Start semester
70 304 Design Management: Circular businesses and the design process
Passed foundatin level courses (Bachelor) at AHO or equivalent, 180 ECTS.
The course is open for design and architecture students.
About
There is a strong drive to change towards a far more sustainable society. EU has set in motion a range of initiatives and regulations, which sooner or later also will affect businesses and their designers. For a business, the shift means a completely different approach to how they are using resources and what they offer. They will have to redesign their value chains, their entire organisation, as well as their products and services. The aim of the course will be to learn how external factors, such as regulations, can change business objectives and motivation and see these changes in relation to the company’s design process.
This course is for architects and designers that want to learn about the role of the design manager in process and strategy development and enhance their design management skills. For design managers to be able to help companies with strategy and process development, they must obtain insight into the business and innovation culture, methods, processes, and language.
Textile is a material where EU has come far into developing a strategy for creating changes[1]. The initiatives taken here are for example a digital passport, circular businesses models and eco-design criteria to make the products last longer. In this course we will go deeper into these changes as they also may suggest what could be future requirements for all products to be available at the market.
The key takeout from the course is that it is relevant for all students that would like to understand the business context of the design process. It will help them to understand a professional setting for a designer and how external factors inform, give opportunities and are setting constrains for what to design. The course will also train soft skills, such as being able to collaborate and manage group work, as well as self-assessment. The course has its foundation in design management and is developed to be relevant for both architects and designers.
In this course, the students will be introduced to theories related to design management, design thinking, business strategy, the circular economy, as well as policy making. The students will solve specific business challenges in teams and apply their skills in business development.
[1] https://environment.ec.europa.eu/strategy/textiles-strategy_en
Knowledge
Understanding the link between the business objectives and the design process. Understanding how external regulations and politics may impact the design process.
Understanding the importance of design principles and process.
Skills
The students will obtain basic design management skills. The course emphasises professional conduct and how to engage with a professional client, and how to plan and present for a client. Basic tools to analyse a business context and templates will be introduced.
General Competence
The students will get a basic understanding of commercial thinking in the transition towards a sustainable and circular economy. General knowledge of design management and design driven innovation in a business context. Basic introduction to business terminology (value chain, business models etc.)
Develop consciousness of own role and contribution in projects.
Practical organisation
The course will have a mix of lectures, readings and group work.
During the autumn semester the students will be introduced to one-two businesses that have started to develop sustainable business practices. These will act as clients for the students. By engaging with these businesses, the student will gain an understanding of what is their business motivation and their ambitions for becoming sustainable. They will also gain an understanding in how to work with a client. In addition, a couple of guest speakers are invited to go deeper into some of the topics raised.
The first part of the course will be about understanding key concepts such as design management, the design process, what is a sustainable product, what is the regulations to be met, circular business models and business strategy and the design manager´s role in an organisation.
The course culminates in a one-week practical seminar, where the students will develop a refined design process or principle to design by for their client.
The course will use digital sources such as Miro. It will be mixed with physical workshops and an, if relevant, off-campus tour.
Key words: Design management, sustainability, EU, circular value chains, business strategy, design principles, design driven development
Links and documents will be uploaded to Moodle. If you would like to get started, here are some resources:
Online resources
- Design Management Institute: https://www.dmi.org
- European Commission Directorate-General for Environment. EU strategy for sustainable and circular textiles. https://environment.ec.europa.eu/strategy/textiles-strategy_en
- Ellen Macarthur Foundation: https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/circular-economy/what-is-the-circular-economy
- The Circular gap report: https://circularity-gap.world
- Environment Norway: https://www.environment.no/topics/waste/
- UN Sustainability 2030 Goals: https://sdgs.un.org/goals
Readings
Altman, J. and M. Hestad. 2019. The little booklet on: Business Design. 2nd edition. London: Brand Valley Publications.
Amit, R. and C. Zott. 2021. Business model innovation strategy: Transformational concepts and tools for entrepreneurial leaders. New Jersey. Wiley.
Best, K. 2015. Design Management: Managing Design Strategy, Process and Implementation. 2nd edition. London. Bloomsbury Academic.
Bradford, A. 2020. The Brussels Effect: How the European Union Rules the World. Oxford University Press.
Ceschin, F. and I. Gaziulusoy. 2016. Evolution of design for sustainability: From product design to design for system innovations and transitions. Design Studies. 47, 118-163.
Design Council (2020). Moving Beyond Financial Value: How might we capture the social and environmental value of design? UK: Mission Oriented Innovation Network (Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose) and Design Council. Dec 2020. Retrieved 02 Mar, 2024, from https://www.designcouncil.org.uk/fileadmin/uploads/dc/Documents/Moving%2...
Drew, C. 2021. Developing our New Systemic Design Framework. Design Council. Retrieved 20 Mar, 2024, from https://medium.com/design-council/developing-our-new-systemic-design-fra...
European Commission. (2020). A new Circular Economy Action Plan For a Cleaner and More Competitive Europe. EUR-Lex. Retrieved 20 Mar, 2024, from https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?qid=1583933814386&uri=CO...
Ellen MacArthur Foundation. 2021. Circular Business Models: Redefining growth for a thriving fashion industry. Available at:
https://emf.thirdlight.com/link/circular-business-models-report/@/preview/1?o
Johansson-Sköldberg, U., Woodilla, J. & Çetinkaya, M. 2013. Design Thinking: Past, Present and Possible Futures, Creativity and Innovation Management. 22 (2)
Lewrick, M., Link P. and Leifer, L. 2018. The Design thinking playbook: Mindful digital transformation of teams, products, services, businesses and ecosystems. New Jersey. Wiley.
McKeown, M. 2011. The Strategy Book: How to Think and Act Strategically to Deliver Outstanding Results. 1st ed. London: Financial Times/Prentice Hall
Mozota, B., Collignon, H & Valade-Amland, S. 2024. Designence ® 2.0 Strategic Responsible. DMI. 35(1)
| Form of assessment | Grouping | Grading scale | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolio assessment (Vurderingsmappe) | Group | Pass / fail | Deliverables • Group presentation of a design process / principles (Moodle) • Group presentation of a design process / principles (In class) • Individual reflection note on contributions to the groups success (Moodle) |
| Workload activity | Comment |
|---|---|
| Attendance | Participation in class at lectures and discussion seminars, the cross disciplinary workshop and tutoring is obligatory is expected and necessary to be able to pass the course Active participation in classes is required, and the ability to communicate and reflect on the subject. It will include peer-to-peer presentation, participation and final presentation of the business project. Students are expected to take advantage of the time allotted for self-study, and to read the given and recommended literature within their chosen or given area of design management. Students are expected to contribute to a professional and constructive cross disciplinary collaboration. |