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Alain Sylvain

Founder & CEOSYLVAIN

New York, NY

Member Since September 2021

Skills

Creative Strategy

About

Alain is the Founder and CEO of SYLVAIN, a strategy and design consultancy that provokes progress for companies, people and society at large. Clients include Google, American Express, Spotify, Airbnb, Blackrock, Amazon, Diageo, GM, the NBA, UBER, New York Times, Nike, Apple and others. Founded in 2010, the company is headquartered in NYC, with offices in Amsterdam and Richmond, VA, and is a Certified B-Corporation. Alain is a partner and investor in several ventures, including Master + Dynamic, a design-driven, premium audio brand, Free Rain, a line of enhanced sparkling water, a mobile gaming company, Lilo, an açai bowl company, and PetMio, a smart pet food startup. He is on the board of Plus Pool, an ambitious project to build the world’s first floating, filtering swimming pool in NYC harbor, a Founding Member of Kindred, and a member of the New York City Mayor’s Creative Council. Alain is also an active contributor to various non-profit initiatives around the world including the Lower East Side Girls Club, The Bowery Mission and Anseye Pou Haiti.

Published content

The myth of taste: Are we really free to like what we like, or has our taste been hijacked by technology?

article

If we hope to avert innovation stagnation, taste must be returned to its rightful owners. We all have a hand in making that happen.

Ghosted by the American Dream: Younger generations are collectively sobering to the idea of the American Dream. But what is the alternative?

article

Will the world of business and brands perpetuate the propaganda, or can we all embrace the Imperfect Reality and co-create a better world with this emerging generation? 

13 steps to keep companies on track to fulfill their mission

expert panel

Is your establishment still on the right path to achieve its original objectives? As the business starts to pick up its momentum in the marketplace through brand recognition and new partnerships, it's sometimes easy for founders or leadership teams to get sidetracked away from their original goals and why the company was launched in the first place. While it's important for entrepreneurs and business owners to task on certain risks and close in on the right deals, it's also crucial to maintain your core values and business integrity in the process as the company grows. Below, a panel of experts from Fast Company Executive Board shares 13 ways for business owners and executives to ensure that their current and future business practices still align with their organization's original mission and vision.

Considering a rebrand? Keep these 15 important factors in mind

expert panel

Before you invest a lot of resources in a rebranding initiative, make sure it's worth it for your business to do so. Rebranding your business is a big decision that involves many different moving parts. A rebrand can mean anything from redesigning your webpage or launching a new product, to repositioning yourself in the market. Because of the time, money and energy involved in a rebrand, it's important first to consider whether rebranding is a necessary step for your business. What are you trying to change? Who are you changing for? To help you answer these questions, a panel of Fast Company Executive Board members shared some important factors to consider before a rebrand.

How C-level leaders keep up with the latest in technologies

expert panel

10 ways to maintain relevance in an ever-changing digital work environment. In an evolving virtual world, it's important for companies to stay informed about the newly developed system solutions and devices that are there to make the daily operations of a small, medium, or large enterprise run a little smoother. Whether you are a COO executive whose days are filled with back to back meetings, or a middle manager with a team of direct reports and other follow-up responsibilites that take up a good portion of your day, it's not an easy task to squeeze in additional hours to take a deeper dive into why your individual department or entire company should strongly consider investing in the latest platform, software or gadgets on the market.  That's why Fast Company Executive Board members wanted to share their 10 ideas for educating leaders and staff about the current digital technology updates. 

What happens when hype is misplaced

article

The pressure to capitalize on new tech can leave brands flat-footed if it doesn’t live up to the hype. But brands that participate in culture will always find ways to disrupt.

Company details

SYLVAIN

Company bio

Agents of Progress. Sylvain Labs is a strategy and design consultancy that provokes progress for companies, people and society at large. We believe when commerce and culture unite, real progress is possible. Founded in 2010, wholly independent, and a Certified B Corporation.

Industry

Marketing & advertising

Area of focus

Innovation Consulting
Brand Strategy
Strategic Planning

Company size

11 - 50

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