It is also important to understand what design is not. Design is not art, it is not aesthetics, and it is not engineering. It's not the work of one person and it is not the solution to all of your problems.
Although design is not art, it is still written about in the Arts & Leisure section of most major newspapers in the U.S. and abroad, and, to many executives, design is more about art than it is about business. But the truth is that design is "applied art" in the sense that it is applied to solve a particular problem or address a new opportunity.
Design is not aesthetics. Aesthetics is one of the many results of a successful design process, but design is the way you get there. Design is not engineering. In many meetings with executives and with business school students they're nodding their heads, "Yes, I understand design, we do design in our company," but they're thinking about their engineering group. One way to appreciate the difference between engineering and design is to look at the required courses from a major engineering school for mechanical engineering and then look at the required courses for industrial design. There is no overlap at all. They are very different courses of study, taken by different people and both make a major contribution to the success of many businesses.
Design is not the work of one individual. Unfortunately there is a tendency by some to think that they will bring design into their organization by having an internationally known designer work for them. It's not that easy. As discussed above, design is a process, not just good looking apparel to be draped over an existing product. The understanding and use of design must be part of the way the company does business. The company must practice design leadership by incorporating design into the company in many different ways.
And finally, design is not the solution to all of your problems. Design in a silo cannot achieve great results. Successful design exists as part of a multidisciplinary, collaborative process that can produce true innovation.
The examples at the beginning demonstrate the important role design can play. It works for companies of any size, and it offers tremendous opportunity precisely because it is so underutilized and misunderstood. Those who harness this resource may well see their business thrive and grow without the need for the acquisition of new technology or other companies.
Peter Lawrence is the chairman of the Corporate Design Foundation.
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