Finally, my dream has come true. In January 2024, I will be launching a new master's course in Design Management at the University of South-Eastern Norway.
What is Design Management?
Design management involves leading design and innovation processes applicable to all value creation, contributing to the development of user-friendly, profitable, and sustainable solutions. It is a leadership role responsible for the development, application, and stewardship of design to promote innovation and value creation in both private and public sectors.
Design management involves:
- leading design and development processes internally within one's own organization.
- managing procurement of design services from external design providers.
- handling the organization's design capital and resources to protect intangible assets, such as brands and legal design rights.
Understanding design management is particularly valuable for those who will lead design and innovation processes related to product and service development, identity and brand building, and other value creation activities. It involves mastering methods for problem-solving, co-creation, user-centered approaches, and circular economy principles, as well as utilizing idea processes, design sprints, and iteration. Central to design management is the task of developing and building a culture, structure, and an organization around a design-conscious mindset.
Strategic alignment with overarching goals and strategies is a key factor for design to contribute to goal achievement. This involves understanding strategy, developing strategy, and utilizing strategic design processes.
Mastering design management can be beneficial for project managers, middle managers, and top executives in private, public, and nonprofit organizations across various industries and sectors. This includes professionals in design firms and other creative industries, as well as anyone interested in leading design processes.
Sneak peek into my course
By studying design management, you will learn to apply design methodology to achieve innovation and creative thinking, including design thinking, problem-solving, idea processes, co-creation, design sprints, and iteration.
You will learn to:
- Work on problem-solving as part of innovation processes and value creation.
- Lead design processes to create user-friendly, profitable, and sustainable solutions.
- Apply design thinking in organizational and business development.
- Utilize strategic design processes for product and service innovation.
- Ensure goal achievement through strategic alignment with the organization's objectives and strategy.
- Manage and project-manage the procurement of design services from external design providers.
- Facilitate the strategic use of design based on design strategy and design handbook.
- Manage the organization's design capital and growth through activities such as redesign and rebranding.
- Safeguard the legal protection of the organization's intellectual property, such as logos, symbols, and brands.
- Cultivate a design-consciousness in the organization by developing and building a design culture.
The overarching idea is to provide you with knowledge, methods, and processes that match the needs, requirements, and expectations you encounter in your everyday role as a design leader.
Just a quick heads-up, the course is in Norwegian.