Design Management

The Context

Dr. Pratul Ch. Kalita

The role of design, and its management, in business, society, culture and the
environment has a rich and active history.

This session provides an introduction to some of the key debates and definitions of
design management, and reasons behind their importance today. It also provides
an overview of the background and origins of design management in the form of a
timeline.
What is Design Management?

There is no single, universally agreed definition of the term ‘design management’,

just as there is no single agreed definition of ‘design’, or in fact of ‘business’. When
looking at the nature of ‘design’, the word itself is both a noun (an outcome), and a
verb (an activity). The outcome of a design project can be seen in the products,
services, interiors, buildings and software processes that we come into contact with
daily. The management of these design projects is only one aspect of design
management. The activity of designing is a user-centred, problem-solving process,
which also needs to be managed and therefore is another facet of design
management.
What is Design Management?

Within an organisation, design management consists of managing all aspects

of design at two different levels:

• Corporate level
• Project level

Topalian, 2003
What is Design Management?

Design management is ‘the effective deployment by line managers of the design

resource available to the organisation in the pursuance of its corporate objectives’

- Gorb, 1990

Design management as ‘the organisation of the processes for developing new

products and services’ - Hollins,

2002
What Design Manager needs to do?
As a job description, the design manager has the role of managing design. What exactly

this entails will vary from organisation to organisation, and the person responsible for

managing design might be called a ‘brand manager’, a ‘project manager’, a ‘client-account

handler’, an ‘account director’, a ‘design consultant’ or an ‘advertising planner’. The

important aspects of managing design, irrespective of the job title, are about

understanding the strategic goals of an organisation and how design can play a part, and

effectively putting in place the ways and means, the tools and methods, the teams and

planning requirements and the passion and enthusiasm, to achieve these goals as

successful outcomes.
 Whirlpool introduced their revolutionary
new clothes revitaliser in response to five
of the latest emerging trends identified by
an expert panel of international style
leaders from the world of fashion and
interior design.

Understanding the impact of these trends

on consumer needs and Whirlpool’s own
business objectives drove the design of
‘prêt-à-porter’, a fast, easy and practical
way to keep clothes smelling fresh
and looking great.

Whirlpool’s ‘prêt-à-porter’
The Heart Cone Chair (1959), from the Verner
Panton-designed collection at Vitra. For all its
extravagance, it is a comfortable club chair
for everyday use.
The Key Categories of Design Management

Product
Design-management issues to be considered here will depend on the nature of the industry and product in question, but might

include, for example, product innovation, range, development and quality.

Environmental
Design management is mainly concerned with how, and in what, the business invests in tangible or ‘fixed’ assets, and how it

manages them thereafter

Information
The design of information plays a valuable role in how a corporation conveys its purpose and intentions to its various target

audiences

Corporate Identity
Corporate-identity design is closely linked to corporate strategy and shapes all aspects of the first three key categories of design
Design management is rooted in the shift from a hierarchical model of management to a
flat and flexible organisational model, which encourages individual initiative, independence
and risk taking. Designers feel at ease with the new, more informal model of management.
The new model is based on concepts like customer-driven management, project-based
management, and total quality management, which all deal with design.

Design management has a two-fold objective

To familiarise managers with design and designers with management.

To develop methods of integrating design into the corporate environment

Brigitte Borja de Mozota

Design is active at three levels in any
organisation:

Strategic, Tactical and Operational.

At the strategic level, the overall policies,

missions and agendas are defined.

At the tactical level, the teams, processes

and systems of specific business units or
functions come into play.

At the operational level, design manifests

itself in the physical and tangible products,
services and experiences.
Connections between creativity, innovation and design

Creativity: is the generation of new ideas. Either new ways of looking at existing
problems, or the discovery of new opportunities.

Innovation: is the exploitation of new ideas. It is the process that carries a concept
through to new products, services, or ways of operating the business.

Design: is what links creativity and innovation. It shapes ideas so that they become
practical and attractive propositions for users or customers.
Importance of design management
• As businesses of all kinds deepen their understanding of the role of design in innovation, they will look to
design management as a powerful resource for innovations that will effectively differentiate their
business and build sustainable competitive advantages.

• As people continue to find increasing choices in the marketplace, and become more determined to
improve the quality of their lives, they will demand more of what only the effective management of
design can provide in good design.

• The shift in attitude from design management to managing for design will unleash the potential of
design.

• The increasingly important role design will play in building a bridge between the fundamental economic
and cultural aspects of individual nations and the world will open doors for design to make an important
contribution to healthy, balanced societies worldwide.
Question for Discussion

What are the emerging trends that can be identified in order to begin to think
about the role of design in business in the future - in Indian Context?