RED Labs Portfolio Accelerator - Toronto
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Interested in finding out more? Request your info package below:
Request Info Pack
Interested in finding out more? Request your info package below:
Accelerate Your Portfolio With World-Class Projects
What is RED Design Labs?
RED Design Labs operates similarly to that of a digital agency. The projects are multi-disciplinary and carefully selected to allow participants to rapidly expand their professional toolbox, client management skills and portfolios with high-touch mentorship by award-winning agency mentors.
Our participants’ projects are carefully selected and thoughtfully produced. We align ourselves with impact-driven businesses and entrepreneurs so that our students can make real change in the local and global community. We’re proud to see our students make a difference through each project they complete, while growing their networks with meaningful industry connections.
Those who are selected for the 6-week Labs sprint will expand their toolbox with 15+ hard skills and design/technology artifacts to support their portfolios. The quality of client experience that participants receive is at the level that most junior professionals will not receive until 5-8 years into an agency role.
Is RED Design Labs for me?
If you have a professional UX/UI/Digital Marketing portfolio but you are looking to improve your creative confidence, portfolio project quality and skills toolbox while giving back to the community, then this is a program for you. The rapid 6-week accelerator is meant to provide each participant with several high-quality portfolio pieces, significantly increasing the strength of your portfolio and desirability in the employment marketplace.
This accelerator is limited to a small number of RED professional grads by application and interview, or by invitation. A limited number of spaces are held for exceptional non-RED professional grads by application and interview only.
RED Design Labs engagement deliverables include a mix of the latest methodologies and approaches to produce leading edge experiences. Participants will gain experience in:
Team Leadership & Management
All students will be given the opportunity to lead their own projects and to present their work to senior-level clients. These presentations include deliverables such as pitch decks, contracts, scopes of work, strategic plans, workback schedules, high-level estimates, stakeholder requirements and interviews, objectives and KPIs.
User Experience Focused Deliverables
For students who want a focus on UX, possible deliverables include: heuristic evaluations, expert reviews, out-of-box experience audits, information architecture, wireframing, functional specifications, usage scenarios / task analysis and contextual inquiry.
User Interface Focused Deliverables
For students who want a focus on user interface & visual communication design, possible deliverables include: mood boards, style tiles, brand design & guidelines, logo designs, motion design, creative layers and asset production (high-fidelity), prototypes and storyboards.
Digital Marketing Focused Deliverables
For students who want to focus on digital marketing, possible deliverables include: ecosystem audit & recommendations, digital marketing strategy, search & ad word strategy, social media strategy, CRM & email strategy, content strategy, social listening, implement social strategies, tracking, video creation/implementation and focus group strategy.
RED Design Labs was a rare opportunity to help me gain the confidence I needed to enter the industry. Working along side award winning professionals was amazing because I learned more breadth and depth about UX Design and the industry. The ability to work on real client projects simultaneously and having the responsibility as project manager was real confidence booster. I recommend anyone who just needs that extra push to join RED Labs, it makes the world of a difference.
Nilan Kasandas, UX Designer
Mentorship
Tara O'Doherty
Tara O'Doherty
Tara is the former VP of UX/UI at Cossette. For over 16 years Tara has been creating exceptional customer experiences and products for leaders like AT&T, Gap Inc., IDEO, Ericsson, Google, and SickKids. She is fueled by data, driven by Design Thinking, inspired by innovation, and guided by human-centric methodology for all online/offline touch-points including: mobile, IoT, wearables, and even Connected Car. Tara has been featured in a number of publications and speaks at dozens of conferences a year and has had the honour of receiving several Cannes Lions, a few pencils from The One Show, a collection of Cassie Golds, and dozens of CMA Awards. Her work has even been featured in People Magazine, Mashable, and on CNN. In 2016 Tara was a judge for Strategy Magazine’s Shoppers Innovation Awards and in 2017 was ranked as one of the top Digital Planners in the nation by Strategy Magazine.
Your Journey
A Custom Learning Experience
At the beginning of your experience at Labs, you will be asked to complete a self-assessed skills and portfolio scorecard. The scorecard will allow for both you and the Labs Senior Mentor to identify key skills and deliverables that can be assigned to you during the program. The best part about Labs is that we shape the program to ensure we can help you achieve your individual career goals. As the industry changes, so will the scorecard items.
70:20:10 Model
The 70:20:10 Model for Learning and Development is the formula we use in RED Design Labs. The model holds that students develop 70% of their knowledge and skills from hands-on work experience, 20% from the interactions they have with the people they work with, and 10% from formal educational events. In other words, you’ll learn on the job, and our senior mentors will be there to teach and coach you along the way.
Work With Senior Mentors
By joining Labs, you will get the opportunity to be mentored by award-winning senior designers and receive one-on-one coaching, feedback sessions and guidance. They will push you to elevate the quality of your work to be world-class client standard.
Working With Not-For-Profit Organizations
All clients in RED Design Labs are not-for-profit organizations. Most clients are global in nature, and are selected so that the scope of the redesign effort, impact to society, and the impact to the participant’s portfolio are equal in nature. Labs is about producing great work for great clients in order to make the world a better place.
Tuition & Dates
How To Apply
Applying to RED is super easy. Our dedicated admissions team members are there to guide and support your each step of the way.
Interested in finding out more?