Design thinking is heavily discussed. During the last weeks I deep-dived many blogs, forums, and other online discussions on this topic. Lots of opinions, lots of passion and lots of blabla.
I will not add more of that…
But I do only want to stress that the design departments in companies are there to do design work to boost business and not to ‘design think’.
Design thinking is mostly defined as using the capabilities of the design profession to solve larger economical or social problems, in a different way than the so-far applied analytical approaches.
Designers can play a part in this, but it does not mean that designers or the design function of a company are involved automatically! Stronger, I have seen and experienced plenty of examples of great design thinking, where the word ‘design’ and certainly ‘the design department’ was not to be mentioned.
In that light I see it as a problem that design directors are trying to sell design thinking as the new thing, on top of their regular design job. They do that because they think it helps them to increase importance and with that budgets.
Dear bosses of these design directors: please make up your mind:
- Are you interested in solving some of your (business) problems in a different way?
Than design thinking is, just like emotional thinking, entrepreneurial thinking and other modern ways of thinking, a great way to start. Your design department may help, but likely they are already overbooked and not fully equipped to do that. Luckily there are great advisors out there that could help. - Are you solely interested in using design to boost your business?
Than design thinking is not relevant for you, but simply good design and proper design management. This asks for a strong design department, so help them.
This opinion is based on the lecture I was planning to give at the 29th of April seminar on Design Thinking, organised by the Danish Design Centre. This has been cancelled due to the vulcano ashes: three of the speakers are from the US and were not able to fly in on time. DDC is trying to find another moment this year…
Tags: definition, department, design thinking
Hi Tim,
can we read/trace some of your comments you’ve left at the above mentioned blogs, forums, etc. also as part of a conversation or dialogue these platforms are meant for? That would have generated trackbacks to your blog in return (maybe as part of a win-win mindset?).
Also some cross-links and other references might have been valuable in order to understand the basis of your criticism you are articulating here.
Good luck with the conference once it will take place!