From internships at Jacky Winter to leading design operations across digital and product teams, Libby Tiding has built a career at the intersection of design, systems and people. In this interview, she reflects on her path from toy packaging to digital accessibility, shares why good co-design and inclusive thinking are essential to every brief, and offers grounded advice for anyone navigating their early years in the creative industries.
Can you tell us a little about your first few steps in your career. Was there a moment or experience when you realised this was what you'd do as a career?
I started out studying Visual Communication Design at university. As my career in design evolved, I found it surprising that what I liked to design didn’t always neatly fall into the constraints of something visual but also included systems and processes that support designers.
Early on, an internship at Jacky Winter exposed me to the magic of orchestrating commercial creative work. Jeremy Wortsman and the Jacky Winter producer squad gave me insights into the importance of the role producers play in driving delivery, preparing briefs, managing clients, contracting, pricing and being multiple steps ahead of everyone else so artists can do their best work. I’m forever grateful for that foundational opportunity.
Working as a designer in kids toys I started getting more involved in the operational side of the job. I had never heard of a “studio manager” or “systems thinking” but I knew I loved to design systems for designers. I started to see a different pathway for myself, and began assisting with traffic management for the studio.
Since then, I’ve focussed on roles at the centre of design, business and the customer. I’ve worked as a creative services and studio manager in brand and packaging, a producer in end-to-end UX research, design and digital development, and now design operations across product design, design systems, service design and digital accessibility.
What lessons from your career have most shaped your style and approach?
Tell us about the core values or philosophies that guide your creative practice.
What needs to change, so emerging and under-represented creative professionals have more opportunity, are seen and heard?
Looking ahead, what do you think are the key factors that will influence change for creative professionals?
Tell us some of your favourite, creative professionals and inspiring places in your city!
I love visiting art galleries for inspiration. The addition of the Naala Badu building and “The Tank” at the Art Gallery of NSW is one of my current favourites.
Kinokuniya is a book shop experience like no other, and I love the breadth of genres they carry from comics, art, design, illustration and kids books. I can spend hours in there.
I’m always in awe of the landscape in Sydney, and seeing the land from the perspective of our local Aboriginal community on the Tribal Warrior is a really special and inspiring experience.
What should emerging creative professionals keep in mind as they begin their design career?
Is there anything else you'd like to add?
If I could give one piece of advice, it would be to seek out peers you can trust, share and discuss your work with. This has always enhanced my own experience of working in design, because you don’t know what you don’t know! Connecting with others has helped me identify blind spots, understand problems more deeply, improve the quality of my work and made me some treasured friendships along the way.
Finally, I’d like to quote the great philosopher, Jake the Dog from Adventure Time: “Dude, suckin' at something is the first step to being sorta good at something.”