Forty Years of Research in Design Management: A Review of Literature and Directions for the Future

Abstract

Defining the research in Design Management (DM) involves the intersection of two disciplines: management sciences and design sciences. We focus on design management research and summarize the diversity of the relationship between these two interdisciplinary fields through a study of the international literature published between 1977 and 2017 on the subject. Firstly, the hybrid territory of design management is defined through its keywords and their evolution; using various definitions of design management, a representation of the place of design within organizations then starts to emerge. Secondly, the analysis focuses on the five key themes of design management developed in the literature-the value of design, the methods and skills of design, the tools of design, its integration in other functions, and the theme of "better manager by design"-as well as the resulting models. Finally, this review of the literature highlights the emergence in the discourse of two complementary forces: design management and design leadership.

Design orientation as a source of sustainable company performance

“…The strategic management approach with design as a source of competitive advantage has been recognised and researched for the last 20 years, and a huge step in developing different design models, methods, and skills are acknowledged (Borja de Mozota and Wolff, 2019). Design can be understood as a double-loop process within a company, where the experience of inserting design can lead to better design absorption and to higher maturity level (Wolff et al, 2016).…”

“…Also, Borja de Mozota and Wolff (2019) have acknowledged the importance of design in the reinforcement of customer orientation. This is achieved through the need to provide the necessary information concerning the customers, such as information about aesthetic, functional, and other design features.…”

“…In addition, many managers are still insufficiently aware of the potential of design, especially of its role in adding value to the customers, and therefore do not attribute a strategic role to design (Veryzer and Borja de Mozota, 2005;Borja de Mozota, 2010). In the evolution of design, its multidimensionality and multidisciplinarity increases (Borja de Mozota and Wolff, 2019) and thus the role of design in companies has also been changed. In the past, the design was primarily in the domain of designers and not so much management.…”

Design Management Staircase as a Measuring Unit: Understanding Design in Cairo Startups

“…Similarly, in the Design world, Mozota and Wolff discuss Latin American countries facing the challenge of translating Design Management (DM) terms which in Spanish are translated into ‘Management of Design’, leading to miscommunication. Those translation problems create misunderstandings between Managers and Designers which can cause a rejection of the concept of Design Management (Mozota & Wolff, 2019). This means that Design terms cannot simply be translated by anyone; more research is needed to accurately make sense of these terms in different languages.…”

“…Design Management is a field of study with different understandings and explanations. According to Borja De Mozota and Wolff, DM lies between Design and Management disciplines (Mozota & Wolff, 2019) where it merges both fields (Johansson & Woodilla, 2008). DM is also said to be the Management of Design which involves the integration of Design within the Management process of an organization (Best et al., 2010).…”