Date: April 3, 2013
Speaker:
Charles Austen Angell — Modern Edge

Building a Kick-Ass company is more than just difficult—it’s a high-wire act that challenges even the most skilled product development acrobats, and there’s no net. Just look at Tim Cook’s apology for Apple’s Maps application—The company that danced on the wire for so long had to swallow its pride when it kicked its own ass. What can we learn from that catastrophe? More importantly, how do you know when your product is ready to kick ass, and when your ass is hanging out?

About the Speaker
Charles Austen Angell (@AustenAngell) is Founder and President of Modern Edge, Inc. based in Portland Oregon. With more than 25 years of professional experience in Industrial Design, he has worked with industry leaders in Health & Wellness, Mobility, Home Products and Experiential Environments. A native Australian, Mr. Angell has traveled extensively through Europe, the Americas, Africa, China, Southeast Asia, and Australia examining the role of culture, politics and geography in shaping our evolving global design industry. Mr. Angell is passionate about creating new markets and designing product relationships that transcend cultural borders to enhance our shared human experience. Mr. Angell is the Chairman-Elect on the Board of the Industrial Design Society of America and was the Chairman of the 2012 IDSA International Conference in Boston, “THE FUTURE IS…” He was one of the original five trustees for the Design Foundation, a public charity supporting design education through educational and social responsibility. Through his numerous speaking engagements, publications and teaching, Mr. Angell is committed to increasing the value of human creativity to benefit human society and commerce. Mr. Angell is a graduate of Purdue University.