Design Management Conceptualisation and Application
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Design Management Conceptualisation and Application Handbook of Practices on Design Management Application into Business Documentation from the EU-funded project Design EntrepreneurSHIP — Integration and Education of Students, Graduates and SMEs in terms of Industrial Design Management This handbook represents a selection of materials prepared and implemented in the course of the EU co-funded INTERREG IV A project entitled “Design EntrepreneurSHIP – Integration and Education of Students, Graduates and SMEs in terms of Industrial Design Management”, part-financed by the European Union (European Regional Development Fund) within the South Baltic Cross-border Cooperation Programme 2007–2013. All materials included in the publication are a result of the project activities realised by the project partners, invited SMEs, speakers, consultants as well as the input of students and graduates participating in the training sessions. This publication is part-funded by the City of Gdynia and the European Regional Development Fund. All copies are reserved for distribution free of charge. Published by Gdynia Design Centre, part of The Pomeranian Science and Technology Park Gdynia Printed by Pracownia Gdynia 2014 Contents Project aim & result .................................................................................................................................... 5 Project background .................................................................................................................................... 5 Project summary ......................................................................................................................................... 5 Project outcomes ........................................................................................................................................ 6 Project partnership ..................................................................................................................................... 7 Design — connector between creativity and innovation. Kathryn Best, consultant and trainer in design management .................................................................. 9 Meaning of interdisciplinarity. Prof. Marek Adamczewski, maradDesign ................................................................................................ 10 Why is design a tool which brings innovations? Ewa Janczukowicz-Cichosz, Head of Gdynia Design Centre .................................................................. 11 Interdisciplinarity. Achim Hack and Laima Gerlitz, Wismar University of Applied Sciences ............................................... 12 10 training sessions ................................................................................................................................ 19 Training session 1 .................................................................................................................................... 20 Training session 2 .................................................................................................................................... 24 Training session 3 .................................................................................................................................... 35 Training session 4 .................................................................................................................................... 39 Training session 5 .................................................................................................................................... 43 Training session 6 .................................................................................................................................... 49 Training session 7 .................................................................................................................................... 52 Training session 8 .................................................................................................................................... 54 Training session 9 .................................................................................................................................... 57 Grand Showcase Model Design Implementation ................................................................................... 62 Defining the design management concept for the Design EntrepreneurSHIP project. Achim Hack and Laima Gerlitz, Wismar University of Applied Sciences .............................................. 69 Participating experts about Design EntrepreneurSHIP ......................................................................... 78 Study visits – different perceptions of design in Poland, Germany and Sweden ................................. 80 List of experts involved in the project .................................................................................................... 82 Acknowledgement ................................................................................................................................... 87 Professional designers in their core area of activity often lack the management skills necessary to run a successful business. They should form teams with graduates in economics, management and engineers – their expertise will complement one another with industrial design. Design Management Conceptualisation and Application PROJECT AIM & RESULT The overall idea of the project was to facilitate the integration of higher education and the labour markets through knowledge exchange in the field of industrial design management education. Stu- dents, graduates and SMEs operating in the design sector had an opportunity to co-operate with the students of business, management, economics and engineering to test, conceptualise, apply into practice and evaluate different design management tools. As a result, a cross-border training programme was formed which conveys key messages and tips for companies from South Baltic Sea Region on how to respond to market challenges and consciously create their competitive edge in the future. Sharing knowledge from different disciplines also helped to create an awareness that in case SMEs face problems or have recognised development potential, this can be addressed with the application of design management tools. PROJECT BACKGROUND Professional designers, in their core area of activity, often lack the business competences and man- agement skills necessary to run a successful business. Students and graduates in economics, management, business and law do not consider industrial design management a profitable sector for a professional career, underestimating its business po- tential and associating it only with a non-manageable artistic activity. SMEs in the Baltic Sea Region need to learn that they can look for partners not only within their native countries, but within the entire region which will substantially facilitate the development of an industrial design sector. With the application of design management tools, they can deepen their understanding of either a new business or an enterprise they have run for years and respond to the market challenges with a fresh perspective on their core strengths and challenges. Along with the benefits for local business, awareness of new opportunities arising from cooperation with design- ers will slowly be built which will create a basis to start a market for design services in the South Baltic region. PROJECT SUMMARY ▶ Over the 3 years of project implementation, 120 participants from Poland, Germany and Sweden have worked on specific problems related to industrial design and services and developed real- life scenarios, encompassing different aspects such as budgeting, technology and marketing. 5 Design Management Conceptualisation and Application ▶ The participants attended thematic blocks of training organised in Poland, Germany and Sweden where they received theoretical input regarding design management process to fill potential knowledge gaps. Assisted by international consultants, they applied their knowledge to the prob- lems shared by local SMEs invited to the training. ▶ After each project cycle, the participants took part in an evaluation session where they first pre- sented their ideas developed during the training in front of industrial design management pro- fessionals. Following this, the experts as well as the representatives of invited SMEs shared their opinions as to whether the conceptual ideas had the potential to be implemented to the market. PROJECT OUTCOMES Business perspective The project developed and tested a cross-border training programme based on different design The participants management tools. As a result, it has been shown that design management has the potential to: received theoretical ▶ increase sales input regarding ▶ develop new products and services design management ▶ facilitate innovation process and applied ▶ extend the product line their knowledge to the ▶ increase the product and company competitive edge ▶ decrease production costs problems shared by ▶ re-design the management system local SMEs invited to ▶ revitalise the brand the training. ▶ create brand awareness Labour market perspective The project managed to strengthen the integration of higher education and the labour markets, thus providing background knowledge for the students and graduates of design, technology and business to specialise in the field of a promising domain, that of design management. Practical experiences in industrial design management among engaged stakeholders