<in>house</>

Web, front-end, multimedia, animation, motion graphics ... Hidden away in the back offices of DC businesses and organizations are an impassioned group of designers who work their magic on digital communications. Interactive designers working in-house are more important -- and in greater demand -- than ever.

Join AIGA DC and a panel of leading interactive designers, including Khoi Vinh of the New York Times, at <in>house</>. We will discuss the differences between interactive and print design, and the similarities; the specialized skills needed to work with internal clients; and the central place of interactive practice in the design conversation.

Speakers include:

• Khoi Vinh, Design Director, The New York Times, NYTimes.com
• Faz Besharatian, Design Director-Web Strategy & Operations, AARP
• Rob Covey, Senior Vice President, Content and Design, National Geographic Digital Media

Moderated by David Lowey, Senior Vice President and Senior Partner, Fleishman-Hillard

It's time to get <in>house</> and interact. Register today!

And don’t miss the <in>house</> warm-up “Not So New Media, 1996-2008: Have We Learned the Right Lessons?” David Belman, one of the founding partners of Threespot and a 12-year veteran of DC’s interactive scene, will rewind his crowd pleaser about online branding from last year’s WWWW conference. The warm-up begins at 6 p.m. You must reserve your spot for this event separately from <in>house</>; the cost is free to AIGA members, $15 to non-members.

 Get some gear! If you buy your <in>house</> ticket online (which will also save you some $$), you will be eligible to enter a raffle for a free copy of CS3 Web Premium, thanks to Adobe! To enter, simply drop your business card in the raffle box at the sign-in desk during the event.

SPEAKER BIOS

KHOI VINH is the Design Director for NYTimes.com, where he leads a full design team in user experience innovation. He and his team are responsible for the visual integrity of the industry-leading news site, including design for new online features and content as the New York Times embraces the digital future.

Khoi is also the author of the popular Subtraction.com, a weblog that he began writing in late 2000 and continues to update frequently. There, he writes extensively on design, technology and user experience matters of all kinds. His thoughtful advocacy of effective, forward-thinking design has led to wide industry recognition, including a seat on the board of directors at AIGA New York, the largest chapter of the prestigious professional association for design. In June 2008, Khoi begins a 3-year term on the AIGA board of directors.

Prior to joining NYTimes.com, Khoi was a founding partner at the groundbreaking design studio Behavior LLC in New York City, where he led engagements for such clients as The Onion, ResortQuest, Smithsonian, HBO, PEAK6 and many others. He has an extensive history in consultative design services for clients in a wide range of industry verticals as well as an early career in print design, and he is a communication arts graduate of Otis School of Art & Design in Los Angeles, California.

FAZ BESHARATIAN is the Design Director of Web Strategy & Operations at AARP. Faz sets the tone for AARP.org’s creative direction and guides the online visual strategy and user experience for the 39 million member organization.

Faz is an adjunct faculty at Corcoran College of Art + Design, covering topics including human factors in interaction design, interface styles, standards, guidelines, user-centered design techniques and design process.

Prior to joining AARP, Faz was implementing user interfaces in support of AOL services. He oversaw designing prototypes and high-fidelity models exploring potential design directions well before production.

A University of Maryland graduate, Faz has 14 years of experience in print and web environments. In addition to AOL, he has worked for US Airways, Terrapin Systems, USWeb/CKS, Low + Associates Inc. and Snyder Communication Inc.

ROB COVEY is the Senior Vice President of Content and Design at National Geographic Digital Media. Rob Covey joined the staff of National Geographic as both    Managing Editor and Creative Director for NGM.com in February 2007. Covey came to National Geographic from Discovery Communications, where as SVP for Content and Design, he led the creative and editorial team that developed Discovery.com and its many Web properties, including the Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, the Travel Channel, Discovery Health, the Science Channel, and Discovery Kids.

Previously, Covey spent almost 13 years as the Design Director of U.S. News & World Report. He has also been the Art Director of the Seattle Times, the Arizona Daily Star, and KAET-TV, a PBS affiliate in Phoenix.

He is a founding member and past president of the Society of News Design, now a 2,500-member international organization that seeks to promote good news design in newspapers, both in print and online, throughout the world. His work includes leading redesigns of several U.S. newspapers, including the Richmond Times-Dispatch, the Charlotte Observer, the State (Columbia, S.C.), the St. Paul Pioneer Press, as well as the New York Daily News.

DAVID LOWEY is the Senior Vice President , Senior Partner, and Managing Director of Knowledge at Fleishman-Hillard, and is the director and founder of agency’s in-house interactive division.

David has been at Fleishman-Hillard since 1992 working on branding, print, video, and event production and digital projects for clients. In recent years he has led major corporate, financial, marketing, and sales channel support projects for clients including AT&T, Dell, Visa, ConocoPhillips, and ConAgra Foods. He continues to work on behalf of clients in a consultative capacity, helping clients build programs that align their online communications with business objectives.

In November of 2007 David moved to the corporate staff to lead the company’s knowledge management efforts. In this role he oversees all internal and external design and digital communications. He also ensures brand continuity across all company communications and is a member of the Fleishman-Hillard Brand Council.

For fifteen years prior to assuming his current position, David played a creative and business leadership role within the company’s in-house creative group, an 80-person creative team that produces digital, branding, print, video and event production work for clients.

David previously worked as director of advertising services at Calet, Hirsch & Spector Advertising Inc. in New York. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from Trinity College in Hartford, Conn.

The posts on David’s blog, Where My Mind has Wandered, explore a variety of topics but almost always relate to the impact of digital communications.