eThesis - School of Business electronic theses

Introduction The role of design is becoming increasingly important in business and research has shown the positive impact design can have on company performance. Furthermore, as competition intensifies and product life-cycles shorten, there is a greater need for new and innovative products and services. In line with this increase in demand for innovation, there has also been an increase in demand for consulting services that can provide expertise and a fresh perspective. One such company who have noted this trend is Elephant Strategy + Design, India’s largest design company.

Objectives The objective of this thesis is to arrive at a design innovation model for Elephant Strategy + Design. The Model should allow Elephant to help better understand their client and their client’s business environment, and then lead to innovative design solutions and business opportunities through design and design thinking

Methodology This research utilises a qualitative single case methodology. Furthermore, the thesis employs an abductive approach whereby the theoretical framework, empirical fieldwork, and case analysis evolve simultaneously as this approach is suitable when developing new models and theories. The empirical fieldwork was conducted over a two month period at Elephant in India.

Findings The main finding of this paper was the development of a design innovation model. The key stage of the design process lies within the initial stages when forming a strategic direction. This itself relies upon a solid understanding of the client’s domain through assessment of their internal and external environments. This paper also noted that the design process is not a linear process, and as a result the model employs a non-linear backward-looking approach to better support the outcome of arriving at the correct strategic direction. One of the key aspects of this model is that it incorporates tools to aide in the assessment used to understand the client’s domain. Furthermore, methods were incorporated, in the form of flashcards, to support the use of the tools. This was noted as especially important given that non-specialists may be using them. Upon assessment of the client through the use of tools, a variety of possible outcomes were noted, which would allow for the final strategic direction to be decided thus supporting the formation of the final design brief.