Debating speculative work
The sixth instalment of the Mighty Meetup, which was sponsored by Fifth Ring on this occasion, took place in a very windy Aberdeen last night. Fuelled by the thoughts of pizza, chips, beer and good banter many a member of the digital community attended with approximately 40-50 people arriving at 210 Bistro.
The debate topic for the night was that of ‘Speculative Work’. After a good old chat and some tasty food everyone took their seats in preparation for the discussion ahead of them. The setup of the night was different from that of previous meetings with a panel of four speakers sitting at the head of the room. The host of the night Scott Graham, Director of Operations from Deer Digital, introduced the speakers with each individual giving a brief introduction into their stance on spec work.The debate kicked off with Alex Barton, Founder of Student Designers, explaining his approach to design and spec work whilst helping students to gain experience. James Deer, Creative Director of Deer Digital, challenged the idea of student’s working on pitches and important client logos and the commercial fee attributed to this. Dave Crossen, RGU - School of Computer Lecturer, agreed with the opinion of Alex in that students need to be given the chance to build up their portfolio and that the talent of students cannot be ignored. Our very own Steven Milne, Digital Solutions Architect, shared his opinion that as a small set-up company it was acceptable to use students working on your identity and logo and you know this will be low or little cost to you, however to stand out and be noticed you needed to pay the expected fee for the experienced company.The debate was so heated and healthy that it actually went over on time! Note to group - stopwatch is needed next time! This went unnoticed by many as it seemed everyone was engaged in the discussion with many contributors throughout the night. The 'Spec Work Meetup' was a great opportunity for many to network, learn, relax and have a laugh. We hope that the same faces will be attending the next session and that we can all encourage and invite some new Mighty Meetup fans!
