5 corporate cultures that inhibit designing creative solutions Presentation for the Fifth Annual Design Research Conference at the Interdisciplinary Design Institute of Washington State University- January 15-16, 2009 Wendy Castleman | Principal User Research Scientist | [email_address]

Design for various cultures in The impact of culture on designing

Design for various cultures

My World

Who am I? Design

Influences on Designer Creativity Personal character, personality and skills Physical environment Cultural environment

Cultural Environment

Team who could design creative solutions Personal character, personality and skills

In a place where team could design creative solutions… Physical environment

Ideal Cultural Environment for Designing Creative Solutions Perspectives Customer Input & Feedback This is fun! Cultural environment Iterative Prototypes

5 Corporate Cultures… Approval Planning Correct Committee Talk … that inhibit designing creative solutions

Approval

Planning

Correct

Committee

Talk

Culture of Approval belief that the best answers are high-up in the organization

Customer Input & Feedback There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home. – Ken Olsen (founder of Digital Equipment Corporation) Culture of Approval: Radical Ideas get killed off too easily. Perspectives

Working with the culture of approval customers

Culture of Planning belief that you can always be successful if you strictly adhere to plans

Culture of Planning: Closed off to new ideas too soon. We are a software company Iterative Prototypes

Working with a culture of planning Plan -Experiment -Look for surprises

Culture of Correct belief that there is only one answer

Culture of Correct: Alternatives aren’t explored Iterative Prototypes

Working with the Culture of Correct believed correct should be wrong crazy might work another another another another another another

Culture of Committee where everyone must be on-board for things to move forward

Perspectives Culture of Committee: Fosters needless complexity and delay

Working with the Culture of Committee

Culture of Talk where employees are encouraged to tell others what their ideas are and why they are good before acting

Culture of Talk: Don’t test crazy ideas and don’t focus on the experience This isn’t fun! "Instead of focusing on the visual design, we'll focus on the interaction between the user and the machine.” – Nintendo Wii Team ( didn’t say ) Iterative Prototypes

Working with the Culture of Talk

No man is an island… - John Donne Perspectives Customer Input & Feedback This is fun! Iterative Prototypes

What can you do to make your culture a better place to design in?