rockpaperink

June 15, 2011

If you are a designer, design; if you are a manager, manage

Workflow and In-House Dynamics

Author: Plazm

Topics: Branding Identity, Self-Promotion

  Post to Facebook   Tweet this   Email to a friend Share This

The flow of work through Sagmeister Studio is not complex. Initially, it comes in through Stefan Sagmeister. He works on it with his designer, Mattias Erstberger, and then it goes out through Sagmeister. Having only two designers in the office naturally limits the volume of work. At times, there are interns who Sagmeister judges to be particularly talented, and they work on jobs, too. Sagmeister takes on interns only if they are able to commit full-time to the studio—this generally means the person cannot have another job in addition to his or her work at the studio.

This pared-down office is a conscious choice for Sagmeister, whose previous work experiences reflected a very different model. When Sagmeister worked for Leo Burnett in Hong Kong, he had a much larger group of handpicked designers. In that context, he was more of a manager, and, from his perspective, managing a small design group is among the least interesting jobs there is. "If I would want to become a manager, I would much rather go to business school and work on Wall Street where you actually have some challenges," he comments.

Sagmeister serves as the art director for all of the work that comes through the studio. Keeping the chain of command simplified, particularly if you are the commander, makes for an efficient and focused work environment.

Source: 100 Habits of Successful Graphic Designers

{"http:\/\/www.rockpaperink.com\/content\/article.php?id=92":{"comments":{"data":[]}}}