It’s about time

You may have spotted illustrator, Alex Grave’s vibrant pattern work in the speculative fiction zine. With a focus on the power of visual storytelling from a Black perspective, Alex’s illustrations are relatable and universal. We are excited to have him here to talk about his work, career, and creative process.

IBM’s Racial Equity in Design leadership team partnered with the IBM Strategic Foresight Guild to explore: “What does an equity-first workplace feel like for Black folks?” Dive into speculative fiction authored by IBM designers and learn more about the methodology and processes of speculative design.

Join us as Nigel sits down with designer, mentor, and IBM Distinguished Design Executive, Oen Hammonds for a deep dive into his career and life journey. Listen in as Oen shares how his life and professional design experiences have shaped his career and molded him into the insightful, thoughtful, and inspirational person he is today.

Join us as Nigel welcomes Mbiyimoh Ghogomu, writer, scholar, and creative, as he chronicles his journey from IBMer to entrepreneur and how storytelling and following the winds of curiosity played a role in his pathway to co-founder and CEO of a startup, Tradeblock.

Join us for an inspirational journey into the life and work of Renee Albert MA, MPM, Head of Education Experiences at IBM Design. Listen in as she discusses how she found her way to design and the importance of finding your authentic purpose and voice in the ever-broadening field of design.

Change-maker. Rule-breaker. Design icon. Dr. D’Wayne Edwards is all that and more. Join us as D’Wayne, emblematic footwear designer and founder of Pensole Lewis School of Design and Business, and Pensole Footwear Design Academy, sits down with Nigel and walks us through his journey to leadership in academia. Along the way, listen in as he deconstructs what a designer is and what design, and the business of design, means for the Black creatives in the future.

Join host Nigel Prentice as he sits down with Kareem Collie, IBM User Experience Design Lead, who talks with us about growing up and finding his voice as a designer through experiences that took him around the world, academia, and into corporate America, and how those pivotal life events shaped his perspective as a designer today. Kareem also deep dives into The Black Experience in Design: Identity, Expression & Reflection, an anthology of stories touching on design practice, scholarship, activism, and more, co-edited with several influential black design leaders.

Design Researcher Marcsene Torchon joins us to talk about how resiliency and vision motivated him to move from a career in social work to UX research in the healthcare space at IBM. He details how his project experience and passion for exploration, continuous learning, and unlocking innovation inspired him to pursue a new career while continuing to make a difference for his community.

Do not miss this very special episode of It’s About Time, as the Chair of IBM’s Racial Equity in Design Initiative, Nigel Prentice, steps out from behind the microphone and into the guest chair to share his background, life experiences, and journey to IBM design executive leader. He also reflects on building the racial equity in design effort, and its significance now and into the future.

Join us for an inspirational journey into the life and work of Isaac Buwembo, social entrepreneur and Director of Service Design at Year Up, a workforce development organization dedicated to training and connecting young adults to employment opportunities. Listen in as he walks us through how he infuses his work to advance anti-racism, racial equity, cultural change, and innovation practices into the workforce landscape.

Join us for a continuation of Dr. Cheryl D. Holmes Miller’s renowned design career journey. In this episode, Dr. Miller takes us through her experiences in graduate school and out into the field during her early days as a young writer and designer. Listen in as she talks about fusing writing and design, how the impact of history and the cultural landscape influenced her work and molded her into the legend she is today. SOON

Listen in to part 1 of an exclusive interview with Dr. Cheryl D. Holmes Miller, as she details her learning experiences on her journey to a highly lauded design career. Her design influence is unparalleled—Dr. Miller is an AIGA medalist with degrees from the Rhode Island School of Design, Maryland Institute College of Art, and Pratt Institute; and holds current faculty appointments at Howard University, a Distinguished Lectureship at UT - Austin, and a William O. Steinzmetz Designer In Residence Scholar at the Maryland Institute College of Art. Join us as Dr. Miller shares how growing up in an activist household in the nation’s capitol, during a time that paralleled critical historical moments in Black history, sparked a legacy that continues to reverberate throughout the entire Black community.

Texas State University Communications Professor, Dr. Omari Souza, joins us to discuss the importance of building Black design communities to support and uplift talented Black artists wanting or just entering, the field. Omari also gives us insight into the importance of design research, and Black design’s past, present, and future.

IBM Enterprise Performance Manager Joelle Williams, is community activism personified. Hear how her experiences growing up in New York, attending college in the south, and her family roots in activism and faith culminated in a multi-dimensional career spanning business, design, and inspired her to effect long lasting change through social justice and equity work at IBM.

Brad Neal, IBM RegTech Director of Design, discusses how history, legacy, and resilience have formed the foundation for a career steeped in creating meaningful connections and advancing design excellence.

IBM Visual Designer Lydia Samuel embodies the courage it takes to show up as a young Black woman at a college with little diversity. Hear how she responded to social injustice and acts of racism by creating change among the faculty and her student peers, and how that experience impacts her work at IBM.