Inside Track into the Industry: Product Development

On September 25th, I had the pleasure of attending an event hosted by the Center for Career & Professional Development. This event was an Inside Track into Industry: Product Development.

Students sat at round tables with alumni from various majors that included interior design, architecture, and illustration, just to name a few. Each table had a bell in the middle, and when students had a question they would ring the bell and ask the alumni. Students at the table were able to chat with the alumni for 30 minutes, and discuss product development as well as any other questions about the alumni experiences at Pratt and how those influenced their current careers. At the end of the half-hour, a gong was struck to indicate the end of the round table discussion. Following the gong, each alumni stood up and shared the most interesting or important question they got from the group of students, and their response to said question. The alumni switched tables and then had another round of discussions with a new group of students.

If you weren’t able to make it to the event, here are some of the most important answers that came from our alumni:

“What is the most important thing in Product Development?”

“Clarity, the product has to stand for itself, someone has to just see it and get. Because you won’t always be there to explain your work, and it has to be able to stand on it’s own.”

“What makes someone a good person to work with?”

“There are 3 things that makes someone a positive co-worker. Number 1: you are easy to work with, 2: You are talented and you can do the work well, and 3: you can do it quickly and on time.”

“How as a designer or an artist, do you learn about the business side of things?”

“I made stuff and found out how to sell it, you just got to get in it and know the questions to ask. Once you have the product though, the questions will come, and then you just have to find a way to answer them, whether it’s classes, working, or asking someone.”

Don’t miss the next Inside Track into Industry: Publishing event happening on October 22, 2014! Registration for events can be found at: ccpd.pratt.edu/events.

Written by: Diana Li