About DO

Broad, diverse, different

Design Outlook exists to celebrate, support and grow design in Australia. We take an optimistic outlook to our future and the impact design can make.

We predominantly achieve this through our annual DO festival, that reignites the design community across a week of open houses, meetups, masterclasses, conference talks, and more.

Why we're different

Design Outlook identifies as more than a festival. It aims to create an intentional part in maturing design in Australia.

We do this by sharing stories from industry, highlighting what it takes for design to thrive and for all of Australia to benefit from more inclusive, sustainable outcomes.

Our principles and promise

A photograph of Oliver Ree presenting at DO22 A photograph of three women attending DO22, two of them taking photos of the stage with their phones
Broad: We focus on broad design discussions across disciplines and take a wide perspective
Diverse: We are diverse across gender, race, age, sexual orientation, physical abilities, skills, experience, and equity
Different: We push the boundaries of what it means to exist as a design conference and always opt for the stranger of two choices

Leadership team

A portrait of Grant Show

Grant Show

Founder – Design Outlook

A portrait of Sharbani Dhar

Sharbani Dhar

Director, Design Ops – Australia Post

A portrait of John Lazzara

John Lazzara

Head of Digital Experience Design – Telstra

A portrait of Elaine Tan

Elaine Tan

Design Manager – Design Outlook

Industry curators

DO’s Industry Curators play a vital role in creating the incredible experiences that we deliver through Design Outlook.

This includes the festival, conference, workshops, awards, and other streams we deliver.

They work collaboratively with other Industry Curators, the Advisory Board, the Community panel, and volunteers to deliver impactful and successful events that are measured by their excellence.

A portrait of Mickey Rummery

Mickey Rummery

Founder – Connected Experience Design

A portrait of Rosie McAlister

Rosie McAlister

Snr Recruitment Specialist – Aquent

A portrait of Amy Sheppard

Amy Sheppard

Snr Design Manager – Bunnings

A portrait of Neha Karira

Neha Karira

Snr Product Design Manager – Bunnings

A portrait of Brendan Moyle

Brendan Moyle

Snr Product Designer – REA Group

A portrait of Catalina Bonavia

Catalina Bonavia

Head of SD & CX – Three6

A portrait of Bonnie Mooney

Bonnie Mooney

Head of Design & VOC – MMSG

A portrait of Benjamin Dokter

Benjamin Dokter

Founder – Design Futures

A portrait of Sue Izmir

Sue Izmir

Senior Research Advisor – Climateworks Centre

A portrait of Nikhil Bora

Nikhil Bora

Experience Designer – Design at ANZ

A portrait of Chris Hudson

Chris Hudson

Founder – Company Road

Our brand and philosophy

Design Outlook was created in response to three questions:
What is design in Australia?
What do we want it to be?
How can we drive it in that direction?
A photograph of two DO23 attendees celebrating

Responding to these questions, we’ve created a design festival to celebrate, support, and grow design in Australia with a focus on horizon 1 and beyond for design

We place significant emphasis on creating content that is immersive and deeply engaging for our audience, that is refreshingly optimistic. It provides solutions to problems and never admires them.

Finally, We lead the way by cultivating connections within the industry and designers throughout Australia and the world; and we always do it in person.

Design

  • _ is invisible but impactful
  • _ is emotionally charged
  • _ is nothing without sustainability

Outlook

  • _ a view or perspective
  • _ a place from which one observes
  • _ a frame of mind or attitude