Lynda Deakin

Operating Partner

2023 - Current

Strategic Advisor

2022

Partner & Executive Director of Health

2019 - 2022

In 2018 I was asked to lead our Health Portfolio, IDEO’s largest revenue generating business in North America (~$30M). I stepped in to lead an existing team of designers that spanned across Palo Alto, Chicago, Boston & New York. My role included helping the team articulate their desires and aspirations for the impact they wanted to have in the health space. Together, we brought those aspirations to life in a purpose and strategy that could shift IDEO’s portfolio over time. In the past three years, I helped grow the business, attract new talent, provide more clarity and direction and build a strategic foundation for growth. Given the racial reckoning across the globe and the impact Covid was having on marginalized communities, under my leadership, we invested in bringing in an external advisor that could help us align, understand and activate how to create more equity in the health space. The work we did together underpins the shift we want to see in the health space and frames how we can better influence our clients, through our collaborations, to improve health outcomes. Clients during this time included the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Abbott, Amyris, Medtronic, & Otsuka.

Partner & Managing Director of the Food Studio

2010 - 2019

As the leader of a new P&L at IDEO, my role was to focus on bringing a clear vision and purpose that would put a stake in the ground around the ambition we wanted to have in the world. I attracted a team of food passionate designers (from both inside and outside IDEO), and stretched our offer from a primarily product and packaging portfolio to one that included taking on larger issues such as organizational change and addressing systemic changes that are needed in the food space such as food waste, food insecurity etc. We saw significant business growth over the time I led this studio. Clients during this time included ABInBev, Peet’s, Nestle, JM Smuckers, Revolution Foods, MIT Media Lab, Google, & the Culinary Institute of America.

Associate Partner & Director of IDEO's Food Practice

2005 - 2010

As a co-founder of IDEO's Food & Beverage practice as well as a lead in the Consumer Experience Design business community, I helped companies and organizations solve their toughest problems. This included advising clients on strategic business and organizational decisions as well as envisioning the offers that bring those strategies to market. Clients included ConAgra, Campbells, Boston Market & Nestle.

Senior Design Lead

2003 - 2005

As a Senior Design Lead I began to take on larger scale projects and began to focus on leading projects and building a portfolio of work in the food space.

Design Lead

2001 - 2003

Moved to the US and began to lead projects and manage projects teams. Worked with large CPG clients such as Wrigley, P&G, & Nissan.

Industrial Designer

1997 - 2001

Joined IDEO London as a product designer but brought in a broad skillset which included brand, positioning, experience design as well as the creation of storytelling and narrative through multi-media films and worked with a range of projects in the consumer products space.