CHRIS JACKSON - DESIGN LEADERSHIP ADVISORY
Design Leadership Advisory
A thinking partner for design leaders handed a merger, a restructure, a new team or a new brief.
Design leadership is one of the most complex positions in any organisation, and one of the least supported.
You’re expected to lead creative people, handle political complexity, show strategic value and develop the next generation of designers, all while delivering to deadlines and managing up, down and sideways.
Most organisations give their other senior roles a peer group, a mentor or a protected space to think. Design leaders rarely get any of these. That’s the gap I fill.
This is for you if
Two teams have become one and you’re expected to make them work together.
You joined during a restructure and have to rebuild the team and be clear on what it’s for.
You need the organisation to see what design is worth and you aren’t sure how to show it.
Your team has taken on new responsibilities and the way you work has to change.
What working together looks like
I’m a sounding board with 20 years of experience in design, systems and how organisations change. We work through what’s happening, what your options are, which decisions matter and what to do next, and I’ll challenge your thinking where it needs it.
I look at your situation through three lenses: design leadership, the organisational systems around your team, and the patterns of change already under way that will affect design. Sessions are one-to-one and online. What you tell me stays between us.
Experience
I’ve worked with design leaders through restructures, reorganisations and rebuilds.
Organisations I’ve worked with include ASB, Kiwibank, Meridian Energy, Red Cross NZ, Serato, Optimal, Z Energy, The Guardian, the V&A, MIT and TU Dublin.
WHAT CLIENTS SAY
What clients say…
“I chose Chris for his good humour, and he’s fun. I knew he’d be a great culture fit and that the team would accept him, they’re cynical, and wary of the slightest whiff of snake oil or jazz hands. ”
“His ability to quickly grasp context, his skill in facilitating multi-party forums and using those insights to design clean and straightforward artefacts is invaluable in these spaces. ”
“He left us with the mindset, tools and frameworks to drive the change we need within ourselves.”
FORMAT
Ways we can work together
Focused Advisory Engagement
For a specific challenge, such as evolving a design function, developing a strategy or working through organisational change.
90-Day Package
Six fortnightly sessions
Strategic Advisory Relationship
For leaders who want an ongoing thinking partner. Weekly sessions, paid monthly.
For some leaders, this work shows what their team needs next. When that happens, we can talk about what that looks like.
Start with a conversation…
Chris’s Clinic is a free 30-minute call. We’ll talk through what’s happening, what’s in the way, and whether advisory would help. I’m in Wellington, New Zealand, so I’ll suggest times that suit your time zone.
Fill out the form below and I’ll reply within 24 hours.
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