who started the design showcase?
My name is Nanette Powell and I founded The Design Showcase in 2008. I am also a graphic designer with a Bachelor’s degree in Visual Communications from Loyola University in Chicago. My work experience includes a mix of graphic design and recruiting.

what is my experience?
I have been a recruiting professional for 15+ years and have gained experience in all areas of recruiting throughout my career. Below is a brief outline of my experience.

• I started my career in recruiting for United Airlines as an Employment Assistant. I worked with an Employment Manager to recruit ground support personnel for various airports.
• Accepted a position as a University Relations Coordinator for Motorola. Coordinated the campus recruiting program for a sector of the organization and after 4 years was promoted to a Staffing Specialist. In this role I managed the contractor/temporary hiring for the same sector.
• Accepted a position as a Recruiter for Chicago Public Schools. I recruited teachers for one of the six regions in the district. After about a year, I received a promotion to Communications Specialist. In this role I designed the department’s databases for storing job order information and applicant/candidate information. I also managed the Resume Center that maintained these systems.
• I worked as a Project Managerfor Hudson Highland Group, a global staffing agency. My primary role was to manage a nationwide event series that focused on recruiting diverse professionals.
• I later worked as a Campus Recruiter for Jones Lang LaSalle, a commercial real estate firm, managing the campus recruiting process for a list of assigned schools. In addition, I developed the firm’s first centralized internship program. Additionally, I coordinated the firm’s participation at diversity conferences/events.
• In many of these roles I also took on extra projects creating presentations, flyers, invitations, ads and other printed documents because of my graphic design background. I also took on various Freelance Graphic Design projects throughout the past six years.

what is the goal of the design showcase?
Simple…create an online community that allows new designers to showcase their work and bridge the gap between school and career.