Becoming Design Driven

What does it mean to be a Design-Driven Organization,

and why does it matter.

1. An introduction

When I talk about Design-Driven organizations (DDOs), I often encounter some resistance and misconception on the topic. The most common reaction is:

But I’m not in a Design related field. So this doesn’t apply to my organization.

Let me dispel a myth.

Being a Design-Driven Organization has very little to do with the product or service that a company or organization provides. Instead, being a Design-Driven Organization is all about company culture and practices.

You would be surprised how many companies that “Sell” Design products are, surprisingly enough, not Design-Driven at all. Crazy right?

It is actually more common than you think. Particularly in Higher value products or services.

In these categories fall Agencies, Consultancies, Fashion Brands, Design Brands, and even Automotive Brands.

These are all Companies that do sell “Design” but have a very Conventional approach to innovation.

Such organizations often see Design as a tactical or organizational driver. More often than not, Design processes are seen as a cost.

These are what I define Conventional Organizations.

2. Design-Driven Organizations Myth or Reality?

So what exactly means to be a DDO?

Before we dive into that, I want to make something clear.

I’m not stating in any way that one is better than the other nor that one way of managing an organization is right and the other wrong.

I’m just observing how their dynamics are fundamentally different and,

in some cases, diametrically opposite.

There are “Conventional Organization” which are incredibly successful. To be fair, today, Design-Driven Organizations are the exception

not the norm.

That said, today, the most valuable companies in the world are defined as Design-Driven. Companies like Apple, Tesla, Amazon, Airbnb, Google, Microsoft, Disney.

Now there have been numerous studies demonstrating the. Value of Design-Centric organizations. The most recent one McKinsey Value of Design survey of 300 global companies, July 2018. States that Design-Centric Organization increases its revenues and shareholder returns at nearly twice the rate of their industry counterparts.

The Design Management Institute’s 2015 Design Value Index (DVI), based on a portfolio of 16 publicly traded stocks from companies considered to be “Design-Centric,” shows a 211% return over the S&P 500.

Nevertheless, the World Economic Forum since 2018 states that among the top five core skills to succeed in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, there are

1. Creativity

2. Emotional Intelligence

3. Critical/Analytical Thinking

4.Embracing Change, and 5. Active Learning.

All characteristics second nature to DDOs.

3. Conventional vs. Design-Driven

For the better part of my career, I tried to rationalize what defined the success or failure of great organizations.

So much so that I even wrote a book about it.

In my journey to identify what made these “Great” organizations Great.

I had also to decode the other side of the coin. Here is where I started devising this very—distinction between Conventional and Design-Driven organizations.

So, in a nutshell, here it is:

Design-Driven organizations are all those organizations that have a Human-Centred approach to innovation. Their main goal is to meet Business Goals satisfying unexpressed Human Needs. _[(Sounds Familiar?)]_

So let’s look at the fundamental differences between a Conventional Organization and a Design-Driven one. Although there are several fundamental differences, the ones that I believe are the most relevant are:

1. The Attention towards Product vs. Customers,
2. Their Development Process,
3. Their Decision-Making Process,
4. Their Focus,
5. Which role Products and Customer play in the development.

I would say that the main difference between one another is their approach towards innovation and strategies.

Conventional organizations

• Place products at the center of theirs strategies.
• They develop from specifications and features.
• Their decision-making process is lead by hippo’s ( highest paid person’s opinion) and committees.
• They are outcome-driven (generally revenues) and
• Customers have a passive role in the development

of products and services.

Design-Driven Organizations

• Place People (Customers & Teams) at the center of their strategies.
• They develop from need, wants & JTBD.
• Their decision-making is lead by collaboration and

analytically informed decisions.

• They are Discovery & Growth Driven, and
• Products are designed to surprise and delight.

4. How to Become Design Driven

As I said before, I’m not saying that every organization on the planet can become a Design-Driven Organization overnight.

But I firmly believe that we should look with a critical eye to those growing exponentially and ask ourselves:

• What can we learn from them?
• Which best practices should we adopt to grow and improve constantly?

Although I believe that every organization, from manufacturing to technology, from luxury to necessity, can grow into a Design-Driven Organization, I’m also well aware that to “jump the gun” often is more detrimental than beneficial.

If you are interested in beginning your journey in becoming a Design-Driven organization, here are three strategies that you can start implementing even in your department or on a smaller scale project.

I call it the CX-XF-EX strategy nexus.

1. CX — DDOs shift from product-centered to human-centered.

They are concentrating on satisfying customer needs.

Their primary focus is on a seamless physical, service, and digital Customer Experience.

• How would you design the CX of the product/project you want to launch?
• What Unmet need are you addressing?
• What Pressing Business problem are you going to solve for them?

2. XF — DDOs break silos to foster collaboration

They create cross-functional teams, breaking down the internal walls between physical, digital, and service design.

• Who should be part of your cross-functional team?
• Can you find an efficient and clear way to collaborate with them?

3. EX — DDOs reject conventional slow development in favor of experimentation.

Instead, they focus on growth metrics—de-risking development by constantly listening, testing, and iterating with the end customers.

• What small experiments can you run to validate your ideas?
• How do you prioritize Ideas?
• What would you do if you only had five days to implement?

If we can start taking baby steps and start thinking 1. in terms of experience 2.foster real collaboration* (not only cooperation)* 3. embrace experimentation, we are already on the right path to becoming Design-Driven.

• Cooperation is assisting someone or comply with their requests.
• Collaborate is working jointly on an activity, especially to produce or create something together.

5. Change is never easy

I know that change is never easy and particularly when we talk about corporate culture and practices.

However, for some organizations, this transition is going to be easier.

For others more challenging, and for some, it will never come.

Like it or not, globalization, information technology, and continuously changing environments created a systemically volatile market.

In such markets, change is the constant, and our strategy needs to evolve from resisting it to working with it.

When you embrace the power of Design-Driven Organizations, corporate-wise or even department or project-wise, you will be surprised how quickly you will grow and have people aligning with your vision.

I’m deeply passionate about the topic so if you. are interested in discussing more about it please don’t hesitate to book a call or live a comment.