DESIGN AS SERVICE
HOW ARE THE ROLES OF DESIGNERS CHANGING, AS THEY OFTEN NO LONGER PROVIDE A SERVICE TO ONE ORGANIZATION, BUT RATHER COLLABORATE IN OPEN AND NETWORKED INNOVATION CONSORTIA? AND WHAT DOES THE INCREASINGLY STRATEGIC CONTRIBUTION OF DESIGN TO INNOVATION MEAN FOR THE PRODUCT-SERVICE OFFERING OF ORGANIZATIONS?
Innovation in our post-industrial, service-based society is a complex process of negotiating between economic, social and technological factors. Many products and services are nowadays embedded in a connected offering of both tangible and intangible elements. People are making use of these product-service systems in a pro-active, informed and demanding way. Organisations are gradually adapting to working in more transparent, agile and customer-orientated ways.
Designers play a crucial role in this complex innovation process. They explore, inspire, catalyse, reveal, provoke, generate, experiment and shape new product-service concepts and implementations. They contribute to break-through developments by collaborating with and complementing other disciplines involved. Design is an inherent, key part of contemporary product-service innovation. Beyond developing new products and services, designers are increasingly invited to collaborate on strategic and sustainable change issues. An interesting challenge for designers, but one which also brings a need for new knowledge and better understanding.
In the past year two ambitious programmes, aiming to explore and further develop this new position of design in product-service innovation, have been initiated in The Netherlands. These programmes will contribute to a more fundamental understanding of contemporary interdisciplinary collaborations and the methodologies relating to developing product-service systems. One of these programmes is the ‘Creative Industries Scientific Programme’ (CRISP), the other is ‘Service Design - Are you being served?’ Both programmes are jointly funded by government and the private sector. Consortia of public and private organisations are collaborating on a series of case studies in the coming years.
On 26 October, during the Dutch Design Week, a unique symposium will take place. Organised by these two programmes in collaboration with Service Design Netwerk Nederland, The Design Management Network, Design Academy Eindhoven and Brainport Development, it will jointly review the state-of-the art role of design in product-service innovation, and critically reflect on current practice, research and training in order to explore directions for further improvement.
One of the main aims of the symposium is to open up the discussion to a wider community of designers and innovators. Two international keynote speakers will touch on the global context of product-service innovation, followed by three parallel interactive sessions on science, industry and education.
Known from his open innovation approach Johan Sanders, innovation director at SaraLee definitely knows what service design can offer for a multinational corporation. And let’s be frank, it all starts with good coffee. After this warming up, Paul Gardien director new solutions at Philips Design will stress the importance of understanding people for good design. Jeroen van Erp (Fabrique) will moderate the Question and Answer session afterwards.
Across the world, engineering schools, business schools and arts schools join forces around the central theme of design. What is the reason for this converging movement and how does it change design education? Invited speakers for this session are Nick Leon from Design London, Kees Dorst from University of Technology Sydney and Ilpo Koskinnen from Aalto University. Anne Mieke Eggenkamp, chairwomen executive board at Design Academy Eindhoven will moderate the session.
What is the impact of the strategic contribution to innovation and the increasingly interdisciplinary collaboration on the position of designers in the industry? Invited speakers for this session are Michael Davis Burchat from Nokia, Paul Verleg from Océ, and Benjamin Schulz from Volkswagen. After a brief introduction on their views on the topic, they will engage in a discussion moderated by Erik Roscam Abbink from Zilver.
Looking at the changing role of designers in developing solutions for more complex, strategic and multidisciplinary problems, what is the research challenge in here? Which new knowledge is needed, what are the new paradigms that designers are confronted with and how could science contribute to solving those? In the science session, professor Robert Young (Northumbria University, Newcastle) and professor Tom Rodden (University of Nottingham) will approach these questions from different angles like methodology, business, technology and intelligence. The session will be moderated by prof. Matthijs van Dijk (Delft University of Technology).
Creative Industries Scientific Programme (CRISP) focuses on the design of Product Service Systems, generating and disseminating the knowledge, tools and methods necessary for designing complex combinations of intelligent products and services with a high experience factor. CRISP aims to develop a knowledge infrastructure which consolidates the leadership position and stimulates the continuing growth of the Dutch Design Sector and Creative Industries. CRISP is funded by Dutch government FES funding and a consortium of scientific and industrial partners.
Innovation in Services – Service Design in Practice is an innovation programme where partners from industry and academia collaborate on a series of case studies, aiming to develop and improve the visibility and applicability of service design. Through a series of case studies the process, methodology and added value of service design will be analysed and communicated. The programme is co-funded through the Pieken in de Delta-program by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation, the City of Utrecht and the Province of Utrecht.
Service Design Netwerk Nederland (SDNN) is an open and fast-growing network of Service Design practitioners in The Netherlands. Initiated in 2009 by a group of early pioneers in the field, the network currently has more than 500 members. Regular events for sharing knowledge and experiences on the emerging field of service design are taking place in various cities.
Design Management Network (DMN) in its present form as a network organization, DMN exists since 1999, and now has over 120 members. DMN aims to promote knowledge acquisition and exchange among its members, and design management in general as a body of knowledge and a professional area.
Design Academy Eindhoven (DAE) educates designers who will shape the future. DAE promotes a mentality of creating new ideas, strategies, things, experiences, spaces and services. Designers need to be responsive to the changes in the world. Designers define how we will experience the world around us.
There are different creative thinkers and makers needed. There is a growing request for authentic, engaging and conscious creatives.
Capital D is the Design Cooperation in the Brainport Eindhoven Region. It aims to stimulate and connect creative initiatives that strengthen the region’s (inter)national reputation in the field of top technology and design.
www.designconnectionbrainport.nl
