In preparation for our second interview workshop, Interview Ninja #2: The Impromptu Interview, we are proud to present our third panelist profile of Lorena Duran, Assistant Director of International Design at Christie’s. Meet her in person tomorrow, Tuesday, August 9, 2011, 6:30 PM at Creative Solutions Services 37 West 28th Street 5th Floor, New York, NY
This event is open to college students and recent grads looking for internships or entry level jobs who are looking to get personal feedback from a professional on their interview skills. Register here!
What is your current position? I am Assistant Director of International Design at Christie’s, which essentially means that I give the creative direction for top client projects that have a global reach.
Was there ever a time you were being interviewed but didn’t realize it at the time? Not really, I think I am fully aware of the fact that I am in an actual interview setting more often than not. However, I think that in one way or the other, every random encounter with people that I do not know becomes an interview of sorts.
How can you make impromptu interviews happen? I think the best way is go to settings that are frequented by the people I am interested in meeting or working with. The best case is if I go to those settings by myself which forces me to interact with the individuals that visit those spaces. I make then a significant effort to open myself up for conversations.
Where are prospective interns most likely to find their future bosses? Teachers are one of the most immediate possibilities to find internship opportunities, family friends are another great source of potential employers / internships. However, I have always been much more interested in people that are not familiar to me and as such, I often look for whomever can give me access to the specific projects I want to develop, even if I have to initiate that contact on my own.
What was most exciting to you about the chance to participate in our panel, The Impromptu Interview? I think that initiatives born within student groups are truly compelling since they give me great perspective on what younger generations are interested in and how they are looking to fit within the current design environment.
