yep the guy is trying to get a job so he is doign the best he can the market is tought …we got to do what we can…
maybe if coroflot set up the pages in a grid fashion so all you see is images and names in some sort of grid that might help a little bit…
coroflot graphic team what do you think ???
guest – I think you mean a white boy-try’n to front like they are hip-hop from the suburbs-
I have tats-and grew up an urban lifestyle single parent home on child support and because of this and how i look you are not going to hire me–well tht sukks for the company if you dont hire who ever because of there look and not the work-they are not going to be hired as a model-they are going to design and be creatitive-judge them off that-
I admit i am a not great with grammer-hasn’t got me in too much trouble yet-
knock on wood
I think he had great work and the pages were well laid out. I just think that on some of the pages there was too much written copy. I would change that if you would go into an interview with this portfolio-because they are going to be reading that copy (text) you would be saying it in part of your presentation.
I wonder what the person of that portfolio thinks about all this?? probably loves it extra plublicity…
Hey Tim keep updating your portfolio so its always on the top.
Its fun knowing that how little things you do can piss off so many people.
Enjoy it.
And your Wallmart microwave looks great.
I guess I’ll also put up a post “darn, this guy is pissing me off, cos his portofolio is so damn good” next time, with my very own portofolio. Selfpromotion… well, Tim, nice self promotion.
But you really shouldn’t be pissed at yourself 
Hope it’ll get you a fat job!
he does have some good work… but seems a little …“odd” and yes, he is annoying on the corfolios.
we passed on him.
BZIA
(jumbled)
wow, that was hard to figure out. Why bother jumbling?
I wouldn’t worry about portfolios on coroflot, Ive mentioned them as a possible source for new hires to the design director at my company and thinks they’re crap. We just go by word of mouth through the office, if we need someone we start making phone calls and then gather about five or so people to interview and take out to lunch for personality tests.
The unfortunate thing is that design software has made it possible for a lot of new “designers” to enter the job market, but rarely does my office find someone of true originality and intelligence that we would let off the leash to work on their own projects. I wouldn’t hire the majority of the people on this forum just by the general bitchiness and lack of professionalism.
And to the person who thinks that it’s unfortunate that companies don’t hire people because of the way they dress and appear, as if it’s something against their creativity. - WHO DO YOU THINK BUYS THE STUFF WE MAKE! over 90% of the people I deal with are guys in suits that could give a damn about your creativity, they want professionals that can make their multi-million dollar project happen, on time, on budget, and without lame excuses. Would you give 30 million dollars to some kid that can’t spell, can’t speak, and dresses like a gangsta?
speaking of, did you read your own post?
What you say is true of certain industries. Where I work, I’ve never seen the CEO wear a tie.
The culture varies greatly from company to company. When I used to work at a design firm, we ALMOST didn’t get a job with Burton Snowboards because we came too dressed up! We came in kaki’s and shirts, they where in ripped jeans and t-shirts and could care less about are record for on time, under budget delivery, or our list of design awards. They wanted a bunch of people they could feel comfortable working with. It worked out, but it took some doing to overccome the first impression, imagine if we came in with ties!
It’s tough not to generalize, but I know first hand that major corprate recruiters troll the corefolio. A lot of places don’t, but a lot of places do. BTW, how do you think those people you call up hear about new talent?
Actually I just wrote that as a joke to incite comments. I like to see which one of you a-holes will take the bait first. So predictable.
Shouldn’t you all be sketching or something.
lol. i’m sure sketching as hell.
How’s being clever working out for you?
haha…I really hope your not involved in one of those design studio’s wrapped around who has a “good reputation” within the IDSA circle of jack-offs.
I’ve known too many crap designers in that circle who talk a lot and throw drop names but haven’t designed crap…bunch of design talkers quoting from the latest Wallpaper issue…talk, word-of-mouth is crap…your only as good as your last project, a-hole.
funny how a post about someone updating their portfolio too much can turn into an all out clash of egos.
Welcome to the internet, a place where people post comments about those they claim to despise yet can’t stop talking about.
This really has turned into a discussion of expectations. I made a post about this guys spelling of Wal-Mart and everyone seems to have jumped to say it doesn’t matter. The discussion has also broadened to include a few other aspects of our profession:
I’ve worked in several corporate design departments. Each one was different. Some were very casual, some were very formal. I wish I could dress like Steve Jobs everyday, but sometimes I need to put on my grownup outfit to go see an important customer! Every company is different. But all were similar with respect to having a high standard for what went out the door to customers. It had to be right and it had to be good. Sure, sometimes we sent out crap because they pushed deadlines or gave us a bad design brief. But in general, there was a high bar.
If giving 50% is good enough for some of you guys then I wish you good luck in your next career. There are over 5,500 industrial design portfolios listed on Coroflot. That’s your competition when it’s time to find a job or when you get a crappy review and your boss starts wondering if there may be someone better out there for your job.
I’m not trying to get all preachy here. I’m just saying that I’m not nitpicking when I mentioned the misspelling of Wal-Mart on this guy’s portfolio. It said to me he didn’t care enough to have someone check it during the multiple updates he’s been doing!!!
Amen
I honestly don’t think there is a good reason to limit “updates”, or restrict people from “bumping” frequently either. I agree that some of these morons are really excessive, but the reality of the situation is that nobody really NEEDS to use these things unless they are casually browsing for local talent, or trying to find a job.
I was an “update abuser” as well when I was looking for employment this summer. I would “update” once every other day or so. I didn’t “update” more then once a day, and I didn’t try and add to my “views” number either. I hardly added any new content, or have a significant change to my resume, but I did want to be seen somewhat on the corefolio section. With over 5,000 portfolios there, do you REALLY think anyone would bother to sit down and look at more then a dozen pages of them in a day? Considering the way it is used by people right now, it’s not likely.
Did my corefolio really help me? Yes and No. I had 3 experiences where someone contacted me based upon it.
The first one was local and had obviously run a search on designers located in my state. I did get contacted, but I never made it in for an interview because the position was filled by then.
The second one was local as well, and when I did get an interview the person I met with was also a designer and said he had looked at my corefolio and website. It served it’s purpose.
The 3rd one was for a company in NJ, and it appeared he had just been talent scouting anyone from the corefolio section who caught his eye. Had I not gotten a job, I may have done an interview with them.
The truth is, nobody really wants to fly you half way across the country just to interview you if they don’t think you are that talented in the first place. Companies want to find a LOCAL designer, and they won’t bother to contact you unless you really stand out. I live in “a Midwest State”, and I saw maybe 10 positions listed for my state at any given time. I was sending resumes out to companies in: CA, NJ, MA, TX, WA, NY, etc. Had I gotten anyone of these jobs, I would not have been able to afford the cost of living!
I think these times are tough for all designers. People that don’t excel at EVERYTHING are easily overlooked. Some of you may think, “Well good, if you can’t hack it you don’t belong”, but I think that’s an unfair way to judge students who have limited experience. It isn’t a level playing field for a student trying to compete with someone possessing 3 + years of experience. Most places I sent resumes to where small firms needing “a designer” to fill in a gap left by downsizing. I never saw an opportunity where more then 3 designers were working in a department. It was more like the senior designer (mostly doing management duty), an assistant designer (carrying most of the work load), and a “to be hired” junior designer. Anyone taking that coveted 3rd spot in those particular offices really isn’t likely to be someone who needs extensive training.
The bottom line is your corefolio will NOT get you a job, but it does help you get discovered. If people want to update their’s like crazy, let them! If you don’t want to see the “same damn student’s portfolio” all the time, then limit your search to 3 years of experience.
i think the best way to get a regular job for anyone interested working as any type of designer is to be politically correct.
i know i’m not, and i never be but that’s the way it is right now with american companies.
but here’s something you should pay close attention to if you want to see beyond the corporate or company curtain:
at high level those in charge of creating rules for the corp/company/firm develop cetain techniques / guidelines or copy them from another source to promote a conservative environment for lower levels ( i’m not emphasizing on small businesses but i won’t count them out because the small ones feed off the big ones- this is another discussion which i don’t want to bore you with) so everyone stays attentive and very self concious about their own procedures. specially in corporations/companies larger than 500-1000. the higher the number of employees the more complex the visual.
at low level they’re affraid once they make an irregular decision it could upset the whole system and bring themselves and their company misery and misfortune for the next 100 years!!
at both levels they’re nervous, uptight as hell, and worried about everything imaginable. they envision everything to turn into a chain reaction from any side of the equation since everything goes hand in hand.
true if you’re higher level you have better control of chain of command but it’s a double edge sword. what if you “think” you’re catering to the right environment.because most likely your decisions are based on some other guy’s like an executive who created those rules prior to your employment to change the company’s direction for better results, but infact it was just a ploy to get himself a better return. in other words a short term executive heist plan. some go as far as getting themselves in trouble like enron but the smarter ones keep themselves happy with smaller gains not attracting so much attention.
this is the atmosphere that’s ruling the american business scene and it’s all due to the same problematic - making rules.
if you’re serious about your carrier in any place before you finish an interview make sure you know what type of rules are made and who makes those rules. sometimes it’s not clear what those rules are and you have to do a little research on your own. (that’s why i suggest keep track of companies and what they do with the possible help of an inside and as an outsider yourself.) if you’re happy with it go for it, otherwise you live and learn the hard way. you might spend 20 years in some company and not even realise what’s going on until it’s too late. unless of course you really don’t mind and find your situation optimal for your qualifications and the whole thing suiting you well.
this is the worst thing about american companies right now and i don’t see any of them evangelizing themselves in near future.
all you execs out there reading this correct me if i’m wrong.
UFO - nice post.
Have you read Tom Peter’s latest book Re-Imagine! ?
There is a great discussion of “disruptive behavior” and corporate “destruction”. His theory is you need to “destroy” your current organization before you can begin fresh. This is obviouly metaphoric. It also needs to be a top down strategy. The CEO needs to wake up and make sure all of his organization is playing by the new rules. This means firing the old dogs who don’t want to learn the new tricks. It is a very difficult process, and there aren’t very many success stories for larger companies.
The theory of disruptive behavior is perfect for the design profession. To “disrupt” a market means you get noticed with a new-to-the-world product concept. A good example is the iPod. Sure, there were MP3 players before the iPod, but Apple disrupted that market by introducing an iconic form with a great GUI (and plenty of marketing hype).
What point am I making? As a designer you need to pick your battles. Trying to change your organization’s values and corporate style probably isn’t going to happen from the design department. What you CAN do is disrupt the hell out of the marketplace.
