RYAN FINCH

(portfolio)

A SELF INTERVIEW

(introduction & overview)

Goals & Aspirations (What I see myself doing in the next five to ten years)Ultimately, my goal is to be able to man-age and coordinate entire user experi-ences while working for a multi-national corporation. This includes everything from problem-seeking ethnography, op-portunity-seeking market research and project scope to product development, market launch and advertising. My time leading up to that point will be focused on gaining experience in each facet of a product’s life cycle and understanding user touch points.

Opportunities (Areas for growth and improvement)One of my biggest weaknesses, and greatest focus for future improvement is in programming and software devel-opment. I’m blessed to be able to pick up most design tools very quickly, but programming and coding have always been foreign to me. However, I’m very aware of the incredible power of com-bining creative design skills with techni-cal implementation knowledge. There have been several project where I could not have captured my vision dimension-ally without learning a new tool or pro-cess first. Even in teams where job roles are very specific and functional, I believe prioritizing my growth in implementa-tion knowledge will have the greatest positive impact on the team.

Priorities (The things most im-portant to me)It can be a very abstract idea, but creat-ing maintaining value is by far my high-est priority. It could mean value to the company, user, customer, but ideally all of these things equally. Economy is also very important in my decision mak-ing. What am I able to sacrifice and still achieve my goals? This balancing act is the reason why this document is printed in one ink (or perhaps it’s still in digital form right now). It’s a cost savings for me (and if you decide to print it yourself, a cost savings for your company too) and

saves space on my hard drive due to the lower file size of monochrome images. And after carefully examining my work, I realized there is no significant loss in functionality by switching to a one-color process. Prioritizing economy allows me to make more perceptive decisions by forcing me to analyze each task for it’s effective value.

Information (What helps me make a decision)Many people view creativity as this magi-cal process that few posses occurring in a dark corner of the brain. But as neurosci-entist Jeff Hawkins states, “Creativity can be defined simply as making predictions by analogy.” The only thing differentiat-ing ‘creative’ outputs is the information input and our ability to connect that in-formation into meaningful patterns. Af-ter reading this during my junior year at Miami University, I gained a new appre-ciation for design based on information rather than intuition. As I understand it, information is more than research and data gathering. It’s the variety and depth of information from diverse and parallel sources that will produce the most valu-able insights. Example: 26 Words

Failure (How I work around problems)Abraham Lincoln once said, “My great concern is not whether you have failed, but whether you are content with your failure.” One of my favorite projects was my greatest failure, but also the best learning experience I’ve had to date. With the help of my independent study advisor, I learned that if I can recognize and admit failure early and often, I will be amazed at the importance of failure in success. Since then I’ve discovered how to use failure as type of benchmark in design projects. If things are going too smoothly or if I haven’t faced any major challenges, then I haven’t pushed myself hard enough to risk failure. Example: Future Reflections

Expertise (Technical and domain experience)A professor told me that the difference between and architect and engineer is that an architect needs to know a little about a lot of things, while an engineer needs to know a lot about a few things. This perfectly explains my domain strength. While I may not start with the greatest technical knowledge of a sub-ject, my breadth of my experience, or the horizontal arms of IDEO’s “T-shaped” person, allow me to quickly gain that technical knowledge and apply it with a valuable and unique perspective.

Avoidance (Things I prefer not to do)I try to never make decisions based on intuition. There will always be instances where intuition is necessary or unavoid-able, but there is so much information and data available for nearly any decision that it would be foolish to completely ig-nore it. I also prefer to avoid working in siloed environments where I’m not able to contribute to other elements that may fall outside of my specific job responsi-bilities.

Motivations (What keeps me go-ing when things are tough)Naturally, goals and aspirations come into play here, but for better or worse, success is my biggest motivation. Success can take many different forms depend-ing on the task at hand. It could be any-thing from finishing an award winning project under budget, to just making it through to the next day. Sometimes its as simple as a can of RedBull.

Play (What I do for fun)All work and no play is also something I avoid. When not at the office I’ll go for a run, play a few sets of racquetball, read a book from this list goo.gl/o31WU, lis-ten to a Radiohead album, refinish old furniture, or make a phenomenal gour-met grilled cheese sandwich.

SHOW & TELL

(work samples)

This strategy document, like the others in this portfolio, was a personal exploration of a problem relevant to the company. MH/RV Security was prompted by my own curiosity of the current state of the security market for motorhomes and recreational vehicles. It explored the market and consumer, while also proposing product solutions.

1. MH/RV SECURITY

(Strategy)

market gap

DIYassortment

deadbolts andwindow locks

Thatchamalarm systems

$1,500

$0

avg.

sys

tem

cos

ts

Strikeback

Sleeptight

Motion security light

Door contacts

Standard car alarm

Habitation door locks

opportunity

Hardware Retail was the precursor to Coercive Strategies in which I outlined a strategy for a conversation-based interaction at the retail level. The key pro-posal was to switch from a “telling” role to a listening role where messaging is aimed at solving problems rather than describing features.

2. HARDWARE RETAIL

(Strategy)

Coercive Strategies explored several layers of customer and consumer inter-actions with the company and sales staff. It began with an understanding of target consumer profiles, followed by step-by-step interaction scenarios designed for maximum sales impact at the B2B and B2C levels.

3. COERCIVE STRATEGIES

(Strategy)

The Internet Marketing Strategy was a proposal I outlined to better prepare the marketing team to address issues surrounding social media and measure-ment. It was based on ROI accountability from the very beginning to ensure wider adoption across decision makers.

4. INTERNET MARKETING STRATEGY

(Strategy)

The Standard Line (SL) Visual Strategy Guide was designed to lay the foun-dation for a category packaging and merchandising change. Where previ-ous efforts by the department were purely reactionary, this guide sought to reanalyze the target consumer and their information needs.

5. VISUAL STRATEGY GUIDE

(Strategy)

As the company made plans to exit the lighting controls category after years of subpar performance in retail outlets, I was skeptical and decided to step back and reevaluate the category and industry on my own time. After developing a comprehensive view of the problem, I arrived at a very different conclusion than the rest of the company. REFRESH outlined my learnings, the opportunity and an implementation framework.

6. REFRESH

(Strategy)

26 Words was an 82-page book I wrote and designed to explore the essence of the design prompt and subsequent design process. I wanted no control over the prompt, so I decided to drill a hole through a dictionary and chose one word from each letter of the alphabet where the hole crossed. The rest of the book explored what these 26 words could become.

7. 26 WORDS

(Print)

Future Reflections was a 60 page book that reflected on the process of an independent architecture studio project. The project aimed to cross the boundaries between biology, horticulture and architecture in creating a liv-ing, breathing, inhabitable structure. The book describes this interdisciplin-ary collaboration through personal accounts and email correspondences.

8. FUTURE REFLECTIONS

(Print)

The Plural Elementary School was group project where we designed an elementary school for a struggling school district in midwest Ohio. The school reused an existing packaging facility built in the 1940’s overlooking a preserved meadowland. The solution used a modular steel truss system that could grow as needed, but with minimal disruption to the meadow below.

9. PLURAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

(Architecture)

The Etymo pavilion was another group design project for the Tent London design competition. The design solution was built with the host site’s (Wok-ing) DNA built directly into the construction materials. The patterned sur-face texture was derived from maps spanning the growth of the town since 1890, while the form was a play off the town’s history with the McLaren testing facility.

10. ETYMO PAVILION

(Architecture)

The project was my entry for the 2007 AIAS Milwaukee Transit Stop Design Competition, in which I received an Honorable Mention award, a cash prize and a feature in Crit65 magazine. The transit stop pushed the materials to their limits by embedding thermochromic polymers throughout the struc-ture, allowing it to change colors with the seasons.

11. MILWAUKEE TRANSIT STOP

(Architecture)

Topographia was an interdisciplinary project for an arts and architecture bookstore in Cincinnati, OH. I was part of the design team whose disci-plines spanned graphic design, interior design and architecture. My respon-sibilities included the design of the four-seasons addition, structural systems, furniture and space planning.

12. TOPOGRAPHIA

(Interior Design)

industrial design, CFM specification and market opportunity exploration. Reported directly to the VP of Market-ing.

Summer 2009: Graphic Design Intern, HeathCo LLC Responsibilities included: logo and icon development, graphics archive management, packaging mocks and renderings, conceptual graphic and packaging design, design strategy, and display POP design, and researching market trends. Reported directly to Senior Graphic Designer. Hired as a full time Graphic Designer on conclusion of the internship.

RECOMMENDATIONS(via LinkedIn.com)“...He is a spatial thinker and problem solver. He is quick to see patterns in seemingly complex situations. He also has a temporal side to his analysis where he can foresee events over timelines whether it’s for an animation or the for-mation of a new design team.” - Gireesh Pudipeddi, Manager - Industrial De-sign, Chamberlain

“...Not only is he a quick study and un-derstands deliverables and objectives on the spot, but has an impressive ability to absorb the information and turn it into relevant output from a content level by integrating graphic design, information design and presentation design.” - Luisa Ruge, Senior Design Strategist, Cham-berlain

“...I have confidence in Ryan’s sensibili-ties and critical judgment which will set him apart from those who are consumed

RESUME

(Ryan Finch)

EDUCATIONGraduate of Miami University, School of Fine Arts, Architecture Department (2005-2009)Degree: Bachelor of Fine Arts in Archi-tecture Thematic Concentration: Plant Struc-tures and DevelopmentGPA: 3.28 (3.7 GPA in final 36 credit hours)

RECENT EMPLOYMENTSpring 2011-present: Communications Designer, HeathCo LLC Responsibilities included: Developing online strategies, creating brand style guidelines/identity, art direction, POP & packaging design, visual merchandis-ing for national home center accounts, tradeshow mgmt, CRM planning, sales lead generation, copywriting, agency and freelance network mgmt, social media communications, public rela-tions, media relations, communications planning, copy database mgmt, adver-tising, instigating new partnerships, and product satisfaction analysis. Reported directly to the VP of Marketing.

Fall 2009-Spring 2011: Graphic De-signer, HeathCo LLC Responsibilities included: Retail displays, POP, packaging and visual merchandising for national home center accounts. Social media management, press releases, product launch commu-nications, market research, coordinat-ing agencies, literature design, mobile strategy, trade show management and copywriting. Designed and managed two microsites (cflmotion.com, thehzso-lution.com), and multiple MOSS 2007 team sites. Other initiatives included

by buzz words and possibilities enabled by digital technologies. He is conscious of when they are truly empowering and when they become merely seductive.” - Murali Paranandi, Associate Professor, Miami University

“...What makes this remarkable is Ryan’s focus on the overall business rather than just his piece of the busi-ness. He understands every facet of our operation, knows the customer base, and drives results based on their needs.” - Steve Breymaier, Director of Sales and Marketing Commercial Channels, HeathCo LLC

“...He always strives for that which will challenge him rather than that which will insure a safe outcome. His talent, motivation and tenacity allow him to succeed with these efforts.” - J. E. Elliott, Architect/Instructor, Miami University

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

RYAN FINCH(937) 423-3317RYANTFINCH@GMAIL.COMWWW.DISQUISIT.COMWWW.LINKEDIN.COM