The Many Hats worn by Designers
Why it is absolutely essential for a Design Professional to be able to switch roles actively.
It’s 2020, and a Designer is no longer defined by their profession.
What do the hotshots, the “rockstar” creatives as they are called in corporate circles have in common?
They don’t think of themselves as just designers.
As Organisational hierarchies and roles move into dynamically varied laterals and verticals, creative professionals are increasingly putting on many different “jackets” so to speak. Gone are the days where a creative would sit in a studio, secluded from the world, furiously working on a concept that would be presented by someone else (namely, the creative director). A Designer is now expected to both execute and present.
In a world that is increasingly looking beyond degrees and qualifications, what is it that makes a creative professional stand out?
It isn’t just your body of work anymore. There’s also people and interpersonal skills : how well you interact and manage relationships is a key indicator of how well you do.
This applies for creatives working in organisations as well as independently, and more so for freelancers; where being your own boss also means managing yourself like you would an employee.
There’s project management and time management, but you’re also the accountant, teacher, account manager, negotiator, strategist and coach.
There’s also knowledge about SEO, Content, PR, Analytics.
Principles like lateral thinking really shine in a situation where a creative is playing all these roles because a broad understanding of all fields is usually enough to get you by.
To conclude, design professionals need to know way more than just the nitty-gritties of design to really make their presence felt. After all, knowledge of every single influencing factor and using that to make the best decision possible is how design itself works.
