the future. Bring back poetry in
motion, internal billboards on the bus lines. But our Baltimore
public transport is not as good, however we can innovate ways
to change and ways to involve the community. Regional
competitions that are geared towards solving social issues.
More online participation and member involvement, NAG
members about programs and blogs twitter and facebook. Local
listserv where people can talk to each other about anything
design related. Members get full access, non-members get a
taste. Make people more aware of our online presence. Get in
the schools become involved with the universities as a resource
to help students with learning the business of design. More
visibility and face to face contact.

No there was a feeling that with the programs we currently
have we are doing a good job with them. However we do not
have enough, and not enough is done with the professional
members. Other types of programming they feel would better
serve them are: Established designers/professionals need a
carrot: -Discounts, health insurance, business related, and life
related help, design professional talks for professionals
student talks for students, help show the value of design, key
players in better city signage, design Craigslist: non-members
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have limited access, bring designers and non-designers
together to work on projects and ideas, partnerships, alliances
with businesses, show and tell open studio, visiting designer
series, co-sponsorship with student and chapter groups, annual
competition - best B-more design/fine arts show that is a
judged competition—it would be open to the public and have
different industry sponsors.

Participants feel like we as a chapter we are week in the online
community. We do not have enough visibility, and people are
unaware of the resources we have with
Twitter/Facebook/website/blog. Strength-wise is the fact that
we are starting to do more of this, and we have an online
newsletter, however people are unaware. Some features and
resources we could use are: Blog summary of the latest posts,
iPhone app, AIGA design yellow pages, Design craigslist/
listserv/forum, More active nagging about
Twitter/Facebook/blog.

connections?
Perception from the non-design community is not really
existent. There is not much connection between the design
community and not design. People do not know who we are,
and we are not the go-to place. Some suggestions i heard to
make this better were: -Bring Designers, engineers, business
people together to work on projects and ideas/ideas for social
change or sustainability. - push our online presence more. We
need to become more visible in all aspects from students,
associates to professionals -create alliances with business -
Sponsored design competitions that are open to the public.
The participants felt like we do a good job at pulp ink and hops
getting the designers to network and talk with the vendors. The
Blends allow for more networking amongst designers, but more
should be done to educate the potential clients about the
importance of good design.

page 3 of 5
The efforts the participants have seen so far are: AIGA water
issues Business ethics - including spec work, professional
standards, and copyrights, Get Out the Vote, Design for
Democracy, intellectual properties business seminars
sustainability. However there was a feeling that all of this
information was not all easily accessible and there should be
much more visibility nationally and globally.

The participants felt like it was very important especially in
education and being a resource in making sure students
understand the value of design and where AIGA plays a part.
Also with spec work it is extremely important to communicate
it what it is and where AIGA stands and advocate it. There is not
enough contact with communities of interest. AIGA needs to
gain “street cred” so to speak. Some examples of ways to do
this more that were mentioned: Disaster relief - posters and
partners, focus groups with various industries and governments
with a mock company and a mock problem or a design problem
to solve, case study documents, national conference that
brings together forward thinkers not just designers, like TED
Talks, creativity “fun” workshops with different industry
leaders for idea generation.

Everyone was really pumped about the process and really
enjoyed it and felt inspired to do more, we actually went over
our time by an hour, but they were all busting at the seams
with ideas and information. All the ideas that they put forward
were extremely valid and help us as a chapter to grow and
succeed. Every idea mentioned in this survey was from the
participants. And they all believe that with visibility and more
of it AIGA can become the leading design industry in
Baltimore, and become a good resource for designers and non-
designers alike.

I conducted the session in an open way and creative thinking
getting them to talk to each other and jot down ideas and notes
on paper and record and discuss as a group. I made sure that
everyone was heard and felt like their input was utilized. The
one question I asked was their final thoughts from the session
below is what I got: I love AIGA. Baltimore was lacking visibility
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2 years ago, but taking the necessary baby steps to improve
that. Show and tell open studio. Reaching out to the
community. Visiting students series (alumni coming back to
educate the next batch). Ed Gold: godfather of design. Chapter
and student group co-sponsorship of programs. Also I plan to
do a creative mind map of the session that I would like to send
to national.
page 5 of 5
roundtable
AIGA Central Pennsylvania
April 29, 2010

Scott Troubaugh - Godfrey (local B2B ad agency) - 3 - would
like to get more involved.
Mark Fertig - Susquehanna University - 5 - was a member but is
no longer, but brings his students to a lot of events and pays
the non-member rates.
Nancy Mata - Millersville University - 5 - was very involved but
is now less involved because of personal reasons.
Peter Laudermilch - Freelance designer - 7 - was on the
original charter of the chapter has been getting more involved
recently (is on a committee now).

All of the participants said they would like more big name
speakers and have enjoyed the ones we have brought in the
past (Joe Duffy, Sean Adams, and others). The participants also
said they would enjoy more programming that had a social
impact on the local community, whether it was helping non-
profits or even entrepreneurs. “Designers could talk about case
studies, partner with them to teach them about the value of
design and they could teach us how to be better business
people.” Someone also had the idea of having a local services
directory (design shops, print shops, videographers, etc). Is
this something that is allowable by AIGA to be on our chapter
website? Can we charge for listings or should it only be
available for AIGA members?

page 1 of 3
Two participants said the Student Portfolio Review, one said
the firstborn event (http://centralpa.aiga.org/previous-
events/firstborn) and another said the the 1 Trick Pony event
(http://centralpa.aiga.org/previous-events/one-trick-pony).
Someone liked the idea of a Design-A-Thon for non-profits.
They all also thought having events that served the greater
good but were not explicitly design-related (Habitat for
Humanity, improving a local park, etc).

In short, yes, it reflects our members. They felt that having
more events focused on the business side of events, i.e. “Fire
your clients, or at least how to say no.” and offer workshops
with members clients that educate them design ethics.

They love the online design archives, and would love it when
our chapters website is finished with the member-only content
such as speakers notes and presentation files.

connections?
They feel like the non-design community doesn't know what or
who AIGA is and that we do a poor job of connecting with
community leaders. They want AIGA to educate the corporate
world - our members/clients - on the value of design.

page 2 of 3
Mark - AIGA is doing terrible at this initiative. AIGA seems in
the last 10 years… we make an honest living, its a job …AIGA
National worries so much about everyone’s perception of
designers that National needs to take particular designers and
hold them up as gods above the rest of us. Why are they doing
this? Why are they trying to create a loftiness? Why are they
trying to create graphic design as a lofty career? It hurts all of
us as designers and makes us feel less as designers. We are all
different.
Nancy - they make them lofty to show a sense creativity and
importance to what we do. They feel it shows the value of
design. AIGA National needs to focus more and do less but be
more focused on important topics instead of being all over the
place.
Pete - why can’t AIGA be the answer to this question?

Nancy - she just wants to see the value for the money that she
is spending on this association - she doesn't think the value is
there anymore - change by doing grass roots initiative and have
people jump on board. stop trying so hard. interview the
students or people after the events and put them on the
website.
Mark- figure out what you can do and do it well. get all the
young designers involved and start making changes. Choose a
few goals and just strive to do them really well. Promote those
things that you are good at.

They were all encouraged and loved that we asked them to be
involved in the roundtable. They did feel that they would be
getting more and more involved, one of the participants may
even come to the next board meeting. Their ideas are shared
throughout the answers.

We did ask for ideas for additional speakers, they responded:
Bruce Mau, Kyle Cooper, Hillman Curtis, Frank Gehry, Cliff
Stoltz, Derrick Sussner, Someone from Target - who can talk
about the strategy, Coke brand managers, Old Spice
commercial art directors, David Plunkert from Baltimore -
Spurdesign.com, Fuszion from Washington DC, Paula Scher, Art
Chantry, Charles S. Anderson, David Carson, Louise Fili, Michal
Bierut, Big Spaceship, Stan Lee, Pixar, designers from Second
Life that design clothes etc., someone from Mac.
page 3 of 3
roundtable
AIGA Chattanooga
April 29, 2010

3 relatively new members (2-3 yrs), young design
professionals (under 30). Involvement = 6
1 writer (1 yr), working with designers for 8 years. Involvement
=4
2 lapsed members (both 10+ years), 40+ design business
leaders. Involvement = 1
1 active longtime member (14+ years), design professional, 30+
years. Involvement = 6

Resources that grow design + profession: Networking
opportunities with colleagues. Connection to professional
resources and education. Want to see more of the above AND:
Active campaign to raise awareness in the business community
of design. Workshops teaching techniques, best practices and
professional tools. Relationship building opportunities

Most valuable programs were the three that brought designers
together with students and other non-design disciplines. These
were valuable for providing: new connections and relationships,
opportunities to learn from other disciplines ways that design
is important and relevant to the community possible work
opportunities
page 1 of 3
By providing a resource for connections and networking – both
to colleagues in design and to experts in other professions and
to possible clients.

They feel that most programming does reflect, but that it is
not well-promoted and communicated. They would like to see
more workshops and seminars with a teaching slant.

Our chapter’s online weakness is universally the non-existent
website. We have had a great deal of trouble moving and
activating the AIGA recommend templates with a person in
Portland... 8 weeks past go-live date.

connections?
Those in Chattanooga who are aware of AIGA feel it represents
a small professional association of designers and is mostly
irrelevant to them. The general public does not know what AIGA
is. A very select few see AIGA as leaders in design in the
community.

They have only seen (or looked for) some, but in relation to
issues that matter on the local level they have seen a little
from AIGA Chattanooga and very little from national. Our
participants were not interested in the global level.

page 2 of 3
Yes, they wish they had as much access to personnel, advice
and best practices from AIGA National as they do from free
online sources.

It might have, I will be curious to see. The ideas they put
forward were not new or unique and were even programs and
events that our AIGA actually does, but obviously they did not
attend or know about the events. Communication is an issue.

page 3 of 3
roundtable
AIGA Cincinnati
April 28, 2010

7 participants and 2 board members:
Emily Miller - 1 Mentoring Committee - 2 years
Mark Harris - 3 Mentor, Portfolio review - 5 years
Bev Furr - 8 non member, comes to events that are interest of
her
Troy Brown - 5 Faculty member, portfolio review - 3 years
Peg Faimon - 5 non member, comes to events that are interest
of her
Michael Sanders - 5 Faculty member -2 years
April Koenig - 3 Mentor / portfolio review 6 years

“Talking Heads” are great for the students, but they would like
to see more social engaging activities, be it a service project or
a design project to better the community. Have AIGA partner
with other Non-Profits in the area. More continuing education
events like the adobe workshops.

Adobe Workshops, it has kept them current in education with
the tools for the craft.
Partner with other non-profits in the community like Habitat
for Humanity for service projects to give back.
page 1 of 3

The current programming is great for the student members,
but need to think beyond bringing in speakers for a show and
tell for the professional members. Conferences and workshops
seem to be more successful for the professional members.
Also everyone would like to give back when possible so having
philanthropic events would be beneficial.

They see the need to have a PR Chair on the board, AIGA
currently uses all forms of social media but it cold be helped to
have some one consistently monitor it so communications are
delivered in a timely manner.

connections?
The chapter needs to work on being recognized in the non-
design community, help with a PR chair would achieve this.

They felt this would be something good for the chapter to
undertake, but unsure of where to start.

Yes, some have volunteered to help brainstorm alternative
programming to engage the professional members such as an
HR/ Resume building workshop for HR professionals and design
professionals.
page 2 of 3
How can AIGA Cincinnati gain broader participation
(engagement) from our professional members?
Reach out with surveys to see what people would show up to.
Be more specific when soliciting for volunteers to help with
committees. People want to help just need specific tasks.
Engage the big agencies to sponsor events to encourage
attendance.
Develop programs to help with the local Primary and Secondary
Art/Design education

page 3 of 3
roundtable
AIGA Cleveland
April 7, 2010

There were 8 people in attendance at the roundtable. Some of
them were former board members, some are current members
and one was a brand new member. There were also two
students in attendance, one of whom is very involved in the
AIGA student chapter at her university. Most of them said they
were somewhat involved but would like to be more involved and
were happy to have been invited to the roundtable. Most of
them got involved in order to stay in touch with other members
of the design community as well as for the networking
opportunities that the AIGA provides. We really didn’t rate
involvement from 1 to 10 but I would say that 6 of them were 3s
and the other 2 were probably 8s.

The professionals in the group really appreciated the social
networking aspect of being an AIGA member. They liked being
exposed to other designers in the area as well as being able to
find professional help as well as networking to find jobs. The
students in the group appreciated the articles on the AIGA
website as well as having access to all of the inspiring work and
the ability to research what the other chapters are doing and
what type of design work is being done across the country.
Everyone would like to see more outreach and more mentoring
type programs. Another thing that was mentioned was instead
of lecture-based events they wanted to have more “hands-on”
type workshops.
page 1 of 4
One of the attendees was at the last Make/Think conference
and said that it was wonderful to meet other designers and
creatives and that the exchange of ideas was great. We had a
letterpress workshop recently and one attendee was able to do
it and loved the hands-on aspect of it. The students were
looking forward to the portfolio review and I talked to them
after the attended it and they loved the feedback and
experience of showing their work to professionals in the field.
They would like to see the chapter have more events that are
social... events that bring people together. Events with other
disciplines was also mentioned, and also bringing in more
people from different organizations and small businesses. They
all liked the idea of the Cocktails with Creatives but felt like it
was hard to talk in a bar environment. Also happy hour is hard
to make if you live or work farther away from the location.
Perhaps more lunch events or weekend coffee events? As far
as being involved as citizens that really didn’t get covered.

On a whole they do, but they would like to see more events
that are social; events that bring people together. They would
also like to see events that bring in people from other
disciplines, organizations and small businesses. They all agreed
that the Cocktails with Creatives were a good idea but that
when they are organized at bars it’s hard to talk and hear one
another. They wondered if there was a better way to do this.
Coffee? Lunch? Etc. They like the idea of the SXSW
conference that brings in a ton of different people from
different disciplines and said that they would love to see more
hands-on workshops and workshops that are “outside the box.”

There is a lot of information on the chapter website but they
feel that there is no community. One attendee asked why we
weren’t doing more with social media and another commented
page 2 of 4
that we need to give people resources and benefits to keep
them involved. They all really like the idea of having a chapter
blog like AIGA Charlotte has which could include webinars and a
way to link up to other information or workshops. They like the
idea of being able to feature local designers and even have a
members chat room of sorts... make it more local.

connections?
There was not a lot said about this subject which leads me to
think that they really don’t know about how the chapter is
perceived by the non-design community. They talked a bit
about certification and one attendee thought that by getting
involved with things outside of design we could strengthen the
perception and cause awareness. They mentioned partnerships
with Harvard and good relationships with Adobe would be a
good start. Bring the business side of design more into focus.

Not much was said about this subject, one attendee once again
mentioned our Adobe partnership and a student attendee
mentioned the Design for Democracy call to action that the
White House implemented at the end of last year beginning of
this year. Perhaps we could get our chapter/members to be
more actively involved in this type of thing?

They think it’s very important. They said that education is key,
that most people don't know the designer's role and that once
you show people what we can do it’ll be a lot easier. Suggested
things like “take your creatives to work day” so that the
younger designers can see what it’s like on the client side of
things. Designers can see where the client is coming from and
vice versa. We (AIGA) need to show people the value of design
in problem solving on the business side of things so that we
can be seen as partners.
page 3 of 4
Yes, I do believe that it did. The attendees were happy to have
been invited to speak their mind at the roundtable and had a lot
of valuable information and ideas. They said that we need to
reach out to them more often and not only show but prove
what the benefits are and give them a reason to get involved
and stay involved.

We ran out of time and did not have a chance to ask any
additional questions.
page 4 of 4
roundtable
AIGA Connecticut
April 27, 2010

There were nine participants. Half were current AIGA CT
members, half were not (but were considering joining following
our discussion)! We had a photographer (very involved (9) but a
non-member at the moment), a Mohawk sales rep who is also a
sponsor (member for 20 years and involvement = 10+), a
design student member (2 year member and (2) getting more
involved), an advisory board member and nationally known
designer (involvement = 10, 26 year member), a writer on
design and designer himself (involvement = 4; non-member at
the moment), and two designers who work for a large and
medium-sized agencies, neither one a member yet and
involvement = 3 and from different parts of the state.

They had trouble identifying the value of joining vs. just pay-
as-you-go for events. Clearly, we need to do a better job
getting the message out about membership benefits. Also,
they felt they could get all the resources they needed off the
aiga.org website (jobs, events, business advice, etc.) so they
didn’t see the a need to join with full membership dues.
Additional resource suggestion included a specific conference
(like HOW’s freelance conference) or information geared
towards solo-preneur designers. In addition, members would
like medical benefits and more discounts, more professional
advice/help and a better website. As for the local chapter,
they’d like to see more professionally geared events, an event
geared towards doing good and giving back, morning events
(change up times).
page 1 of 4
Two: the National Conference continues to be a hit among
members - loved the mix of topics, feeling inspired, and that it
is different than How's event. The most popular local chapter
event was “Design Legends” (Connecticut Edition) where we
had a panel of local design luminaries (Peter Good, Jan
Cummings, Ted Bertz, Harry Rich, Nathan Garland. It was
discussed as being a humbling, inspirational, unforgettable
evening. Here’s the link:
http://colabinc.com/aigact/Legends_01/Legends_combined.htm
l
Get the message out to the community showing them how
design has given back and the impact design has had on their
business and their lives. Case studies, events, speakers. Reach
out to students, which we do very well. Engage and inspire
them. Have more events that work with non-profit organzations
- but follow-through and track back the results to those who
were involved so they can see the difference our efforts have
made.

No. We recently had an event called the “XTown (pronounced
Crosstown) Smackdown” and it was not a quality event. It felt
cheap, was in a bar, had no purpose - basically a drinking game.
They were very critical of this event and felt it was not on par
with who AIGA is and what we should be doing (for the record, I
completely agreed). As previously described, more with
students, non-profits and professionally focused events.

Everyone agreed that our Connecticut website sucks. This has
been an on-going issue. Rich Hollant, who was our website chair
and is now our Communications director was working on the
site. I’m not sure where it stands presently, but clearly, we
need to tackle this effort and have some follow through.
page 2 of 4
Participants said they no longer go to our website because
there are no events being updated and even our list of board
positions is incorrect. Embarrassing. On the other hand, Lisa
Burns has done a great job fighting for and updating our social
media efforts (I say “fighting” because originally, some board
members did not see the value of social media). We’ve done a
great job in that department. Our Facebook page is more
current, accurate and interesting than our website.

connections?
Professional. Quality organization of a certain caliber. ~ As
previous described, reaching out further to the community to
help them understand the value of graphic design in their
businesses and lives, working with non-profits, students and
looking for sponsorship opportunities beyond the design-
related industries.

The group liked the idea of some events around the idea of
sharing our work with one another and inviting businesses who
see the value of design to come and speak. As for the global,
government and civil society - they agreed that our young
chapter wasn’t there yet. They felt we’re better focused
locally, for now, and then aim higher. We’re still trying to get it
right in our programming and message for our Chapter.

VERY important. They want us to succeed at doing this in
Connecticut so we can take that message nationally and
internationally.

YES. Several folks want to join following our discussion.
Everyone was grateful that they had been invited. I was thrilled
(as the VP) because I left with some very specific and clear
goals for our chapter: website, professional development track
page 3 of 4
(which I’ve started - and they didn’t know - about called
Kaleidoscope), a morning event (I’m thinking of borrowing the
“Small Talk” series idea from another AIGA chapter), an effort
for a non-profit (which we unsuccessfully attempted last year
and had no follow-through and left people feeling badly) and
getting out the message of the benefits of being a member,
and not just a spectator. I left feeling re-energized and excited
and I’ve already reached out to some of the participants to join
committees to help me see these items through. I’m very
excited!

page 4 of 4
roundtable
AIGA Detroit
March 29, 2010

Attendants: 9 1. How and why they got involved with AIGA:
• AIGA conference
• word of mouth
• loved the conference (in the 90’s) and was hooked
• In 2001: belonged to student chapter, went to a conference
after 9-11, got postponed because of it, which cemented her
interest in the organization because it was so powerful
• New to the chapter this year and a teacher at Wayne State
suggested it, and so far, she loves it
• Joined when moved to into the area, there wasn’t a strong
design community outside of education. Figured Alaska had a
chapter - why couldn’t Detroit? So I created one, for a sense of
community in the design world of Detroit.
• Junior year CCS, wanted a community - somewhere to fit in -
6 years later, still a member.
• Another board member brought me on as a board member,
she continues to learn and grow.
• 4 year member, in Raleigh NC, new to the area, and it was
great to be involved in a smaller, active chapter, with open
board meetings, easy to get involved, and get to know people,
so when she moved back to Detroit, it was only natural to be
part of Detroit’s chapter.

• Design and Business was a great informational, DIY
movement, self-initiated projects, Julie Lange was a speaker
there, motivation to get things going, and be motivated and
look at what you could do in addition to your “regular job” •
page 1 of 5
Business Conference in NY is phenomenal - like a mini TED
conference, always come back with something amazing, and
helpful • Online portfolio option is really great, its nice to have
a direct link you can put on your resume

• Always look forward to the membership party • Really
enjoyed the speakers at Celebrate MI, they were great, it was
inspiring to hear about their work and how it is relevant to the
area, it really gives you a nice feeling.


• Not participated in a lot of online dialogue, we post links, but
do not get a lot of feedback • Should we pose questions - or
post status? • Could be good to follow up on events - such as
celebrate MI, what would you have liked to see? What could
have been done differently? • Are you doing anything about
letting people know where there is work, hone skills and
conversations • The big thing with Twitter is getting jobs,
people look only on twitter for hiring people, not sure how that
ties in to AIGA, if it could be an interesting intrigue for people
• You could get students brand loyal immediately but creating
a locked network? • How can you get more people to post on
AIGA, since there is a fee, so some companies will go to
craigslist, or anywhere else where they can post it for free •
There are not a lot of local jobs on AIGA. CCS seems to get
more local postings than AIGA, so perhaps it would be good to
work with colleges to be aware of companies that are hiring •
Have been impressed with how much the AIGA website has
changed since four years ago, so much has happened, and
there is so much more to offer, it’s really great to see the
progress.
page 2 of 5
connections?
• Everyone always thinks its insurance - AIG. We are not AIG! •
Quite awhile ago Jack Williamson, the perception of designers -
put together a service based directory - a real plus for services,
and a plus to be a member and be linked, to be in the list, your
name gets out there. Wouldn’t be that difficult to put online,
send out a questionnaire, verify information is correct, and
then post it. 3 directories were posted, profit, nonprofit,
existed for a few years • AIGA is more than just graphic design!
It would be nice if people had more of an understand of what it
was - art directors, etc, to connect all types of creatives • Even
speakers/designers working with mulitmedia/sound
design/could we involve a wider spectrum of talents to attract a
larger audience. Loved Susan’s lecture at Celebrate MI •
Sometimes it’s us reaching out towards businesses, wonder
how eager the business are to reach back out to us? • At Gain
conference a few years back, a guy who chairs business school
in Toronto - very keen in integrating design thinking into
business. Maybe bringing a guy running a MBA program would
be a great speaker to get more involved, and integrate design
and business thinking. A case study event? EX: Target. That
would bring everyone working at Compuware to listen. People
want to know how in house design for companies can work
successfully. • Get aggressive - get someone meaty - and get
them to speak • Could we involve automotive? Speaking to a
Ford or GM audience, in their world, who could get across the
significance of design integration. Design language vs Business
language - how do we all speak the same language?

• There are a bunch of initiatives that national is taking care of.
Seems out of the scope of the chapter. It seems like
everything else we have been talking about is a lot more
relevant • Lobbying, Design Democracy, Anti-Speak Work, think
national is doing a great job • Spec Work was a huge issue -
even when it came to the Techfest in Detroit.

page 3 of 5
• People are starting to get savvy about design. An opportunity
here. • In terms of what the chapter has been during currently?
Went to Stew - and though that was really great, met all these
new people, and recognized a lot of them when she went to
Celebrate MI, and it was really nice to recognize and meet
people in a casual, intimate setting.

• Knowing what the current AIGA board is working towards, and
hearing about the upcoming programming, seeing the offerings
grow before their eyes is very inspiring. • Right now we have
more professional members then students at the moment -
you might want to think about throwing out a bigger circle for
people running a department, or higher management, but it
could certainly be interesting for people in those positions -
maybe there are not enough people interested in that - but
maybe? Some people go other places for business tips and all
the information surrounding that, could that be offered here,
so that members don’t have to go elsewhere? • Incubators:
Wayne State, Oakland University, AA, Doug worked last year
with Wayne States group - and it was design 101, for beginners,
as a communication strategy, showing case studies, to build
client relationships, and will probably continue to grow - and
Wayne State incubators really want people to come in and talk
about design, so that could be something else where designers
offer to go and give lectures to specific groups - being funded
to create a communication strategy • Next steps for mid-level
designers - sharpen more skills of persuasion, presentations,
learning how to think like a business persons state of mind,
which is more about risk assessment, and learning more about
that mental state, to understand it better, and become more
successful because of it. • Presentation help would be
awesome! Presentation Toastmaster! • Portfolio business
series - digitally - presentation, and get feedback - for people
who feel like they work in a vacuum as a freelancer. Would it
work if you could post it on the web as a member - would it be
more difficult to moderate? Different experience with face to
face interaction and dialogue - but if you are unable to attend
events, online could be a good option. If you post something at
11pm, you could get feedback immediately, where in person you
wouldn't be able to do that.

Could you give me 1-2 points of something you would like to
see more of, things that you like about your membership? •
Wish there were more online resources - like how much to
page 4 of 5
charge for jobs, and have to go to a different resource. Wish
AIGA is where I could go for EVERYTHING. Could we have a
dialogue about it as a professional. • Follow up design and
business for people who couldn't make it • Could people
generate links - it always continues to grow, and if people can
contribute great links, would be great to build a database for
that • AIGA podcasts for members only? So people could listen
in there cars. Know a lot of lectures are visual, but perhaps it
could be a great way to reach out. Recorded video of
conference? There are people with small children, and cannot
get out of the house, and attend... so they could still be
involved • Blog was suggested - to which we said it has just
launched! • Maybe send a facebook or email note about all the
aspects of the blog, and what our personal Detroit blog has to
offer! • Maybe more workshops - attended a web lecture, given
by adobe, and it was so beneficial, CMS, wordpress, have a
workshop on basics just so you can stay in the loop on those
things • IDUG offers a lot of workshops was mentioned -
connect with active local groups
page 5 of 5
roundtable
AIGA Houston
April 20, 2010

Miguel Gutierrez : involvement level from a 3 to 10 wants to put
a face to name for students
Robin Cheung : involvement level 2.5 went to school in
Pittsburgh. Kinda involved but not really. Student chapter in
Pittsburgh, then California, and now here.
Jessica Rios : involvement level 3 conference in Memphis,
portfolio review [like-minded individuals] wants to be more
active than I am
Randy Nicholson : involvement level 1.5 level from Austin
moved to Houston, lost touch with design and now joined AIGA
to get back involved. Follows on web
Tina McPherson : involvement level 4 would like to get involved
to be a 10 plus from DC always been interested in
design/awareness. Met Miguel at Art Institute. Still design on
the side, but found more as a mentor now. Involved in
awareness, non profit
Tracy Price : involvement level 2 active in college wants to get
on a committee and now is open to getting involved.

jessica: goes to website for inspiration, articles. archives, gets
mind jogging. recent one: decade of dirty design. computer
overload, referencing making things by design, instead of
being associated by strictly computer design. posted and
shared on facebook.
tracy: AE’s don’t understand how to sell design, had to find
ways to teach AE’s about graphic design. call backs are costing
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more time and money in the long run because the right
questions weren’t being asked.
chris lee: inspired by actual face to face events. nothing beats
getting to meet the person who is the artist behind the design.
tracy: see excitement from actual designers. typography now
tina: kindle designers, the concept of the name and the process
of development.
robin c: would like more stuff going on the web, would like
more jobs on the job boards.
andy: the interaction with other people that speak the same
language. every bit as important as what the event is about.
miguel: comes back from events with loads of ideas, what's
going on with the design society.
jessica: nice to ask questions on a casual level. design doesn’t
end after college, it does continue beyond.
randy: make sure that what I’m doing in the design community
is based on the professional standards.
andy: didn’t know what i was to charge, what contract where
suppose to look like. referenced jeff fisher.
robin c: mentor program in pitts and carried on beyond
graduation. emailed a lot with professional questions.
What type of programming would you like to see offered in the

future?
tracy: how to sell design/talk to someone. price valuing.
robin c: more content/more articles
tracy: asking people to go, more volunteers. [volunteer
awareness push]
chris lee: learning about the business aspect of design. trying
to take advantage of a fresh graduates.
tina: code of ethics/guidelines helps out from AIGA.
[Educate general business community on what spec work]
[AIGA on the website: code of conduct]
Miguel: offer to business market. crossover with other
organizations.

robin c: more online discussions.
[what would it take to start a conversation]
andy: linkedin is not the first place where i would start
robin c: a weekly or a monthly topic
jessica: end of articles be able to comment, archives does this,
all these and all these ideas. weekly open topic, what are other
people doing in the community, even with 2 strong opinions.
[we are not using linked in the way we should for AIGA
page 2 of 5
Houston] promote through blog, then takes to AIGA discussion
form, but only members can comment and discuss. non
members can only view.
randy: how can we makes sure that we bring awareness of value
of design, product. post your most inspirational
books/literature/reviews have only a little bit, a teaser into
AIGA discussion forms. discussion to continue after/before
events. for those that don't have time to attend events. walk
through a project [videos].
robin c: virtual tours of other companies.
[what does your workspace look like? flickr group]
tracy: collaborate with other designers, Vancouver film school
that does a project together across the nation.
[find people that want to collaborate with other designers]
[interactive with other business, engineers, AE’s, architects]
miguel: school is based on working on own, 90% self 10%
working with others.
andy: help out with design. seasoned designer/student [shadow
program, less time commitment than a mentor program]
[non profits submit proposals for design work, then you get to
collaborate with season/professional/students]

[design police] project rodeo house
chris lee: non profit organization
miguel: design to help get their idea out, board member to
keep their ear open to what’s going on around the community
tracy: somewhere on the website for organizations to submit
application for design.
tracy: how do you get the information out, members are out
everywhere.
[AIGA Houston will adopt a non profit, then go to the
community, AIGA members to design pieces]
tina: AIGA become more of a resource?
[knowledge center for other non designers, need a PR chair]
[can’t keep talking to ourselves, pass on the word because we
are invisible]
[cross pollination of business ethics, promoting our events to
other communities]
andy: speakers on other platforms and how they use design.
[appeal to broader audiences, how to do it without losing our
core values to the members]
page 3 of 5
tina: we see common threads so we invited this speaker.
communication, promoting to other communities.
[better organization outreach]


connections?
they don’t know about us.
[under the radar]
[naval gazers : we are talking about design to designers instead
of talking about design to others]
randy: help each other [designers] out to promote themselves
more with the help of the community [ie online portfolio
workshop through AIGA Houston]
[workshop how to promote themselves : selling your work]
[workshop: presenting portfolio to a potential employer and
presenting your portfolio to client]



Everyone from the roundtable except 1 [which we are working
on] are now involved on committees and inherited chair
positions. This was by far a great experience to hear the voice
of our members. [we even had a tape recorder to document the
whole 2 hours] Our overall roundtable discussion mostly
involved topics on more ways to communicate with members
about upcoming events/volunteering and how to communicate
page 4 of 5
with community, as you can see from our detailed dialogue. We
are on a mission now as a chapter to step into a new phase of
what AIGA stands for and how we can get more community
acknowledgment. How can we become a knowledge base of the
Houston community, educate the community on the value of
design? How can we communicate that we are a professional
design organization not based on what we can do for you, but
what we can offer you as a community? How can we cross-
pollinate with other business professionals on what design
really means in the everyday function of life? From this
roundtable we are going to fill a PR position, vendor
sponsorship, and overall give a voice to AIGA Houston in our
community. The energy pulsated through each individuals
words and the message was clear, AIGA Houston is on the verge
of community involvement and awareness.

page 5 of 5
roundtable
AIGA Idaho
April 21, 2010

Thomas - 2 years, got involved because of Mix/Mentor, on the
Boise State student group board, (8 - 9)
Clayton - 1 year, got involved because he started a business and
believes in the mission, (8)
Greg - Got involved because of Mix/Mentor, interested in
friendship and networking, and felt like he had many
professional mentors, (7.5)
Lindsey - 1 year, Got involved because of Mix/Mentor, on the
student board, (9)
Jeremy - Originally joined Charlotte chapter 5 years ago, re-
joined 3 semesters ago at BSU, got involved for Mix/Mentor and
networking (8)
Glenn - 2 years, never been involved, interested in the value of
the community size, community knowledge about design,
organization for change
Karina - Started NNU chapter (9)
Nicolette - Recently joined, comes to events
Bethany - 1 year, interested in events and workshops, building
community, networking and seeing what other designers are
doing, (4) interested in being more involved

Workshops, hearing from independent designers’ perspectives.
Talk and workshop combo format. Heavy graphic
communication, would like to see more multi-discipline
subjects such as print production for designers, designing for
scalability, technical aspects, building brand guidelines, etc.
Would like to see more interesting workshops. Bringing in sign
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shops, screen printers, production artists to share what it is
they do. There are lots of inspirational events, need more
events about best practices, exposure to what else is out there.
A “clearinghouse” of information. More information about the
benefits of AIGA, for people who don’t know about the
organization. There has been a low turnout at BSU student
workshops, what is the barrier? Some people may just be
involved in AIGA for the resume addition and Mix/Mentor
networking opportunities. Many students at Boise State
commute. It could involve the person leading the workshop or
the venue, students don’t want to hang out in the same
classrooms they’re in every day, they want to get out and
check out design studios, etc.

Mix/Mentor and the Idaho Stew screen printing workshop
Initiate a volunteer list to call people when volunteers are
needed. More information about the transition from being a
student to a professional member.

See answer #2. Create a “design police.” Events about business
practices, how to write contracts, billing, client management,
etc. Create a forum for local feedback on work. Put on a juried
design exhibition, include print makers, photographers, other
disciplines. Showing the work we do and the extend of the
process to the public. Solving problems to show the value of
design. Start a pro bono program, where we solve a design
problem and publish the case study. Show the public how we
deal with the subconscious in visual communication. Problem
solving as a creative process. Create PR for the program.
Accept work on a grant process. Could involve students,
although there is a danger of students getting taken advantage
of. A guideline would need to be in place. Provide a guide for
small business regarding design best practices. Distribute
through Better Business Bureau, Chamber of Commerce, etc.

page 2 of 4
Features should include a forum, wiki, blog support (for both
the pro and student chapters). Social media as an outlet for
what people are working on, links to new blog content. How do
we get non-members to follow the SM outlets? Show what we
are working on locally, and it’s impact on the business
community. This shows our knowledge of business. Publicizes
case studies. Show visual content. Posting all event photos to
the blog and Flickr.

connections?
Much of our (sometimes free) time is spent educating clients.
How do we educate the business community? Talking to the
public about what we do. Speaking at non-design organization
events about the value of design, standards, code of ethics.
The outside world sees the design/advertising community as
doing stuff they don’t fully understand. Working with us seems
like a giant task, help educate business people regarding what
they need. Talking to the Chamber of Commerce, Meridian
Business Day, Boise Young Professionals (educate while
they’re young). Value of design piece/event. Shows evidence
of ROI, list AIGA-involved local talent, show the value of
investment in design.

Sustainability and green design on a national level, would like
to see that more in Boise. Design for Democracy, and
designers connecting with the government.

Very important. Global recognition of design solutions end up
being about the person/firm that did it, not about AIGA or the
community of design. Create annuals, recognizing the work
that you’ve seen, learn who was involved, and that AIGA was
involved. Create a local design annual.
page 3 of 4
Learning about particular specialties. Boise is missing the
feeling of camaraderie and support. Creative community
support is greater in a larger market, such as NY. (where one of
the participants was from), they “root” for one-another more.
Is it because there’s not enough work to go around in a smaller
market? (some of the students involved in the discussion
indicated that they have had the opposite experience).

Additional Comments: Regarding the Mix/Mentor program
between AIGA Idaho and the Boise State student group.
Mix/Mentor has produced both good and bad experiences.
Students suggested not giving out mentors that aren’t totally
committed, they would rather not get a mentor than get a bad
one. Non-students should be responsible for managing the
mentorship and initiating communication.
page 4 of 4
roundtable
AIGA Iowa
April 22, 2010

• Sammons financial group, graphic designer, member for one
year (6, just starting out) • independent graphic designer
illustrator, member for two years + back in college (5) •
professor of art + design Drake, 2005, just moved to Iowa this
past year and switch chapters (2 would be more involved if
there weren’t the geographic constraints) • recent MFA
University of Iowa, going to be a professor at Wartburg college,
member four years (4/5, just starting out)

• ethics • design week, fun way to jump in but also exhausting
that it’s all in one week • get a job boot camp, well done very
useful • 50 books 50 covers great show, very inspirational •
ethics repeat, another meeting in 6 months • survey local area
for freelance graphic design works • a book/Aquent survey does
not cover freelance or how much to charge for a 24 pg booklet
• pecha-kucha (website) show portfolio at a bar, 20 sec each
piece and 20 portfolio pieces • open studio visits - intro + 15-
20 min tour • design and drinks • bring in fairly well known
designers, more speakers • share speakers with other parts of
the state • supper w/famous designer/well known

• get a job boot camp, liked 2010’s, on a Saturday and I could
come • presenting at our Sustain salon • green salons, pretty
informative, nice set-up to network because people are more
professional over lunch, intimate
page 1 of 3
• critiques • presentation/critiques, will my students really be
able to face the real world, what do they need to know for if
they want to become a independent designer, corporate. Get a
sense of what they are doing and what you are doing. •
night/afternoon discussion of personal projects • show
artworks/featured designer 1/mo - wiki, web site • art buddies,
hook up with a underprivileged /at risk youth and spend a day
with them every month, creating art work/mentoring them •
start a dialogue with the local schools • presentation day, what
is design • collective design campaign, design for democracy,
different topic • awareness program, homeless/food shelters

• bring other design related professions in • get a bus of
people to go up to design camp • communicate with other
groups to cross programs, architects • a week long
program/project to collaborate

Strengths • easy clean easy to use. • uses the website to see
what’s going on, out-of-town weekend events Weaknesses •
some categories just send you to national, more local specific
resources • be more timely with job postings. Because any
member can post a job, the board/web director needs to follow
through to make sure it’s taken down after filled/or they are no
longer looking. feature/resources • seems like they are being
used • it would be nice to have someone who mans the social
media. Maybe have an on-line blog • blog would be good if it’s
active • do we have a LinkedIn group, seems more fitting than
Facebook. more professional. I don’t want to be friends with my
students.

page 2 of 3
connections?
• they don’t think the non-design community knows who we are
• AIGA kind of acts like a chamber of commerce networking
event • we should host an event for the public to learn about
aiga iowa • be nice if we could make a connection with local
printers to print one student piece digitally and give them a
deal • don’t think AIGA Iowa will get to the point where it can
be community and designers = chamber of commerce

• only know about things because of web site, green ethics... •
design democracy • Africa water design solution, hear about
online or at a conference • a professor at MIT, took cow dung
and made efficient charcoal out of it. As a graphic designer I
don’t feel like I can contribute to change currently and I want
to. • design 21 - social design network • churches don’t know
how to find a designer • group business cards, people need a
designer but don’t know what they want or need

• important • more important nationally than globally

• do a symposium on how to work with non-designers/designers
on a project • previously answered in other questions

page 3 of 3
roundtable
AIGA Kansas City
April 13, 2010

1. Chris Evans, C3, Involvement: 1 up until this year. Is also VP
of Communications for Ad Club
2. Sarah Herbert, Curious Pixel, Involvement: 2 until the
portfolio review this year.
3. Mike Lamonica, JCCC, Involvement: very involved in late
nineties, then dropped off to 0, now at 3 and moving up
4. Roberto Cruz, Student, JCCC, Involvement: member since
2008, 5 or 6
5. Stephen Chau, web developer, Involvement: 2, has been
attending more events since KC Design Week
6. Nathan McKinney, Conclin, In-House, Involvement: 1-2,
involved a couple times, used to be on art directors club board
7. Garrett, experience designer, T2 Involvement: 7, fresh out of
college, Associate member
8. Jeff Shumway, Hallmark Cards Marketing Studio,
Involvement: low involvement, back within last year
9. Brian Rio, KU, Student, Involvement: member since 2008, 4-
5
10. Steve Brand, AMC, Involvement: 5, went to national
conference, member since 2008, first event Sagmiester, “like
this better than ad club”
11. Travis Kramer, Design Lead, Barkley, Involvement: 6, shows,
portfolio reviewer, event at barkley, depends on schedule 2
non-members 6 professional members 1 associate member 2
student members

page 1 of 5
ONLINE PORTFOLIOS: how many professionals look at online
portfolios? Barkley goes to AIGA every time to hire. rather look
at AIGA because industry specific. incentive on behave of job
hunter. was good before, but refresh is very intuitive, easy to
make look professional, tool built smart. KC doesn’t quite work
right, doesn’t link to national portfolio site?
PORTFOLIO DAY: portfolio review is key. Like having all schools
together in one place. Can make recommendations to other
companies. Most other student shows are 90% family and
friends. AIGA Portfolio day is mostly professionals attending.
Professional opinions are good. Signing up to be an AIGA
member gives clout to students. AIGA students have more
talent than Ad Club, in general.
TIMES FOR EVENTS: happy hours, evening. like 20 event. get
more awareness for people to attend.
BUSINESS TOOLS: The national tools are hard to find and are
not packaged in a way that is easy to access. Contract
templates are based on an old model and are too verbose. Need
more tools on how to start a business, and tools on how to be a
professional. Like idea of a business book club. Students are
not ready to be a freelancer out of school, they need
experience. This was the goal of the Transitions event we used
to have: was for emerging professionals before too many
students started coming. Which is better to have – seminars or
tools?
BIG EVENTS: Bigger events are key to draw people in. Big
events such as Sagmiester lecture were many members first
event.
SOCIAL EVENTS: We also want to more events that are purely
social, which we haven’t been doing as much of recently.
Interaction is a skill to teach students. We currently don’t have
a purely network event where you were forced to meet
someone, like a business chamber event. Freelance exchange
had a good event based on speed networking. Historically, we
don’t have a good turnout at social events. The need for social
events is sometimes filled by other organizations like the AAF.
Our new Speakeasy events and other micro-events could help
fill this need.
AWARD SHOW: AIGA Design Competition is meant to recognize
good design. Addys are about buying awards.

- Students are scared of the mentor/student relationship. They
want to be equals. They need encouragement. KC Design Week
was a good example: students and professionals working in
collaboration. All part of the same design community. - More
participatory vs. lecture based events. It’s intimidating to get
“in” if you are not already involved. - AIGA is more clichish
page 2 of 5
than other organizations. Is this designers by nature? - More
events targeted at professionals vs. students? Do
morning/lunch times for professionals not work? Some events
seem over-run with students rather professional networking.
Do recruiters come to these events? - People still think they
can save money by paying for events selectively, not joining
membership. - You choose to be a member because you want
to with AIGA. - What is my membership fee going to get me?
The focus is abstract – design and thinking. - What is keeping
people from making our events a priority. People want
consistency, want to be able to expect to see people they know
at events. We could do a better job of this as a board. - Invite
people to come prepared. They like the personal connection
such as a direct email or phone call. “My name is so-and-so, I’d
like to meet you there.” - Cross promoting. Promote other
organizations events.
- Helping charities. Get the public involved and see. Have a
“designer showhouse” much like the interior design
showhouse. “Personally, I signed up for AIGA to familiarize
other people with the design community.” Not just lip service.
Enable the public to check out more types of studios, little
shops, other creatives. We need to be inspiring the world,
outside our community, and quit apologizing for being Kansas
City. - Like professional diversity of make/think conference.
Need more of that locally. Apply design thinking to other
disciplines. Everything is designed. How do you appease
everyone? - Like to be personally invited and involved in an
event. - Committees – ask me to help! Why AIGA - Ask not what
can you do for me but what can I do for you. - get inspired -
grow my business - teach the public about design - promote KC
creative community. - AIGA has a purity that ad club does not.

- What is our focus % on students vs. professionals? AIGA
viewed as more of a student organization or a place you go
when you need to hire. “I didn’t chose to join AIGA to start a
business, I chose to recruit talent.” - How can AIGA help you
grow your business? Need platforms to become a voice for
AIGA. “This is going to help me learn how to help my clients.” -
Helping business use design. Pitching work of design
page 3 of 5
community as a whole. Teaching clients. Money talks in the
business community. Targets we want members in: - In-House *
- Students - Programmers - Emerging Professionals - Educators
- Firm Leaders - Accounts - Photographers - Agency Creative -
Design Appreciators - Entrepreneurs - Mktg Directors – C levels
- Printers - People who are not designers, but really into
design

- Should do webcasts of events after they are over. The local
Adobe and Film club does a good job of this. Should we charge
for those? They say no. This would enable people to see what
goes on at events, and gain some familiarity. Maybe just do
clips and not full videos. The core benefit is connecting with
people in person. Online webcasts or clips would be a good viral
tool. Attendees could show other people – “this is what I was
at, this is what I learned.” The recaps on the blog are also good.
- Need to really leverage social networking even more. For
example, catch people online and invite them personally.

connections?
- “My clients don’t know what AIGA is.” Need something that
generates buzz in the community. Like A6 because it
showcases design, but it doesn’t mean anything to community
or clients. Need to position AIGA as a community and less as a
club. PR push. The design community is great in KC compared
to the coasts. Best creative talent in the country. Design week
did a great job of PR, need to do more with awards, etc. - Our
core audience is designers. Are we missing opportunities to
get recognition? Meet the judges or 360 event with nationally
known designers is a great opportunity.

- What can you do to change the world, and not trying to be
cool. - How much of our membership crosses over to other
organizations? - Do we have committees on business/gov’t? KC
page 4 of 5
Design Alliance is beginning to do that. - What is missing in the
greater community is education of what our industry is. - Are
we educating designers to be community leaders? This could
be a major value that AIGA could provide to our members. We
need a program to groom designers as leaders.


Inspired! See ideas throughout the survey monkey.

4. How do you feel about the amount of communications you
get from AIGA KC? Has social networking and our refreshed
website improved communication? - Need more local
communications. Received 9 in the last 3 wks from national, but
only 2-3 from local, - 4 people said they follow facebook
primarily, and 1 Twitter. 2 people said they don’t get our
emails. - Ad Club does seemingly personalized email blasts,
using Influence. - Consider texting reminders for events.
Google Voice. - 3 people miss printed communications. Award
show books are great. There’s an air of authority that comes
with print.
page 5 of 5
roundtable
AIGA Knoxville
April 28, 2010

We had 22 participants ranging from new student members to
veteran practitioners and teachers in the field. The majority of
them are somewhat involved (5) to (7) involved.

Firstly, the members reflected on a real need for more
consistent and better chapter communication. The members
felt our programming needed to broaden in scope and
discipline to include more web-interactive and motion design.
Members requested more hands-on, production-oriented
events and workshops. They would like to see more networking
opportunities be made available as well as an overall greater
sensitivity to in-house and large corporate design
environments.

Many of the respondents cited our Adobe Workshops and our 1
to 1 student-professional mentorship program as the most
valuable. They felt the knowledge exchange and insight gained
was of clear value. Also, they saw value in design-sharing like
50/50 and 365 and the local/regional showcases we do.
On a whole, there was a real desire to see more frequent
programming from our local chapter that would include
additional workshops, educational exchanges, student-
page 1 of 3
professional mixers and mentorship. The participants cited
local and regional philanthropic activities and initiatives as ways
we can better serve our communities as designers.

The members felt our programming needed to broaden in
scope and discipline to include more web-interactive and
motion design. There were requests for more active networking
and work-sharing events as well as exchanges with AMA, AAF
and IDSA.

Several participants reflected negatively on our chapter
website’s ineffectiveness as well as a desire to see great
frequency and consistency in communication from all
channels—social, print, email. There were also requests for
video interviews with designers and online visual captures of
local professional work to serve as inspiration.

connections?
Most of the participants agreed that the non-designer
community was ambivalent or unaware of our existence.
Indeed, they felt many in the design community were ignorant
or suffering from disinformation about AIGA as well.

The participants were aware of national activities and readily
cited Design for Democracy and the Diversity Initiative as
campaigns and evidence of outreach from the AIGA national
page 2 of 3
office. They felt these umbrella initiatives were not echoed
effectively at the local or regional level.

Nearly 86% said it was essential and 14% responded with very
important.

Yes. Roughly 75% were interested in additional participation
with half suggesting it be either volunteering at events or in
designing promotional material for our event programming.
Several were also interested in serving on committees or in
potential chair-positions on the board.

page 3 of 3
roundtable
AIGA Las Vegas
April 22, 2010

We hosted eight roundtable participants: three were younger
designers or students, two were mid-career designers, three
were senior-level designers or business owners, and one was a
vendor. The students had the most limited experience with
AIGA, but were the most engaged and passionate about it. They
said they enjoy the opportunity AIGA provides to meet other
designers, network, and learn new things about the world of
design. Conversely, the experienced designers and business
owners said they felt the least connected to AIGA. They
seemed to feel that, while it was good to support the group in
theory, AIGA wasn’t as relevant to them in the practical realm
of management or running a business. The mid-career
designers were a mix. They said they say good opportunities to
keep their skills fresh and continue to network within AIGA, but
were also looking for a stronger community feel. The vendor
said he wanted more support from the chapter to encourage
designers to print in-market. He said vendors can't support
AIGA unless it's reciprocal.

Most wanted to see more networking and socializing. Designers
can get stuck in a bubble, especially if working independently,
so many wanted more opportunities to connect with other
designer, build resource networks and be able to trust other
designers for referrals and advice. Senior-level and business
owners wanted more practical info on making the business of
design work. Also wanted to see more learning opportunities
for new media; they already know what they need on design
page 1 of 3
theory and print, but are starting to worry they’re falling
behind on the new communication tools. All wanted to see
stronger online resources; a knowledge base they could access
at any time.

Many said they liked the Art & Copy screening we hosted; one
participant said she liked the feeling of camaraderie,
recognizing that “we’re in this together.” It was a common
experience designers could share and identify with, and get
away from the constant feeling of competition with peers. Non-
profit benefit events were popular; participants said they liked
creating something for the good of the community.
All participants said they liked the events in which the chapter
donates creative work to a non-profit, and enjoy the
opportunity to collaborate with other designers to benefit the
community. Many seemed to want to work together with other
designers in a collaborative, non-competitive environment.

Several said they wanted to see more new media/social
marketing/web events. They said they want AIGA to provide
continuing education, not just rehashing the basics of print for
young designers. We have a large number of newer and student
designers, so we need to balance the two.

Many said they wanted the web community to feel more
conversational and interactive. Many expressed interest in
forums, job banks, online portfolio and work listings, and a
place where members could get recommendations on vendors
and refer work to each other. We will need to build up a level of
trust between participants for this to work, however.

page 2 of 3
connections?
Senior designers and business owners felt AIGA wasn’t relevant
to the business world. We’re not doing enough to educate the
business and larger community of the value of design, so it
starts to feel like an echo chamber. We need to work harder to
make design visible and valuable. Most said we do a good job of
reaching out to non-profits to give back to the community.

Again, the senior designers and business owners said they felt
AIGA wasn’t doing enough to promote the value of design to
business. They said AIGA’s efforts on a national and global
level felt very abstract, and too vague to really help them drive
the business of design. Younger designers said they liked the
“design can change the world” idea in theory, but didn’t really
see how it applied to their daily life. Need more tangible
examples.


All participants seemed to be more energized and enthusiastic
after the roundtable. Many said they want to get more involved
on the website and participate as “content creators” in the
forum.

page 3 of 3
roundtable
AIGA Maine
April 28, 2010

1. Business owner, web marketer; AIGA not really on his radar
until recently, b/c of a CMS talk. Feels designers can benefit
from learning to market themselves and from marketing social
media design to clients. 2. UX designer, involved with Maine
UX, IXDA, former member, interested in AIGA as a partner,
respects the history of AIGA, code of ethics, a center, tradition
(compared to organizations “of the moment”) 3. Photographer;
member, wants to socialize with designers b/c that’s who he
works with (as opposed to other photogs) 4. Educator in media
studies; not currently involved with AIGA, wants to get
students involved. 5. Student; has been to a few events, feels
the org will be helpful to her as a recent grad 6. Educator, web
designer, member; Uses AIGA as therapy. Cheaper than a
therapist. Likes talking with like-minded people. Has been to all
the mixer and events.

A non-creative—not sure what AIGA might provide for him other
than networking. Ditto photographer, would like to see more
practical workshops, business workshops would like to see skill
workshops vs. inspiration (e.g. movie about Polish posters).
Business owners wanting copyright info. One participant wants
the MOST interesting thinking, emerging trends--not info that
she can get elsewhere locally

page 1 of 3
Stanley Hainsworth best lecture. Compostmodern—including
local architects; would have been good to have a follow up. Best
conference in Maine in 5 years; best of 20 conference ever
Heart of Sharing (volunteering for non-profits at a 2-hour
United Way event). Opportunities for internships, volunteer
work, service learning; student feels it would be
valuable/educational to provide design services to non-profits.
Opportunity for internships, harder to get jobs fresh out of
school; mentorship is important; however it’s important to train
mentors.

Covered in earlier questions.

Designers must educate clients on usability, social media, e.g.
opportunity for designers to upsell clients to continue their
brand on facebook, twitter. Designers--how to promote
themselves. Partner with first friday art works; show design in
the Maine economy. Get involved with Design babble. Q: what
is the shelf-life of design? Copyright, licensing, business
acumen, running our own business. Workshops that help
designers work with clients as leaders instead of “hands”. How
to have the backbone, how to be better at your job, how to
drive the project (We don’t tell our accountants to carry the
two). We’re part of a strong, robust profession. Mainers are
resourceful, grass roots; there’s tension between not wanting
to be “fancy” but being professional; keep authenticity; yankee
frugality.

connections?
page 2 of 3
Local site feels like a thin sheath; doesn’t have its own identity.
Use Facebook more. More information/substance on the local
site. “The more we give away the richer you get”. Adobe
discount should be #1 selling point for membership Not much
visibility outside design community. Presentation to
community--how to hire a designer, why, how to work with a
designer. Designers need to know how to network; help
designers market themselves. Pitch promoting AIGA to 207
(news show). Get involved with Portland Creative Corporation.
Present to Chamber of Commerce. Make a video about “what is
design”; interview people on the street (knowing the answers
would be incredibly varied; hard to define). How to work with
programmers to design iphone apps. Important to promote
members/other professionals. Is it possible for members to
have more credibility because they belong to
AIGA? Certification would be valuable.

N/A; participants not aware

Very important. AIGA has the bird’s eye view, 100 years of
experience.

Yes--participants were very positive. Software discounts.
People are motivated by different things (practical benefits vs.
inspiration). Event to inform designers how to utilize
interns. Program every other month or even a strong program
quarterly. Have a mechanical bull at an event

No additional questions; roundtable lasted 2 hours.
page 3 of 3
roundtable
AIGA Minnesota
April 28, 2010

Seven people participated. One person had been a member on
and off in the past but was not a current member. She thanked
us for not removing her from the email list and after the
meeting she said she was planning to become a member again.
All of the people would be classified as “veteran” designers (15
or more years in the profession). One was a young designer.
Everyone said they had been involved in varying degrees over
the years. Everyone said they were currently around 2-4 but
thought they had been up to an 8 at some point.

Many people had no idea of all the resources available on the
website. The people who had been to the website said it was
confusing and hard to find information. We agreed that
resources were more obvious in the past when they were
printed and mailed. They liked the fact that our chapter has
been offering programming tailored to specific members (in-
house, emerging, veterans) They agreed that they would like
more programming for veteran designers, freelance designers,
and unemployed designers. One person suggested “Topics and
issues like accounting, legal, things relevant to senior-level
designers. How do you avoid burnout, reinvent yourself? How
do I stay fresh? How do I gain leadership opportunities? How
do I prepare for design management?”

page 1 of 3
Most people went to Insights, the annual lecture series at the
Walker. This makes sense because it is popular with veteran
designers. They liked the fact that the speakers are not local so
it brings an outside perspective to town. The luncheon series is
also popular but one person said “it seems like we’re talking to
ourselves”. She wanted subject other than people just talking
about themselves and their work.
They felt connected to the local design community, not so
connected to the national design community. Not much
feedback on this.

A person from Target said they do design “mash-ups” where
they might put a graphic designer together with a textile
designer and an architect and give them a problem to solve.
She said this was a great way for people to learn about other
disciplines and get outside their own design process. People
got very energized over this topics and the rest of the
discussion focused on that. One person talked about this event
done by a design studio in Lancaster PA. The event is called
“DesignORamaThon”. From their website “Every year, we
gather our friends, associates, and frenemies for a 12-hour
burst of creative collaboration to work on pro bono projects for
local non-profits.” http://www.godesignunit.com/links/blogs/i-
dorted-in-09---the-aftermath-2.html
http://www.designoramathon.com/ We also talked about a local
event, the 24-hour Website Challenge. From their website.
“Beginning the morning of March 20, 2010 and concluding the
next day, The Nerdery Overnight Website Challenge will again
provide a fun forum to highlight creative ways for nonprofits to
strategically use web technology to accomplish their missions.
The event brings a party atmosphere, friendly competition,
reality show flair, and most importantly, a sense of immediacy
to the concept of in-kind philanthropy in our local web
development community. We’ve learned that it’s OK to lock a
small army of web nerds in a room with a bunch of nonprofits
and what seemed like a lifetime supply of caffeine.”
http://overnightwebsitechallenge.com/ We also talked about
Start Up Weekend. From their website. “Startup Weekend
recruits a highly motivated group of developers, business
page 2 of 3
managers, startup enthusiasts, marketing gurus, graphic artists
and more to a 54 hour event that builds communities,
companies and projects.” http://startupweekend.org/ Everyone
was very interested in some design event where people from
different design disciplines would come together for a limited
amount of time to solve some problem. One person suggested
it should be an issue with the city or state. That way we could
potentially raise public awareness of the issue and the solution.

They felt the national website is “confusing, esoteric, and
outdated”. Most never read emails such as Communiqué
because they felt it is too wordy. Much too wordy for
designers. They were surprised that there are few if any
graphics considering our profession.

connections?
They thought the Design Mash-Up would be a great way to
create and strengthen these connections.

Not much feedback on this.

Not much feedback on this.

Yes. Many were very interested in participating in the Design
Mash-Up.

page 3 of 3
roundtable
AIGA Nebraska
March 25, 2010

3 Professional Members: Had more involvement as students or
in other AIGA chapters (1)
2 Associate Members: Little or no involvement since a student
(1)
1 Faculty Member: Looking to be more involved (1)
2 Student Members: Heavily Involved (7)
Note: While I feel like I got a relevant mix of different sections
of our chapter, I think I failed to invite anyone who was
currently more involved. The opinions therefore represent
those in our chapter that sit on the fringe of membership.

Currently provide: Social and networking opportunities Job
search assistance ethical guidelines. Would like to see: more
exposure to local and visiting design professionals, more
events between chapters, events to help the city (address local
issues), involvement to create with local artists, events
throughout the state, advocacy for the design profession,
support for freelance or currently unemployed, events at
varied times/days of the week, Cut&Paste or CtrlX style
design-offs, portfolio reviews for students and professionals.

With the exception of the students, these participants voiced
that they had not been to any recent events or utilized local or
national resources online. (Although you will find this
statement contradicted in further notes, I think it is important
page 1 of 3
to note that they felt like they were not using the resources.)
They could only recall the chapter promoting our monthly
social event “Third Thursday”. Our student members felt that
the speaker events were the most vital programs they had
attended.
More opportunity for designers to demonstrate their aptitude
as strategic thinkers and show more case studies of the
thinking behind design. Provide a directory of local
talent/vendors. Greater visibility of AIGA member resources
online.

The chapter could: provide portfolio reviews at a student and
professional level, provide an opportunity for designers to
meet local vendors, start/create design related traditions,
events that students and professionals could look forward to
involve student groups in planning events, more community
involvement something along the lines of “Project M”
projectmlab.com, or the project which contributed computers
to designers who were affected by Katrina.

Current strengths: Online member directory (used when
visiting other chapters/town), DesignJobs/freelance listings,
involvement in national design discussions are helpful to
student learning environments (ex. Obama Hope
poster/Shephard Fairey/fair use issues). Current weaknesses:
resources AIGA offers online were often available for free in
equal or better formats elsewhere, unaware of change to
portfolio site. Why Behance? Would like to see: List of design-
related vendors exclusive to membership

page 2 of 3
connections?
Chapter does not connect designers directly to business, but
forces them to make their own connections. Design for
Democracy provides a tangible way for the non-design
community to understand and respect design as an agent of
change. NoSpec discussions are viewed by the non-design
community as petty. The discussions from a national and a local
level may be doing more harm than good for the reputation of
AIGA at this time. The chapter could: promote more national
efforts and initiatives (ex. monthly newsletter), provide some
sort of economic stimulus to the design community (free
continued education and training), provide more tangible
benefits to the card (discounts to local museums and
art/design related purchases), Provide more opportunities like
design for democracy and/or provide the opportunity to more
members.

No Spec and Design for Democracy initiatives AIGA
involvement in the Obama poster copyright issue, would like to
see more case studies

Very. Our attendees feel that there could be a bigger push at
the national level to stress the validity of the profession.

For the most part. We also passed out response cards which
have an “I’d like to volunteer box” with the exception of one,
every attendee checked the volunteer box. Ideas for
involvement: Would like to facilitate connections with schools
because that experience as a student brought them value
Would like to encourage friendly competition between
designers as a chapter fundraiser/way to interact with
community or other chapters

page 3 of 3
roundtable
AIGA Philadelphia
March 29, 2010

9 total:
Tom March (tmarch@independencepress.com) - Independence
Printing, non-member, involved top sponsor of AIGA
Philadelphia, involved since 1997
Chris Bouni (cbuoni@perfectprinting.com) - Perfect Printing,
member, involved as a top sponsor of AIGA Philadelphia
Andrew Moughhalian (moughalian2233@philau.edu) - (pres of
AIGA student group at PU)
Claire Buchanan (clairevoyantly@gmail.com) - member student
level, involved in programming
Hilary Jay (hj.hilaryjay@gmail.com) - non-member, partners
with AIGA events Director of DesignPhiladelphia,
Mike Burton (mikey@mikeyburton.com) - non-member (was
recently a member), designer at 160/90
Dave Cookesy (dave@saturdave.com) - non-member, President
of Philly Chi
Dermont Mac Cormack (dermot@21xdesign.com) - member,
21xdesign
Len Dimonico (len@lendamico.com) - member? (Art director
educator Star Group)

AIGA gives designers the opportunity to network and be
inspired. Non members: Having a button to sign up for email
information concerning programming right on the chapter
home page would not only promote events better but really
make non members want to join. They would receive
information about the great programming the Philadelphia
page 1 of 4
chapter has to offer and be inspired to join. Students:
suggested more events where they could network with other
students from different art school institutions. Felt that they
were contained in their specific school and had no way of
getting to know students in the Philadelphia area. Vendor:
Would like to see an avenue in order to push his agenda, in
other words how do I get a return on my dollar when I sponsor a
big event like PDA? Promoting great lecture events promotes
inspiration to designs?

Non members: Tom March mentioned an event from a few
years ago. Students: mentioned Feedback, all though this
doesn’t allow them to interact with other students. Dave
Cooksey: Liked the Nathan Shedroff event since it involved
other organizations such as Philly Chi.
Printer: When a vendor sponsors an event like this does anyone
remember or take note of it? Vendor would like more of a
platform to explain what they do, more face time with the
design community. Members: More events where there is
simple interaction like a social mixer, verses a specific program
or lecture. First Monday of the month Happy Hours were
mentioned

Many students in general as far as membership, a lot of
programming is directed to them. Need to get involved to get
as much as possible out to the organization. Printer: Tom March
suggested giving a plant tour to students so they get a glimpse
into the printing process. Dave Cooksey: Having events that
involve programmers and interactive which AIGA started to do
this year is going in the right direction.

Things that were mentioned: Facebook page, Twitter and on-
line portfolios are all being done currently by AIGA
page 2 of 4
Philadelphia. One item that can be introduced to the
Philadelphia home page is the button to receive emails on
upcoming events to non-members.

connections?

Reaching/teaching the business community on the importance
of design was agreed on. Business community often doesn’t
see design as a lofty profession. DesignPhiladelphia which
AIGA was involved in, is a catalyst for advancing design
awareness in the Philadelphia region. Being connected to
organizations like these help AIGA Philadelphia outreach to the
non-design community.

An example of AIGA reaching out to the community is This is
My Philly an event that selected inner city kids write and
illustrate books involving AIGA students paired with a child n
Start a blog to promote design to government and businesses
As far as global/international AIGA Philly has had ideas of
having European designers give lectures but it’s too expensive
and complicated to get them here. Perhaps National can
organize an international lecture tour that hits a few cities and
absorbs some of the cost. Another idea was to have AIGA
partner with a sister city, communicate with their designers.
National/AIGA Philly sponsor a designers trip abroad

Very important, it’s good the chapter sponsors this dinner to
get feedback from a broad range of people in the community

page 3 of 4
Just having the dinner and being open to ideas has made one
person at the roundtable want to join AIGA. The lectures and
community outreach are great ways to encourage professionals
and students alike.
page 4 of 4
roundtable
AIGA Portland
April 27, 2010

Johnny Levenson: AIGA PDX President; Consultant at John
Levenson Design, LLC
Angela Reat: AIGA PDX Secretary: Principle/Creative Director
Imprint Design: involvement with AIGA is 8. I was first
introduced to AIGA in college in SF in the early ‘90s. I’ve been
to events over the past 15 years, but didn’t join until 2007. I
joined because I had just moved to PDX and wanted to be more
involved in the design community here.
Joaquin Lippincott: AIGA PDX Sponsorship chair, incoming
AIGA PDX President: He is principle owner of Metaltoad, a web
development company. Involvement is high. His passion is to
bring technology to AIGA.
Yvonne Perez Emerson: Adjunct Design Professor at Portland
State University, Principal/Creative Director at Cre8tivegirl,
most recently Associate Creative Director of Design at
Curiosity Group. Involvement in AIGA (1). She is not yet a
member in Portland, but was in San Diego. She spoke at one of
our events “SHIFT” a few months ago. She was very involved in
San Diego’s chapter.
Nicole Lavelle: A graduating student at Portland State
University, and an intern at Pinball Publishing. Her involvement
is (5) medium, but lately has been a little more. She was
introduced to AIGA through the AIGA PDX Education chair
Nicole.
Bram Pitoyo: He works at Wieden+Kennedy in the
Entertainment Department. He was freelance before. He
recently spoke at the AIGA PDX event “Shift”. His participation
in AIGA is low (4?), but he goes to the Designspeaks events
often.

page 1 of 4
(1) = one participant says... (1) There could be some kind of a
transitional group from being a student member to a
professional member. The current AIGA PDX Education chair,
Nicole (Conant) is doing an amazing job to try to help with this
transition...to help prepare the students for the working world.
AIGA portfolio reviews are always beneficial. We would also like
to see more social change projects, like a cool social
participation event like flickr groups have. (For example, at PSU
the students got together and made a contest that involved the
same photo and text and everyone had to submit their final
project. This was for fun and it generated an amazing about of
participants.) (Johnny mentions that AIGA PDX has had two
community based events this year so far; one was a mentoring
program CREATE: DON'T HATE and the other a tree planting
day). Also, the PAF started doing a portfolio day, which we
want to share with them, but decided to have our own. We
would all like to see more community based events especially
for helping non-profits. (1) AIGA San Diego had a “bench mark”
campaign, which asked designers to design bus benches around
the city in order to get more AIGA recognition. (1) Another idea
for AIGA PDX would be to have an event that helps designers
understand and get into the whole social networking online
arena...maybe an event that has social media discussions that
educates designers on how/why to use social media. AIGA PDX
has a Facebook/Flickr/Twitter committee member who we could
ask to speak? In conclusion, we would like to see a portfolio
review for students, more mentorship programs, and a way to
find more volunteer designers to help with these programs.

(1) = one participant says... Designspeaks is loved and we try to
make every event. It is reliable (consistently interesting), a
wonderful setting (place), has been the most accessible for
students. We like that it is explicit about what will happen
during the event. (They communicate well what the evening
will be like). (1) The Resource event was a great resource, but
awkward because (I) didn't really understand what to expect.
(There has only been one of these events so far). The SHIFT
event was very well explained and organized and had an
amazing turn out. (1) I find the dMob a little uncomfortable
because there isn't a welcoming committee. (1) I’ve been to
dMob only a few times, but found it very accessible. I would go
more often, but find it hard in the evenings to get away (kids).
page 2 of 4
This is answered above. We had those questions together in
the discussion.

answered in several ways in the next sections...

(1) = one participant says... The students tend to look at the
national site. They use the local (AIGA PDX) for finding out
event details. On the PDX site there was a profile for Lloyd
Winter that was great, but that was so long ago. The national
site seems to be updated regularly, while the PDX site needs
more current information, or more articles. There are some
sites that have job boards, which is an active change. That is a
great resource. Maybe for the PDX site the content could come
from local members. The members work could also follow
tweets. The PDX site could be a hub for design resources. For
example if Wieden+Kennedy is doing a show or a lecture it
would be cool if AIGA PDX could cross-promote it. Also,
profiling local designers would be interesting. It is a matter of
reaching out to your AIGA membership to get content for this.
For example, (1) Pinball would be able to give content from
their blog. It would encourage members and non members in
the design community to check back often.

connections?
The SHIFT event was such an important event for us to know
about, because there are tons of people who are interested in
Sustainability. The city seems to be interested in what AIGA is
doing since the whole thing with the debacle of the spec work
submissions (AIGA Portland Roundtable - Contests, Spec work)
(see for more info: http://aigaportland.org/news/aiga-portland-
roundtable-regarding-portlandonlinecom) They now ask AIGA
page 3 of 4
for advice? And the Mayor (Sam Adams) made a statement
about doing work for free because of this debate. (1) When I
lived in San Diego, I was on the advisory board to help beautify
the city. It was an urban art program that did things like
community murals and this was started by AIGA (The Arts
Alliance), which was great for the city and for recognition for
the design community. By being leaders and rallying young
designers to use their skills it made a positive change. For
AIGA PDX to create opportunities for these things to happen
would be amazing. We (AIGA PORTLAND) are in the process of
coming up with a council to advise the city on design work.
Spec work in general is something that could be discussed
more because it is detrimental to the profession. We could also
maybe have a panel discussion or an online discussion about
spec work vs. pro bono work. It could be a huge event and an
important discussion, not only for Portland, but for designers
elsewhere. It could also be very important for students to
understand the importance of this discussion, in order for them
not to undersell themselves, and how to charge for their work.

see the last entry...


(1) = one participant says... (1) I have a passion for mixing fine
art with design and believe so does this city (Portland) and I
would like to see those two disciplines meld together more. I
think as a designer a collaborative sense of design and
sustainability is essential. (Having discussions about
Sustainable practices in Design). Also, working with the city and
helping establish conversations when it comes to decisions
about design work and public art. In other words we would be
willing to help local design on the cities issues.

page 4 of 4
roundtable
AIGA Raleigh
April 20, 2010

14 individuals participated, a combination of students,
experienced professionals and design business owners, design
professors, and current board members. Most of the non-board
members had been involved in AIGA more than 5 years, and
ranked their current involvement at around 5. Several active
board members and chapter contributors rated their
involvement as an 8 or higher.

(see next answer)

One of the first and most frequent programs mentioned was
the student portfolio review. The portfolio review gave
students a chance to have their work critiqued in an open and
honest environment by seasoned designers. It also benefited
the reviewers by giving them chance to teach and share their
experiences. Also mentioned was a presentation given by Shel
Perkins about the business and legal aspects of freelance
design, which attendees felt was valuable because the business
and legal side of the design business isn't often taught in
school. And most recently, the presentation by Sean Adams
was mentioned because it offered creative advice about
presenting ideas and criteria for how to choose the right
projects.
page 1 of 4
Participants mentioned adding more smaller events to help
build a larger community as a whole. Smaller events could
provide more mentoring opportunities and greater chances to
build relationships. The Town Square events were mentioned as
a positive step in this direction because they're monthly
informal events geared around specific topics. Also, several
suggestions were given for expanding the reach of AIGA
Raleigh beyond the traditional design events, including
participating in local causes and events that aren't necessarily
focused on design, but the larger creative community.
Supporting a number of causes such as artistic or other
community needs could fit within the chapter mission.
Participating in activities like these could provide an
opportunity to broaden our impact and build more relationships
in the community.

The attendees suggested several types of events that would be
valuable to them, including more programs directed toward
designers at different stages in their careers. In particular, for
students: More smaller, more intimate events would provide
students a chance to interact more closely with more
experienced designers. Suggestions for designers included
creating closer ties to the business community in order to
create more opportunities for real-world projects. Also
developing a student AIGA blog where students could share
their work, and seasoned professionals could create short case
studies that gave a more realistic picture of the highs and lows
of projects. For the more experienced designers, to create
more opportunities for feedback and involvement, particularly
online.

Some of the key strengths included the diversity of resources
and multiple touchpoints available to engage and find
information, such as the monthly newsletter, Twitter,
Facebook, and the website. But weaknesses included a need for
coordination between the different social media venues. Not all
page 2 of 4
event calendars were current, and we could do a better job
reminding website visitors about our Twitter and Facebook
accounts. Overall, there is a need to clarify and unify the
strategy between different social media venues, and make it
easier to make real-time changes to these venues in
conjunction with the website. One member said she was
flattered to be included in the spotlight series on the chapter
website, which profiles member designers and their work.

connections?
It was mentioned that not everyone in the community knows
what AIGA is, so we have to work to help to educate people on
the organization and its mission. Also, it was mentioned that
non-design people often think of design as a luxury, or limited
to visual design, and don't understand how design can help
reach business objectives. Suggestions including more
outreach, including speaking at more local business events and
meeting with business leaders. They suggested the chapter
could get more involved in local business events where design
wouldn't normally be a part of the conversation. The subject of
design is increasingly becoming more common and
mainstream, and this is our opportunity to take a leadership
role.

The efforts of AIGA national to demonstrate thought leadership
by taking a clear and definitive stand on the issue of spec work
was very helpful because it's an issue where the design
community needs to act and speak as a united front. It’s an
issue that as individuals it could be difficult to fight against the
trend, but as a community can assert a common standard.

The group felt it was important. We need to help make it more
clear about how AIGA stands on issues that impact the design
community, and to help designers understand the pros and
cons of issues. It was suggested that AIGA could put more
effort into getting into new media such as video and web,
page 3 of 4
beyond traditional forms like print that AIGA is known for. The
group also felt that design is becoming more mainstream, and
that AIGA can help build on this emerging understanding.

The group wanted to hear more about AIGA advocacy and social
involvement efforts. They also wanted the local chapter to take
up advocacy causes that the local chapter cares about and
where design could have an impact. There was a clear call to get
more people involved, including non-designers. It was agreed
that there is a lot of opportunity in this area.

page 4 of 4
roundtable
AIGA Rhode Island
April 23, 2010

2 participants. One had never been a part of AIGA before, but is
interested in the networking & resource benefits. The other is
highly active in the design community with various committees
and projects, but not extremely involved with AIGA, though
looking to change that around.

Resources: website job board, networking & learning
opportunities. Would like: More after work events, more
classroom settings

None yet.
Possible presentations or speaking engagements, gallery
showings.

Unsure.
page 1 of 2
Blog is too inactive, or perhaps include a live message board.

connections?
One mentioned joining AIGA based solely on awareness of the
national level, but is unsure on improvements.

From the Obama poster contest to the AIGA museum in NY,
conventions, trade shows, contests & student involvement.

Very; it’s one of the most appealing aspects of the
organization.

The desire for a stronger presence in the community, for
gaining new clients and education.

page 2 of 2
roundtable
AIGA Richmond
April 20, 2010

7 attendees. 2 last minute no-shows (illness and deadline).
A: Founding member but dropped out for a couple of years, has
been active for the last 6. He feels as an academic AIGA doesn't
have a lot to offer him besides it's work with international
design. Rating=5.
B: New member (5 months), too expensive to join earlier.
Attends lots of events. Rating=8.
C: Member out of town since 2007. New to Richmond, AIGA
made it easy to integrate into the community and start
networking. Rating=10.
D: Member for five years (morphed from a student
membership). Rating=5.
E: Newly graduated member. Uses the internet resources more
than the social/local events. Rating=5.
F: Student, loves the events, networking, info. Very involved.
Rating=10.
G: About to join, goes to many events, supports the
organization but finds dues prohibitive. Rating=7.

The web-centered talks we have hosted were deemed very
valuable and more of that type of topic was wished for. There
was a unanimous interest (from the attendees who had been
out of school more than a few years) in programming that
spoke to creativity and inspiration on a broader, intellectual
level. There was interest in a workshop where we split into
teams with project and 3 hours to complete. Looking for a way
to really connect with other creatives and challenge the mind.
page 1 of 4
A need to engage the “bigger fish” in our local design market,
in order to learn from them. How to get them involved in AIGA?
Focus on “what’s next” in design. What will be happening in 10
or 20 years?

Speed dating version of networking. A great way to meet
people. Speakers who don’t just brag about their work but can
break down the barriers between students and professionals.
Patrick Coyne of Communication Arts, speaker. Drew a crowd
that “gets it.” Sean Adams, speaker. Learn how a business
started and grew.
Participants felt that the chapter events were the places where
they felt part of a community. It was pointed out that being
approached/welcomed by a board member goes a long way to
making newcomers comfortable and more likely to participate
again. There was not much feedback on the “citizens”
question.

They felt that the programming was good overall but that the
subgroups weren’t being very well served. The subgroups
being: professors, students, illustrators, etc. —With a chapter
our size the subgroups are a fairly small amount of people.
Difficult to please everyone with limited resources.

The most mentioned strengths is the local job listings and
events. Having a list/links to other local association
(photographers, web users, Adobe group, etc) events would be
helpful. (We currently have them listed in our monthly
newsletter). Having a local resource directory of the many
“under the radar” local design shops would be helpful.

page 2 of 4
connections?
The sad conclusion was that the chapter was NOT perceived
outside of the design community. The irony of us being
professional COMMUNICATORS and not getting our
existence/message out was difficult to acknowledge.
Suggestions to team up with the Social Media Club, small
business association, BNI groups, chamber of commerce,
Advertising Club to create some cross-disciplinary programs or
to present info about AIGA would go a long way in broadening
our appeal.

Of the efforts that have been seen, the participants felt it was
not made clear or obvious that AIGA was behind those efforts.
For instance, people knew that some design action was taken
on the national ballots but didn’t know it was AIGA who was
actually doing it. AIGA’s impact is noticed but not the fact
that AIGA is responsible for that impact. Backing out of
ICOGRADA was NOT a good idea. It is a global market and will
only continue to get more interconnected. All participants
felt there was a void at the global/international level.

Key role, very important to continue to reaffirm design’s value
in business and society.

The professor felt that there was a large untapped pool of
potential members who might start showing some interest
(including himself) if we had more abstract thinking speakers.
Especially ones who spoke about the future of design so that
they could prepare their students. Or speakers who spoke of
the creative process rather than about the tools. We received
some feedback about the timing of our events, 6pm is too
close to work, they wanted events to start later which would
encourage to come to more things. Asked for weekend
events to be planned FAR in advance. If some of their ideas
are utilized I am sure they would become further involved.
page 3 of 4
There was continued discussion throughout the formal
questions about how to improve our local chapter. Ideas
included: Promote buddy passes with students because they
are poor. They also make it easier to go to an event because
then you aren’t alone. Like the idea of a design-a-thon.
Make the principal owners of the big studios in town realize
their responsibility to the people coming behind them.
Everyone was a student at some point. Why aren’t you doing
for them what you needed people to do for you when you were
starting out? —Create an advisory board to get these type of
folks involved. Have to task them with something so they don’t
lose interest. How do you make people appreciate designers
at all? Need to make people more aware of the myriad
resources the national site offers such as design concentration
groups.
page 4 of 4
roundtable
AIGA Salt Lake City
April 16, 2010

Attendees included a web designer, professional member,
recent graduate associate member, student member, university
teacher/professional member, and a non-member.

The website contains useful information and resources such as
job listings, salary surveys, access to archives, tips for
freelancing, etc. By promoting the resources on the web we
could more easily explain the tangible benefits of AIGA.
Attendees showed interest in learning more about freelancing
effectively, and were interested in our chapter providing
creative workshops and professional development trainings.
Attendees enjoyed our Adobe Flash workshop that we help in
the fall and would like to see more workshops like that one in
our chapter. All attendees felt that there is a lack of
professionalism for design in our area due to the high number
of freelancers and in-house designers, but no one had ideas on
how to address the problem.

Attendees all said they really enjoyed our chapter’s portfolio
review this year. They suggested we maybe do more student
interaction events. They also enjoyed our Brian Singer 1000
books seminar because they liked to see what other designers
outside of our area are doing.
page 1 of 3
Email blasts keep our membership informed. Our chapter’s
website and the AIGA national website seem to be a good
resource for our membership. Our low-level activities may not
be highly attended every time, but they are definitely not
overlooked by our membership. They show them that we are
actively promoting design in our area. Attendees suggested
that we seek out involvement from our professional members
by specifically inviting certain people to do things. There were
thoughts of sending out a ‘Get Involved’ e-blast, and possibly
thinking about putting together some kind of a scholarship
fund for design students in our area. Some people mentioned
that we could do some sort of a community art project, such as
designing something for the Utah Transportation Authority to
not only beautify but promote design in our community.

Students need to see the value of staying involved in the AIGA
after they graduate. We need to better define ‘next steps’ for
student members after they graduate. Maybe our chapter could
provide some sort of an intern program if schools don't provide
one already.

Many of the attendees were not aware of our chapter’s online
presence. It was suggested that we send out an email to our
membership about were they can follow us online. Some
thought it would be a good idea if we were associated with
some sort of a blog where we could recommend good
design/art books, offer advice, give tips, etc.

connections?
Find a way to get access to local vendor discounts. The
attendees could see benefit in a Design Week in our area
page 2 of 3
(which we’re currently trying to plan) to help us get
recognized. Could there be a potential ‘rebrand’ of one of our
communities?

Show that design creates values to businesses. Make a case for
design thinking. Attendees find the national conferences
beneficial even if they aren’t attended by everyone because
the items discussed in those conferences are put on the web
where videos and resources could later be viewed by everyone.

Very important, because design has so many faces that if we
were to stop doing what we’re doing no one would even know
what design is. It helps create standards, direction, ethics, and
educates designers.

There was discussion about creating an advisory board for our
chapter, which we currently don’t have.

page 3 of 3
roundtable
AIGA San Diego
May 1, 2010

Introductions How and why did you get involved with AIGA? -To
find an exchange with other designers – to find a second family
that speaks the same language. -New perspectives through
exposure to other designers. -Involvement with AIGA creates a
since of belonging and increases the value of the experience.
Approximately how long have you been involved with the
organization? -4x members since 1987, 1x member since 2007,
2x member one month. -Three are ex-board members. -Two are
on the board. -Two are eager to get started and ready to
volunteer. Where are you on the spectrum of personal
involvement with the chapter (on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being
“not at all” to 10 being “completely”)? -Varying levels of
commitment. -Some working more closely with student groups
(educators) -Looking for more engagement. -Between 6 and 10

What resources does our chapter provide that support you in
growing as a designer (creatively) and as a professional
(business/career)? -Events that expose designers to new
business practices, new media and trends, social get-togethers,
studio tours, workshops. -Guidelines for developing ethical
practices and business briefs, bids and presentation. -Tips
available on a judicial level as well. -Knowledge
base/bank/exchange -Board members: WIKI helps establish a
rapport with other chapter members and other chapters
nationwide. What additional resources would be helpful to make
our chapter your local go-to resource? -More contact with the
business community. What type of programming would you like
page 1 of 3
to see offered in the future? -Partnering with other design
organizations; industrial, fashion, photography, etc. -Panel
discussions with local business organizations -Collaboration/
Think-tank: Putting ideas together. Exploring possibilities with
other designers. Self-Initiated and generated projects with the
community. Work that goes beyond client-based projects. -
Student mentoring

-The leadership retreat in Portland, Oregon. Exposure to
designers around the country. -The chance to compare chapter
issues with other chapter board members. -Interactive events,
studio visits and the Y-Conference: expanding resources and
network -New Member Soiree, connection and feeling of
community
-Could create events that raise community awareness for
design – how design affects everything we touch and see. -
What designers really do – how we can help companies achieve
better results through design/strategy. -Invite brand managers
from leading companies to a panel discussion. -Offer to take in
a small panel to other organizations/conferences to present
case studies, etc. -Create events that reflect designers at
different phases of their careers; early, mid and late.

-For the most part, yes. -Would like to see the community
expand to encompass other groups of designers, shared
interests.

-Possibly set aside a specific sum of money, annually, for a
community project that involves other types of designers and
community leaders. -Get to know local and statewide
foundations (and PR folks) that support the arts. -KPBS had a
program about designers, but it didn’t cover graphic designers.
They featured industrial designers, architects, fashion
page 2 of 3
designers, designer/artists and environmental designers.
-Also see answers to question four and five.

connections?
How is our chapter perceived by the non-design community? -
I’m not sure that our organization is well know outside the
design community and design conferences. -No one knows
what AIGA stands for. Does our chapter help designers connect
clients? -Community leaders and potential clients: Minimal -
Creatives and vendors: Yes What more could our chapter do to
strengthen these connections (or) provide more opportunities
for making connections? -Social events that don’t have a fee. -
Better discounts at events. -More design competitions and
shows of local work -See answers to question two.

-The topic always comes up for discussion, but little has been
done in terms of local and /or national engagement. -Should
the chapter have a chairperson to be the ambassador of design
on a local level?

-Extremely important and vital to all designers. We need to
become less insular. -It is very important to allow designers to
have a voice, to be seen for the precise skill level we each
possess especially since there is more ease with computers
and layout programs.

-AIGA and our local chapter should work harder to engage with
other business communities. -In general, what you put into it is
what you are going to get out of it.

page 3 of 3
roundtable
AIGA San Francisco
April 28, 2010

AIGA San Francisco’s roundtable this year had a total of 8
attendees. This included a board member moderator, a note-
taker and 6 AIGA members.
Member 1: Seasoned professional / creative director. This
member has been involved with AIGA for over 20 years. The
individual got involved because of the importance to the design
community and considers to be heavily involved.
Member 2: In-house designer. Member joined AIGA last year
and saw the organization as an opportunity for her company to
be more involved in the design community. Member has
currently attended a few events but looking to become more
involved.
Member 3: Independent designer. Member joined AIGA two
years ago and has been regularly active in attending events.
Member 4: Designer at small firm. Member has been involved
for over 6 years and joined to learn and be inspired by the local
design community. Active in attending events, looking to
become more involved.
Member 5: In-house designer. This member joined AIGA over 7
years ago and joined to stay up to date with the local design
community. Does not consider themselves as involved in AIGA.
Member 6: Designer at mid-size firm. Joined AIGA one year
ago and has since felt that attending events has been worth the
membership dues. Does not consider themselves as involved in
AIGA.
Note-taker: Non-member. Has slowly been interested in
becoming more involved with AIGA but has not committed to
paying dues.

page 1 of 5
Members as a whole felt that exposure to good work,
camaraderie and the AIGA community as a whole are the
biggest resource available to them from a design and
professional support role. Members feel that when they attend
an event, they have never regretted attending because the
social aspect always plays into an event. Members felt that case
studies would be an additional resource that would help them.
They also suggested member-based referrals on local vendors.
Regular email blasts with “debrief” information from past
events and online video resources would be beneficial. Some
specific items we discussed: Weekly informative
announcements vs. event based announcements. Joint
partnerships with local firms/businesses who have lecture
series. Reaching out to all design industries (fashion,
architecture, interactive) Website needs to have more
resources—like a Yelp for designers, member endorsed. Online
member forum to post questions/answers. Weekly / biweekly
drop in to resource library. Regarding programming, most
agreed that events like Compostmodern are great. Local events
are better then national events because of economic climate
and travel plans. Members like the idea of a casual event that is
driven by topic, rather then a social mixer—somewhere you can
discuss a specific topic you may be interested in with like-
minded individuals. This type of programming would be more
relevant. Two members specifically mentioned wanting to see
events with information that is more usable in the workplace,
rather then conceptual/high level thought provoking
programming. Some specific new events that were discussed:
Lunch and Learn (lunch panel discussion) Cross organizational
events Small conversational based events.

D.Talks - Smaller, panel based programming that had very
specific topics. Compostmodern - Though provoking to use
methods in every day practice. Design Lecture Series -
Interesting group of speakers throughout the year. Fall Gala -
Feels like a community. Major event where many members
attend.
One member stated that they used to feel like they couldn't
help make a change, but as an AIGA member, they feel that
they can become involved and help drive the design
community. Another participant felt that they are in a position
to provide ideas and would like to AIGA to offer a way to
page 2 of 5
contribute those ideas, where there currently isn't a way to
submit case studies, etc. The members felt that AIGA could be
more involved in programs that help individuals become more
involved in the local community.

As a whole, the group felt that there were a diverse amount of
events. One interactive brand designer mentioned that they
like the diversity because it gives them the opportunity to do
something different then what they do on a daily basis—learn
about current print design instead about seeing new interactive
design. Another designer felt that some of the programming is
too high-level, learning about designers that work on projects
that they'll never get to work on. Cross-pollinated events with
other organizations would draw in other design disciplines and
open up a new kind of dialogue. Partnering with local
organizations or local companies that already have lectures and
events would help to diversify the information and change the
way designers think. Smaller events have helped bring
designers closer to having a dialogue would be more
welcoming.

Half of the members were very familiar with the website and
Facebook page, while others had questions about both. Mainly,
the membership didn't want to have to join Facebook to
communicate with other designers. They wanted a specific local
designer forum that felt like their own community, not the
world as a whole. One member knew about the Flickr page and
felt that there could be a much more reasonable way for
individuals to upload photos from recent events. Two members
felt that there should be an online resource that they could
upload their own case studies for others to read—an accessible
database to learn from other designers in the local community.
AIGA could do a better job with its email blasts. Rather then
being event specific, they could offer professional advice and
information. A short e-blast with tips on business,
sustainability, etc. The members would like to see a member-
based online referral area for resources on vendors, etc.
(similar to Yelp, but for design).
page 3 of 5
connections?
The group didn’t have much to say around this other then
providing more opportunities to get involved in community
based projects. Partner more with groups like Taproot
Foundation.

Participants saw that national events make the role of design in
business and society more visible. They felt that there isn’t a
lot of communication on what’s going on at the global /
international level and that AIGA could further communicate
the status of its initiatives. All attendees didn't know much
about AIGA on an international level, other then they opened a
China chapter a few years back. Communication could be
stronger.

Participants felt as though it is important for someone to make
these efforts. Although there was not a lot of discussion
around this.

Overall, the members felt empowered by the roundtable. They
wish there were more opportunities and events that were
similar in nature. The often feel disconnected until they get an
opportunity to become involved. At the end of the roundtable,
many members continued their conversations and discussed
ways that they may able to become further involved in the
organization. Two members discussed connecting their
companies becoming more involved in AIGA. One offered their
space for a lunch time based events and would like to help
initiate a “Lunch and Learn” program. Another would like to
become more involved in helping awareness for the in-house
design community and would like to generate programming and
membership around the in-house community. A third idea was
page 4 of 5
programming around small-group based roundtables where
members could regularly discuss issues and development of
the design profession.

page 5 of 5
roundtable
AIGA Seattle
April 28, 2010

There were 7 participants in our roundtable. 3 were non-
members, 4 were members. Their design background ranged
from mid-level to seasoned professionals. Out of the group,
about 3 folks attended AIGA events regularly or have
volunteered for AIGA events in the past. The 3 non-members
were looking to learn more about AIGA and would like to get
involved with the local chapter. Our roundtable participants
consisted of a medical illustrator (non-member), a principal of
an interactive firm (member), two freelancers (one non-
member, one member), a design educator (member), a web
developer/blogger (member), and a mid-level designer (non-
member).

Most of the participants focused on events and programs. They
were less aware of the tangible and intangible benefits that
AIGA provided like membership discounts, AIGA Standards for
Professional Practices, and online newsletters/articles. None of
the participants were really aware of national AIGA initiatives
like Design for Democracy, Displaced Designers, Diversity, etc.
Folks want more inspirational speakers, rockstars, and for the
chapter to continue doing Into the Woods (a biennial local
conference), as well as consider doing a smaller type
conference event during the off years. One participant
expressed that he would like to have more business resources
available (case studies, white papers, podcasts, etc.)
page 1 of 4
The AIGA Seattle Business Breakfast series were very valuable
to the professional community and the event sold out quickly.
Attendees responded that the event was too cheap and could
be priced higher. Folks also enjoyed the holiday crafts
workshop, and it was a good opportunity to get away from the
computer and be more hands-on. Other folks enjoyed the
Stefan Sagmeister lecture because he was inspirational, and a
big-name designer who was very approachable. Studio Tours
were also very popular and inspirational for our members.
AIGA Seattle needs to put on more diverse events to outreach
to other communities. We should network with leaders of other
organizations and invite speakers from other areas (like
Product Design, Industrial Design, Architecture, Fashion, etc.)
to speak at AIGA events. Crossover events would be good.
Sustainability (something that the chapter already does well
with Green Salons) is a great crossover topic, especially in a
green city like Seattle.

The participants did feel that the chapter's programming
accurately reflects the membership. Over half of AIGA Seattle's
membership are students, and we do a great job of hosting
student events like Jumpstart (a discussion panel), Reality
Check (portfolio day) and Studio Tours. A lot of our
programming also meets the needs of mid-level designers such
as the Business Breakfast Series, and Design Socials. The
hardest membership group to reach out to are the seasoned
professionals. These folks only come out to a few events per
year and it is mostly the AIGA Membership Party and Fellow
Award. It was assumed that most seasoned professionals have
families and less time to attend events and be more involved
with AIGA.

page 2 of 4
Our current website received very poor feedback. The AIGA
Seattle website is outdated and is in the process of being
revamped this year. We have a Facebook page and a Twitter
account. Folks thought that the Twitter account needs to be
more active, and an RSS feed would also be beneficial. Social
Media is a priority. The frequency, design and content of our
online communications (email blasts) has improved
significantly. Our membership feels that the chapter would
greatly improve with a new website that contains a forum for
discussion (blog), an easy to access list of resources and
benefits (membership discounts & design jobs), and a list of
events to know what is going on. Participants felt that the
whole identity and brand of AIGA Seattle is it's website.

connections?
Right now, there is not much of a presence within the non-
design community. Some of our local events are too narrowly
focused and fails to draw members from other industries. The
screening of the film “Objectified” with the NWFF was an event
that was popular with non-designers. The public perception of
AIGA is still print-based. Even national's website and events
give that impression. Seattle is a technology hub with a large
potential pool of members in it. There is a feeling among web
designers that because some print designers look down on
them, they don't want to join an exclusive organization that
makes them feel like they have to justify being a designer. The
chapter should reach out to the digital community to recruit for
board members.

Participants responded that not much is being done with AIGA.
One person asked “Does AIGA even do anything?” Folks felt
that AIGA did communicate well on the issue of spec work. That
got through to everyone, but very little else. It was suggested
that there could be value in hosting a Design Week in Seattle. A
Design Week would help to promote the value of design and be
newsworthy. Some ideas that were suggested include building
a structure, a temporary installation, or painting a giant mural.
page 3 of 4
Something that would raise the level of awareness to the
public.

Participants feel that it is very important for AIGA to be their
advocate and voice. AIGA needs to represent designers and
promote the value that they bring to business and the
community especially during tough economic times.

The dialogue did inspire and encourage participants to learn
more about AIGA and to become more active in the local
community. They realized that there is a wealth of tangible and
intangible benefits that AIGA provides, most of which they
don’t yet know of. If anything, I believe that many of the
participants are curious to learn more about what AIGA is doing
and will go to the AIGA website (national and local) to gather
information.

page 4 of 4
roundtable
AIGA Toledo
April 27, 2010

We had 7 individuals, including the moderator. All but 2 of the
participants are AIGA members. Two of us (including the
moderator) are local chapter board members. One individual
serves as VP of the local student group (Bowling Green State
University). One individual is a business leader in a nearby town
and has no affiliation with the chapter. Our chapter is young.
We're not even three yet, so most of us are first-time
members with little history. I personally transferred from the
Detroit chapter when the Toledo chapter was formed. Another
member of our roundtable transferred her membership from
the Cincinnati chapter when she moved here. Everyone
concurred that they got involved with AIGA for the wealth of
resources offered and for a sense of community. Though half
our group isn't “actively” involved, everyone expressed an
interest in wanting to do more. We did not use a 1-10 scaled to
gauge the level of involvement, but I would suggest that the
average in the room was a 5.

Valuable resources cited were: inspiration in the form of online
portfolios; job hunting and candidate research tools; and events
calendar. People seem to be looking for more ways to engage
each other. As a small town, creatives are very protective of
their “turf.” But younger designers are seeking mentorship and
affirmation in their work. That said, no one is seeking additional
“stuff” per se, but rather, they are looking for opportunities to
talk, share ideas and problems, collaborate and support one
another. Likewise, chapter members are also looking to the
page 1 of 4
AIGA to be a conduit between themselves and the businesses
they might perform for. This is something our local chapter has
been devoting a lot of thought to lately. We need to seek ways
to get businesses and designers talking to each other in a way
that supports the missions and growth of both entities. We
would love to see future programs geared toward that end.

Our “Design ‘Hood” series—in which a local agency or studio
opens their doors for a reception and presentation of their
work—seems to be popular. Turn out has been good, but we’ll
quickly run out of places to visit. The value in something like
this is in providing members the chance to see how other
people work; their portfolios and processes. The affirmation
that comes from that experience cannot be overrated. We’re
working on ways to foster a similar atmosphere at other venues
(not agencies) and in smaller groups.
Again, participation, fellowship and community are key. People
want to feel part of something greater than themselves and we
have the opportunity (and challenge) to create that sandbox for
them. As said, there needs to be two sandboxes: one that
introspective, allowing members to engage and support each
other. The other is outward: linking members with businesses
and organizations who will value their work. Ways to do this: +
Workshops and other process discussions + Guest speakers:
Both acting as guest speakers within the wider community and
inviting non-member/non-design individuals to speak to our
membership. + Design critiques (ie. “Show us your worst
piece”) + Mentorship programs: This is something we'd like to
develop this year

It seems people are looking for more practical versus social
opportunities. Although our Design ‘Hood series has been
moderately successful, people are attending those to learn
more about other people’s thinking and processes versus the
social aspect. As a chapter, we need to work harder at drawing
in those from other design disciplines. The group had no new
page 2 of 4
ideas to support that end other than the ones outlined
previously.

This is a challenge because there are so many online venues
that already achieve what the chapter site does. People visit
our site primarily for the events calendar and perhaps to look at
the few portfolios that are there. Aside from that, their time is
spent between Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and the plethora of
portfolio/inspiration sites that exist. So, the last thing we want
to do is create something that is competitive to an existing
social media outlet. Two things that we see as valuable: 1.
Providing chapters with a U-Stream (http://www.ustream.tv/) kit
that helps them deliver event content via live streaming video.
The kit could consist of tips and tricks, advice, help, etc. for
conducting a streaming event. This would be a great way to
foster alliances between chapters (ie. members from ALL
chapters view a presentation delivered from Toledo). 2. Sharing
ideas and providing constructive criticism is hot right now. It’s
also something that’s easily achieved via online media. A site
like http://dribbble.com/ could be sponsored by or replicated
for AIGA.

connections?
As a young chapter, we’re not certain how we’re perceived by
the non-design community, and we’ve been critical of
ourselves for not doing more outreach. We hope to change that
via the ideas mentioned previously.

Very little This isn’t communicated enough, and no one in our
chapter sees AIGA as having any presence or influence outside
the US.

page 3 of 4
Very. We often feel we’re too bogged down in our day-to-day
work, learning new skills, etc. We expect that a portion of our
annual dues are being used for advocacy.

It did, actually. Participants expressed interest in volunteering
and in holding more events like the roundtable. One participant
indicated that he plans to join AIGA as a result of our
discussion.

Our discussion happened very organically, and although we
didn’t stick to the script provided, it would be difficult to
outline the questions that got asked.
page 4 of 4
roundtable
AIGA Upstate New York
April 29, 2010

12 participants attended. Reason for getting involved: college
requirement become more involved in design
community/connections learn more/business building
ideas/credentials loved the print communications inspiration
Length of involvement: (4) less than 5 years (1) 5-10 years (5)
10-20 years (2) 20 years or more Scale on 1-10 of involvement:
People ranged from 0-4, and from 7-10 with 2 and 8 being the
most common.

RESOURCES PROVIDED THAT CURRENTLY SUPPORT 1. NA 2.
Networking opportunities, design community 3. Chapter,
nothing note-worthy 4. not a member so none . 5. professional
connection to designers in my region 6. access to tools and
inspiration and networking 7. Programming events &
networking opportunities 8. social events 9. Lectures
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES 1. NA 2. access to successful business
owners 3. A greater amount of communication materials, digital
or printed 4. Not sure, more relevant topics addressed via
discussion or speakers. 5. great programming 6. one stop shop
for design competitions, as well as not just design related, but
creative related events in our area 7. Hands on learning would
be valuable. Maybe an event with a demo and then creation of
work based on demo would be fun. 8. Vendors FUTURE
PROGRAMMING IDEAS 1. PR that builds awareness within
business community of value of AIGA designers 2. Inside the
Designers' Studio: A small business roundtable. Business
owners, lawyer, accountant, someone to speak to copywrite
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laws, etc 3. Workshops where you actually make something with
a group of people 4. See above. More prestigious speakers and
professional-centric events. 5. more design community
building events. more community reach-out efforts. 6.
continue what the chapter is doing 7. software/new technology
seminars to help keep us current 8. An event where a group
looks at a body of work and discusses it. To gain insight from
different perspectives/angles would be interesting. 9.
Community Events

MOST valuable AIGA program EVENT % # Regional Creative
Eats 22.2% 2 Dock2 Grand Opening 11.1% 1 Sagmeister Lecture
at RIT 11.1% 1 Mass Mocca Tour 0.0% 0 Keetra Dixon Lecture at
UB0.0% 0 Mohawk Paper Mill Tours 11.1% 1 Matt Owens Lecture
at Sage Albany 0.0% 0 "Typeface" Movie Screening 0.0% 0
Debbie Millman Lecture 33.3% 3 Student Portfolio Review 11.1%
1 VALUABLE BECAUSE 1. meeting people 2. provided an
overwhelming sense of community... 2 thumbs way up! 3. It
brought people to the area that I was finally able to meet
including Debbie. 4. Most anticipated person to see speak in a
very long time. (since Dana Arnett circa 2002?) 5. connecting
with the craftsmen/printing/letterpress folks 6. it has been
something i have wanted to do ever since becoming a designer
and i finally had the opportunity to do so, not just once, but
twice 7. Listening to her talk was inspirational and also allowed
me to continue to network with those on the board. 8. Talent 9.
Only event in Syracuse
1. Large, AIGA sponsored volunteer projects that get noticed in
the community and written up in media 2. inform me of other
non-AIGA events occurring in my community 3. Community
workspace? Common ground where people can work on
projects or just plain hang out. 4. As a designer; more relevant
content, activities, and speakers potentially. Help with gaining
business. As a citizen...no idea 5. Events like the stressdesign
10 reception are great for local design community building. As
a citizen, maybe a program targeting design-inclined students
at high school or grade school levels? Even something so
simple as working with teachers to identify students who would
benefit from one-on-one mentoring from a design
professional. 6. keep doing what they're doing. I like the
connections. 7. interact with other pro orgs in community to be
the local design experts not only in the creative industry but
the business and non profit sector as well. 8. It would be
interesting to have an event where attendees could participate
page 2 of 6
in a project, design movement, collaboration, etc. Then see the
work used to obtain an objective. This would make all those who
participate feel more involved in their design community.
Possibly a project that would not only reinforce design as a
profession, but would support sustainability purposes. Just an
idea . . . 9. Make the design community more visible 10. Have
more events in Syracuse.

yes 70.0% no 30.0%

1. Loaded question... matches current membership biased to
younger designers. Would suggest more programming
targeting client education - Design management for marketing
communications professionals 2. More mentoring of students
and programming that revolves around the business of design.
3. Workshops 4. Speakers that transcend narrow design
disciplines. Clement Mok, Dana Arnett, Sagmeister as
examples. 5. Programming geared towards creative professions
in general could draw in writers, photographers, artists. Like
marketing, legal, etc. programming. 6. more cross industry
technology related programming that would bring together the
people who work together in a design process: writers,
photographers, illustrators, printers, business execs 7.
Programming that connects talented designers with those that
need their skill set. (eg. vendors, potential clients, etc)
STRENGTHS 1. it's there! 2.active web presence 3.Newsletter
4.online registration 5.regular email is nice 6.getting/providing
connections to the design community 7.we have a website,
facebook page, linked in and twitter account 8.Website
information, e-mail newsletters 9.event news 10.Reminders of
events via email WEAKNESSES 1.link to and promote
whitepapers, research, etc for professionals 2.lack of resources
3.Social Media 4.not sure 5.Not a member so hard to say. I read
the emails but that's about it. 6.finding things is sometimes
difficult 7.feels like there are a lot of places to check in.... 8.x.
9.other uses 10.Too little information NEEDED FOR STRONGER
ONLINE COMMUNITY 1.gallery to showxase local designers and
their work to prospective clients 2.member only section of
page 3 of 6
resources 3.further communication to social media team about
things coming up in the background/spotting local events of
interest that are not AIGA hosted. 4.not sure 5.including
nonmembers (even non-design professionals) in online
communities. Responsibility for the profession and our
community extends beyond those who pay dues. 6.something
that pools all of that together so you don’t need to check 4
places for current events 7.x 8.purpose

connections?
1.unknown? 2.As far as I can tell, the non-design community is
unaware of our chapter. In my experience the chapter has not
connected its members to community leaders, vendors, or
clients, it has however connected me with several other
creatives. I think our chapter could do more to invite
community leaders, vendors, and veteran designs to attend
and/or speak at chapter events. 3.I hardly know of any non-
designer that knows what the AIGA is. I know enough designers
that don't know what it is. I think the best way AIGA can fix this
is by supplying designers with materials on communicating
with those people. Clients don’t necessarily need to
understand design as much as designers need to understand
their clients’ needs. By doing this well and letting them know
that you are an AIGA member, it is then that the non-designer
community will have a reason to know what the AIGA is in order
to work with more members b/c of a higher quality relationship
4.I don't think it is perceived. I’ve heard from a copywriter that
they thought it was a “student” organization. 5. a member so
can't really answer. I do read the email and am glad for the
news it provides, even though I am not a member. 6.generally
positive, if they understand or are aware of the design
profession. 7.perception is weak outside design community. we
need to do a better job making the connection. an event that is
open to the community but that has value to all of those
different segments of the population, not sure what that would
be just yet. 8.From my perspective it is perceived fairly well.
Since becoming a member our chapter has grown due to the
programming events it has worked hard to provide. I do believe
that there could be stronger networking between the members
and vendors. I'm not sure that the chapter has maximized its
potential in this regards. More opportunities for members to
connect with those in need of strong designers and their
services would be nice. 9.Outside the Design world, AIGA is
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nothing, who, what? 10.I don't think anyone that anyone who
isn’t a designer would know about AIGA or its events.

1.not much... 2.Ric Grefe’s letter to the NEA re: their call for
spec work. Simply brilliant response 3.Get out the Vote was a
successful way to promote design to civil society 4.For
government and “civil society” I “hear” about things like voter
ballot redesign, but frankly not sure of the actual finished
outcome. For business, nothing. Global, nothing. As a regular
member, I don't hear much at all. 5.Honestly, I haven't paid
much attention. 6.work with the labor dept. to make graphic
designer a profession, not a trade. Election efforts to clean up
the voting ballot and other government ‘forms’ that are
generally designed abysmally. 7.AIGA’s involvement in vote
campaign crosses into the govt/civil aspect. 8.Good question.
9.A few efforts, but not a lot. It would be great to see events
that display this value more. Rather than events showing
bodies of work. Or history behind design. 10.It seems that AIGA
speaks only to the design community instead of the
community as a whole.

Responses ranged from: –Not necessarily that important for
AIGA, but the design community as a whole, I feel that it is
important. –Important (but we must first build on the local level
and then expand to global/international. I don’t feel like we are
there yet within our own chapter) –most responded VERY
IMPORTANT One comment: Would be really nice for them to
“have our back.”

-maintain the momentum in which AIGA Upstate has been
building community and increase outreach through social
media, interpersonal relationships, mingling -hold attractive
events in addition to providing a space where designers can
interact on a day to day basis. -Focus on the local and
community-building type efforts, including the local business
community and non profit sector (possibly partnering with the
Ad Council which is headquartered in Rochester) a few specific
comments: As an organization, I'd like to see a Chapter or
page 5 of 6
National supporting worthy stories that debunk the
misunderstandings and ignorance of design’s value. Use
individual case studies to “sell” the idea of good design in
any/all contexts. And do so with a very specific purpose. Most
messaging and campaigns I see from AIGA are rather lofty,
some form of navel-gazing, and even esoteric, especially to
non-designers. Semi-unsolicited advice is to focus on concrete
initiatives that pay off the profession (vs. individual pet
project) and make sure it gets finished. I enjoy big name
speakers and events, but I most times don't feel much trickle
down in terms of long-term value from them. Seeing AIGA
doing more on a community level would definitely make me
rethink becoming a member again. I have lost most of my
interest since I changed chapters from Charlotte to UPSTNY
because I feel that Syracuse is the forgotten child of AIGA
UPSTNY...

page 6 of 6
roundtable
AIGA Washington, DC
April 6, 2010

Anne Kerns (15 years on and off?)
Michael Hilker (13 yrs – member)
David Ramos (4 yrs. – AIGA DC only)
Richard Fishman (7 yrs – member)
Kudirat Bisola Momoh (6 years)
Rodney Williams (RCW communications
http://www.rcwinc.com/) started with AIGA in Chicago in the
80s. Pay for all staff to be members. Interested in mentoring /
speaking about student initiatives. Believes in being a part of
an organization.

AIGA DC Listserv is a great resource for our chapter. Lots of
helpful discussions occur there, and the open forum is
awesome! Talked about the idea of perhaps having a larger
more national listserv for larger discussions? - We got
sidetracked and started discussing the mandate - Most
attendees liked the idea of going local with conferences,
although there was much discussion about it. We had a long
discussion on what it means to have national initiatives and
gatherings vs. local gatherings and conferences. We talked
about different conferences that the group felt were
successful. Many liked the How/AIGA engagement, pairing
together that’s new. Overall the group wants more connectivity
with groups that we aren’t currently taped into (government
designers) Many like the idea of one (1) full-day business
conference, locally and thought the idea of cities coming
together to put it on would be great. Attendees agreed that
page 1 of 4
they’d expect and be willing to pay a couple hundred dollars to
attend a 1 day conference. More business related
programs/events.

AIGA DC Salons! because of the intimacy, relevance – like the
small group discussions. Design Conference in Memphis. 1-10
event with Stanely Hainsworth. Colorblind. AIGA DC Listserv
(which isn’t a program, but allows people to interact).
Colorblind program / diversity. AIGA 50 competition.
We spend a long time discussing the idea of all designers who
are AIGA members putting “AIGA” after their name. Many in
the group do it and feel it’s successful. Discuss as a large
initiative? We then started discussing mentoring as a way to
touch the larger design community for the start. Many
attendees would like to see a mentoring program for college
students with local student groups – partnering to develop
relationships throughout the year. Maybe create a mentoring
directory like “match.com” — professionals sponsoring student
memberships Getting into the student demographic starts with
the professors – it’s critical to partner with them! AIGA DC
should promote events further in advance so that programs can
be put into syllabus at the beginning of the semester. One idea
we discussed for a while was this idea of “aging in design” and
what’s the next part? Where are all the older graphic
designers? Larger relation to the Fellow program. Sharing
stories with others – conversation of like minded individuals

The group collectively was more of a solo designer / studio
owner group. They wanted more programming around business
development, promoting the value of business, and just
generally a forum where business owners could get together
and have discussions. They said they’d pay $100+ to attend a
day long conference on the subject.

page 2 of 4
Linking the national website into the local chapters advertising
campaigns for AIGA into national / local media — more PRESS
for AIGA. Focused articles about what we’re doing in DC
promoted on a national level

connections?
Overall the consensus was that AIGA and AIGA DC is not
perceived, anywhere other than through other designers and
design orgs. BUT UFP DC (urban forest project dc) is a great
program for other communities to see what we do! We should
do more programs like that so other individuals in the
community can see who we are and what we're all about.

more outreach to the business community (GAIN is great for
this), design toastmasters - giving designers the public
speaking skills (we should do this), connection with refresh DC
- a group of interactive / web related professionals that have
meet ups for free. we discussed the idea of more online
engagements that are free, but never lose the in-person
events. We need to think of new ways of embracing the public.
Let’s do a design census of who AIGA is locally and nationally –
similar to the US Census!

Very important because AIGA is seen as the leader in the
graphic design industry, and in other industries because our
community is so large. We’re seen as a design force!

One big idea put forward was sponsoring student memberships.
All of the participants said they'd be happy to anonymously
support a student by paying for their AIGA membership for one
year. We discussed this being a national initiative - or national
page 3 of 4
membership drive? And of course, we had the inevitable
discussion about certification – and the conversation turned
against it. Group would rather focus on initiatives and
promotion of design thinking rather than a certification. Rather
have AIGA promoting design and helping us have conversations
with the business community about the VALUE of design rather
than focused efforts towards certification. Small resources are
so much more valuable.

page 4 of 4

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roundtable

Please briefly describe the participants in your roundtable. How

AIGA’s impact at the personal level

What chapter resources do participants identify as supporting

What was the most valuable AIGA program attendees

AIGA’s impact at the community level

Do participants feel that the chapter’s programming

What do participants feel are the strengths and weaknesses

How is the chapter perceived by the non-design community?

AIGA’s impact at the national/global level

What efforts have participants seen AIGA make to

How important do participants feel it is for AIGA to make

If you asked additional questions, please list the

Please briefly describe the participants in your roundtable. How

AIGA’s impact at the personal level

What chapter resources do participants identify as supporting

What was the most valuable AIGA program attendees

AIGA’s impact at the community level

Do participants feel that the chapter’s programming

What do participants feel are the strengths and weaknesses

How is the chapter perceived by the non-design community?

AIGA’s impact at the national/global level

What efforts have participants seen AIGA make to

How important do participants feel it is for AIGA to make

Did the roundtable inspire or encourage participants to

If you asked additional questions, please list the

Please briefly describe the participants in your roundtable. How

AIGA’s impact at the personal level

What chapter resources do participants identify as supporting

AIGA’s impact at the community level

Do participants feel that the chapter’s programming

What do participants feel are the strengths and weaknesses

How is the chapter perceived by the non-design community?

AIGA’s impact at the national/global level

What efforts have participants seen AIGA make to

How important do participants feel it is for AIGA to make

Did the roundtable inspire or encourage participants to

If you asked additional questions, please list the

Please briefly describe the participants in your roundtable. How

AIGA’s impact at the personal level

What chapter resources do participants identify as supporting

What was the most valuable AIGA program attendees

AIGA’s impact at the community level

Do participants feel that the chapter’s programming

What do participants feel are the strengths and weaknesses

How is the chapter perceived by the non-design community?

AIGA’s impact at the national/global level

What efforts have participants seen AIGA make to

How important do participants feel it is for AIGA to make

Did the roundtable inspire or encourage participants to

If you asked additional questions, please list the

Please briefly describe the participants in your roundtable. How

AIGA’s impact at the personal level

What chapter resources do participants identify as supporting

What was the most valuable AIGA program attendees

AIGA’s impact at the community level

Do participants feel that the chapter’s programming

What do participants feel are the strengths and weaknesses

How is the chapter perceived by the non-design community?

AIGA’s impact at the national/global level

What efforts have participants seen AIGA make to

How important do participants feel it is for AIGA to make