Wow. We have about one month left in the semester.

Holy brevity, Batman.

Sooo, as Thanksgiving and weather from Hell (whatever you perceive it to be, and that’s assuming you perceive it at all, because, if you don’t, you should just take the term to mean the worst possible place and feeling ever – that’s what I do) approaches, we should all remember to turn in our papers on time and start / finish making plans for the Winter break (whatever you perceive that to be). By the way, Don’t be surprised if someone I know throws a Chili Cook-off party instead of the traditional turkey, cranberry sauce, and sweet fatty potato casserole dinner party. Can we say “turkey chili” and give me some “raise the roof” action?

Finally, let us not forget that, even as we stare at our screens, the wheels are turning in the IDSAB money spending process. Within days we will all gather together to argue about “the system,” grasping and wrestling at and with ideas about the past and the future of our money-spending methods. When it is done though, and the money is spent, we will all tan in the shiny light that emulates from the success of our systeme de comptabilité.

- engageID posse.

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--> student activities

Thanks to everyone who voted! The preliminary results are in. Stay tuned for meeting times, further discussion, etc.

ConnectID $3,362
EngageID $2,198
SocialID $2,263
IDInside $2,177

- Phillip LaFargue

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--> alumni spotlight: Design Planning

Welcome to the first Alumni Spotlight. This new addition to the EngageID Newsletter tells us about the professional lives of ID graduates to give us a feel for the particular roles our education prepares us for. This first edition is on Design Planning. This week, we spoke with one seasoned alumni, Ewan Duncan, and one more recent, April Starr. Sincere thanks to Ewan and April.

Angelo Frigo and Eric Holubow would be grateful for any support with the Alumni Spotlight Series if you are interested in conducting and documenting an interview. Thanks!

-Angelo Frigo and Eric Holubow-----

Ewan Duncan, McKinsey & Company
Management Consulting
Take a look at HBR, S+B or even mainstream magazines like Newsweek and you will immediately see the growing awareness in business and strategy of user experience, rapid prototyping and business concept experiments, and the business value of design. We asked Ewan Duncan for his thoughts on ID’s place in the management consulting industry.

ON ID
“There is plenty of opportunity for ID folk, especially those with an analytical or quantitative background.” says Ewan. Its all about problem solving: creative ways to structure and solve complex issues. “Structured Planning is incredibly relevant. I can’t tell you how relevant it is.” The ability to structure a complex problem and address its pieces and parts is key. Things get practical very quickly though so prioritization is equally important in this process. You can only focus on the pieces and parts that have the greatest impact and tackle the 20% of those issues that account For 80% of the problems.

ON WORK
Most clients focus the majority of their time and need the most help addressing challenges within their core business, thus most of the work Ewan focuses on are near-term strategic issues - things like operational performance improvement or improving the customer service experience. Part of this depends on the economic cycle. More recently, more companies are looking at growth, having survived the early 2000's slowdown. For example, Ewan's current client is focusing on growth strategy - which new products, services and markets to expand into to increase their growth rate significantly. This type of work is based on a clear understanding of customer and market needs linked with a practical action plan, developed alongside the client. “Here are the four or five key actions or initiatives to deliver on the plan?” For example: increase sales of X new product by improving sales force effectiveness through a retraining program, changing coverage and incentives. It’s very much like a design plan though, in general, more specific and near term.

ON JOBS
Half of McKinsey’s hires don’t have an MBA, though the vast majority have post-graduate degrees such as JD, MD, PhD, MS, etc. While ID is not a targeted school, ID students hoping for full time and intern positions can and should apply direct to McKinsey (through their website only). BCG, Bain, BAH, and the rest of the mainstream firms are receptive too. The recruiting window for summer/fall hires occurs in September and October so it’s a little late for this year but worth inquiring. Note that business background is not required: the interviewing focus is on problem solving and an analytical approach. Hiring can occur directly from school or after some relevant industry experience, operational or strategic planning experience being especially applicable.

-Angelo Frigo

April Starr, Motorola
Design Research
ON WORK
April was hired last year to run a design research program looking at mission critical public safety markets (Police, Fire and EMS) in North America, Europe and Asia. Her role is constantly shifting from user researcher to product planner to project manager to teacher. Some days she will be riding along with patrol officers, while on other days she will be working with designers and engineers translating her findings into actual solutions. Everyday she educates people about the value of Design Research to get further support for her own projects. She has learned the importance of integrating market research into her work. Students should try to understand what is done at ID and how it fits within a business context.

ON ID
Conducting research in mission-critical situations is a huge challenge because of the severity of a possible mistake with your research or design assumptions. April states, "methods and frameworks are a means to understand, but demonstrating an understanding of a problem is meaningless unless you come up with a good solution." In general, her ID background has given her the ability to analyze a problem by utilizing methods and frameworks. She believes that the methods and process ID teaches serves as checks and balances to minimize the risk. For example, she says, "behavioral prototypes let you test assumptions before you have a design concept." On a final note, April encourages students to listen to the way your professors articulate the types of activities we do. "When you leave ID you will be telling people who have never heard of things like User Research and Design Planning why these activities are relevant to their organization."

-Eric Holubow

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--> of interest

Victor Margolin speaking at Archeworks
“Healing a Deeply Wounded World”
Victor Margolin read his paper “Healing the World: A Challenge to Designers” at Archeworks on October 22. Margolin is a professor of art and design history at the University of Illinois at Chicago. In the paper Margolin calls upon the design community to heal what he refers to as a “deeply wounded world”. Margolin begins by demonstrating the existing economic and social disparities facing the world on a national and international level. Historically designers have been closely tied to the manufacture of products for the market. Margolin called upon designers to stray from this and focus on curing some of the world’s socio-economic disparities. Citing such examples as Buckminster Fuller, Peter Buttonshone, and Victor Papanek, Margolin noted a history of individuals who have called upon design to take a more proactive role and address the needs of those not commonly represented in the market system.

To provide an outline for healing the world Margolin’s defined five types of capital: (1) human (2) social (3) financial (4) institutional and (5) physical. He note that the commodity-based market economy well integrates these five factors, whereas efforts to focus on social service needs typically lack financial capital because of a perceived lack of market demand for such goods. Margolin commented that where the design community can be successful at addressing social service needs is by focusing on human and social capital (e.g., membership organizations, partnerships, collectives). Margolin believes success will come through a civil society movement, not an economic or politically driven one, in which individuals and groups lead the way. Example of successful social service focused projects include the political action website moveon.org and Chicago-based Working Bikes Cooperative.

Additionally Margolin paid special attention to Archeworks, an alternative design school whose mission is to address social needs by developing and providing alternative design education solutions through a multi-disciplinary process. Another interesting initiative Margolin noted was Design for the World, is an international humanitarian organization whose objective is to match the skills and commitment of volunteer designers with the needs expressed by disadvantaged populations and the organizations that serve them worldwide.

Margolin was reading from his essay that serves as the lead paper in “The Archeworks Papers”, a forthcoming book honoring Archeworks’ 10th anniversary. Additional essays in “The Archeworks Papers” will be written by Stanley Tigerman, Eva Maddox, Doug Garofalo and Robert Somol. Other books by Margolin include The Politics of the Artificial, The Struggle for Utopia and Discovering Design.

-Taylor Lies

Open House
CHICAGO, Ill. – Over twenty strangers broke down the doors of the Institute of Design last Thursday night at approximately 6:00 pm. Originally assumed to be threats to the community, the strangers were quickly relabeled as prospective students who were simply curious to discover what happens here at ID. Members from the faculty, staff, and student population rushed to meet the new arrivals in the Nathan Lecture Center on the 6th floor.

Director Patrick Whitney formally introduced the school shortly after the prospective students were settled into their chairs. Of those attending the open house, approximately half of the prospective students had design backgrounds, and most of the group were from the Chicago area. To give a better sense of what to expect at the school, student representatives briefly presented examples of their own work. Alex Kinnebrew and Anjali Kelkar introduced their ongoing project for addressing the needs of India’s poor through the use of remote usability studies. Jamie Chen and Martin Zabaleta presented their shopping cart prototypes based on their recent research. Finally, Jeff D and Dale Wunderlich introduced a system for integrating first-person perspective with GPS mapping systems.

During break, prospective students and those in the ID community feasted on a unique spread of over eight cheeses and various wines, fruits, and vegetables from around the world. The event was catered entirely and unsurprisingly by James Schulman who somehow managed to outdo himself once again. (Has anybody suggested that he may want to pursue a joint degree in design AND food?!) Homer Simpson has better ways to describe the night’s food in sights and sounds than this writer can do in print.

After that special combination of food, wine, and small talk, breakout groups formed to discuss the different tracks: PhD, Communications, Product, and Design Planning. Questions were answered. Clarity displaced fogginess. Most reached a Zen-like state of comprehension.

Recent alum and adjunct faculty member of ID, Hwang Sung-Gul, wrapped up the evening by describing how his life was enhanced by attending the Institute of Design. Presently at Motorola, Hwang mentioned to those in attendance how his views had changed from self- or egocentric to include a more scientific, user-centered and unbiased view of design. In the end, this group of prospective students left with a very solid understanding of what the school offers.

-Laate Olukotan

Halloween Partay!
So, the party at Sara and Cobie's house was graced by a number of unusual guests. There was Jason, the '70s camp counselor from Cabin 13 who sported some stylin short shorts. We had a dead guy who did the math. There was a pimp called Master Blaster who just couldn't get enough of the ladies. We had the tooth fairy and a Jazzercise instructor. There was DJ IberCool, hocking up fake French phrases all night. Then there was Cliche, that famous '80s girl band (what, you haven't heard of them?) That sorry Cubs fan...poor guy, all beat up and everything. There was a little nymph with super-pointy ears. A bubble-wrap princess who could barely walk without popping! The brown line train, going from Loop to Kimball. Oh, and where IS Osama? On Friday he was out on the dance floor, hell yeah. We had an Uncle Sam 2020. There was some Amish dude. Some biker chicks. Some creatures of the forest. A blue-haired hottie. A crazy butt-pinching fortune teller. Zoolander showed us Blue Steel and Le Tigre (but he's still working on Magnum). The reverend was in full force. Cleopatra was adorable! Then there was this guy in all black...don't ask. All I have to say is...Halloween rules.

- Sara Cantor

McCoy’s Partay
Incase you haven't heard the rumors, the McCoys are coming to town and having their annual "design and the meaning of life" party at gravity tank on Saturday, November 15th. it will probably start around 7pm (more details will come as i know them). for those of you who don't know who the McCoys are, they are id teachers who are usually here for 4 months in the fall (but not this year) and at their workshop/studio http://www.highgrounddesign.com/ for 8 months in the spring/summer. every year they have a party for the id community at their apt. this year, since they aren't living here, they are having the party at gravity tank (Chris Conley's co.). here's where we come in...other than attending, students will be needed in order to help pull-off the event (since the McCoys are coming from out of town, they'll need help setting up, cleaning after, etc--so that gravity tank bears no burden). I'll send out more info as i know what all needs to be done, but if you want to help/get involved in general, it will be one of the topics of discussion at our id social meeting on Wednesday (round room on 3, probably).

Anyway, McCoys party was totally fun last year (people dressed up because it was Halloween weekend -- check out photos (about 1/2way down page):http://www.enginerd.org/foundation

-Hillary Schuster

Dusk to Dawn B & B
Just a couple of blocks East of the IIT Main Campus, there’s a Bed and Breakfast called the Dusk to Dawn, and its owned by a couple named O’Neal. The O’Neals are some of the kindest people I’ve ever met.

The Dusk To Dawn is sandwiched between a funeral home (another O’Neal business) and the only townhouses Frank Lloyd Wright designed. Built in 1885, Dusk to Dawn features high ceilings, wood floors, fire places, a patio and garden, and stained glass windows.

Why am I telling you about this place? Well, there are many reasons. First and foremost, they give discounts to IIT– related guests. Second, the O’Neal’s House, the sister to the B & B, located on the funeral home side, recently burned, and it is undergoing repairs. So, obviously, business has suffered from this incident, but the place is in solid shape and is truly a pleasant, safe and convenient experience. Third, after talking with the O’Neals for some time, I came to admire them, and I think meeting them would be a great way for any visitor to be broken into Chicago. So, if you have family or friends coming to stay, whether from over seas or from St. Louis, give the Dusk to Dawn a chance. I know my family will go back.

Dusk To Dawn B & B
3221 Calumet Ave.
www.dusktodawnbandb.com
(ph) 312.949.1120

-Phillip LaFargue

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--> student projects

Observing Users
Fall, 2003
Taught by: Jay Melican, Jean Canavan

Everquest: Social Implications of Online Gaming
Sara Cantor, Jenny Fan, Cheongha Lee, Ryan Pikkel, Andrew Haywood

Sara Cantor, Jenny Fan, Andrew Haywood, Ryan Pikkel, and Cheongha Lee are working on an ethnographic research project for Jay Melican's "Observing Users" course, interviewing gamers and analyzing the social implications of online gaming, specifically within the game of EverQuest. A multi-user persistent role-playing game (MMPROG), EverQuest is the most popular online game in the United States, with a subscriber base of 450,000. Players are mainly men whose ages range from adolescence to middle-age. While may of these players work in the IT industry, a large percentage are students and/or work in other fields.

After recruiting subjects from approaching gamers at internet cafes, asking for contacts within the ID community, and posting noticeson Craigslist.com, the team conducted approximately eight in-depth face-to-face interviews. Although there were many differences within each subject's experience with the game, one general finding was that every subject referred to themselves as either "addicted" to the game, or as having been addicted to another kind of online game. Many of the interviewees also mentioned trying to quit, and spoke about their game playing in the terminology of addiction. Often, they mentioned knowing people whose lives had been drastically affected by the game; one subject, who identified himself as "a recovering addict," spoke of his experience with EverQuest as "a nightmare," saying that if he had known of the implications, he would not have begun playing in the first place. The team is now synthesizing their research data to come up with potential design implications that address these issues.

-Jenny Fan

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Newsletter contributors: Sara Cantor, Jenny Fan, Lucas Daniel, Philip LaFargue II, Yi Leng Lee, Christine Choi, Taylor Lies, Aurora Tallacksen, Geoff Colbath, Hillary Schuster, Angelo Frigo, Eric Holubow, Laate Olukotan