Advisory for March 12–14: AIGA Executive Leadership Summit

This inaugural Summit is a unique training experience specifically for design leaders at the director-level and above

Alexandria, VA—From March 12–14, 2023 AIGA, the professional association for design, will host its first-ever AIGA Executive Leadership Summit, an opportunity for design leaders to convene and make lasting change for the profession while finding and strengthening their leadership voice. 

What: AIGA Executive Leadership Summit
This event, geared towards director level and above, convenes design leaders in an intimate professional development-oriented setting. Learn from experienced trainers on topics like mindset readiness, creative leadership, scaling design, and building customer experience practice. 

When: Sunday, March 12 – Tuesday, March 14, 2023

Where: The Westin Alexandria Old Town, 400 Courthouse Square, Alexandria VA

Featured Speakers and Topics: 
Janice Chaka is a podcaster and the founder of The Career Introvert

• TOPIC—Re-Design Your Mindset: How to Navigate Uncertainty in Leadership: Through guided exercises and interactive activities, this workshop will provide strategies and techniques which will help develop your capacity for leadership. Learn how to leverage adaptability and resilience, challenge assumptions, question mental habits, experiment with new approaches and create original solutions.

Hugh Dubberly is a design planner and founder of Dubberly Design Office
Shelley Evenson is a design futurist and the Managing Director of Song

• TOPIC—Introducing Generative AI for Designers: The workshop will be interactive, with hands-on activities and plenty of opportunity for participants to ask questions and engage in discussions. Participants will have the opportunity to experiment with a variety of online tools and receive feedback from the instructors and other participants. We’ll conclude with a discussion about how generative AI will change your design practice.

Rama Gheerawo is an author and innovator and Director of the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design

• TOPIC—Inclusive Creative Leadership: Creative Leadership is a new form of leadership for the 21st century. Based on a new book by Rama Gheerawo (Creative Leadership: Born from Design) it is an inclusive design approach to leadership that aims to transform your individual and organizational practice. There are many leadership programs that benefit corporations and companies. Creative Leadership focuses on humans as well.

Doug Powell is a design leader, lecturer, and global thought leader on design issues
Hal Wuertz is a design professor and Senior Design Manager at IBM 

• TOPIC—Design at Scale: This workshop will be a very hands-on and interactive experience. Participants will leave with tangible takeaways including the draft of a Design Program Dashboard that they can continue to build and iterate following the Summit.

More information about the AIGA Executive Leadership Summit is here.