Tribute: Mark Dziersk, FIDSA

TRIBUTE

MARK DZIERSK, FIDSA – SO MUCH MORE THAN A GIANT OF OUR PROFESSION

Mark Dziersk, FIDSA, was INNOVATION’s editor for an unprecedented 10 years. With his passing at the end of January 2020, it’s only fitting for him to be the one being written about. He was a giant in our profession. His boundless energy and passion for design enabled him to accomplish so much in his six decades. Mark won awards, judged award programs, is listed on a plethora of patents and served in numerous leadership roles for IDSA, both as its President and Chair. Mark’s clients loved working with him, and his teaching, writing and speaking about design and innovation was extraordinarily inspirational to his students and those in our industry. Although his professional accomplishments were mythic, his enrichment of the lives of his family, friends, colleagues and acquaintances was his true legacy. Mark was more than a giant in the profession. He was a giant of a human being. The two of us would like to give you a glimpse into the person he was.

It’s appropriate that the last time we saw him would be so representative of who he was. Mark attended a lecture series event at San Francisco’s California College of the Arts in late September 2019. It commemorated our 30-plus years as LUNAR’s co-founders, and as CEO and COO, respectively. In true Mark fashion, despite all of the taxing business travel he was engaged in as a McKinsey partner, he still mustered the energy to fly from Chicago to San Francisco on his own dime to attend our Tuesday night talk. He gave us big warm hugs before the event, and we could hear him giving us shout outs from the back of the auditorium during our presentation. After the talk, he spent the evening happily celebrating with us over food and drinks. The next morning he flew back to Chicago on an early flight to get back to work.

We had many similar experiences with Mark as, did his LUNAR and McKinsey Design co-workers. The amount of time and energy Mark had for those with whom he worked was astonishing. After attending his memorial service and hearing friends, family and professionals outside of LUNAR and McKinsey Design deliver their tributes to him, we realized he gave the same intensity and generosity to everyone around him that he gave to us.

All who spoke during the service shared similar stories about his many positive attributes and the enormous emotional impact he had on their lives. Two of his siblings, his best friend, an IDSA colleague, a niece, his daughters and a pastor wonderfully conveyed how Mark had so positively touched their lives and those of countless other people. It was clear that Mark made many, many people feel just as special as he had made us feel as his close friends and business partners. To Mark, all people were truly special, and he could see what was unique and wonderful in anyone and everyone. He also helped others see, feel and believe in themselves whenever and however he could.

We both loved Mark, as did many others. He will be greatly missed but never forgotten. We believe that most of all, Mark’s capacity to love so many people was his crowning glory. Mark will continue impacting us and the many he touched through his love and his unbridled positivity, generosity and passions in life. We also are confident that many of them will pay it forward to others, based on what they learned through knowing Mark.

—Gerard Furbershaw and Jeff Smith g@furbershaworks.com; designsmith@gmail.com