What we learned from running our Design Academy

I previously shared a celebration of our Design Academy. Now this has come to an end, I reflected that it was an incredible experience for us all. But we went into this new programme knowing it would not be perfect and aware there would be some bumps on the road. 

We still believe that creating entry level programmes in design is integral to how organisations and the sectors we work with need to develop new creative talent, skills and experience. Not shying away from the challenges that this represents, we wanted to take this opportunity to share some of our learnings from running our own programme for entry level designers over 12 months. We have so many learnings, highs and lows, successes and failures we will learn from. In this post I’ve narrowed this down to these 5 key areas we think might help others setting up or running similar initiatives.

Learning 1: The importance of a strong foundation week

Drawing on my own prior experiences leading training at Hyper Island, it was clear that a strong foundation week would set the tone for a successful year-long programme. To make this happen, the Academy’s first week brought the whole crew to our London hub – from Brighton, Manchester and Scotland.

The week focused on:

• establishing a shared vision

• building a team-first mentality - we are in this learning together

• introducing our Heads of Practice, some of the wider TPXimpact team, Chief Design Officer and Managing Director

• introducing our Design team and Communities of Practice across our different areas of design specialism.

• introducing and bringing to life TPXimpact design principles and ways of working.

• team-building exercises, feedback sessions, and reflection

The introduction of the Communities of Practice in particular felt like a turning point for some of the crew who had not heard of areas like content design or interaction design before. A few of the crew came with prior design and research experience, some had expectations of where they wanted to head, however some pivoted as early as the first week as they discovered and heard about new roles and opportunities from the TPXimpact team.

Learning 2: Less is more

I have designed hundreds of courses and sessions. My mantra is ‘less is more’, but this principle was tested yet again running the Academy! The cohort’s proactive nature led them to really push themselves. All of our crew came with very different starting points, so it was important to keep this in mind with the pace of delivery, and this was a constant tension to be balanced.  A wonderful thing to see was the crew creating additional learning sessions themselves. Where they had particular niche interests, they often followed them themselves and shared with the rest of the crew.They all continuously contributed beyond expectations. However this necessitated adjustments to allow for breathing space and avoid burnout. Recognising this, the TPXimpact team demonstrated agility by adapting content and schedules with me in response to the crew’s needs.

Learning 3: Collaboration across the organisation

It takes a village to raise a child and a whole organisation to run and support an academy.

Running the programme required input and support from across TPXimpact, including:

• buddy support during the first 12 weeks of bootcamp

• knowledge sharing and content contributions from various teams

• project support during moments of uncertainty

• and a million more things on top of this … 

By the end of our 12-week bootcamp, over 50 individuals in the team had contributed directly to the crew’s journey, from Partners explaining the types of projects and clients we work with, to our Delivery Managers explaining our ways of working and team experiences. 

I hold my hands up here, this was hard and was extra pressure on top of workloads for some of our team. However, this organisational collaboration was pivotal to the Academy’s success. I can never say thank you enough to everyone who helped, supported and cheerled 

Learning 4: Client project placement challenges

The transition from bootcamp to client projects proved to be one of the most challenging phases of the programme. Placement difficulties arose due to:

• the fast pace of live projects in a digital transformation business.

• high client expectations.

• the varying levels of support needed by different crew members.

Some of the crew transitioned seamlessly into projects. They started projects straight after the bootcamp, while others had to wait longer for this opportunity. For those waiting for work and client project experience, this can be a lonely, odd place to be. However, as with the bootcamp, they did not sit and wait to be fed, they all went out and got involved with internal projects and CoP initiatives. This helped to maintain the momentum of the programme, but it also highlighted the need for more structured support and onboarding when moving entry level roles onto client-facing work. 

Learning 5: The power of team support

The importance of a supportive team environment was reinforced throughout the programme. 

• The crew demonstrated resilience and adaptability, leaning on each other through challenges, and there were many challenges!

• TPXimpact’s broader team excelled in their support and empath/caring providing mentoring, coaching, and guidance

• The TPXimpact leadership team maintained unwavering support for the programme, recognising the significant investment in nurturing design talent and championing it all the way

Final reflections 

We hope other organisations will also develop initiatives like the Design Academy and a commitment to fostering a new wave of designers. These lessons learned will inform our future approaches, ensuring that our Academy work continues to deliver positive impact. BUT for this crew I will always be thankful for their unwavering commitment to learning and each other, it was quite something to witness and I was proud to be a small part of it. 

Interested in our other learning offers? We have Masterclasses to year long training academies available, contact tash.willcocks@tpximpact.com if you would like to discuss options for training your teams.