Panel Spotlight: Profit/Non-Profit Panel

There is a funny thing that happened on the way to the Big Design Conference…..we created a Profit/Non-Profit Panel based on some comments by Jim Carlsen-Landy. The story begins with Jim and I joking about how non-proft designers might handle a situation that we were facing at work. We both thought it would be great to see this type of panel at Big Design. How would we find the right people? It took a little ingenuity. But, we knew the right people to contact. We found them in about 3 days. And, now, the rest of the story.

Panel Talk: What For Profit and Non-Profit Designers Can Learn From Each Other

Finding the right people was esier than expected. Brett Duncan gave a comical speech at Ignite Dallas 1 just a few days after my talk with Jim, so we asked him to be part of the panel. Brett works at Mannatech, which is a for-profit panel. So, we still need to find our non-profit folks. So, we asked Cone Johnson for assistance. Anyone in the Dallas Creative Community know Cone Johnson (@conej), as she has been a member of DSVC, Refresh Dallas, DFW-UPA, Big Design, Design Thinking, and lots more. Plus, she is a regular at CoHabitat and enjoys working with non-profits (it is her passion). Cone Johnson gave us three names on the phone call. We got an immediate acceptance from Christian Caldwell of the American Heart Association. Cone’s other two contacts ended up with scheduling conflicts. So, I sent out a tweet asking the larger group for help. Enter Matthew Feldman of Aquent. Matthew told me about Laura Humphreys, who literall wrote the updated version of the Boy Scouts Handbook (love that). I sent emails to Laura a few times and she accepted. Laura is, of course, always camping and hiking (so, these emails usually signed off with “Happy Trails” or”Happy Camping”).

Ben Smithee Moderates This Rowdy Bunch

Our roving reporter, Ben Smithee, will be moderating this rowdy bunch. I expect to have a lively conversation and a few surprises. I know you will like this panel.