Andy Polaine, Educator, Leadership Coach and Author

Dr. Andy Polaine is a design leadership coach, educator, speaker and writer who helps clients transform their organisations and themselves.

For several years he worked at Fjord where he was global Group Design Director of Client Evolution. He is co-author of the book, Service Design: From Insight to Implementation, which recently released as a 2nd Edition.

Andy has three decades of experience in design and innovation with clients across a broad range of industries. He holds a PhD from the University of Technology, Sydney and is the Co-Lead on the MA Service Design at the Hochschule Luzern, Switzerland. He's also the host of the Power of Ten podcast.

Navigating the journey into Design Leadership

Shifting from an IC role to design leadership is challenging, requiring you to take on business and people responsibilities while stepping back from hands-on craft. This shift often leads to a mid-career identity crisis as you transition from maker to enabler, shaking your confidence. In this session, Andy will explore the “design leadership dip,” share lessons from coaching 120+ leaders, and guide you through activities to define your leadership approach and build confidence in your role.