482 - Ashleigh Axios

Ashleigh Axios took her creative talents to Capitol Hill and helped shape the human centered design approaches made during Obama's Administration. With a socially responsible mindset and checked ego, Ashleigh used her creative talents to better our nation and make The White House more accessible to the general public. Design truly has the ability to make a meaningful impact and when design exponents like Ashleigh rise to the challenge we all benefit from their expertise and a fresh perspective to push a more diverse agenda forward. This adventure focuses around representation, inclusion, and the ways we communicate to help open our minds to the multi faceted world we are actively a part of. Ashleigh continues her quest for empowering the masses at Automattic and helping organizations like AIGA and Design Observer.

Talking Points

• Transitioning into new leadership in the US.
• There's no room for error in your work when you're at The White House.
• Human centered design at the government level.
• Playing down what you're doing to overcome the high stakes with each project.
• Checking your ego, prioritizing what needs to be accomplished, and switching hats.
• Being a high energy introvert in a media-centric role.
• Getting energy from the ripple effect of change through design.
• Communicating to the emoji generation from Capitol Hill.
• The digital frontier reshaping how Washington DC works.
• How Obama's administration is an extension of its elegant design approach.
• Breaking down the barriers in an organization to facilitate a broader voice.
• Making the White House a place of hope and change.
• Finding diversity in design and the bravery of self assessment.
• Improving your Board Of Advisors to make better decisions.
• Do minorities feel comfortable in the world of design?
• Racial Justice By Design conversations that make everyone feel awkward.
• Being on the right side of history as a face of change.
• Making The Presidency Great Again with a scandal free record all with your hands tied behind your back for eight years.
• Putting people in office that represent everyone.
• Shaping the daily decisions we make as responsible citizens.
• Lost voting rights we fought to get in the 60's and the never ending vigilance for civil rights.
• Why don't talented people run for president?
• Switching to diversity and inclusion instead of the closed garden approach.
• Finding information from outside your comfort zone to engage people across the aisle about their pain points.
• The wolf in sheep's clothing preying off the Other America.
• Common denominators we can all get behind.
• Two steps back for every three steps forward.
• Snapping people out of the opportunity to learn.
• Taking your career past pretty pictures.
• Collaborating to advocate empowerment of the masses.
• Becoming a Design Exponent.
• Open Source Tools that change everything.
• The atypical elements of working in the private sector.
• Start Up Culture at an internet giant and designing happiness into your career.
• Would you divorce yourself from Red or Blue?
• Walking Obama through his first Facebook Avatar.