GLOSSARY
A discipline is a specific field of study with its accompanying philosophies, concepts, practices, and methods. Strategy is a set of activities, decisions, and arenas in which to bring a vision to life.
Strategy Disciplines
Alen Faljic, founder of the D.mba program, explains that business design is “a relatively new discipline that lives in the intersection between business and design. It was developed to complement the growing relevance of design methodologies in the business world.” [19]
He goes on to describe that business design is “an activity that uses design methodologies, design mindset, and business tools to solve business challenges. … This mixture ensures that we can look at the problem from different perspectives. Is it desirable? Can we actually make it? Does it make business sense?” [19]
Business Design
Business designers are equally concerned with customers and stakeholders, ensuring that “great business ideas can make your organization money and contribute to growth over time.” [20]
In short, business design is the design of business. It incorporates design thinking and similar approaches that put the customer at the center of the design process, but business design goes further by focusing on profitable business models. Board of Innovation
Business design does not inherently take a systemic or collective view—apart from considering target market size and a competitive analysis—unless paired with other philosophies and practices. Since it is focused primarily on innovation and launching new for-profit business ventures, it can take a bit of extra effort to connect it to non-profit funding and impact models.
When to use Business Design
When launching a new line of business or creating a business from scratch
Trying out a new idea to see how it will resonate with audiences and if it makes business sense
Improving the operations and implementation of services, programs, and products, even those that are non-profit
References & Learn More
[19] What is Business Design by d.MBA
https://d.mba/guides/what-is-business-design-guide
[20] Board of Innovation
https://www.boardofinnovation.com/what-is-business-design/
According to the UN Global Pulse, Futures and Foresight are multidisciplinary practices using a range of methods such as data monitoring, learning and evaluation, speculative storytelling, and service design to envision possible opportunities and prepare for environmental scenarios. It is built on a foundation of improving living conditions for all citizens and addressing environmental challenges for healthy and stable communities.
“We must combine the best of our past achievements with the most creative look to the future if we are to deepen solidarity and achieve a breakthrough for people and the planet.” Our Common Agenda—Report of the Secretary-General [21]
Futures and Foresight
When to use Futures and Foresight
Creating a vision for the near-, mid- and long-term for your organization
Evaluating possible decisions to consider the outcomes and ramifications
Engaging your community to unleash shared imagination and equity-building
Building coalitions to innovate for people, planet, and future generations
What Futures and Foresight invites us to do
Think about what might be possible, beyond what exists today
Connect globally, recognizing our shared humanity and earthly home
Commit to creating the conditions for new innovations and opportunities to emerge
References & Learn More
[21] UN Global Pulse
https://www.unglobalpulse.org/un-global-pulse/
A social enterprise is a “cause-driven business improving social objectives and serving the common good. Social enterprise models are a smart, savvy way to combine the best of traditional nonprofits and traditional businesses. … A successful social enterprise balances upholding the social mission of its organization and maximizing the productivity of its business venture to ensure sustainability.” [22]
Where a nonprofit is reliant on donations and funding, a social enterprise works toward independent financial sustainability through its pricing models.
“In a social enterprise, the social good IS the profit.” Sara Cantor, Greater Good Studio
Examples of social enterprises include the Grameen Bank and Acumen.
Social Enterprise
What Social Enterprise invites us to do
Design for the benefits and impacts to the community, environment, and supply chain in addition to profits
References & Learn More
[22] The Good Trade
https://www.thegoodtrade.com/features/what-is-a-social-enterprise/
Strategic design is another emerging discipline that applies future-oriented design principles to increase an organization’s innovative and competitive qualities. [23] As a discipline, it “focuses on redefining and redesigning management processes, strategies and leadership paradigms through strategic design interventions.” [24]
In traditional design definitions, the focus is often on “creating discrete solutions—be it a product, a building, or a service. Strategic design applies some of the principles of traditional design to ‘big picture’ systemic challenges like health care, education, and climate change. It redefines how problems are approached, identifies opportunities for action, and helps deliver more complete and resilient solutions. Strategic design is about crafting decision-making.” [25]
Strategic Design
Jan Auernhammer lays out how Strategic Design “utilizes design practices to develop an organization and region’s innovation capability and competitive qualities” in what they term a comprehensive design practice. [26]
A planning practice containing strategic tools and design methods to create conceptual models and plans
A learning practice through collective reflection from intent and action in which governing values are reframed and interventions are changed when consequences do not meet expectations (Argyris, 1976)
A social practice focusing on developing collective capabilities by empowering diverse perspectives, practices, and groups to create tangible designs [26]
A comprehensive design practice arises from these three principles, enabling tangible design and strategy to emerge from the messiness of creative and collaborative design practice.
When to use Strategic Design
Connecting vision and futures thinking to planning, implementation, and evaluative efforts
Crafting responses to interrelated, complex emergent challenges such as social inequity, healthcare, global pollution, and business growth
For developing conceptual plans and enabling shared sensemaking separate from planning and implementation
References & Learn More
[23] Strategic Design
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strategic_design
[24] National Institute of Design
https://www.nid.edu/academics/programmes/master-of-design-mdes/strategic-design-management-mdes
[25] Helsinki Design Lab
https://www.helsinkidesignlab.org/pages/what-is-strategic-design.html
[26] “Strategic Design: The integration of the two fields of Strategy and Design” by Jan Auernhammer
https://dl.designresearchsociety.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3521&context=drs-conference-papers
[27] Strategic Design by Giulia Calabretta, Gerda Gemser, and Ingo Karpen
Strategy activation is a new discipline emerging in tandem with the modern organization, which is more diverse, empowered and independent-minded than the top-down, hierarchical organizations of old. Strategy activation fits between strategic planning and strategy execution. The space between these two is the desert where strategy goes to die.” Aric Wood [28]
Strategy activation recognizes that people will be more supportive of change and new directions when they have the chance to contribute to how it plays out. It is a discipline based on the human-centered design philosophy, inviting those involved in a change to help shape it.
Wood goes on to say that “strategy activation, and change activation at large, is about understanding the people in the system: their wants, needs, and barriers to change, and how to persuade them to join your cause and move forward together.” [28’]
Strategy Activation
What Strategy Activation invites us to do
Consider the people involved in a change, recognizing they may not have the same perspectives, information, and motivation to change that you do
Replace force, manipulation, and penalties with collaboration, imagination, and co-ownership
Build time into change processes to allow people to engage with the new concepts
Remember that people more willingly support things they have contributed to
Strategy Activation pairs well with
Human-centered and trauma-informed design facilitation
Collective impact
Systems thinking
Learning experience design
References & Learn More
[28] The Strategy Activation Playbook by Aric Wood