OUGD602 - Creative Convos Collaboration

During the course of Creative Convos, it became clear to me that working collaboratively was something I thoroughly enjoyed. This was because I was able to find new ways to create content for a branding identity, which meant learning from other professional designers in the team. Working in this way would also be something I look for in a career, as it would help me to improve my own communication abilities, as well as my design practice.

Working collaboratively on the Creative Convos brief provided the opportunity to engage in several different professional design scenarios. Starting off the brief required research and understanding of how to realise a concept and narrative of a project, which as a result meant a proposal presentation was needed before the project could be approved. This constricted time and pushed the collaboration to explore alternative ideas, plans for colour schemes and layouts. Later in the project, it was also necessary to plan who would be assigned roles in the development stages.

Once the concept had been chosen, the team could then expand and discussions began about how to convey the concept in physical format, as well as digital format. Dividing the team into roles meant it was possible to understand how management was an important factor in the process, and as a result the concept could expand to several different interpretations. Organisation within the team also proved to be a useful strategy, especially when creating multiple forms of branding. This gave each member a chance to work to their specialties and contribute their talent to the project, giving them a chance to further improve their own practice.

Although the process was for the most part a straight forward plan, there were several minor set backs during the development stages, as new members would suggest more ideas to add. This was quickly dismissed, as it would have complicated the process and changed the concept overall. Instead, it was agreed that each member could use their specialties to their advantage and produce content for the identity.

Overall, the project made clear the ways in which a concept can vary in its format potential and how it can be manipulated to work both physically and digitally. Working collaboratively also proved to be the best option for a project that required several design skills, as the time frame was limited and the content involved a vast amount of variations. In conclusion, the brief was beneficial to improving management skills, organisational skills and time planning, which will provide evidence to refer back on in any future branding identity projects.