INDUSTRIAL DESIGN: I could use your help

Lilly Olejnicki just graduated from Virginia Tech’s Industrial Design program with the department’s Excellence in Thesis Award. She is also walking into one of the hardest job markets for junior designers I have seen in my career.

That part is not her fault. Companies are hiring slower, asking for more experience, and taking fewer risks on the exact people who need someone to take the first one.

I have been mentoring Lilly for the past year through the SetFire Foundation, and she is the kind of young designer you want to bet on. She listens, improves, brings her own perspective without making it about ego, and does the work without being asked twice. Those qualities are rare at any level, especially at the start of a career.

She is looking for her first industrial design role and she deserves a real shot. If you are hiring, know someone who is, or can make an introduction that might help, reach out to Lilly directly or send me a message.

She has done everything right. She just needs the right person to open the door.

linkedin.com/in/lilly-olejnicki-35328a2ab