In
large organizations, design is moving closer to the center of the
enterprise. This shift isn’t about aesthetics and product development,
however. It’s about imparting the principles of design—collectively
known
as design thinking—throughout the organization. The approach is in large
part a response to the complexity of many products, services, and
processes. People need help—they need their interactions with
technologies and other complicated systems to be intuitive
and pleasurable. Design thinking is an essential tool for simplifying
and humanizing. The principles include a focus on users’ experiences,
especially their emotional ones; the creation of physical models, such
as diagrams and sketches, to explore problems;
the use of prototypes to experiment with solutions; a tolerance for
failure; and thoughtful restraint in product features so that even a
complex piece of technology can be easy to use. Creating a
design-centric culture requires understanding that the returns
on an investment in design are difficult to quantify, allowing people to
take chances, and appreciating what design can and cannot achieve.
Design helps people and organizations cut through complexity and imagine
the future, but it doesn’t solve all problems.
[ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]