Thank you all for participating Design Club´s firs online lecture series “Designing the Future”! In this week’s online talk “The specificities of Design for SMEs” Patricia Naves guided us to look at design through the lens of smaller companies.
“The specificities of Design for SMEs” on June 3rd
What did we learn from Patricia’s talk “The specificities of Design for SMEs”?
In her lecture, Patricia talked, among other things, about how designers and SMEs could both benefit from working together. SMEs are the most common business types there are. Also, many of the design professionals work in smaller businesses.
Designers should turn their gaze towards small and medium-sized enterprises as potential customers. Chances are much higher that design services can promote structural change in small and medium- than in large corporations. Thanks to the easy access to the top management.
Currently, many SMEs underestimate the power of design for their business. But design has much to give! Design practices can refresh the brand identity, but they can also be used to elevate the whole business strategies of SMEs. Design services can help small and medium sized-enterprises enter new markets and grow.
Patricia Naves: The specificities of Design for SMEs
What does Design mean for smaller businesses? In her webinar “The specificities of Design for SMEs” webinar (June 3rd) Patrícia Naves, doctoral candidate at the Department of Design at Aalto University School of Arts, Design, and Architecture, talks about the relevance of Design practices in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Patricia is a licensed architect and holds an MA in Industrial and Strategic Design from Aalto University. She has a longstanding practice in Architecture and Product Design for international licensing. Her practice as a small business owner led her interest in entrepreneurial practices in small design companies. She is also a consultant for SEBRAE – the Brazilian governmental agency for the support of micro and small businesses.
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“Design in Business” online event on May 20th
Top 3 takeaway´s from Tua Björklund’s talk “Design in Business”
Design can boost effectiveness by helping to find the right question to ask.
Design can boost efficiency and engagement by breaking down silos and acting as glue organizations.
You can get the design process rolling in our organization by finding those who share your thoughts about the general problem and are enthusiastic about the change. Scaling design to a strategic level relies on experts, collaborators, and systems working in unison.
Tua Björklund: Design in Business
In the “Design in Business” webinar (May 20th) Tua Björklund, Professor of Practise at Aalto University and one of the founders of the Aalto Design Factory, will consider how design tools and methods can be harnessed to better serve organizations and their value creation. Her talk is based on a recent book Design+ Organizational renewal and innovation through design (2019).
Björklund´s current research projects investigate design thinking, strategic change, and internationalization efforts of start-up companies. Her research focuses on turning ideas into improvements in product design, entrepreneurship, management, and teaching. She has a DSc degree in work psychology from the Aalto University School of Science, and an MA degree in cognitive science from the University of Helsinki. She worked as a visiting scholar at Stanford University 2016-2017.
