- Organizations establish design studios to drive innovation, design thinking, product development, and address business challenges while providing space for designers. - To create a design studio, an organization must first develop a vision statement aligned with its business strategy. It then looks to hire or acquire designers and design firms. - The organization revisits the vision with designers to establish strategic and tactical goals, investment needs, target revenues, and action plans for the studio over its first three years. Branding and promotion are also important to make the studio known internally and externally.

1. Design Studio
Creating a
Veena Sonwalkar
within Your Organization

2. Why do Organizations (esp. large ones)
need a Design Studio within?
Icon source: Easel by Stanislav Cherenkov from the noun project

3. - To be Innovative
- Drive Design Thinking within organization
- Define Products for Future
- Help Respond to Rising Business Challenges
- Provide Space for Designers :-)
Design is business and business is design!
Icon source: Duke Innovation Co-Lab (the Noun project)

4. Ok, now how do I have a
Design Studio
in my organization?

5. First, start with a vision statement
for the studio which aligns with your business strategy
Icon source: the Noun project

6. Next, look for Designers
Icon source: the Noun project
- Are there any Designers within the organization?
- Hire new Designers and Design Leaders?
- Acquire a Design firm?
- Partner with a Design firm?
- Combination of above?

7. Then, revisit your vision with designers

8. Strategic 1st year 2nd year 3rd yearTactical
Plan for tactical activities if
needed for immediate revenue
generation or business continuity
GOALS
ACTION POINTS
Target Revenue
Investment need for creating
design studio
GOALS
ACTION POINTS
GOALS
ACTION POINTS
Plan what the studio should do for next few years…
- Have Goals, activities you want to do
- Think of how much you want to invest and how much you can
- Think of a target revenue the studio should generate
- Divide them into strategic plan and immediate, tactical things which can be done
Icon source: the Noun project

9. Make sure you do the Branding right too!
Everyone in the company and your customers
should be aware of the studio

10. Veena Sonwalkar