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An Anthology of Essays Foreword by Dr. Sara L. Beckman Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley nd Edition Published by Teknion Contents Introductions Michael Vanderbyl iv David Feldberg viii Frank Delfino x Foreword: The Knowledge of Design Sara L. Beckman xiv Now That We Can Do Anything, Bruce Mau 1.01 What Will We Do? Can Design Really Change the World? Helen Kerr 2.07 Design Perspectives Giorgetto Giugiaro 3.13 The Essence of Design Will Alsop 4.19 What is Green Design? Ken Yeang 5.23 Design Defined Balkrishna Doshi 6.35 Dazzled by Shadows Enrique Concha 7.39 Design for Diversity John Faulkner Grimshaw 8.43 Design Strategy for the Future Office Francis Duffy 9.47 Design as a Way to Stand Out Tom Peters 10.57 Design, Artistry and Economics Frank O. Gehry 11.61 The Case for Design Penny Benda 12.65 Design and the Bottom Line Peter Lawrence 13.73 Design and Its Impact on Perception Roger Whitehouse 14.79 Design as a Business Tool Alan Webber 15.85 Design for a Better World Kent C. Bloomer and 16.91 Charles W. Moore The Subject of Design Karim Rashid 17.99 Prostalgia and Cyberspace Design Paul Saffo 18.105 Design and the Urban Environment Eberhard H. Zeidler 19.111 Design and Everyday Life John Dreyfuss 20.119 v introduction Michael Vanderbyl global, fundamental cultural shifts are creating new connections among disciplines. Recent political, intellectual and economic history makes it impossible to continue to think in the neat symmetries of the past. Maps have been redrawn and the oft-dis- puted boundary between commerce and design has become blurred. Design thinking has infiltrated business principles and processes and designers now grasp the impor- tance of close links with enterprising businessmen — and they’ve learned to read the balance sheet. Indeed, companies like Target, Apple and Teknion have made design a core strategy. There is evidence of a growing appreciation at the highest levels for what design has to teach about bold creative thinking, about how to reframe problems, how to visualize and use form and how to make products that are not only new, but also relevant to people’s lives. Twenty years ago, the proposal that “design matters” was likely to be met with skepticism by those engaged in more serious endeavors. Design had its uses, of course, but few out- Design isn’t just a visual tour de force, it’s also a tool for innovation — for breaking “the side the profession saw design as something other than an applied or decorative art — a rules that we will try and impose upon him in our capacity as an industrial partner” way to make things look good. Design can make a product more visible by virtue of its (to quote Alberto Alessi, one of Italy’s most successful businessmen). It is a conceptual style, polish the company image to a higher sheen or disguise technology in a friendlier instrument that allows a business to respond more precisely to circumstances, to create form before sending it to market. Projects could be as specific as formatting a brochure better systems and decision-making structures, to illuminate interactions and to understand or as broad as creating a brand identity; in both cases, designers were hired downstream the multi-dimensional context in which consumer choices are made. Ultimately, design to serve a purpose most often defined by managers trained in the MBA doctrine: gather aims to help people “lead better lives,” as Charles Eames said so simply and so well. quantifiable data, fit it into a spreadsheet and submit it to analysis. It is a method useful for validating one’s assumptions, but not a good way to spark new ideas, to innovate. As audacious as those assertions may sound, design is gaining traction as a renewed feeling of optimism accompanies the promise of economic renewal. This is only natural. As an advocate of design, I often propose that design offers a range of applications and Design is intimately tied to the human “project” of creating and making and consuming adds enormous value to business and society; it is not limited to “creative services” and also, inevitably, to the particular demands of the moment. This is in fact one of its brought in at the end of a project. Design is, in itself, a way of thinking, an approach to great strengths. Great design has often been a response to constraints — the Bauhaus solving problems. It is an instrument of innovation equal to technology with the same being just one example. In a new century, as we reshuffle the pieces of the last, we can power to effect economic and cultural change. Today, many people share this point never again be so innocent as to look for patterns and principles that appear always of view, owing in part to the unkept promises of “business as usual” thinking and the and everywhere, universal and eternal — nothing is timeless. Yet I don’t believe that success of seemingly unmarketable products. As once-discrete local markets become we require a master narrative in order to believe that it is good to try to find a better introduction vii way to do things, to create more beauty, to make “more happiness.” Isn’t that what we’re really saying when we talk about products that people find satisfying to have and use? About buildings that create a sense of place? About work environments that are human-centered? I am enough of an optimist to think that things are again changing, and for the better, and that design together with business is a potent partnership that can spark innova- tion, energize our economy and yes, enrich our lives. The nineteen essays that comprise Design Does Matter, drawn from the ever-widening avenues of design, support that assertion and offer much more wisdom about design and business than I can offer. I think you will find each of them enlightening, even inspiring. Michael Vanderbyl, AGI, AIGA, IIDA, is president of Vanderbyl Design. ix introduction David Feldberg Several years ago, Teknion posed the question, “What will the day after tomorrow look like?” We answered that the future is never completely knowable — what we do know is that things will change and that design can act as an agent for change. In that spirit, we have continued to embrace advanced design thinking and four years ago published a collection of essays that explored the power of design — Design Does Matter. Design Does Matter offers thoughtful perspectives on design from a number of articulate writers — business leaders and designers — each of whom makes the case for good design. Response to the book was enthusiastic — so much so, that we are inspired to print an expanded version, including both new essays and those published in the earlier collection. At Teknion, we have spent nearly three decades exploring the potential of design in the workplace and today, perhaps we might ask another, related question. “How do we design for the future no matter what that looks like? And, how do we design so that our world is not only one of ongoing change, but also one of renewal?” The essays here hold some potential answers. David Feldberg is President and Chief Executive Officer of Teknion. xi introduction Frank Delfino university level and post-graduate training to business and design professionals. Our research efforts focus on critical economic and social themes, including green design. In all of our activities, we emphasize a holistic, interdisciplinary and inclusive approach and encourage cross-collaboration among disciplines: architecture, landscape design, fashion design, urban design, graphic design, interior design, industrial design and inter- active media design. Over the past decade, Teknion has been a major sponsor of programs at the Design Exchange and its most consistent source of financial support. At Teknion, our interest in design goes beyond office furniture products. Design has become an integral part of our organization. It influences our strategy, our facilities and manufacturing processes and corporate culture. We have learned that design is not about decoration. It is about Why do I think that design matters? In writing this preface, I draw from my experience innovation — not just breakthroughs in technology, but also breakthroughs in ideas. as President of Canadian and International Markets at Teknion and as Chairman of the Design Exchange, two distinct entities and two quite different roles, but linked by a Yet, many business leaders still fail to see the potential of design to be strategic and common concern — design. While I do not pretend to wholly understand the discipline, creative, to help them to connect with their customers and to interpret consumer I do have a great appreciation for the value of design and often find myself acting as its aspirations and needs in their brand, as well as specific products and services. Design champion. It is my conviction that design is an effective, even essential, tool for shap- offers an alternative paradigm to the traditional business approach ­­— one that has ing cultural identity, for driving economic growth and ensuring a sustainable future. immense commercial potential. Much of our work at the Design Exchange has been about clarifying and strengthen- Design has a great deal to offer and, at the same time, designers have an enormous ing the position of design within the broader cultural, economic and political picture. responsibility as the creators of the environments that we inhabit. Design can give the The only center of its kind in North America, the Design Exchange was founded to built and made world beauty and meaning, a sense of order and functionality — as educate Canadians — business and government leaders in particular — about design.

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