Gallery: Desperately Seeking Talent: Where to Find Great Designers for Your Team
01recruit-talent
Whether you're starting a company, launching a product, or just trying to lure people to your website, design can make or break your company. You don't have to look far for proof: Apple has set a toweringly high bar for product design. Facebook has spent billions on acquiring companies that kill it on UI design. And companies that were built with an arty eye from the get-go (like AirBnB, whose founding team are RISD grads) are raising rounds with billion-dollar valuations. How can you compete with the high-rollers? You can't. But don't sit the game out on the bench. There's tons of young, hungry design talent out there in undiscovered corners. You just have to know where to look. *Photo: Jon Snyder/Wired*[](http://stag-komodo.wired.com/about/#faq13)
02behance-creative-portfolio-site-scott-belsky-wired-design
Behance ------- __What Is It?__ An easily searchable [portfolio site](http://www.behance.net/) where you’ll find a wide variety of designers with a broad range of skills. __Why Go There?__ Access to professionals with pedigrees that include stints at legendary [studios](http://www.behance.net/gallery/Nike-iD-improving-the-in-store-experience/673503) [like](http://www.behance.net/gallery/IDEO-Career-Management-Guides/102302) [IDEO](http://www.behance.net/gallery/Strategy-and-realization-for-new-GE-sealant-category/623437). Behance is the brainchild of [Scott Belsky](https://twitter.com/#!/scottbelsky), the multi-track artreprenuer who launched [products](http://www.scottbelsky.com/528/42/behance-projects/action-method-action-runner) and a [design conference](http://the99percent.com/conference) while writing a [book](http://www.amazon.com/Making-Ideas-Happen-Overcoming-ebook/dp/B003NX75W2/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&qid=1335122244&sr=8-1) and investing in [Pinterest](http://angel.co/scottbelsky/investments). __Drool-Worthy Portfolio?__ Designer [Matt Day](http://www.behance.net/matterial) has worked at Astro Studios and Fuse Project and boasts a collection of gorgeous minimalist consumer electronics and products.
03gradcad-3d-modeling-community-job-site-marketplace-wired-design-2
GrabCAD ------- __What Is It?__ A [social network/portfolio/marketplace](http://grabcad.com/) for mechanical engineering talent. __Why Go There?__ Imagine you designed a widget that earned a windfall on Kickstarter. Now it needs to be mass produced, with no margin for error. Keep your clamoring fans happy by hiring one of the mechanical engineers on GrabCad who can provide advice and design services. __Drool-Worthy Portfolio?__ [Scott Bruins](http://grabcad.com/scott.bruins) has a diverse portfolio encompassing everything from renderings of video game guns to minimal jewelry designs.
04dribbble-design-portfolio-site-graphic-designers-dan-cederholm-wired-design
Dribbble -------- __What Is It?__ An invite only [portfolio/social network](http://dribbble.com/) for visual and user interaction specialists. __Why Go There?__ The site’s exclusive nature and the street cred of cofounder [Dan Cederholm](https://twitter.com/#!/simplebits) ensures that the quality is top drawer. This site collects work from the most talented designers working today and provides an easy way to try to hire them. __Drool-Worthy Portfolio?__ [Louie Mantia](http://dribbble.com/mantia), formerly of Apple and Square, who designed the new iTunes icon as well as many other recognizable digital artifacts.
05coroflot-online-design-portfolio-industrial-design-community-wired-design
Coroflot -------- __What Is It?__ One of the oldest and most respected [portfolio sites](http://www.coroflot.com/) which serves as a key recruiting tool for Apple, Nike, Target, and other design leaders. It is also the sister site of leading design blog [Core77](http://core77.com/). __Why Go There?__ A community of supportive designers with skills covering all bases from corporate identity to products to fashion to interactive work. __Drool-Worthy Portfolio?__ [Scott Wilson](http://www.coroflot.com/MNML), former creative director of Nike, and creator of the [TikTok watch](http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1104350651/tiktok-lunatik-multi-touch-watch-kits), one of Kickstarter’s earliest successes.
0699-design-logo-marketplace-wired-design-2
99 Designs ---------- __What Is It?__ [A marketplace](http://99designs.com/) where companies in need of logos, app icons, or other corporate identity elements offer a reward and designers create logos on spec to try to win it. This business strategy riles the design community, but it can be a good, low cost way to get a decent logo. __Why Go There?__ 99 Designs provides tools that make it easy to communicate what you are looking for in a design (e.g. styles, formats, etc.), mechanisms to work with the designers, and a payment infrastructure that keeps billing simple. __Drool-Worthy Portfolio?__ Browse through the [logo shop](https://99designs.com/logo-design/store?page=1) where you can find hundreds of readymades that can be customized.
07elegantly-design-recruiting-tool-created-mint-design-jason-putorti-wired-design-2
Elegant.ly ---------- __What Is It?__ Started by famed Mint.com designer [Jason Putorti](https://twitter.com/#!/putorti) and recruiter Amy Jackson. [The site](http://elegant.ly/) flips the usual process by having hiring managers pitch an opportunity, usually for a founder level roll at a start up, to a team of vetted designers. __Why Go there?__ Putorti’s reputation ensures that high quality talent will be attracted to the site, and the concierge support provided by Jackson makes screening portfolios easier for the hiring company. __Drool-Worthy Portfolio?__ The site is predicated on the idea that the great talents already have gigs, but may be restless. Designers can screen opportunities before sharing their portfolios.
08carbonmade-online-portfolio-for-hipsters-wired-design
CarbonMade ---------- __What Is It?__ The [portfolio site](http://carbonmade.com/) for hipsters. Seriously: their login button just says “Moustache”. __Why Go There?__ CarbonMade is a treasure trove of Millennial design talent. If you want to capture the zeitgeist of youth culture, turn here first. __Drool-Worthy Portfolio?__ [Aly Barohn](http://alybarohn.carbonmade.com/) has made a mark designing costumes and props for music videos, theater productions, and film with a client roster that includes They Might Be Giants and PBS.
09custommade-online-market-place-for-artisans-furniture-wired-design
CustomMade ---------- __What Is It?__ The best place to find old world artisans of almost any stripe. [The site](http://www.custommade.com/) is filled with profiles for custom woodworkers, tinsmiths, glazers, and has become one of the largest directories of skilled artisans in the world. __Why Go There?__ CustomMade makes it easy to find an artisan with the exact skills you need and their marketplace features helps ensure that the clients and maker are both protected before any money changes hands. __Drool-Worthy Portfolio?__ The combination of organic shapes combined with industrial materials helps [Pagomo furniture](http://www.custommade.com/swivel-chair-set-with-ottoman/by/alexander-ross) stick out on page filled with more traditional designs.
10deviant-art-online-portfolios-for-designers-artists-illustrators-creative-professionals-wired-design
Deviant Art ----------- __What Is It?__ A sprawling [community](http://www.deviantart.com/) of creative types ranging from teenagers applying to art school to creative directors who have set the style for Academy Award winning movies. __Why Go There?__ If you need a new mascot, an animated video, or any kind of project with a heavily illustrative/pictorial focus, there is no better site on the web to find skilled and willing designers. __Drool-Worthy Portfolio?__ Too many to list, but [Claire Hummel](http://shoomlah.deviantart.com/gallery/), a concept artist for Microsoft’s Game group, shows the typical breadth and quality of artists on the site.
1137-signals-design-job-board-editorial-content-wired-design
37 Signals Job Board -------------------- __What Is It?__ A [job board](http://jobs.37signals.com/) with a focus on designers. __Why Go There?__ The technology isn’t new or interesting, but when you advertise on this board, you have a good sense of the type of designers who will be likely to respond. 37 Signals has a reputation for no-nonsense design with a focus on business metrics. Other popular design blogs also host job boards which reflect the personality of the editors. [Smashing Magazine](http://jobs.smashingmagazine.com/) will help you find talent with slick, web/mobile portfolios while [Design Observer’s](http://designobserver.coroflot.com/public/jobs_browse.asp) board tends to attract designers with more focus on strategy and culture. __Drool-Worthy Portfolio?__ These sites don’t host portfolios, but the content on their host blogs can give you a sense of what you might get.
