A Design Director at renowned award-winning branding agency Ragged Edge, Priyjah Paramasivam has had an impressive career in the creative industry to date. She took her first steps into graphic design at Nottingham Trent University before undertaking several agency internships in London. After a final internship, at a beauty and retail branding and packaging design agency, she stayed on as a Junior Designer, gaining experience in how to design across multiple applications and for both small and large-scale formats.
Over the next few years, Priyjah continued to work at several leading branding and digital experience agencies, learning from various creative directors and design leads. In 2019, she joined Ragged Edge as a Senior Designer, where the nurture of her team and some key learning experiences along the way have helped her to develop and progress into her current role as Design Director. As she tells DbyW: “Key moments which have shaped this transition have been learning how crucial ideas are and, just as important, how you tell them. Telling stories and setting ideas up in a way that people can get behind, believe in and understand, can create that all-round ‘yaaaas’ moment between your team and your client. It can be the magic that makes it all click.”
We talked with Priyjah to find out more about what her role at Ragged Edge involves, key pivotal moments that have shaped her career, and her advice for those looking to progress into a senior role in the design industry.
Where did it all begin? What were your first steps into the design industry?
I did a lot of work for free at the beginning, bouncing around from internship to internship for about five months just looking for someone to take a chance on me. I started interning at an agency which focused on beauty branding/packaging and retail and stayed on as a Junior. It was a great way to start out and learn how to design big and small. However, I wouldn’t advise any emerging creatives to work for free, the industry has in recent years changed for the better in this respect and paid internships are now the norm.
You’ve gone from being a Senior Designer to a Design Director at Ragged Edge. What have been the pivotal moments in your career that have helped you to develop?
I have learnt so much from various agencies and directors over the years, but I really feel that I’ve been nurtured in this role through some wonderful help from the Ragged Edge team.
Key moments which have shaped this transition have been learning how crucial ideas are and just as important, how you tell them. Telling stories and setting ideas up in a way that people can get behind, believe in and understand, can often create an all-round ‘yaaaas’ moment between your team and your client. It can be the magic that makes it all click.
I’ve also had to unlearn some things, like putting restrictions on what brands should feel like in certain categories. I’m less afraid to present something that feels wild and weird because sometimes that’s just what you need to stand out.
“I’m less afraid to present something that feels wild and weird because sometimes that’s just what you need to stand out.”
What does your current workday look like?
- Clear my head: 3 rounds on a bag or a run, to make sure my mind is relaxed and ready.
- Find something new: I love a morning peruse. I make it a habit to find something new, nice, or silly in design or absolutely anything. I find that unrelated things often inform my design thinking in unexpected ways.
- Clear my diary: I try as much as possible to get through most catch ups in the morning. We’ve started doing ‘no meeting afternoons’ 2 days a week agency-wide and it’s been really beneficial for carving out time.
- Design bits: Playtime
“I love a morning peruse. I make it a habit to find something new, nice, or silly in design or absolutely anything. I find that unrelated things often inform my design thinking in unexpected ways.”
Can you talk us through the approach and process involved in a key project you’ve recently worked on as Design Director at Ragged Edge?
We worked on a re-brand with the Papier team last year. This was just before my promotion, but I think it’s a great way to describe the process at Ragged Edge.
We started off by defining the strategy and using our brand idea of ‘Invite Magic’ as a springboard to base our ideas on. Alongside the writers and strategists, we spend a lot of our concept phase working out what the idea is, what it feels like and roughly what it could look like — emphasis on could — and the potential of the idea vs the perfection of the design. This phase is wild, and it’s my favorite part of the process.
In the case of Papier we were really inspired by what it is to be a paper person. Papier being the emporium to get lost in, rummage through and find something transformative, and this was the idea that resonated the most with the client.
From there on we start developing what that idea looks like across every element of the brand and bringing it back together in one succinct route. If all goes well (because let’s face it, a creative process isn’t always smooth) then we move on to a refinements phase and then style guides where we tinker and really get into the details.
We had a very close relationship with the internal team at Papier and this was so useful for the following phases. It really helped to inform how we could create a brand with soul but had the tools and rules to make sure they had the ability to continue to grow.
Are there any barriers or challenges that you have faced during your career that stick in your mind and, if so, how have you overcome them?
Working for free was probably the first barrier. I’m so happy that this isn’t the norm anymore, because structures like that are what make the arts a privileged field to work in. I worked weekends during internships and was lucky enough to live with my parents, but this is a luxury most people cannot afford and it most likely speaks to the lack of diversity in this industry.
The lack of representation in the creative industry has also been a challenge to navigate, beyond the sense of feeling like I belong. There’s an importance to representation, in creating an environment where ideas are diverse, perspectives are varied and everyone feels valued, at all levels. You do not need to be a cultural fit (#agencylife) to get a job or a promotion and it took me a minute to realise that what makes me different is my asset and not a tick box. I suppose this isn’t something that I’ve overcome but it’s something I’m more open about and continuously strive to see change.
“There’s an importance to representation, in creating an environment where ideas are diverse, perspectives are varied and everyone feels valued, at all levels. You do not need to be a cultural fit (#agencylife) to get a job or a promotion and it took me a minute to realise what makes me different is my asset and not a tick box.”
What do you think are the most important qualities for being successful in a creative lead role?
The qualities I’ve found most important are probably the ones I’ve stolen from some of my favourite leads I’ve worked with in the past, the things that have shaped me as a designer:
- Make it inspiring: Bring something unseen, unanticipated, surprising to the table.
- Make it fun: Bring a positive attitude and joy to the driest of briefs.
- Make it together: Create an environment where everyone has a voice.
- Make it on time: Guide the project in an efficient way with some wiggle room to get it wrong and time to play.
- Make it make sense: Put it together in a way that tells the story.
There has been lots of discussion in the creative industry around how few women are in senior positions such as Design Director. Do you have any thoughts on how we can counteract this imbalance?
I count myself very lucky to have worked with some wonderful female directors, but I can probably count them on one hand. Things are changing but there is so much further to go. I think real change will come when the industry takes a critical look inward to address how we can change things practically.
Recruiting with targets can be a positive thing; it isn’t necessarily a tick box exercise. It can sometimes mean making sure you’ve cast the net wide enough. Asking the tough questions, such as: Are there any barriers to entry? Is there more to be done with flexible working to ensure working mothers are supported to move up the ladder? Can we create opportunities for people internally or support growth into leadership roles?
Do you have any advice for women and gender expansive creatives looking to move up to a senior role in design?
From my personal experience, I think where you work and who you work for matters. Finding an agency or studio that you can believe in can often be the gateway to them believing in you. It gave me the ambition to really want to push my work creatively and want the Design Director role. That being said, being vocal about your ambition and what you want from your career progression is equally important. Push for goals and targets to get you where you want to be. Good agencies will look for ambition and character because you can definitely train talent.
“I think where you work and who you work for matters. Finding an agency or studio that you can believe in can often be the gateway to them believing in you. It gave me the ambition to really want to push my work creatively and want the Design Director role.”
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- Website: raggededge.com
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