Reinvention in Los Angeles

The Design Conference has been a signature event for RTKL since 1988, when the first group of budding designers came together in Dallas for a few days of networking and dialogue. Fast forward to 2015, which saw the beloved annual event totally reinvented for a new group and the beginning of a new era in the company’s history.

Following the official merger of Callison with RTKL under our parent company, Arcadis, we faced myriad questions both logistical and philosophical in nature. Joining up has proven to be much more complex than fitting two pieces of a puzzle together. From logos, titles and branding—oh my!—to mission, culture and vision: what would this new design firm look like?

Early on, before many of these questions would find their answers, employees from Callison moved into the RTKL office on South Hope Street in downtown Los Angeles. And so it was there, the home of the first office to physically combine forces as CallisonRTKL, that this year’s group of 18 dynamic minds and up-and-coming design leaders from all over the world came together in September to do the messy work of building bridges where there were none before.

#callisonrtkldescon at the Stahl House

A photo posted by CallisonRTKL Design Conf 2015 (@re_la2015) on Sep 17, 2015 at 4:13pm PDT

For all the time, energy and brainpower invested in coordinating a whirlwind agenda comprised of executive coaching and team building activities, tours of the historic Hollywood Roosevelt, Stahl House, downtown LA’s Grand Park, Walt Disney Concert Hall and Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, and an improv comedy workshop at Upright Citizens Brigade (the legendary comedy troupe founded by Matt Besser, Amy Poehler, Ian Roberts, and Matt Walsh) among other events, the 2015 Design Conference’s major takeaway is summed up in two short words:

“Yes and.”

The phrase was discovered at Upright Citizens Brigade, where participants were challenged to come up with a fictional product and compose a commercial jingle for it—the wackier, the better. The directive was to build on one another’s ideas, no matter how impossible or “out there” the concept may seem, rather than usurp the creative process by shutting any one idea or fellow collaborator down. Simply put, instead of saying “no,” say “yes and.”

#callisonrtkldescon

A photo posted by Eason Zhou (@eas_zhou) on Sep 17, 2015 at 7:01pm PDT

Rather than unceremoniously smash together the carefully-crafted legacies of two powerhouse design firms or, worse yet, toss them out the window and start from scratch, this strategy compels us to build on the power of one another’s ideas.

Yes. And.

This easily grasped but potentially transformational tenet continued to guide the group through its activities over the remainder of the conference, and attendees pledged to take “Yes and,” and all other lessons learned, back to their individual offices. As such, this group of 18 become kickstarters for a fresh kind of momentum and a new mantra for designing our way to solutions for a better world.

We can’t wait to see where this year’s Design Conference attendees and CallisonRTKL go next.

Check out more memorable moments from #callisonrtkldescon on Instagram and stay tuned to You Are Here for a behind the scenes look at the 2015 CallisonRTKL Design Conference! Attendees James Dallow, Stefanie Hajer and Michael Friebele will blog about their experiences over the coming days.