Applications are open

The many reasons to present at DO24

We believe we’ve created something special with Design Outlook, and our past presenters agree that the experience for each of them was unforgettable.

We’re officially looking for our 2024 presenter cohort.

Video: 2023 Presenters reflect on their experience

Submit your presentation idea now

Watch the call for presenters info session recording

Everything you get from presenting at Design Outlook

There are many benefits to presenting at Design Outlook, such as professional development, visibility and recognition, networking with your peers, collaborating with others and expanding your own perspective as you produce your presentation.

A photograph of Oliver Ree presenting at DO22 A photograph of three women attending DO22, two of them taking photos of the stage with their phones

In addition to these, we also provide our presenters with:

  • A presentation fee of $750 incl. GST to cover your time
  • Reasonable expenses covered (i.e. if you need specific materials or supplies)
  • A dedicated presentation coach to shape a memorable story
  • A dedicated experience manager to help with anything you need
  • Hair and makeup on the day
  • Several professional photography shots
  • Video recording of your talk published on YouTube
  • A gift bag full of things we love
  • A complimentary ticket for a friend, colleague, or anyone you choose

International/interstate presenters will be offered an economy flight and accommodation in Melbourne.

Our themes for 2024

DO24 is more immersive than both DO22 and DO23, showcasing design excellence across the realms of UX and Product design, service design, strategic design, and more.

...
Design Leadership

This theme unveils the vital role of leaders in fostering an ethos of design excellence. We'll delve into the practices of successful design leaders, dissect their strategies, and provide actionable advice on inspiring creativity and embedding design thinking within organisations.

...
Future of Design

What is the future of design? Where are we going and what does the future look like? In this theme we’ll speculate on design itself, what we think it may be and what we want it to be.

...
Design at Scale

Scaling a business whilst maintaining design quality presents a complex challenge. Here, we'll explore how to expand design processes without sacrificing the high fidelity, drawing wisdom from industry pioneers who've successfully scaled design whilst preserving its utmost quality.

...
Design Impact

This theme uncovers the profound influence of superior design on businesses, society, and the environment. We'll probe how design functions as a compelling catalyst for positive change and how designers can optimise their contributions to a better world.

What we're looking for

First and foremost, we're looking for you. Don't doubt yourself, and go for it.

Whether you're a fresh face in design bursting with innovative ideas or a rising star ready to shine, this call for presenters is your moment to seize the spotlight.

We embrace diversity and champion inclusivity. We welcome submissions from juniors taking their first steps into the limelight, as well as seasoned professionals who are passionate about nurturing the next generation of designers and leaders.

So, if you're ready to share your insights, inspire others, and make your mark on the world of design, we want to hear from you!

A photograph of Oliver Ree presenting at DO22 A photograph of three women attending DO22, two of them taking photos of the stage with their phones

Presentation requirements

At a minimum, all DO presentations must be:

  • Broad, diverse, different – key to our value proposition, we want ideas that speak to design as a broad community in a way that everyone can take something away
  • Optimistic, playful, pragmatic – we want presentations that not only highlight a challenge or opportunity, but that provide suggestions on what to do about it and how great things can be in easy-to-consume ways. It is a long day and your presentation will be received incredibly well if it nails these three things.
  • Bring new perspectives – we want presentations that are insightful and in some ways like comedy routines; they shine a light on something we might already know or believe in, and challenge us in a way that changes our perspective. (Don’t worry, you don’t need to be funny, you can be serious).

In addition to this we heavily favour ideas that are provocative and challenge the status quo. We love rebels and dissidents. We love makers, breakers, and haters. We love anyone that has a point of view and the hunger to change hearts and minds.

And finally, here are a few things that we aren’t looking for:

Putting together a conference like Design Outlook means making a lot of hard choices.

We need to consider many aspects when selecting presenters, such as considering the things that are important to our community, audience, and our beliefs.

Considering all of these things means that we need to make tough choices about the outstanding content our community has to offer.

  • Any presentation you have already delivered at any other conference
  • Ideas that are too specific (i.e. too technical or require a lot of domain knowledge)
  • Presentations that are too simple and generic (i.e. Design is not what it looks like, but how it works. Duh. We know.)

Selection process & timeline

There will be approximately 10 presentations selected by our panel, and 2 from our people’s choice process.

Our panellists will be looking for alignment to our themes and what we’re looking for outlined above, as well as how compelling your idea is—your idea doesn’t need to be perfect or ‘finished’, but you’ll need to have thought about it enough to be an engaging pitch.

We’ll work with you to get your idea and presentation to a level of perfection should you be successfully selected.

The calll for preesentations officially opens and we're accepting submissions

We are here

The submission form is closed and we won't accept any additional submissions

Our team will begin to review and score each submission

Successful submissions notified, and unsuccessful submissions provided with feedback, love, and encouragement

Successful submissions notified, and unsuccessful submissions provided with feedback, love, and encouragement

Presentation vs. Talk

We want to take a quick moment to highlight the word ‘Presenter’ to you.

We choose to use this word over ‘speaker’ as not everyone that shares our stage ‘talks’; we have Auslan interpreters on stage at all times. It is critical that when you’re putting together your content and submission you are aware that it will be translated and that your presentation needs to be enjoyed by all.

A photograph of three people having a conversation through Auslan A photograph of Emy presenting and Mark translating to Auslan

Ready to submit?

Submit your presentation idea now

FAQs

Answers to all the questions you might have, and if you still. have questions please reach out to us at [email protected]

We’ll delete all submissions after the selection process concludes to ensure that your idea stays your own.

You do. If successful, you’ll license it to us to use for the purposes of the conference and promoting future festivals.

Absolutely, just let us know by sending an email to [email protected]

We’ll work with you to get the perfect presentation time allocation for your idea, but you can aim for 15, 25, and 35 minutes as possible options.

Due to the volume of submissions we’ll receive, we are unable to offer extensions and you will be unable to share your idea with us.

Yes! We love different modes of engaging the audience, please be creative!

Absolutely – we love people sharing the stage and co-presenting. Just add other presenters’ details in the ‘Anything else we need to know?’ field.