Racial Equity in Design

Don’t be afraid of the word “portfolio.” It’s simply the word that designers use to describe a collection of your work that showcases your style and skills. Your portfolio is an opportunity to express your personality and tell your unique story in your own way. Use your portfolio to highlight your inspiration, creativity, and problem solving. A portfolio is always an imperfect work-in-progress, and that’s totally OK.

“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use the more you have.”

Maya Angelou

Bring your authentic self

The perspectives, voices, and talent of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) help in delivering experiences that are inclusive, diverse and exemplify design excellence. Lived experiences contribute to your “superpowers” as a creative. Your portfolio is your chance to inspire, and really share your true, authentic self.

Erwin Hines, Creative Director - Basic Agency, and Quinnton Harris, Creative Director - Publicis Sapient, discuss an approach to crafting a portfolio by using an overarching thesis that drives all of the work.

Problem Action Result (PAR) technique

You should expect to present your portfolio during the interview process. Using the Problem-Action-Result (PAR) technique will help you prepare and is a common approach for portfolio storytelling; this approach is also known as STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result).

Roosevelt Faulkner, IBM Design researcher, discusses using the STAR method for presenting your portfolio.

Here’s an easy playbook to follow when you present your portfolio:

Problem

Tell which project is your favorite and why
Talk about the team setup, your role, and activity in the project
Explain what the task was

Action

Describe your process
Mention methods and user insights

Result

Show your solution
Elaborate on one major design decision
Showcase the results
Share your learnings

When presenting your portfolio, remember that first (and last) impressions count. Break up presentation of similar projects, and arrange your presentation so that the most impactful elements of your portfolio are the first and last thing you share.
Each interview will be unique,so it’s great to mentally prepare for questions you may be asked and questions you may want to ask.
“Good design is about process, not product.”
— Jared Sinclair
Show the “messy bits” of your design process that lead to the final solution. Think about showing low fidelity prototypes, moving into mid-fidelity prototypes, and finally, high fidelity mock ups.