Discover New Ways to Lead Design Forward. Awaken Your Confidence.
Standard design leadership best practices and advice only get you so far. I offer something different.
[ An open letter to design leaders ]
I help you win, no matter what the business thinks.
Before I started working with design executives and their teams, I was a design executive and led design teams.
I made products and services at Apple, Comcast, and Sony. I’ve built and led teams at Electronic Arts (twice) and Nestlé. I was a corporate strategy executive at USAA. At some point in my career, I likely had the same responsibilities you have today.
I became a boss, a boss of bosses, and then an executive. And each time I was promoted, I was told, "You’re a quick learner. We expect you to figure it out."
I did figure it out, but the hard way, through a lot of trial and error, mistakes, and self-doubt. Not because that was how I wanted to learn but because no one gave me any other choice. And as I found out, this wasn't exclusive to me and my career.
Second Wave Dive is something better.
Your challenges and needs are unique. You often have no one to turn to. I fill that gap. I help you with the things you don’t have the time or the experience to do.
Whether figuring out a strategy for your team, predicting where and how your team can succeed, conducting statistical analyses to describe ROI, growing the skills of your people, communicating effectively with the C-Suite and Board, or all of the above, I specialize in providing real-world value when you have a short-time need.
I have the systems, playbooks, frameworks, and lessons I wish I had while I was leading in-house teams. You get all the benefits of this experience and expertise without all the back-and-forth, overhead, negotiating, and pressure to buy additional services.
Second Wave Dive is the business name of Ryan Rumsey.
Awaken your strategic sense
Design Teams like yours don’t struggle because your work isn’t good enough—it nearly always is. No, you struggle because decisions are made without you.
To become unignorable, I help in these key areas:
Business Thinking
The key levers that make your company successful in the market. The primary way(s) your company has chosen to make money. The value your team’s contribution is worth to the company.
Positioning Your Team
How you set yourself, your team, and the design practice apart inside your company. The specific activities to concentrate on that move you from being reactive to a voice that needs to be heard inside your organization.
Stakeholder Management
How a senior leader will advocate for you without you in the room. The different languages your collaborators respond to, and act upon. The areas of your work to invest your emotional energy, so that it’s worth it.
Ready to raise your Business IQ and Team EQ? Join us at CDO School.
CDO School is a management school for design leaders. Our courses, content, resources, and events help you confidently shift design from business optional to essential.
