As the Director of Design, my responsibility was to design a visual identity for the theme, a website and digital campaign assets, promotional materials for print and socials, presentation materials, signage and wayfinding, and event collateral and swag for attendees. Tackling all of the above as the sole designer on a team of five students was a rewarding challenge as my work ultimately contributed to the success of the event and a positive event experience.

2022 brought the return of fully in-person events at Northeastern. What started as a question of how do we create an engaging, hybrid experience for attendees quickly shifted to how do we get people in the door so they can reap the benefits of in-person networking, interactive workshops, etc. It was key that our outreach and marketing materials effectively communicated the summit’s purpose, value, and personality to prospective attendees, speakers, and sponsors. And as all are encouraged to attend regardless of gender identity, college, major, or experience level, the summit’s visual identity needed to promote inclusivity and diversity while still acting as an extension of WISE, an organization established by and for Northeastern women.

The 2022 Summit was an absolute success. We had over 250 students from the Boston area and 30 speakers and sponsors attend. We reached people primarily through our socials, word of mouth, and print marketing as a survey we added in the registration process revealed. Day of, people were able to reference both the booklet and website to check the schedule and learn more about the speakers. The wayfinding signage kept the flow of traffic from room to room smooth, helping each item on the agenda run according to time. Attendees were actively using their WISE Summit notebooks and pens to absorb their learnings. And in the weeks following, students were seen walking around the Northeastern campus wearing the t-shirts and tote bags and with the stickers on their belongings, bringing the word to more students and potential future attendees.