Episode 79: Oen Hammonds - Design Thinking

Austin Art Talk

"There is nothing wrong with failing. Failing is a learning moment. If you failed and you took the time to reflect and learn why you failed, and what you can do to change that course, and who can help you with that, most importantly, then you haven’t failed. You’ve just learned something."
Oen Hammonds is a Design Principal at IBM here in Austin where his job focuses on employee experience design. As early as High School he found himself designing for others, and after an eight year stint in the U.S. Army, he picked up where he left off and studied design in college. The jobs he has had since have all challenged him and have added to his skill set in different ways. He talks a lot about his path to the success he has found today and how important it is for a designers to have humility in their work. We delve into the subject of Design Thinking and all the ways that framework can be adapted to peoples careers and everyday life. Oen has also been sharing his knowledge as a teacher for the last fifteen years and is married to accomplished artist and teacher Hollis Hammonds.

About text courtesy of Oen's website

Designer | Advocate | Educator

Knowledgeable Design Principal with solid grasp of development, implementation and optimization of communication and leadership skills. Goal-driven Graphic Designer successful at applying technical skills to create work that informs and engages customers. Clear communicator and collaborative team player with an eye for detail and skill in customer relations. Ready to bring 20+ years' experience to dynamic position in fast-paced environment.

Some of the subjects we discuss:

Designer
Advocate
Teacher
Student diversity
Art vs Design
Humility/Ego
Mad Men
Meeting needs
Telling a story
Buyer loyalty
High school
Mac Classic
Getting paid?
Joined the Army
College/NKU
Design style
Early influences
Benchmark
From large to small
Move to Austin
Y&R experience
Agency vs In-house
Move to IBM
4 different roles
Design Thinking
Team activities
Empathy map
Useful in life
Being reactive
Constructive meetings
EDT development
Open source/badges
It’s a Framework
The Loop
Observe
Reflect, Create
Solving a problem
Loosely held
Courage/slow down
Oen’s career course
Failure/goals
Mentorship
Using EDT in life
Year end review
More time for fun
Personal work

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Intro music generously provided by Stan Killian

Support this podcast.

Links:

• Oen (@oen.hammonds) • Instagram
• Oen's CV - Visual Notepad
• Oen Michael Hammonds | Dribbble
• Design thinking courses and certifications - Enterprise Design Thinking
• How a small design team made a big impact on employee experience
• Oen Michael Hammonds | LinkedIn