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Design and the Bottom Line

Date: 9 October 2007
Venue: The Design Council, London

The first DesignTalks debate explored the issue of evaluating return on design investment. A cross-section of designers and manufacturers engaged in an often lively discussion, sharing a range of different experiences and viewpoints.

Issues discussed included:

• How can manufacturers measure the return on their design investment?
• What elements actually make up that investment? CAD Software? Hardware? Training? People? Support services? Other intangibles? Where do you draw the line?
• Is investment in design guaranteed to yield a return?
• How often does design make the difference between success and failure?
• Can you attribute financial gains to specific design investments?
• Who is responsible for delivering return on design investment?
• Is it fair to burden designers with the responsibility for a product's success?
• How do you incorporate inspiration into the design equation?
• Does investment in design and robust processes act to stifle or nurture the kind of creativity that makes such Eureka moments possible?
• How can manufacturers ensure their investment in design yields a decent return?

The distinguished panel included:

Aaron Moss
Senior designer at Nokia

Dan Farrell
Design Manager, Pashley Cycles

Tom Lloyd
Partner at Pearson Lloyd

Craig Wightman
Design director at Kinneir Dufort

Alan South
Chief Innovation Officer, solarcentury

Paul Siodmok
CAD specialist

Colin Mathews
Director of Operations, Team Consulting

Martin Bennison
Senior Mechanical Design Engineer, KeyMed

Antonia Ward (chair)
Knowledge Manager, The Design Council