Spark Roundtable: Working for Free: How the Mainstreaming of Design is Affecting the Profession

The tools of the design trade are easier to use and more accessible to more people than ever before. Work that was once the exclusive province of the trained professional is now being done in garages and second bedrooms everywhere, while the success of brands like Apple and Target have brought design thinking into the zeitgeist. Suddenly everyone’s a designer. 

While this democratization of design may mean that your parents might finally understand what you do, it may also be diminishing your work’s perceived value. Join Orit, President and CEO of the O Group for a spirited discussion on the impact that recent hiring trends like crowdsourcing, competitions for design work and spec work are having on our industry, and learn ways to communicate effectively with your clients and prospects about them.

As a result of her business know-how, creative talents, and entrepreneurial spirit, Orit has grown The O Group from a one-woman operation into one of New York’s most successful branding and design firms. Since 1986, the O Group has been developing creative solutions for luxury brands in the fashion, hospitality, jewelry, restaurant and spirits categories.