Jamie Kwan | Profile

Let's go back to 2013, where I found a passion for using design to help people thrive.

Fresh out of school, I started my career immersing myself in community-focused design with a boutique agency. I had the opportunity to facilitate youth-engagement workshops with the East Scarborough Storefront—an adaptive re-use community hub designed in part by the neighbourhood residents and kids.

Seeing the impact of participatory design cemented my foundational beliefs in human-centered design.

I found a joy for instiling elements of discovery in my work, and rewarding curiosity through design.

I love that digital has a unique ability to prompt diverse and dynamic experiences in our day-to-day lives, especially when integrated into the built world. I pursued a Masters in Digital Media, focusing my work on human-computer interaction, kid-centered design, and multisensory experiences. I started to use a lens of storytelling—studying how narratives can impact the process and products of design as a universal language. Naturally, this landed me into the world of theme parks.

Theme Park Design taught me about the value of 'hero-centered design'.

Designing attractions (and literal fantasy worlds) showed me how heroic transformations can happen when you empower your end-user in play and imagination—design elements I think are highly transferrable to our everyday life. I continue to think with a hero-centered mindset, applying an experience-first mindset in the spaces we surround ourselves everyday: the workplace. I believe that our day-to-day lives can be, and should be, heroically meaningful—and that starts with the process of design.

Today, I act as a connector of playful, creative creatures. I love to elevate wonderful weirdoes by creating the space for design to truly thrive.

I believe that design can be made accessible, fun, and empowering for all; and that this leads to more diversity in thought and innovation. I've found a passion in connecting people who were seldom to cross paths in solving problems together. I see design internally and externally—working with the belief that our organizational cultures have a direct impact on the solutions we put out into the world. I love to build opportunities for ideas to take flight, and often spend 90% of my time creating the conditions for creativity to thrive. And right now, I'm lucky to be doing that at Atlassian by building their new Service Design practice for their Advisory Services.

Here's a little bit about how I do, what I do.

Discovery Through Engagement

I help organizations work through big ideas and sticky problems by building a deep understanding of the system at play through the use of primary and secondary research. I design effective (and fun!) engagements to connect brands with their people and audience in a meaningful and enjoyable way, and discover what makes their heart tick. I lead end-user engagement and participatory design processes that have included everyone from middle-schoolers all the way up to senior leaders.

Featured Project: The Future of Movies: What Do Kids Think?

Synthesis & Storytelling

I love to read between the lines. I transform data into storytelling, drawing insights that reach a wide audience, informing workplace strategies, product innovation, organizational transformation, and brand positioning. I make complex ideas easy to understand, and set strategic project foundations that launches designers into doing their best work.

Featured Project: Experience Canalside: Panama Canal Tourism Plan

Experience Design Roadmap

I'm a Designer at my origins, and I know that design is not a singular endeavour—I help collaborators see things from afar, to understand the smaller parts and pieces that make up a larger holistic solution. Whether spatial, cultural, tangible, digital, or a service, I use a hero-centered mindset to map out and storyboard the end-to-end journey, identifying and prioritizing the touchpoints that create optimal impact (and transformation) for the end-user.

Featured Project: Into the Mind of a Storyteller: Toronto Int'l Film Festival

Cross-Disciplinary Connector

Let's make it happen. As a generalist, my core skills across consulting, architectural design, service design, and digital experience design gives me the language to collaborate with very diverse team members across multiple teams. I pride myself in problem-solving at the blue-sky scale and at the tiny pixel scale, while connecting teams that would have never crossed paths before.

Featured Project: Creating a Creative Catalyst

Want to chat?
Let's work together!

I'm always down for a coffee.
Feel free to get in touch at hello@jamiemkwan.com.