Concept Design

CIID 6/3 2008

Jørgen Rosted, Director of FORA, The Danish Enterprise and Construction Authority’s Division for Research and Analysis

Copyright 2006 © FORA, Langelinie Allé 17, 2100 Kbh Ø - www.foranet.dk

Innovation

> Companies today ask WHAT instead of HOW or WHAT before HOW.

> Companies ask for new concepts.


Concepts

> A new concept is a solution to a problem that has

not yet been solved or which so far has been solved in an unsatisfactory way.

> A new concept is a platform for (a series of) new products and services.


Who can company calls to answer the HOW questions?

> External partners Internal

> Management consultants> Design companies> Advertising agencies> Consulting engineers R&D department


The study

> However, none of these companies are single-handedly able to answer the question WHAT. Hence, we are witnessing industry break-up and gliding.

> The ambition of the study was to learn more about this dynamic and fascinating development – with a particular focus on possibilities and consequences for the design industry.


Concept design companies

> Definition> The task of answering the question WHAT is

termed ‘concept design’ and the companies working with concept design are termed ‘concept design companies’.


Inspired by Richard Grefe

A model for concept design



A model for concept design



Where concept design happens



Where concept design happens


Criteria for including consultancies in the sampling

> Advise on innovation

> Methods and competences> Methods and tools from social science and humanities> Methods and tools from economy and business economy> Competences in collecting data regarding user behavior (today and in five

years) > Competences in interpreting user data (today and in five years)> Competences in utilizing knowledge about users (today and in five years)

> Client level > Collaborates with consumer insights departments> Collaborates with strategy or innovation departments

> Network> Network with companies from other industries


The mapping method

> Through interviews with international experts, the study of websites, and the snowball technique, this study has attempted to map the world’s concept design companies.


Number of concept design companies found in each concept design hub

>


The score model

Criteria Minimum points to be Maximum points to be Criteria Criteria No. Description weighting categorised as concept categorised as concept

design company design company1 Competences in collecting data High 4 5

regarding user behaviour 2 Competences in interpreting High 4 5

user data3 Competences in utilising High 4 5

knowledge about users

Competences and methods 4 Competences in collecting data Medium 3 5

regarding user behaviour

5 Competences in interpreting Medium 3 5 user data

6 Competences in utilising Medium 3 5knowledge about users

7 From the social sciences High 4 5 and the humanities

8 From economy and business economy High 4 5

Client level 9 Consumer insight Medium 3 5

10 Strategy or innovation department Medium 3 5

Network 11 Companies from other industries Medium 3 5

Total 38 55


The score model result – ranking the located concept design companies by point score

Top 10 Score

50

49

49

49

48

47

46

46

45

45

New York

New York

New York

Munich

London

New York

Denmark

Denmark

San Francisco

Denmark

Reg

ion

Note: The Top-10 list should be treated with some reservation asrelatively few companies responded to the questionnaire in theinternational section of the survey.

Among the companies that did not respond, but which wereconsidered of particular interest to the study, interviews wereconducted that made it possible to assess the companies’ abilitiesto work with concept design.

On that basis it was considered that 7 concept design companiesthat did not respond to the questionnaire would have scored atthe same level as those in the Top-10. Of these companies, 2 arelocated in New York, 2 in San Francisco, 1 in Boston, 1 in Portland, OR and 1 in the Netherlands.


Result of the Danish part of the study –How the Danish concept design companies has registered themselves (industry code):

Number of concept design companies

3

2

2

1

1

1

Design

Advertising

Architecture

Business and managementconsultancy

Technical consultancy

Software consultancy


International findings


Finding one

>The 3 archetypes of concept design companies


1. The holistic concept design company


2. The design expert concept design company


3. The strategic concept design company


Finding two

> How concept design companies get the right competencies within design – business – social science

> A) By having an interdisciplinary staff> B) By collaborating with others > C) By making sure that the employees do have all

three competencies


Finding three

> Future challenge and opportunity

> Exciting and growing market for strategic concept design


Finding three

”Today, I would estimate that there are about 50-100 companies like us in the world. In ten years` time I believe there will be about 200 companies in the world working this way.” Dinesh Goburdhun, Gravity Tank


Finding three

”I think that if design firms aren’t prepare to learn more about strategy and growth, they are going to lose the field to strategy consultancy campanies. Then the strategy consulting firms will just bay design firms, strip out the best from them and integrate it into their offering – and design firms will have lost their place in the sun.” Roger Martin, Dean, Rotman School of Management, Toronto


Finding three

> Outsourcing of traditional design to India and China

> Further specialization of traditional design


Finding four

> In house departments become consultants

> Leading in house concept design departments such as Philips Design have started to work for other companies


Policy implications of the concept design study

> In Denmark we have taking several political initiatives to improve the conditions for concept design and user driven innovation.

> There are deliberations about establishing a Global Network that can discuss how to get deeper into the findings.


The Nordic innovation centre (NICe) financed a new project on User Driven-Innovation

> The purpose of the project is to map best practice within User Driven-Innovation in the Nordic Countries and benchmark Nordic Best Practice with best practice world wide.


Temporary model to the NICe study


Temporary model for the NICe study

• Overview of stages in the concept innovation process








Temporary model for the NICe study – Danfoss


Temporary model for the NICe study – Intel


>Thanks

> For more information go to www.foranet.dk> or contact us on [email protected]

Concept Design

Education

concept design study

concept design hub

design industry

philips design

innovation companies

bay design firms

design firms arent

companies abilities