Reversing the Design-Marketing Hierarchy: Mapping New Roles and Responsibilities in 'Designer-Led' New Product Development

摘要

This article seeks to discern and chart recent flux in the territory of practice of the design profession. Whereas in the past the voice of marketing was paramount in the new product development (NPD) process, today the designer's role is evolving. New approaches to business, manufacture, and consumption are propagating an ascendancy of design and the design profession. The extended role, remit, and responsibilities of designers are here examined. Using a qualitative case study methodology in the context of NPD, the research uncovers a distinct shift towards 'designer-led' NPD. The transition is manifest in three key areas: (1) design involvement spanning the NPD cycle; (2) an increased breadth and complexity of design problems; (3) new value in managing the people dimension of the process. These changes are expanding the dimensions of the designer's remit. In this paper the notion of 'designer-led' NPD is identified, defined, and described. A model is developed to assist designers navigating the paradoxes of this new era. Finally, methods to enable design professionals to reconcile conflicting design-business demands are suggested.