As Creative Head at Blak, a design, advertising, and events management company, I oversaw concept creations, client pitches and delegated work to ensure timely delivery. I was also responsible for all creative components of events. This entailed liasing with people ranging from light technicians to marketing managers and even the Governor of the Central bank. The experience taught me the importance of listening when coordinating across industries and how to communicate with people who may not share the same vocabulary. However, the biggest challenge I encountered was in building and empowering a design team to work together to deliver projects at a fast pace. When I began work at Blak, I observed a tense studio environment where designers were hesitant to pitch their own ideas.
And so, I aimed to cultivate a culture of discussion within the studio by building their confidence as designers. First, I encouraged them to research and develop concepts individually. I then guided them in implementing methods of discussions and creating concepts as a team. We shared research and dissected styles, methods, and campaign directions. Although initially I was the sole vocal contributor during these discussions, within a few weeks all members of the team joined in and became equal contributors. By including everyone in the process and creating a sense of ownership of the end product, I was able to raise confidence and levels of enthusiasm in the team. Within the space of a few months, the studio became a regular hub of discussion, great music, and laughter. I also encouraged in-team communication using Slack, and noticed an acceleration of workflow. This even initiated dialogue on topics beyond design, and aided to increase harmony within the team. A year on, I was promoted to the position of COO of Creative, Marketing, and PR. I believe this to be a mark and celebration of how well my team functioned. Indeed, during my tenure of two years leading the studio, we gained recognition within the industry as a team capable of consistently delivering excellent concepts. The most interesting thing about my field is the spectrum of information and connections we gain through clients on social media, and through professional dealings. Maldives being a close-knit community, the design community even smaller, these connections are valuable in order to give and receive referrals for further collaborations. My earliest connections were built through Maldives Whale Shark Research Program, a UK charity based in Maldives.
Through my volunteer work on their Whale Shark Festival in 2014, I got introduced to IUCN who were looking to create branding for their Moodhu Maakandu Festival. Over the years I have built a steady working relationship with IUCN which in turn has let me connect them with Blak who offered them a platform to share their knowledge on environmental sustainability at the Maldives Marine Expo 2017. In 2014, I worked with Heat Health & Fitness, a leading gym in the country to build marketing plans and overall branding, going beyond requirements by handling their social media accounts. Working for Blak, I was able to provide them additional exposure through partnerships in events. One being the Youth Day of 2017, where Heat conducted a Yoga class during the event. Though no longer at Blak, I now consult for Heat on design and social media marketing, a result of maintaining the relationship with the client. While at Blak, I built a network ranging from representatives of NGOs, business owners to corporate teams. One of this is the team at MTCC, the first local public limited company. I developed a close relationship with them while working on their AGM and Annual Report of 2017. Since resigning from my position they have contacted me offering me projects. Another connection, built over the years with a University colleague, has led to us working for Mega Maldives and UNDP as client and designer and vice versa.
Being a community leader for Startup Weekend in the Maldives, he offered me the chance to both volunteer and mentor at the Startup Weekend Maldives Women’s’ edition held in May 2018. Through the connections I built at this event, I have collaborated with another firm on a project of the Maldives Ministry of Finance & Treasury. However, the network of most value compromises of my ex-team from Blak and additional designers. Although we went our separate ways, we occasionally meetup to keep in touch. I encouraged them to discuss and seek advice about their work via a Telegram group which has become a valuable source of industry information, referrals, job opportunities, and projects. I am applying for Chevening in the hopes of building a network that stretches across the globe. I am constantly looking for ways to start a dialogue and highlight on the role of design in this country aiming to bridge the gap between design and the rest of the community. I am positive that the relationships established through Chevening will expand my network and help secure valuable links for the design community of Maldives. While my knowledge of the theories of design and advertising came from my Bachelor’s degree, cross-industry collaboration and design management were learned through experience. I look forward to enhancing these skills by learning proven methods that are used worldwide. During my career, I have noticed the repetitive failure of local design agencies due to a general lack of understanding on how design can contribute to an economy.
The UK is known for design being implemented in business strategies with proof that agencies can thrive in an economy and I believe that the courses I have chosen and the industry links they provide will aid in my plans for my career. As a top university for Art and Design in UK, my first choice is Loughborough University’s Master of Science degree in Entrepreneurial Design Management. While my collaboration skills will be enhanced within the course, I am focused on the modules that will help build the local design industry. The course offers modules on collaboration across cultures, something that cannot be experienced locally because of the boundaries of our industry. It offers entrepreneurship modules that teach business financing and innovation at different stages of design businesses. As most creative business in the Maldives struggle with long-term sustainability, I trust this course will help determine surefire ways to endure within our economy and help develop an ecosystem of creative businesses. My second choice is the Master of Science degree in Design for Business offered by the University of Dundee which puts into perspective on how design is incorporated into the world of business.
The course explores research and theories regarding design prototypes and human-centered design. These modules teach human perspectives in design, a topic discussed worldwide but not applied in Maldives. They are crucial in the learning of how design can fill the gap between businesses and their customers, which in turn will prove the need for design in the local economy. In addition to their modules, it has connections to the V&A Museum of Design that holds workshops for businesses, an area through which I can build a unique network of business and industry leaders. My third choice is the Master’s in Design Strategy and Innovation offered by Brunel University, also ranked as a top university for Art and Design. While it offers the same general modules as the previous two, this course is designed to harness critical thinking and design to contribute to the public and private sectors.
It also teaches how to assess and identify innovation within corporates. The public sector of Maldives has a disconnect with the public, and the strategic use of design and communication could be the answer to this. The university provides a chance to participate in workshops as well as an annual Design Master’s: Industry Student Review Evening which invites industry experts in for reviews, providing students with a great opportunity to build a network with influential connections. There are limited established pathways of career advancement and steady income within the design industry of Maldives. Based on business and collaboration knowledge learned from my studies, my immediate plan is to set up a local design practice focusing on design strategies in businesses, in addition to industry requirements of a design studio. Using my professional network, I intend to demonstrate to key public sector figures and business owners, the rewards of having design strategies built into their frameworks. Through the firms consultation, I will prove the need for design, leading to a growth in design employment and an open dialogue on the positive impacts of design in the private and public sector. I will further aid this dialogue by proposing the inclusion of design in local business courses.
Our industry is codependent on the events industry to win and execute profitable projects. I intend to rally key industry figures to connect and collaborate with small-scale businesses across disciplines. Working in line with the SDG 8 goals, this will provide grounds to build an ecosystem of creative businesses, thereby increasing the prospectus of youth employment within the creative industry. In the long run, I will collaborate with my peers to document local design and advertising. We lack a chronicled creative history and professional dialogue about the field, leaving a gap between the knowledge of design and the potential it has for contributing to the economy. Through this documentation, I aim to create a online platform of information accessible for students and the public that will lead to an understanding of design as a discipline. Consisting of a portfolio portal and an archived history of local designs with background information, the platform will act as an archive as well as document case studies and articles about how design is affecting local history, politics, society and business. By assessing the volume of online response, we can begin to move the conversation out of the digital mediums. Workshops and fireside chats about design will be held at this point, leading to networking between students, industry leaders and clients. It is my belief that through this initiative, Maldivian design will become more accessible to those who wish to understand it, thus increasing the probability of choosing design as an education pathway.
