posted by Anna Fleet on August 10th, 2010
If you asked a designer at my agency, “How many designers does it take to change a light bulb?”, they would certainly answer: “Does it have to be a light bulb?”
Very funny I know, but seriously, the tendency to challenge the very essence of my question is innate in designers, or rather people engaged in design thinking. They tend to ask a lot of questions—especially those that challenge existing or stale assumptions.
And yes, these questions might be dubbed “stupid questions” by those married to a certain convention or strategy, but as author, Warren Berger, points out, asking those “stupid questions…is the starting point in the design process, and has a profound influence on everything that follows.”
If you don’t believe it, try and think of how many times you’ve been stalled over the same old issue at your business. The vintage FedEx commercial that shows how corporate insiders can get so stuck in a rut that they no longer think for themselves is a great visual explanation of what I’m talking about. Many times it does take an outsider (or someone willing to question those conventions) to see the situation clearly—while stating the obvious.
Berger found this out when he spent time studying the likes of Bruce Mau, Richard Saul Wurman and Paula Scher, the most respected designers in the biz, who constantly discussed the importance of asking “stupid questions”.
In his article this morning from the Harvard Business Review, Berger points to specific ways that people in business can learn from design thinkers by learning to question, care, connect and commit to a final idea.
Read Berger’s full article and find out why you should apply a little design thinking to your own small business problems.
Tags: design thinking for small business, design thinking process, design thinking strategy, glimmer book, graphic design thinking, harvard business review, warren berger
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posted by Anna Fleet on August 9th, 2010
Have you ever looked at an album cover or a logo and declared, “Phffffff, I could have done that!”?
I find that we often do this even though we’re unaware of what occurred behind the scenes and without knowledge that a design process that only focuses on the final creative product (be it a logo, cover art or whatever) is purely process driven and not at all very effective.
Jaid Hulsbosch, Director at Hulsbosch – Communication By Design says that good design and branding is more about “managing the highly complex process of brand design and redesign within large national and global businesses” in his interview with austrailiancreative.com.au. Hulsbosch suggests that companies today are not only paying for the process alone (in other words the design alone); they are also looking for an agency that can balance the management of the design process and deliver a truly iconic brand.
Hulsbosch claims that the following skills are vital in a design and branding agency:
1. Create brands that focus/embody the company’s values, emotions and promise
2. Design of brands that engage the customer
3. Ability to navigate complex business landscapes (i.e., various egos, expectations)
4. Ability to overcome market constraints
5. Act as diplomats—get a diverse people with competing agendas to agree
6. Organize and ensure sub-brands are well represented
7. Ask, “What is your design culture?” instead of, “What is your design process?”
Tags: design thinking for small business, design thinking process, design thinking strategy, graphic design thinking, stages of design thinking
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posted by Anna Fleet on July 30th, 2010
Have you ever wondered how the world’s costs would stand on a graphic scale?
Well do I have a Friday treat in store for you!
I came across this short YouTube video this morning and, I don’t have to tell you, it really puts global cost in perspective. This one-minute video showcase, and in some cases contrasts, impacting global costs—including the Iraq War, Google’s market value, how much is spent on video games and illegal drugs annually, how much it would cost to save the Amazon Rainforest, eradicate AIDS and national debt in the UK, and even lists revenues of corporate giants like Bill Gates, Tesco and OPEC even comparing OPEC’s revenue in 2009 compared their miniscule climate change fund. And all of this is done on a stunning graphic level set to music.
So check out ‘Information is Beautiful’ and yes I know it’s promoting a book (by the same name) from David McCandless, but I think its bigger impact is the beautiful visualization of such a profound message. It really does put things into perspective before a long weekend. Enjoy!
Tags: david mccandless, design thinking, graphic design thinking, information is beautiful, information is beautiful video, youtube for viral marketing
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posted by Anna Fleet on July 21st, 2010
I recently read Warren Berger’s, Glimmer, a book that details how design thinking can transform lives. So you can understand my interest in an article about a group of Utah State University students who went to Switzerland to study creative thinking. I must add that the article was tweeted by my colleague, James, a very talented graphic designer.
Many (like Berger) refer to this cultivation of right brain (or creative thinking) to solve problems and advance innovation as “design thinking”. And students are calling on the right sides of their brains, not only to solve problems, but out of necessity as well—to get a job when they graduate.
“There’s a new field emerging,” says Bob Winward, the graphic design professor who led the trip, “…today’s successful businesses are driven by innovation and creativity. The world is undergoing a huge shift—from a largely informational economy to a conceptual one where intuition thought will replace logic.”
I think Berger would agree wholeheartedly!
At this point you might be thinking that design thinking is a bunch of conceptual mumbo-jumbo, all well and good in theory, but not applicable to real life. Well the students found out otherwise as they traversed the Swiss Alps on snowshoes to the Great St. Bernard Hospice. Here monks tasked them with reconstructing gigantic kennels for the St. Bernard dogs—bred to rescue avalanche victims. The harsh conditions, risk of snow slides and 60-pound steel beams used to construct the kennels all had to be figured into the course of action.
But according to graphic design student Rich Wills, the students might have learned the most important lesson from the monks, “You have to learn how to understand other people if you’re going to design things for people.”
Tags: creative thinking tips, design thinking strategy, design thinking tips, glimmer book, graphic design thinking, warren berger
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One Calendar with Social Networking Powers
