S2•E8 Richard Hollant

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This Is A Prototype

Doug Powell

24 episodes

1 month ago

We are in the midst of an unprecedented time in the history of the design profession. Businesses are investing in design at rates never before seen—building scaled design teams of hundreds and even thousands of designers, and hiring design leaders into executive roles giving them influence and access at the highest levels.

As an executive design leader myself, I’m fascinated by the experience of designers moving into these new leadership roles. For most of us this is completely uncharted territory, the jobs are often undefined and there is rarely a roadmap or playbook to help us succeed, so most of us have had to learn on the job.

In each episode of This is a Prototype, I invite two design leaders who have traveled very different life and career journeys to share their stories, compare notes, and talk about what it takes to be a leader in this new era of design.

All content for This Is A Prototype is the property of Doug Powell and is served directly from their servers with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.

S2•E8 Richard Hollant

This Is A Prototype

44 minutes

1 year ago

S2•E8 Richard Hollant

Throughout this season of the series I’ve been speaking with leaders who have used their design superpowers in community and civic leadership roles, and in this episode I continue that thread in my conversation with Richard Hollant.

In 1988 Richard founded CO:LAB as a design consultancy with a focus on brand design and product launches. Over time the firm moved from its original home in Boston, to Hartford, Connecticut, and has shifted its focus from brand design to social impact work, engaging with community and cultural organizations in Hartford and across Connecticut. CO:LAB has won awards from PRINT, HOW, and Cause/Effect among others, and Richard has been featured in Business Weekly, Communication Arts, and Fast Company. A longtime leader in AIGA, the professional association for design in the US, Richard was appointed Commissioner of Cultural Affairs for the City of Hartford in 2017, and during the Covid pandemic he was tapped by the Mayor of Hartford to lead the strategic reopening of the arts, culture, and recreation throughout that city.

In 2019, Richard founded Free Center—a collection of rehabilitated community spaces providing free access to arts, culture, trauma healing, and advocacy programming in forgotten neighborhoods across Connecticut.