And for the past 20 years, our innovation practice in China has been on a journey to answer this question together with our clients and collaboration partners.
Our environment and the challenges we face are constantly changing. Design—whether you see it as visual expression, a way to solve problems, or a tool for innovation used by individuals, organisations, and even social systems—exists in that same frequency of change. The answer to what design can do is naturally and continuously evolving. It’s why we believe the question is worthy of exploration, and worth continuing to explore.
In this article, we share our current thinking on what design can do. It’s not a definitive answer: we know that as the challenges we tackle continue to change, and our expertise and experience continue to develop, new thinking will emerge.
Through a conversation with Tony Wong, Global Partner of IDEO and Remy Jauffret, Managing Director of IDEO Shanghai, we aim to show the changing face of design from four angles:
- How design is practiced.
- The outputs design delivers
- The value it brings
- The conditions necessary for success
As IDEO Shanghai celebrates its 20th anniversary, Tony and Remy mark their 15th and 10th years at IDEO respectively. In this dialogue, Tony and Remy, reflect on their work with clients and experience in the field, and share how these have evolved over time. They also imagine what new frontiers and challenges could lie ahead, and what the next 10-15 years of design might look like.