Indy Design Week
Overview
Indy Design Week (IDW) is a non-profit focused on boosting the creative economy in Indianapolis. Since 2018, the organization hosts a week-long festival every year with a wide variety of events focused around art and design. The events range from workshops to panels and are frequented by industry professionals, design enthusiasts, students, and many others.
I joined the organization's board as a Volunteer Coordinator in 2025. After the week concluded, the Executive Director asked if I would officially join the board as the Director of Development. Now, I am focused on building sponsorship, partnership, and funding opportunities.
Discovery
I spoke with other board members to understand the history of IDW. I wanted to understand how the board operated in the past, any successes or failures, and where they saw the organization in the future. It was and is important for me to continue building the development of a seamless board as a part of my position.
The board recently expanded quite vastly. Because I enjoy facilitation and collaborative strategy sessions, the board participated in multiple design-thinking exercises to newly define our values, goals, and processes. We were able to create a space where the team could successfully begin the next planning session for 2026.
Delivery
When I first floated the idea of leading development efforts, I reviewed the organization's offerings. I clearly saw a need for streamlined offerings and consistent messaging.
I differentiated sponsors and partners, which ensures that sponsors are getting recognized as such. I also renamed the sponsorship levels based on type of involvement in the week's or year's events. Along with type differentiation, we are limiting the number of sponsorships per level to promote exclusivity.
To define development efforts, I created a deck for potential sponsorships and partnerships. For specific conversations, I will be customizing the deck based on the organization's interests.
Results
We have yet to completely implement the technical details of sponsorship and partnership. We are actively doing so in conversations and a website revamp. We are also working on multiple other projects that create development income throughout the year.
