Rachel Switzky

Summary

Global design leader with strong operational skills in working with Fortune 100 companies over the past 20 years. I have helped teams imagine futures and then put them into action, focusing on digital design, emergent technologies and impact at-scale. I am now the inaugural Director for the Siebel Center for Design at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, my alma mater. I have been tasked with finding the best ways to incorporate design thinking across our campus, community and state. I previously spent 11 years at IDEO, overseeing a multi-million dollar portfolio across Product, Health, Retail and Mobility content domains. Skills Summary: _Trained designer, systems thinker and skilled practitioner of design thinking and innovation strategy _Fast thinker, doer, and fire-fighter _Eternal optimist with boundless energy _Successful deal closer, a master at focus, prioritization and delegation _Excellent communicator, writer and strategist _Empathic and patient mentor, teacher and thought-leader _In a previous life, played bass in Rolling Stone Magazine’s “Hot Band of ’98”