AIGA Design Conference
The Brief
Deliver a community-forward AIGA Design Conference in New York City, the birthplace of the graphic design profession.
The Outcome
A sellout crowd with $200K in sponsorships, breaking even on this event for the first time in three years.
The Team
Paul Mendoza, Event Producer
Kat Budny, Senior Director of Programming
Lee-Sean Huang, Director of Community Initiatives
Myriame Dutes, Event Producer
My Roles
Event Production, Talent Management, Qualitative Research.
Research & Strategy
A community-centered approach built on years of programming experience.
The core challenge for the 2024 AIGA Design Conference was one of profitability: how do we deliver a conference on budget in one of the world’s most expensive cities?
As a producer for this event, I leveraged two core insights from my many years as a chapter leader and regional organizer: offer programming that unifies and cross-pollinates four communities of practice (Graphic Design Fundamentals, Marketing Craft, Digital Products, and Systems & Services) and three life paths (student to master, maker to leader, citizen to parent); and create ample opportunities for non-hierarchal and serendipitous connections outside of the official venue.
Our team’s main advantage was our relationship with the design community in New York City, the birthplace of our organization and of the American graphic design profession itself. We knew we had to leverage this community goodwill cleverly and respectfully to deliver the event that local NYC heroes have come to expect, and that our nationwide membership richly deserves.
Prototypes & Outputs
Improving efficiency through split duties and new automations.
The big new idea for 2024 was the pre-conference day of community programming, with over 40 design studios and local offices in three boroughs hosting private tours exclusively for our attendees. I worked with these local hosts, AIGA/NY chapter leadership, and our team of 60 volunteers to staff and mobilize these tours for guests. This delegated approach allowed our teams to deliver a conference experience that not only captured the immense scope of NYC design, but also helped us deliver our overall conference experience on a tight budget.
We also had to make the tough decision to cut staff for the 2024 conference, which meant I needed to utilize my project management tools more effectively to handle the same level of operational complexity with fewer people. By restructuring our centralized planning spreadsheets and adding automations for calendaring events, emailing partners, and critiquing marketing assets, I was able to wear multiple hats as a producer and keep my talent roster engaged and well-informed.
Insights & Futures
Big gains for design education, while urban designers are ready for a revival.
The outpouring of love and support from conference guests was truly overwhelming, and it cemented the AIGA Design Conference as one of my proudest career achievements. What I am even more grateful for, however, was the marked increase in post-survey feedback, traditionally a tough ask for us at this event, which helped us identify different audiences and their needs and expectations from this event.
Overall, the feedback signaled a huge ROI for the design education community. Design professors constituted most of our breakout programming, and student & educator ticket rates were the most affordable. Additionally, designers from outside of the industry’s traditional major-market hubs saw this conference as a “bucket list” opportunity to visit New York for the very first time, so our mere presence throughout the city was highly appreciated and satisfying.
For future conferences, I personally would like to see AIGA realign with agencies and in-house designers in major metropolitan areas. In their view, this year’s conference deprioritized their presence, and I believe there is a higher margin for future profitability by optimizing programming for these audiences that doesn’t leave the design education community behind.
