Design and the Innovation Agenda – A Scottish Perspective

Against the backdrop of increasing focus by UK policy makers and international academics on the links between design, innovation and economic growth, this paper details an ambitious research project being undertaken in the UK. The project is titled ‘Design In Action’: a knowledge exchange hub running from 2012 to 2016 through which interdisciplinary teams will engage in collaborative design to pilot a new model of design led innovation. As Design In Action (DIA) is in the stage of early development, this paper will outline the research that is being proposed and how the ‘sandpit’ method of intensive workshops will be used to enable collaborative innovation. It will detail the planned aims of the project, both in concrete terms (i.e. the number of products created) and in terms of how it is intended that the project will promote design as an economic driver. The paper will address the theories that have influenced the development of DIA, touching on the role of design in the innovation process and how the DIA team has defined the creative process that will be fostered. Finally the paper will, through the lead author’s doctoral research, add to the debate on the model of ‘design-driven innovation’ championed by Roberto Verganti, how the model compares to the approach of user-centered design and how the conflict between these two models has impacted the discussions of the role of the user in the development of a toolkit for innovation.