It´s been a while since I wrote last time and while I am not about to start my own busieness, like Hans-Henrik the workload both at the office and at home have been overwhelming so far this year.
Nevertheless, the interest in design, innovation and leadership has not vanished - on the contrary - and so I would like to raise a relevant question in relation to design and business. How do you measure the effect of design from a business point of view?How do you know that design played a role in achieving business success?
I think that measurement is one of business primary decision-making tools and a cornerstone of the scentific world and since design wants to become as integrated into the business world as possible there is no way around it. We need to be able to explain what difference design makes and what value we create.
Perhaps you could look at market share, the turnover or profit, analyze percieved customer value, or customer loyalty or maybe the effect can be found in brand equity? Perhaps - and probarbly - the impact of design can be seen in many or even all of the above, depending on the type of design assignment.
This challenge becomes even more tricky if design is deeply integrated in the company and thus cuts across the organization to interact with different divisions. Do you individually measure the parts that design contribute with across the organization and add it all up?
On October 22-25, 2006 some of the worlds design managers and business managers will gather in Manchester Village, Vermont, USA for the 31st International Design Managment Conference to discuss this topic, but perhaps we can start talking about it here and now?
What is your view on measuring the impact of design? How could it be done in practice?
The final graduation show of the Interaction Design Institute Ivrea in Milan and not only will this be the graduate show but also the last show of the school as it stands now.
The theme of the exhibition is “Limited Edition”
You are invited to experience 17 thesis projects from the final graduating class of Interaction Design Institute Ivrea.
Opening: June 7th 2006 (18:30-23:00)
Exhibition: June 8/9/10th 2006 (noon-20:00)
Where: Galvanotecnica Bugatti
Via Gaspare Bugatti, 7
Zona Tortona
Milano 20144
More details: http://milano.interaction-ivrea.it/
info@interaction-ivrea.it
www.galvanotecnicabugatti.it
And yes that means i will be exhibiting my work and graduating too 
so book a cheap flight and come and say hi!
This really good conference: International service design Northumbria in Newcastle took plòace last march and was on the subject of service design with a great collection of speakers and the podcasts to download:
Service Innovation through Design Thinking from Tim Brown, CEO of IDEO
Signposts for the Next Decade from Dr. Andrea Cooper, Head of Design Knowledge, Design Council
Live|Work - Pioneering Service Design from Chris Downs, Partner, Live|Work
Objects of Service - From Subjects to Objects and Back Again from Prof. Steven Kyffin, Global Head of Design Research, Philips Design
and much more…
via Design Council RED
Matteo Penzo and Leandro Agro’ put together a conference called Interaction Frontiers that will take place in Milan on the 16th of June 2006.
The focus of the conference is on future and emotion-based user experiences, both for the screen and through products.
“The adventure of Interaction Frontiers started by raising issues about user experience. This year it will take a step into the future of user experience, with presentations on avatars that enrich the windows of traditional GUIs, digital products with input devices and sensors that can collect information about users’ emotions, and user experiences that leave the screen and move around on wheels and robot legs.”
At the Università Milano-Bicocca, see the conference’s website for more details. If i go ill live blog it
Tom at MediaA introduced me to this concept a few days ago. The Long Tail is defined as a statistical model where:
” a high-frequency or high-amplitude population is followed by a low-frequency or low-amplitude population which gradually “tails off”. In many cases the infrequent or low-amplitude events can cumulatively outnumber or outweigh the initial portion of the graph, such that in aggregate they comprise the majority.”
Coined in 2004 by Chris Anderson,the editor-in-chief of Wired, who is writing a book on the subject, it’s interesting to hear about how this model applies to internet-based businesses such as Amazon and Google and how they compare to brick-and-mortar businesses.
He compares traditional big businesses like Hollywood who are really interested in just the first part of the curve in a way, ie. the first week of ticket sales and performance as a way to judge a film’s performance vs. online businesses who might be more interested in the long run, how their business will grow from a short peak and gain momentum and interest from users through recommendations, word-of-mouth, etc. ultimately leading to a longer lifespan and growth through time.
Listen to this talk given by Chris, its definitely worth it.
Products and their Ecosystems:
Understanding the power of context in product innovation
Date: June 6th, 2006
Location: 111 Minna Gallery, 111 Minna St., San Francisco, CA
Schedule: 1-6pm
Tickets: $125 by May 19. After May 19th: $175
Moderator: Jessie Scanlon, BusinessWeek
Panelists:
Peter Rojas, Editor-in-chief, Engadget
Diego Rodriguez, Founder, Metacool
Steve Portigal, Founder, Portigal Consulting - PILOT HERE AT CPH127
Robyn Waters, Founder, RW Trend
"Products exist in a vast, often-messy environment of services, brands,
cultures and competitors. But successful companies are realizing that
deliberately and strategically designing products for the context in which
they live can result in more imaginative, better integrated, and ultimately
more humane offerings. From MP3 players and gaming consoles to kitchen
appliances and office furniture, this panel discussion will focus on how to
incorporate holistic thinking into product development, creating objects
that are not only sensitive to their surroundings, but often define them."
Full details at http://www.core77.com/design2.0
Over the
last years everything happens do be deployed in beta. Everything is launched as
beta, everything happens to be unfinished.
Is that a
good or a bad thing, and why is that happening right now?
It seems
that companies and individuals are in the need to be involved, to create
together, to find an answer on how to cope with speed, complexity and instant
change.
As I see it
– and I’m not the only one – beta is the answer.
And – I need
to say that – beta is very much a state of creation, innovation, creating
change, facilitating change with high speed and with the use of many of the
principles discussed here at CPH127.
Together with
good friends I’ve started to write on a beta-manifesto, where we until know
have gathered a few principles, please help us to make the list even more
complete…
- being in beta is a natural state of life. Everything aroundus is either evolving or dying.
- beta is playing. Experimenting. Trying.
- beta is constant learning.
- beta is profiting in the true nature of the word “profit”. Making progress.
- beta is never perfect. Never
completely without fault. Just like any human being. Everything can be
made better. Allways. Achieving temporary perfection is better than
aspiring for the ultimate perfection that is never reached.
- beta is release as soon as it
is safe. But never sooner. Only daredevils flies planes in beta or
takes unfinished medicine.
- beta is a natural state of things. Your body is in perpetual beta until you die (maybe..)
- beta is evolution. Many small gradual changes. Suddenly they may seem like giant leaps.
- beta is revolution. Not completely in control. Just like the real world.
- beta is open. Ready for dialogue. Open for change. Positive for co-creation.
- beta stands for things that changes. Change with consistancy.
- beta creates feedback loops for companies, individuals and products.
- beta is honest. Not superficial.
Please help us to make the list even more complete
Dear all
There hasn’t been much posting from me lately – I don’t know if I should apologise, but fact
is I’ve been busy starting a new venture here in Denmark – A consultancy business in
the intersection of Innovation, Social Software and Leadership.
Jacob – who you
already know as a part of the cabincrew - and I, are much motivated by the learning’s
and sensemaking created here at CPH127.
Thank you
all for being part of that
Our entrance
to problem solving is MUCH formed by the principles discussed as design
processes and Design Thinking
Our venture
– our company – is named Connecta. Of course we also have a weblog, but until
know we are focusing on the Danish marketplace which is the main reason for
writing in Danish.
The company
is framed as a network. We believe very much in new ways of organizing
projects, companies and our daily lifes and are very much inspired by the
principles formed by Ken Thompsen – you can read more about the principles
here.
So, if you
are interested in joint ventures, collaboration, an “office” in Copenhagen or just curious,
please contact me
The Omnium Creative Network [OCN] is a free, non-profit online global community of creative people (students, professionals, educators,
theorists writers and more). It’s aim is to encourage members from all over
the world to collaborate in a variety of ways, to focus their attention on more
socially aware and ethically responsible art and design projects.
Membership is made up of participants from a wide variety of countries worldwide; in particular countries less fortunate in terms of having easy access to creative interaction through conferences,, publications and exhibitions.
Check it out…and join in.
