MA Innovation Management 2013
www.mainnovationmanagement.com
Introduction
Of the many definitions of innovation out there, one that is open to many interpretations is Sir George Cox’s (2005) ‘successful exploitation of new ideas.’ Not only are we able to consider what each of the elements means for us – ‘success’ can be in commercial, social and psychological contexts (among others); ‘new’ can be inventions or new connections between seemingly different things; and so on – but we need not be constrained by any one of them. Surely a good, even successful, innovation process should be open to its own innovating. But in any of these cases – in any of the contexts in which we innovate – we need some spark. The spark of insight that leads into new territory; that which makes previously unheard of connections; or the spark that flies from successful impact, as recognition of a job well done. And for sparks to fly we must have a beneficial context, adequate accelerant and a moment of ignition. Welcome, then, to Ignite: the catalogue showcasing the work of the 2013 graduates of MA Innovation Management. Here they highlight the many ways in which ignition works in managing innovation processes. Though clustered in seven areas – Business Models; Digital; Design; Luxury; New Markets; Social Capital; and Organisational Culture – the work collected here is not constrained by them. These clusters locate boundaries to be crossed in innovating, as well as areas within which innovation can be managed: you will notice there are many links between them and to other topics. I hope that insights spark for you from those collected by this group of students. Please don’t hesitate to contact them, or us, if you would like to discuss how innovation could be ignited in successfully exploiting your own creativity.
Dr Jamie Brassett FHEA FRSA Subject Leader & MA Course Leader Innovation Management
Contents 7 IGNITE
Business Models
Digital
9 Agata Nowicka
21 Amy Blumberg
11 Kristoffer Parup
23 Firas El Jechy
13 Vuong Tong
25 Magda Tomaszewski
Design
Luxury
15 Amishi Parekh
27 Jason Melissos
17 Chenbo Lu
29 Nan Zheng
19 Tag Christof
31 Semi Lee
New Markets
Social Capital
33 Florencia Adriasola
45 Agata Ballaun
35 Yu You
47 Valentina Conti
37 Zifei Wang
49 Yujia Zhai
Organisational Culture 39 Adam Bick
50 Industry Collaborations & Links
41 Arielle de la Loyère
54 Student Directory
43 Meng Wang
58 The Colourhouse 60 Acknowledgements
7
MA Innovation Management Class of 2013
IGNITE
With change inevitably comes uncertainty. And innovation, a disruptive form of change, is the embracing, the championing of uncertainty. It is the introduction of the utterly new, something unprecedented, a subversion of the established. And as such, an innovation’s outcomes are often unforeseeable, incalculable. And while innovation need not necessarily be radical, or even perceptibly disruptive, its trajectory roughly mirrors that of an explosion: there is an impetus – the fuse – followed by a blast and a subsequent sizing up of the changed landscape – the result and its aftermath. To innovate is, in essence, to set in motion a chain of events whose outcome changes the landscape itself, and thus shifts all relationships. But innovation is by no means an unmanageable process. It is for this reason that our focus is upon ignition, the decisive moment – the coming together of spark, accelerant and environmental conditions – which ultimately determines scope and impact. With measured consideration and a degree of intuition, a skilful innovator is both acute observer and serial optimist. An innovation may have a long fuse, followed by a drastic initial impact with little long term change. Or it may have a short fuse, with a barely perceptible bang followed by massive, long-term shifts. It is sometimes less than the sum of its parts, and sometimes very much more. In its most literal sense, ignition allows for the implosion of an old building to make way for a new one. It fires up the engine of a racing car or jet. It is the electrical pulse of the microchip in a pacemaker, a satellite. Businesses, cultural movements, organisational changes, new products and revolutions, likewise, require ignition. And innovation management as a practice is the orchestration of ignition: the bringing together of disparate elements, thoughtfully and insightfully, to stoke change. Innovation management is the deliberate, informed push forward towards progress, and the skilful negotiation of the shifting, emergent space between inertia and uncontrollability. Each of the twenty-one projects contained herein is the result of an ignition. They are thoughtful dissections of opportunities and problems in fields as disparate as architecture, theatre and finance, all united by a common desire for meaningful change.
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INDIVIDUALS + KNOW-HOW
BUSINESS MODEL
INNOVATION CONSULTANCY DELIVERABLE FOR THE CLIENT
SERVICE OFFERING
Innovation Management within consultancies
Business Models : Organisational Culture
Innovating the Innovators Agata Nowicka FUSE
AFTERMATH
Innovation consultancies provide companies with a broad roster of services, from implementing innovation frameworks within business structure to product development and strategic opportunitymapping. In recent times, however, innovation firms have begun playing an instrumental role in helping companies create new business models and gain a competitive advantage. The increased demand in such services is what sparked an interest in business model innovation.
Acquiring new knowledge within the field of innovation is not enough to maintain a competitive edge. Innovation consultancies must be able to showcase a track record of successful business innovation within their own firm. In other words, they must practise what they preach.
IGNITION
Research undertaken at the Board of Innovation fuelled a deeper investigation into the changing role of innovation consultancies. As these firms play a significant role in developing company architecture, they too are expected to demonstrate the ability to transform with market needs and stay ahead of the pack. The objective of the project was to identify business model opportunities that would allow consultancies to re-adapt and evolve. RESULT
The research findings play out on two levels. The first looks at the personal development of the consultant: in order to advise clients, they must continuously enrich their knowledge across a broad spectrum of areas. They too must engage in experimentation and prototyping and assess their failures, to better understand and manage their clients’ expectations. The second, however, examines the real value and opportunity that stems from the organisation’s standpoint. Consultancies looking to engage in business model innovation, must put new concept development at the forefront of their practice. They must look to continuously re-adapt their offering and establish new practices, much like other organisations, who go about investing in new product development. Lastly, they must put their offerings into practise within their own business model, thus demonstrating their credibility.
Consultancies with such a track record also demonstrated their ability to outperform the competition and secure client trust. For example, the Board of Innovation successfully prototyped a novel parcel delivery service called Cardrops, assuring clients of their ability to conceptualise and implement such a business within the market. Likewise IDEO launched the OpenIDEO platform to seek out new ways of innovating their core business model by harnessing the value of the crowd, by drawing insights into their consulting practise.
“[Innovation consultancies] too are expected to demonstrate the ability to transform with market needs and stay ahead of the pack.” RE-IGNITION
As the market not only rapidly develops but also becomes saturated with firms offering consultation services, companies are challenged to persistently evolve their offering in order to maintain a competitive advantage. This project asserts that innovation consultancies must demonstrate the effectiveness of their service offering within their own business practice. This highlights the opportunity to research how open platforms can be integrated into existing consultancy models, and the kind of benefits they can produce for the business as a whole.
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Business Models : Social Capital
Open Equity Kristoffer Parup FUSE
RESULT
The financial crisis of 2007 and the global recession were caused by a fundamental belief in the financial industry, that risk could be eliminated with innovative financial products. The crisis and recession proved this belief to be tremendously misguided, and to this day economies are struggling to recover.
A new approach and a new process are needed. The generation of returns should be done continuously throughout the funds lifetime, and this requires a longer investment horizon. The longer investment horizon allows for the VC to focus on building better companies through an internal innovation and development process. This attracts entrepreneurs (increasing deal-flow), while also attracting capital from investors.
Funding entrepreneurs is one significant element that can pave the way to economic recovery. Venture Capital (VC) invests in entrepreneurs/ startups, and can therefore be regarded as a key driver for economic stimulation. Investing in startups is risky, and this presents a paradoxical situation where more risk needs to be taken in order to overturn a crisis that was initially caused by excessive risk taking. Venture Capital funds (VCs) have been affected by the crisis, and as a result the underlying business model has proven to underperform in a crisis market. What changes should be made to the business model, and what new approach should VCs take to increase funding of entrepreneurs? IGNITION
The business model depends upon VCs successfully exiting their investments. Therefore, VCs require that deal-flow (investments) and exit routes (IPO/M&A) to be open at all times in order to generate returns. The VC industry experienced five main effects as a result of the crisis, 1) fewer deals (decreasing deal flow), 2) longer waits, 3) no exits (narrower exit routes), 4) low returns, and 5) low fund-raising. When stock markets collapsed and risk aversion spread, IPO and M&A exits narrowed. Investing in a company without foreseeable exits is a gamble, and with narrow exit routes, VCs made fewer or no investments. As stock markets did not recover, the VCs held their investments, resulting in lower returns. When the VC cannot deliver high returns, it can prove difficult to get new fund-raising. Low fund-raising has thus now become a fundamental issue, and the number of funds is projected to decrease.
Taking the private out of private equity and converting to open equity allows for more investors to fund more entrepreneurs. AFTERMATH
The VC Platform requires VCs to find, invest, develop, and exit companies – a tall order, and mastering both in-house development and investors is a challenge. The upside to the VC Platform is a consistent level of returns generated by allowing more investors to participate, and as a result of more capital, more entrepreneurs will be attracted. The business model behind the VC Platform generates returns to investors through IPOs, M&As and dividends – making it more resilient to narrowing exit markets. The VC Platform will not alter the fact that many new companies fail, but by monitoring and evaluating more companies, the VC will be more adept at spotting potential winners.
“Taking the private out of private equity and converting to open equity allows more investors to fund more entrepreneurs.” RE-IGNITION
Merging a VC with an online investment platform could combine in-house development and investor base. A second option is building the in-house development and acquiring an investor base. One thing remains certain: capital is needed to create capital.
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ACTION
Introduce enterprise discourse
RESULTS OBSERVED
Lack of enterprise discourse
CYCLE 1
Students consider enterprise
REFLECT
ACTION
Use feedback
CYCLE 2 OBSERVED
Misalignment between expectation and practice
RESULTS
Co-created strategy ACTION
OBSERVED
Continuing alignment between expecation and practice
Each cycle of research was built on previous insights and subsequent action.
Develop a learning organisation
REFLECT
CYCLE 3 RESULTS
Informed direction for course and programme REFLECT
Business Models : Organisational Culture : Social Capital
Embedding Enterprise Strategy into Practice Vuong Tong FUSE
RESULT
The business value of creativity is currently being challenged. A recent article in Monocle reads: ‘The UK government has made it cripplingly expensive for domestic students to study at arts colleges and near impossible for foreign students to stay on and be employed in the UK after graduating’. This illustrates a disconnect between the value of art and design education and how it contributes to the economy. Moreover, art and design institutions are reacting to the changing economic landscape by considering themselves as businesses.
On the Innovation Centre’s behalf, the enterprise strategy and relevant opportunities were communicated to the class with the aim of increasing enterprise activities. However, gauging students’ understanding of the concept was just as important. Using journals, we gauged that up to 50% of the class was interested in pursuing enterprise opportunities, which directly aligned with the Innovation Centre’s offering.
Central Saint Martins serves as an example of incorporating business thinking into an art and design curriculum. This project’s research questions what might be gained or lost in aligning academic activities more closely with those of industry. What is the role of creativity and innovation within CSM? How can its culture be transformed to support innovation?
The journals were primarily intended to gather first-person feedback. However, they also began to change students’ perception of their creative work and its potential financial contribution to industry. They could see the business opportunities and the Innovation Centre as a resource to realise them. As a result, the intent for enterprise was realised by half of the class, but it remains uncertain if this level can be improved and enterprise introduced to other courses.
“There is a disconnect between the value of art and design education and how it contributes to the economy.” IGNITION
Central Saint Martins formed the Innovation Centre within the college to engage in business activities, such as contract writing, intellectual property rights, commercialisation, and to encourage startups. Its purpose was to help students pursue enterprise and capitalise on creativity. This project examined whether or not students were aware of enterprise and if enterprise was practiced. Using a particular course at the college as the research sample, it was revealed that only 14% of class projects encompassed elements of enterprise.
AFTERMATH
RE-IGNITION
The next step is to gather college-wide feedback and aim for wider participation to spark cultural change. In its aftermath, the college would no longer be the same. The implication is that this would embed enterprise practices into the college, and enterprise strategy and practice would become indistinguishable. Moreover, the college could be considered as a creative agency and both generate and commercialise creative ideas. Students would then need to consider the potential profitability of their creative ideas.
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Photo by Amishi Parekh
Design : New Markets : Social Capital
Decoding Culture Amishi Parekh FUSE
As designers, we seem to be producing tremendous amounts of ‘stuff’, with little consideration as to how it fits into the lives of the people who use it. Increasingly, we design for cultures that are fundamentally different from our own, and which are continuously changing. The failure of many foreign companies to successfully launch products and services in countries such as India and China is an argument for acknowledging that people from different cultures have diverse needs and motivations, which dictate their behaviour and purchasing decisions. Country and culture seem to be viewed as interchangeable concepts. There exists a tension between the desire to maintain an authentic expression of identity and ‘locality’, and a tendency among designers towards a unified form language. The challenge is to find ways to bridge this gap. IGNITION
Victor Papanek’s Design For the Real World, and Andrew Blauvelt’s Towards Relational Design were catalysts for this project. Both authors highlight that the social implications of developing and introducing new products and services into markets must be considered. This project explored ways of embedding culture, through a dialogue between the people who make, solve, do, and those who consume, use, and customise. To explore this in the context of designing for different cultures, an international design research network was analysed. RESULT
Culture, and similarly innovation, is not about the artefact, but what it alludes to for the people who interact with it. Designers can take a more granular approach that accommodates broader, international trends and smaller, regional variations. However, the deeper aspects of culture are complex and difficult to condense into easily digestible units.
Field research results in the generation of vast amounts and varieties of data, ranging from videos, images and ecosystem maps, to written notes and analyses. These materials are being under-utilised by clients, and can potentially be used beyond the scope of a project to provide a virtual immersion into a culture. This allows design teams to harvest cultural insights by embedding them into the design process in a way that is much more interactive and participative.
“There exists a tension between the desire to maintain an authentic expression of identity and ‘locality’, and a tendency among designers towards a unified form language.” AFTERMATH
An online platform can provide a comprehensive, discursive view of a culture, enabling design teams to visualise interconnections between underlying drivers and cultural shifts. This would be fed by aggregating data from relevant sources, as well as a global network of researchers tasked with generating insights from their regions. Possibly the greatest challenge in implementing this is editorial: maintaining quality while managing myriad regional contributors, would be challenging. Partners would have to be carefully selected to ensure both authenticity and neutrality. RE-IGNITION
A number of insight and trend forecasting agencies offer reports and searchable databases organised by country, however, there have been far fewer efforts towards telling a compelling story that communicates cultural behaviour. Creating such a multi-layered interactive resource also requires a customised algorithm for sorting through online data. Thus, further research would be required to build functionality.
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The concept of sustainability in industrial design business
Incorporating sustainability into the core value system of organisations
Design : Business Models : Organisational Culture
Building Sustainability into Core Value Systems Chenbo Lu FUSE
A newfound awareness of sustainability and social issues has become an important impetus for product development and business growth. And in the context of the current market, burdened with both economic and energy crises, products must be simplified during the design process in such a way that waste can be reduced in manufacturing. This will, in turn, bring profits and business growth. This project accordingly investigated how to leverage sustainability as a driver in product development. IGNITION
The core value system of a company is the most crucial aspect for its success in product development, because it acts as the company’s internal compass and guides the business in each and every decision and interaction. Put simply, if sustainability is built into an organisation’s core value system, it will effectively drive product development and business growth in an innovative way.
“Sustainability must be built into an organisation’s core value system in order to derive the right kind of involvement from employees.”
There are two approaches that could lead a company to embed sustainability into its core value system. One approach is to source government policy support: this route has been strongly promoted by, among others, the Chinese government. It has successfully led several companies to focus on the idea of sustainable living as an opportunity to get government-subsidised support for their business development. The other approach involves writing sustainability’s principles into a company’s founding values. This approach is epitomised by MUJI, which made sustainability the focal part of its brand, with its slogan, ‘no brand, quality goods’. AFTERMATH
These two approaches are not mutually exclusive and can successfully be embedded into the models of industrial design companies, helping them build a competitive edge within the market. However, companies looking to gain government support must obviously be located within a developing country which has a sustainability agenda. The other challenge for companies who are looking to build sustainable practice into the DNA of their business is the implementation of a well-structured business plan and a company value system which is both clearly communicated and closely followed.
RESULT
RE-IGNITION
The main finding from the research was that nominally placing sustainability at the top of the organisation’s agenda does not work. Instead, its principles must be built into a company’s core value system in order to derive the right kind of involvement from employees. The value system that this will espouse, in turn, can be instilled across the organisation and will lead to production approaches and resulting projects that are inherently sustainable.
This project has highlighted further development opportunities, both in practice and in theory. As further research is needed, these two means of promoting sustainable practices can be reformulated as separate research hypotheses for testing their feasibility.
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Photos by Tag Christof
Design : Organisational Culture : Social Capital
Open Design for Architecture Tag Christof FUSE
Intense urbanisation, volatile financial markets and changing demographics have transformed society’s relationship with the built environment. Cities across the globe are struggling with critical shortages of quality housing and public space, while ageing and inefficient buildings and skyrocketing retail vacancies have made blight and abandonment fixtures of the urban landscape. In this context, architecture has mostly failed to respond proactively. Traditional practices are driven by market forces and thus primarily serve the interests of monied developers. Since these interests often both conflict with those of the user and fail to take into account quality-of-life issues, architecture’s focus has been skewed towards its most lucrative applications and a vicious cycle is perpetuated. IGNITION
The emergence of open design, crowdfunding and digital participation platforms are in the process of revolutionising design: they have effectively demonstrated that profitability and inclusion are not mutually exclusive. And perhaps more importantly, they have proven reliable wellsprings of innovation. Nevertheless, similar shifts within architecture have not materialised. While a slate of practices have managed to meaningfully embed users into the design processes, there is as yet no participative framework in which valuable generative feedback from users can be effectively leveraged. RESULT
Architecture’s inherent economic, technical, temporal, regulatory and cultural conditions are radically different from, for instance, those of industrial or software design: each building occupies space, whose scarcity is positively correlated with its value. Policy and regulations dictate function, typology and size, from which a developer or client sets a brief which professionals must then execute.
Any drastic shift is therefore contingent upon corresponding shifts in an intricate puzzle. To add users into the mix in any meaningful way means both making a case for its value and determining where input could be most beneficial. Nevertheless, for the first time, technology, financial crisis and demand for cost-effective, efficient spaces that far outstrips supply may at last incentivise more widespread applications of participation.
“There is as yet no participative framework for architecture in which valuable generative feedback from users can be leveraged.” AFTERMATH
A litany of recent insight reports have cited some version of user-driven architecture as one of the most significant trends of the next several years. And with both cultural and economic impetus behind it, user participation stands a chance to make inroads with both developers and less progressive practices. If and once its utility and value have been more firmly established, it will inevitably become a much more widespread component of architectural practice. RE-IGNITION
If the open-revolutions of other sectors offer any indication of the possible paradigm shift for architecture, we can anticipate similarly radical shifts in values, structure and products. Imagine an agile, intelligent, human-centred architecture driven primarily by quality-of-life concerns over the formal, aesthetic and financial. Architects will lend their expertise to setting in motion dynamic, modular platforms and systems that can be easily and collaboratively built upon alongside users.
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emPOWERme Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/doug88888/4537134655/
Digital : Luxury : Social Capital
Consumers & Luxury Brands: A One-to-One Relationship Amy Blumberg FUSE
William Bruce Cameron said, ‘Not everything that can be counted counts and not everything that counts can be counted’. With the exponential growth in digital information, understanding how brands are using data to engage with consumers across all touch points is both a major focus and challenge for luxury brands. With growth in the luxury goods market exceeding ¤212 billion in 2012, online luxury goods sales are expected to climb 20% per year by 2015 and 70% of high income households using social media, consumer behaviour and the relationship between the brand and consumer has shifted. However, measuring the impact of these changes for marketers is challenging. IGNITION
This project began by posing the question, ‘does maximising the number of likes or followers on social media platforms drive purchase for luxury brands?’ Examining the causal relationship between community size – likes or followers – and sales, revealed the need to take a step back and first re-shape how brands develop relationships they have with consumers or potential consumers. Accordingly, a paradigm shift towards a one-toone personal relationship, an even playing field where consumers and brands share power, was proposed. RESULT
Engagement between the brand and consumer was examined through Facebook content posted by luxury brands throughout the month of February. With the use of a specific formula, a summation of likes, comments and shares were taken in relation to the total number of community members.
Through an opportunity framework, the research suggests that brands looking to shift to a consumer-centric social media strategy should use social media as the lynchpin of the brand’s marketing strategy and voice, while understanding that what triggers one person’s actions cannot be reused as the strategy to drive others – the path to purchase is no longer linear.
“Understanding how brands are using data to engage with consumers across all touch points is both a major focus and challenge for luxury brands.” AFTERMATH
The authors of Groundswell validate the findings: ‘concentrate on the relationships, not the technology...relationships are everything’. Social media relationships are currently one-way, with consumers ‘liking or following brands’. To develop a one-to-one relationship, a first step may exist with following back significant contributors to the brand. RE-IGNITION
A personal relationship between brands and consumers can only be developed if a brand’s internal culture, beginning with leadership, believes in it and implements it within all areas of the business, thus producing an entirely new business culture. Next, they can focus on driving revenue by bridging the gap between social media and e-commerce.
The results demonstrated the percentage of fans engaging with the brands’ content over the month. With no clear bridge existing between community size and engagement, it was inferred that a causal relationship is not present. However, the behaviour of affluent consumers can be quantified in this space and insights from the posts that garnered the highest engagement can be used to further trigger action. 23
Technological solutions that encourage human interactions through an emphasis on Context, Relevance, Engagement and technological pull according to consumer insight.
Digital : Business Models : Social Capital
The Human Experience in the Digital Landscape Firas El Jechy FUSE
RESULT
Human beings have become tethered organisms, that are forsaking tangible, analogue realities for their lives on screen. Internet addiction has inspired a look into our Internet habits from a pathological point of view, how it affects our offline lives, and how it is affecting physical spaces such as retail environments, coffee shops, and airports. What were once opportunities for socialising have become spaces for browsing. We are slowly losing out on human interactions and the effects can be seen in our social behaviour, as we weaken our relationships on purpose in the pursuit of convenience.
The result is a design strategy, an ideation tool for the purpose of modelling human interactions within ubiquitous computing. This tool will enable designers to consider all of the required factors for human interaction without sacrificing connectivity. It consists of three factors, the first is relevance, which is creating something relevant to the user, the second is context, which considers the time and place of the interaction, and the third is engagement, which is creating an intrinsic motive to interact with people, objects and places.
“What were once opportunities for socialising have now become spaces for browsing.” IGNITION
As a proposed solution, engagement with a new approach for online technology, which falls within the Post-digital movement, can place emphasis on human rather than digital interaction, and in a physical space rather than a virtual one. This approach includes technologies such as mobile, augmented reality and the Internet of Things, and can be characterised as unintrusive, shared interaction. Engagement here happens with technology and people and places simultaneously. But perhaps the true insight is that engagement on its own will not be enough to change the mindset of designers in order to shift their thinking from digital to postdigital. The process starts with awareness, and considers engagement as well as context and relevance.
AFTERMATH
This opportunity can be used to revive physical commerce – real world shopping – which has progressively lost customers to e-commerce. These solutions should have a positive impact on businesses that once relied on physical location and have been damaged by virtual space, such as advertising. How can we create an interactive poster or an engaging newspaper advert? RE-IGNITION
Testing this tool in several sectors will further refine the approach, especially since each sector has its own needs and unique propositions. Two tests will occur to further develop this model, the first is in physical retail, with the objective of regaining customers that switched to e-commerce. The second test will occur in advertising space with the objective of recapturing viewers’ attention in physical space, be it outdoor media or print.
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01101011011010 10101011011010 0011011010010 01101011011010 It takes a thousand voices to tell one story.
01101011011010 10101011011010 0011011010010 10101011011010 0011011010010
Digital : Business Models : Organisational Culture
A New Brand Architecture Magda Tomaszewski FUSE
The Internet has flipped the world on its head, unleashing uncertainty and endless opportunity across every industry. As time has passed it has become clear that this is not a bubble, but a fundamental and redefining historical shift which has created an entirely new dimension within which we interact. Easily predictable consumer relationships and patterns no longer exist, as they are consistently disrupted and fragmented by digital innovation across communication channels. This has left many organisations asking how they can reestablish once-stable connections they had with their consumer and find a way to navigate the disruptive and ever-evolving digital landscape. IGNITION
Two texts were used to build a research framework: Erik Roscam Abbing’s Brand Driven Innovation and David Edelman’s article Branding In The Digital Age. While Abbing’s proposition focuses on the importance of brand story it does not consider brand behaviour within the digital context. Edelman’s work, however, discusses the practical implications digital has had on branding without looking at the role of story within the process. This project looks to bridge this gap and identify new engagement frameworks for brands. RESULT
One of the tensions explored within this project was the tendency for organisations to focus on digital innovation. Jumping from one new technology to the next, they lose sight of the function each is meant to serve. While it is essential for brands to leverage digital platforms, it is their story above all which allows them to navigate through the fragmented landscape and maintain a deeper connection with their consumer. Too often it is forgotten that storytelling is embedded within our nature.
have put experience and content creation at the forefront of their brand, re-adjusting their business models to cater to these new mechanics which help guide their story.
“While it is essential for brands to leverage digital platforms, it is their story above all which allows them to maintain a deeper connection with their consumer.” AFTERMATH
Many companies have turned to product and service integration as a means to capture consumer loyalty, likewise agencies such as R/GA have made facilitating brand-driven engagement platforms the core of their business. Few companies, however, have committed to this transition. The practical implications require organisations to re-think their human resources and internal structure so that they can adapt to a brand architecture that allows for a deeper experience and engagement with the consumer. RE-IGNITION
Brand-driven engagement platforms investigated in this project have thus far successfully leveraged their data to create more meaningful experiences for their users. Moreover, they have managed to help identify new revenue stream potential for brands in the process. Still, such platforms have yet to explore the next level of engagement: direct-point-of-sale. Further prototyping and insight into how this will affect user engagement and the organisational structure behind the brand is needed. This research will determine the feasibility of such an engagement framework within the commercial arena and further inform what types of brands are most suited to this architecture.
Brand architecture is changing, as are its stakeholders. As brands are increasingly able to engage directly with the consumer, the consumer’s role has evolved into that of participant. Brand behaviours are thus beginning to mimic ecosystems. The organisations who have transitioned successfully 27
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AESTHE TICS : A NEED FOR BEA UT
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The seven proposed themes have been diagnosed as essential for the creation of a resilient luxury brand. These are presented throughout the project as marketing and management guidelines, and offer innovative direction to brands aiming to be connected with luxury. These proposals contribute to a brand’s strength by leveraging the circumstances necessary to successfully expand within the luxury market.
LU
Luxury : Business Models
Heritage and Innovation in Luxury Fashion Branding Jason Melissos FUSE
AFTERMATH
The starting point of this project was to investigate why many luxury fashion brands with a strong legacy consider heritage identical to history, thereby impeding innovation and hindering rejuvenation processes.
While these guidelines appear valid when viewed through the prism of case studies, there is nevertheless a need to examine potential uncertainties, in order to identify any requirement for further research. Brands tend to avoid taking risks and approach change too cautiously. Heritage and history can operate favourably, however, they can also inhibit innovation and dynamic renewal. Furthermore, although the identity and country of origin for the case studies may be diverse, they invariably represent a European approach towards lifestyle, which culturally constricts the study. Finally, an understanding of what constitutes luxury applies to other industries as well.
IGNITION
The project sought to identify current and potential future tendencies of both clientele and the industry, as well as to survey reputable, upcoming designers who place themselves strategically within the luxury fashion arena. With a view towards establishing theory on how brands can facilitate growth and development through innovative tactics in branding, marketing and design, its research aimed to produce a guide for long-term strategy. RESULT
Marketing and communication practices which convey both tradition and modernity must be pursued in order to help businesses reinvent and fortify their strategies. The following qualities which exist in a brand’s DNA are crucial: a culture of craftsmanship and premium quality, heritage, notions of ‘dream’ and unique experiences, individualism, creativity, beauty, exclusivity and rarity. All are essential for building a luxury brand and need successful, timely management from brand custodians.
“Luxury brands tend to avoid taking risks and approach change too cautiously.” RE-IGNITION
There is an opportunity to extend the study to a larger number of firms and even industries outside fashion, which would assist in determining the extent to which these findings can be applied. In addition, observation and analysis of brands which operate across different cultures would provide further insights into any disparate approaches and differences in the marketing practices of luxury.
However, it is important to mention that the success of a brand is ultimately dependent on the public’s opinion. Consumers have become aware of the increased influence they wield, so brands must endorse and actively ‘converse’ with them. Luxury brands must comprehend both intricacies and rewards of this interaction and practice it constructively in order to design profitable and efficient strategies that spread the brand message. The importance for adaptability and the need for change as a solution to the challenges of market competition are highlighted through the development of a culture of innovation.
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A model which describes the loci of innovation in the context of the sub-brand and e-commerce platform: For the purpose of meeting young customers’ expectations in online purchasing, a better functioning e-commerce platform must be established for the success of the sub-brand, thus creating a mutually-reinforced relationship. Every touchpoint refers to an opportunity to enhance the sub-brand.
Luxury : Business Models : Digital
Youth Market Extension for Established Fashion Brands Nan Zheng FUSE
Market expansion aimed at young customers is a complex issue for established luxury/premium fashion brands. This gradually maturing market segment can potentially attract mainstream customers in the future. However, the greatest challenge is presented to the heritage-rich luxury/ premium fashion brands who feel pressured to make changes to their business strategy and product image in order to adapt to the new market conditions. The increasing difficulty in building new brands within this climate requires practical solutions within the existing system of established brands. IGNITION
A proposed solution to this challenge is developing a sub-brand which can attract the younger customer without affecting the established image of the brand. This sub-brand provides the company with an independent platform through which they can communicate a new market positioning strategy and make adjustments to their product design. Likewise, the endorsement of the parent brand and the company’s aesthetic heritage can help nurture the future success of the sub-brand. RESULT
The sub-brand is a feasible approach for luxury/ premium fashion brands when they face the dilemma between expanding to the young market and keeping their heritage. There are many advantages to this approach: First, the clear delineation for the parent brand enables the high-end fashion company to stay at a luxury/premium level. The sub-brand can also provide a more independent platform for adjustments and innovation. Additionally, the interdependent relationship between the parent brand and the sub-brand facilitates the transmission of the company’s aesthetics to younger audiences. Lastly, the sub-brand is a cost-effective strategy contributing higher profitability to the company.
the purpose of meeting young customers’ expectations in online purchasing, a better functioning e-commerce model needs to be established, comprising of a visualised virtual store, instant video clips of models in motion and a better online shopping experience. Such sub-brands will create more innovation opportunities in marketing for luxury/premium fashion companies. AFTERMATH
In practice, luxury fashion brands are facing more challenges in implementing sub-brand strategy than most of the premium fashion brands because of their deeply-rooted heritage and product image. However, there have been successful cases proving that luxury fashion brands have the potential to create a prosperous sub-brand with accurate positioning strategy and effective business operation. Furthermore, the relationship between a parent brand and its sub-brand also determines whether a sub-brand can bring a positive effect to the overall marketing and branding of the company. The sub-brand needs to maintain a clear differentiation from the parent brand even when it is becoming more influential in the market; otherwise, a vaguely positioned sub-brand could harm the value of the parent brand.
“The sub-brand is a cost-effective strategy contributing higher profitability to the company.” RE-IGNITION
Although the sub-brand is affiliated to the parent brand, a subordinate position is not unchangeable. The sub-brand can form an integral value chain for the business, including brand concept, product design, customer base, and marketing channels. However, establishing a sub-brand is not the ultimate goal in building brand architecture. It opens new opportunities for the market expansion and further development of a company.
Furthermore, based on the change in the consumption behaviour of young customers, it is necessary to consider innovation in the purchasing experience in order to meet their needs. For example, for 31
Like the lotus flower, blooming in murky waters, with deep consciousness of values depicted as words along the roots, slow luxury fashion fights the malaise of an unstable fashion industry. Illustration by Semi Lee.
Luxury : Social Capital : Design
Slow Luxury Semi Lee FUSE
AFTERMATH
The fashion industry has been corrupted by the democratisation of fashion, fuelled by a hunger for speed and money. Fashion is no longer about creating beautifully-crafted quality designs. The frustration of not having control over both the products created and the industry itself led to the need to redefine the designer’s purpose and role through this project. The need to research a meaningful way to design in the fashion industry was identified, highlighting the pressing issues in the industry and recognising the need to incorporate deeper values in the products created.
A designer’s job is no longer about creating physically appealing products or catering to utilitarian aspects of a design. It is about finding ways to offer a meaningful connection for consumers with the products they purchase. The market is oversaturated with so many different products, that to differentiate, is to offer quality with a deeper meaning in the design. This research defines slow luxury as the future of luxury, a new luxury carrying deep-rooted values represented by slow fashion. Slow luxury is luxury fashion with consciousness.
IGNITION
Slow fashion, the fashion equivalent to the slow food movement, carries the necessary values for a mental shift in the industry. Nevertheless, it has not yet gained popularity. The research has resulted in coining a new term, slow luxury: the ideal combination of ‘slow’ concepts and the primordial elements of luxury to encourage a deeper and meaningful fashion system. Slow luxury is a strategy which helps popularise slow fashion by stripping luxury back to its essence and re-focusing on craftsmanship, quality and timeless designs. RESULT
Slow luxury is the ultimate expression of authentic substance and quality, which is the quintessential sense of permanence that consumers desire when purchasing luxury. Consumers would benefit from turning their focus on emotionally durable products and services that will be a life-long indulgence and investment. In addition to being a combination of the new (innovative designs) and the old (heritage craftsmanship), slow luxury is also about balancing fast and slow rhythms of producing, designing and innovating for a better way of life. It is about bringing back the essential values of luxury and its tradition, to promote a healthier production and consumption mindset.
“Slow luxury is about balancing fast and slow rhythms of producing, designing and innovating for a better way of life.” RE-IGNITION
Innovation is not always about creating something radically new. It is about making the appropriate changes to create a better way of solving existing issues. For fashion designers, it is about balancing one’s own values as a designer to create a better relationship between the consumer and the product. As designers equipped with the ability to bring a different vision to our society, new solutions can be brought together to create a cultural shift and help consumers make better choices through improved quality in products and life in general.
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Sebastiรกn Rozas representing the studio Gt2p with vases inspired by an Inca legend. Top: Sandra Pope and Genoveva Cifuentes representing the studio Bravo! at TENT with a collection made from typical Chilean materials, copper and wood.
Cristiรกn Dominguez representing The Andes House at The Tramshed at Design Junction with objects that reinterpret traditional materials with contemporary tools and perspective. Photos by Florencia Adriasola
New Markets : Business Models : Design
A Creative Economy for Chile Florencia Adriasola FUSE
RESULT
The Chilean economy is currently stable and flourishing, however, this is based primarily on natural resources that are specific and finite. This can be risky but at the same time, such stability offers opportunities for investment in other sectors, in order to diversify and add industries that can integrate cultural value and contribute to an international recognition of the nation’s identity.
A strong cultural image can both add emotional value to exported raw materials, as well as create an international market for regional design. Furthermore, a sense of heritage in design initiatives can provide opportunities and income for local communities and creative industries in Chile, as well as recognition abroad.
The creative industries can contribute to the protection of heritage and human capital; however, although Chile’s goods are exported on a large scale, they are mainly commodities such as copper, which do not carry an emotional experience. Consequently, the image of Chile abroad remains weak. In light of this, the research focused on the importance of promoting a cultural identity abroad, and approaching the problem as an opportunity to create competitiveness and an international network. The success of the Chilean wine market is also examined, in regards to its contribution to the acknowledgment of a Chilean identity overseas. This example supports the idea that it is necessary to increase the number of markets abroad in which Chile is well-recognised, in order to generate a collective narrative of the country.
“Design initiatives with a sense of heritage can provide opportunities for local communities and creative industries.”
AFTERMATH
The problem of heritage was first approached from an overtly theoretical perspective, and therefore not grounded in the type of utilitarian business thinking it will take for an initiative of this scale to succeed. Moreover, the large-scale nature of this project means that it has many potential applications. Strategy, is therefore of utmost importance for its implementation. RE-IGNITION
Understanding the creative industries, and in particular design, as drivers for creating new sources of income for Chile will be key for the protection of its heritage and human capital. In future research it would be of interest to implement and test the ideas from this research in a real-world setting, as well as to pass on its insights to a new generation of students.
IGNITION
This research focused both on the Chilean economy and on the country’s creative industries. During this process, there was a realisation that product designers can create added value by embedding narratives of national identity into their products. This applies to bespoke and massproduced products for both export and local consumption.
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2
3
ACTION PLAN
6
30 MINS
5
RISK ANALYSIS & SOLUTIONS
4
20 MINS
Ideas
30 MINS
INNOVATION
Lotusflower
IDEATION
POKER 1+2+3
30–40 MINS
POKER 1+2
KEY PROCESSES
POKER 2
10 MINS
10 MINS
KEY RESOURCES
INSIGHTS > FOCUS > TIMING
1 UNMET CUSTOMER NEEDS 10 MINS
POKER 1
Innovation Poker: Six rounds of a game for generating innovative ideas for new markets.
New Markets : Business Models
Innovation Poker: A Systematic Model for New Markets Yu You FUSE
AFTERMATH
There are myriad challenges for developing innovations in new markets. There are questions over how to identify customers’ unmet needs, whether to adapt or innovate, what process should be applied, when to innovate in the business model, and so on. However, there is no established, systematic model that can be used to develop innovations specifically for new markets.
Innovation Poker has been tested in three organisations and also been used on the pilot project for designing the innovation strategy and projects for a company. The pilot project was successful – launching three projects with sources and partners in both Europe and new markets. Since Innovation Poker is focusing on the key resources and key processes of the business model, some factors such as communicating and marketing actually provide the chance to generate innovations with less cost than traditional R&D, making it a useful tool for startups whose budgets are limited. Furthermore, the association of diverse factors in the value chain enables large and mature companies to find various teams of origin for innovations for new markets.
IGNITION
A possible solution is to create a model to manage the process of generating innovations in new markets. Such a model would focus on meeting the unmet needs of local customers and would provide the opportunity for innovators to generate ideas by associating different factors in key resources and processes of the business model. It should not only be feasible for developing new products and services, but also work in the context of business model innovation. RESULT
Innovation Poker was designed as a practical model for systematically managing the process of developing innovations for new markets. The game is made up of six rounds which successively inspire players to identify key resources and key processes in the business model as the origins of innovation. It applies the lotus flower from design thinking as its primary tool for ideation, which is simple and easy for participants to understand. With its help, ideas and concepts are generated and collected to be used for the following rounds of the game.
‘‘Innovators can generate ideas by associating different factors in key resources and processes of the business model.” RE-IGNITION
Innovation Poker was originally designed to be a practical model. It can be used in daily innovation management practice. However, as a new toolkit, it should be tested further in a variety of organisations to enable further development and refinement.
The players should be team members who know the company’s strategy and status quo well. The process of six rounds provides the opportunity for participants to systematically analyse the current status of the company in order to identify advantage factors and those not yet available. Innovations can subsequently be generated through the association of these identified factors.
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Photo by Tomihiro Kono & Sayaka Maruyama
Photo by Tomihiro Kono & Sayaka Maruyama
Mythopoet Magazine Mood Board
Photo by An Le
New Markets : Luxury : Social Capital
Soft Innovation: An Ecosystem for Diversity Zifei Wang FUSE
RESULT
In time of intense globalisation, the notion of innovation has long been surrounded by connotations of science and technology. A relatively one-dimensional lifestyle stemming mostly from the ideology of capitalism, has been generated, standardised, and promoted. In order to accumulate wealth effectively, new technological and scientific advances that could be used to liberate human potential have remained at the service of a purely capitalist drive.
Mythopoet operates under the premise that soft innovation is one of the most powerful ways to achieve symbiosis between aesthetic paradigm and economic welfare. Soft innovation can nurture the diversities of individuality, as well as the symbolic values surrounding customer culture. Technology and functionality should serve to improve social, mental and environmental conditions rather than just facilitate capital gain. However, evolution cannot cease in modern times: it is necessary to promote soft innovation alongside technological change.
According to Felix Guattari’s ‘ecosophy’ theory, the significance of innovation must not only be measured by its impact on economic welfare, but also by its often-neglected benefits on ‘social, mental and environmental’ matters. Furthermore, Paul Stoneman, suggests that soft innovation – defined as innovation that primarily impacts aesthetic or intellectual matters – must be considered the equal of technological innovation. IGNITION
Evolution in nature has shown us that, in order for an ecosystem to prosper, interactivity, variation and novelty are essential. A biologically unchanging equilibrium lacks the ability to adapt and thus to survive environmental changes, whereas, within a poly-cultural ecosystem, cooperative symbiosis nurtures a distinct set of niches and a type of diversity that competition cannot produce. Considered transversally from nature to humanity, the ultimate task of soft innovation is to encourage and nurture variety. Soft innovation is attached to different psychological affections, cultural attachment, and social ideological belonging. By examining two cases within fashion, Le Book and Browns Fashion, we can see it being applied to business. Conversely, we can also attribute many cases of failure in management to the lack of a soft innovation strategy. By exploring Chinese customer culture within an international context, from historical, sociocultural perspectives, Mythopoet – an experimental project established as a poly-cultural ecosystem – considers cultural differences and recognitions between East and West.
“Evolution in nature has shown us that, in order for an ecosystem to prosper, interactivity, variation and novelty are essential.” AFTERMATH
Practical considerations abound, such as the costeffective, full roll-out of the project. In addition, Mythopoet’s franchise process, based on that of Browns Fashion, gives insightful lessons about product authentication and suppliers, brand value maintenance, feasibility of local market, store location in relation to investors, margins and customs. RE-IGNITION
Most existing discourses about innovation are based primarily on the primacy of economic growth. However, much further research is needed in order to explore its social and cultural impact on mentality, individuality and creativity.
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Insights Fluid Knowledge based Hierarchy Instinctive, Intuitive process. Based upon tacit Knowledge. Operates outside of hierarchy
Process uniqueness & requirement shifts The trend to reject proprietary tools and methodologies
Ingredients Collaboration, Creative Process & Strategy Client Relationships
Elite Sport Performance Analysis
Actor Network Theory Empirical Analysis
ink eL Th
Practitioner
Performance
Innovation Opportunity Influences the industry from the bottom up, look past structure, management and process to focus upon progressing and developing the practitioners who are at the heart of the industry. Inform decision making, improve communication and client relationships, unlock tacit knowledge
The path, progression and formula that has informed the research leading to my innovation opportunity.
Organisation Culture : Social Capital : Business Models
Collaboration Strategy for the Advertising Industry Adam Bick FUSE
AFTERMATH
This research project focused on collaboration and process within the advertising industry, specifically commercial film. Its intention was to explore the boundaries of the industry in order to identify opportunities for innovation.
FKH overlaps with the uniqueness of each creative process and is produced by the variables and diverse requirements of each project. Its impact sees leading agencies opt out of using proprietary tools and methodologies, questioning their validity as they attempt to control and influence too many variables. This leads them to become superficial and removed from the reality of the creative process.
IGNITION
Research was conducted alongside director Giles Lovell Wilson, while working on campaigns for Proctor & Gamble and Unilever across various international markets. Throughout the process it was possible to observe how agencies such as Saatchi & Saatchi (London and Amsterdam), Ogilvy & Mather (Singapore), Publicis (London) and Leo Burnett (Beirut) work and collaborate. Alongside Foucault and Alasuutari, who provided the base theories for the project, Latour’s Actor Network Theory structured and drove the empirical investigation. Key theoretical insights were drawn out from de-fragmenting and re-thinking each practitioner’s attitude towards collaboration (hierarchy, organisational structure and creative process). RESULT
Throughout the research process Fluid Knowledgebased Hierarchy (FKH) was identified as a guiding approach. It is a process which engages with fluidity and the circulation of power between practitioners. Within it there is a mutual understanding between the most experienced and knowledgeable members of the hierarchy. They identify with the instinctive and intuitive processes of other practitioners who operate outside of the recognised structures to meet the demands of the creative process. The purpose of FKH is to draw upon the expertise within the collaborative group as the process passes through various disciplines, facilitating efficient and coherent progression.
While the personal development of creative practitioners is not of prominent importance within commercial objectives, focusing on improving individual performance can positively influence collaboration, fostering efficiency, coherence and creative output, which are priorities within commercial objectives.
“Fluid Knowledge-based Hierarchy draws upon the expertise within the collaborative group.” RE-IGNITION
A further consideration, also contained within the research, is Creative Industry Performance Analysis, which re-thinks performance analysis from elite sport. It blends performance indicators, self-assessment and visualisation tools to build insights based on observations and analytics. Practitioners are linked through an exclusive, open source platform that drives collaboration on an individual level. As a tool, it informs strategy, process, future decision-making and communication with clients. Considered together with the FKH, it represents a significant opportunity for future research.
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STEP 5 INTERNAL COMMUNICATION PROGRAM
STEP 6 CHANGE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM
Steps 3 to 8 are simultaneously created and applied
STEP 4 ENGAGEMENT MODEL
INNOVENVIRO 10 STEP INNOVATION PROCESS
STEP 2 SPONSORSHIP
INNOVENVIRO 10 STEP INNOVATION PROCESS
STEP 1 LEADERSHIP
STEP 3 PEOPLE COLLABORATION
STEP 8 PROTOTYPING
STEP 7 RISK MANAGEMENT PROGRAM
STEP 9 IMPLEMENTATION PROGRAM
STEP 10 REFLECTION PROGRAM
Organisation Culture : Business Models : Digital
Online Collaboration for Sustainable Innovation Arielle de la Loyère FUSE
In considering market forces and trends that connect open innovation, digital services and sustainability, a business opportunity emerged. This project’s research served to explore this opportunity, which developed into a collaborative online innovation project, with the aim of helping manufacturers develop new strategies to improve their sustainability. By doing this, these organisations engage in business practices that are both environmentally and socially considerate, while producing economic value in the long-term. When considering the new market dynamics and the growing importance of sustainability, it became interesting to explore how collaboration amongst manufacturers could increase and benefit the implementation of sustainable innovations. Open innovation, according to Chesbrough, consists of companies working with other organisations to further develop innovative business opportunities. It is a form of exchange which is inclusive and which might interest consumers, governments, businesses and other organisations, engaging in environmental and social innovations. IGNITION
The project systemically explored how sustainable innovations can be encouraged, and examines their application in scenarios such as open innovation business opportunities, consulting and digital collaboration. Furthermore, it explored the viability of the business opportunity in a world experiencing an economic and financial crisis. RESULT
Important to the context of this project is a societal paradigm shift, called the Green Re-Form, in which, the awakened consciousness of environmental and societal needs are becoming increasingly important for consumers, governments, businesses and various organisations. There has been a widespread realisation that a fair economic value can be attached to business transactions that also respect the environment and individuals within a society. Reorganising and reforming processes and systems has become essential, and aims to maximise resources and reduce unproductive methods.
The shift encourages consumers, governments, businesses and organisations to rethink and reinvent themselves when faced with new market demands and pressures. Furthermore, open innovation initiatives such as inter-organisational collaboration for organisations’ supply chain needs or policy issues, stand to benefit from the project, as it aims to generate ideas and create innovation for sustainable results both in the long and short term.
“[InnovEnviro] is a form of exchange which is inclusive and which might interest consumers, governments, businesses and other organisations, engaging in environmental and social innovations.” AFTERMATH
InnovEnviro, as the project came to be called, is being developed as a platform on which collaboration and creativity can promote wide-ranging sustainable solutions tailored to each client’s unique requirements. Resources are pooled internationally, efficiencies are maximised, costs are reduced, communication is increased and relevant information shared. The challenge remains in the breadth and application of this endeavour since it is international, open and transparent. The practical implications are to create an online community, which involves leveraging the creative processes of innovation to improve environmental and social challenges, whilst generating profitable business strategies. RE-IGNITION
The next steps include finalising the digital prototype for multinationals to test and refine. InnovEnviro’s innovation process is one of the initial business models it generated. Creating strategic business models and tools for measuring sustainability can help kickstart the project. This collaborative platform can ensure that the implementation of an innovation is low-risk and successful. 43
CONSIDERATIONS
PARTNERSHIPS
Changes in: Media
Social Norm
Legislative Insitution Legislative Context
CSR PROJECT
Activist Group Public Scrutiny/ Perception
Company
NGO
A COMPANY’S CSR Partnership based on open collaboration CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Organisation Culture : Social Capital
Leadership in Corporate Social Responsibility Meng Wang FUSE
The discourse of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has evolved since the 1970s from a priori focus on corporate financial performance to a more holistic view emphasising the interconnectedness between an organisation and its social, cultural, environmental and political context. The awareness of the evolving role of CSR is becoming increasingly prevalent within the business world, and it is encouraging companies to innovate new ways to operate business and manage stakeholder relationships, from recognising the democratised power relations in society and generating the motivation to benefit both their business and society at large. IGNITION
Companies have become increasingly aware that the sustainable development and competitive competence of their organisation rely on effective integration of CSR into both strategy and organisational culture, as well as its implementation in collaborations with diverse stakeholders. The key element for a successful open collaboration lies in an understanding of the emerging discourse of CSR, where power relations are increasingly diffused among actors from across boundaries. It is, therefore, important to consider shared value in stakeholder relationships, contextual thinking and, in particular, an organisational environment which supports complex collaboration processes. These factors together form groundwork from which responsible leadership arises. RESULT
In order to develop responsible leadership, a company will need a visionary attitude that encourages and inspires them to take risks. Alongside this, it must remain open to change by proactively engaging the organisations and individuals who challenge their business in varied social, cultural, economic and even political terms. The company must interact with these individuals in open, collaborative processes and transform the actors with negative perceptions into constructive resources for meaningful change.
A CSR partnership based on open collaboration is a significant innovation opportunity for developing responsible leadership through CSR. AFTERMATH
A combined effort will be necessary for a company to make meaningful changes in their value system, organisational culture and the ways in which the entire business is operated. For these open and collaborative process to take hold, CSR must be embedded in the right legal framework as a regulated practice in business rather than merely ideals. Accordingly, the media will need to enable and nurture the communication and expression of emergent social attitudes towards CSR. This change in the public perception of CSR will doubtless compel a company’s senior management to consider it critical for sustainable business growth. Senior management will have to prepare for risks of compromising short-term financial goals in order to achieve long-term sustainable development of their organisation.
“In order to develop responsible leadership, a company will need a visionary attitude that encourages and inspires risk-taking.� RE-IGNITION
For the effort in CSR to be meaningful and to develop responsible leadership in society, companies must cede autocratic control over collaborations and be sensitive to challenges from external stakeholders. Further research in open innovation and cross-boundary collaboration within the discourse of CSR, leadership and human resource management will doubtless become necessary.
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‘A Borough United’ community play project. Spring 2013, Jacksons Lane, London. Photo courtesy Jacksons Lane.
Social Capital : Organisational Culture
Arts-Inspired Workshops for Business and Community Agata Ballaun FUSE
AFTERMATH
The inspiration for this project came from observing and participating in various creative events across London. Jam sessions, theatre workshops, poetry slams, community gardening, juggling in the park – limitless interpersonal connections, ideas and experience exchanges, together fuelled the research. With this in mind, a search to find new ways of igniting the creative spirit within the workplace was undertaken. Its main objective was to help employees develop their communication and interpersonal skills.
The potential for creative workshops is endless. The current professional training landscape is lacking in creative and innovative approaches which will both engage and empower employees.
IGNITION
Within the context of PR and marketing, it was observed that there were a lack of creative activities for employees to engage in. The traditional modes of business and personal trainings offered in the market no longer attracted potential clients, with high volumes of proposals rejected by companies every day. The project aimed to explore how the energy and empowerment experienced during arts-related workshops and activities could be successfully transferred into different business sectors and disciplines, creating new and valuable alternatives to existing training practices. RESULT
Throughout the field research process it was determined that arts-related activities could inspire people from different social groups and backgrounds, and when properly tailored could be embedded within any discipline. The findings showed that such activities could be valuable tools for innovating organisational practices when implemented in a holistic manner, rather than as a one-off event or activity. However, such standalone experiences could act as introductions to arts-related training methods for an organisation.
Arts workshops are open to constant change, improvement, tailoring and inspiration from other disciplines. The main challenge is to construct a solid bridge between arts and business practices, which would in turn benefit both sectors. In order to do so, both sectors must develop trust and openness, which will allow them to mutually inspire one other towards the desired innovation objective. Once this is achieved, the unlimited possibilities of arts-inspired techniques can be uncovered.
“Creative workshops show great potential as innovation tools for self-development and educational practices within organisations.” RE-IGNITION
Creative workshops show great potential as innovation tools for self-development and educational practices within organisations. Giovanni Schiuma’s work on Arts-Based Initiatives has provided a theoretical and academic foundation. However, there has been little investigation into these practices within non-artistic environments. Such research will help build a greater understanding of each sector’s needs and begin to generate a portfolio of frameworks and practices that can be used by organisations.
These techniques and practices help trigger both imagination and creativity, but also work towards integrating the communities with professionals. When tailoring such a training program, considerations like company profile, business strategy and participant backgrounds need to be considered. This ensures that the potential of such activities is optimised. 47
In environments where security and rewards cannot be provided, intrinsic motivation is the driving force that can harness passion and generate value.
Social Capital : Organisational Culture
Developing Social Structures within Organisations Valentina Conti FUSE
AFTERMATH
In considering globalisation and the increased openness and complexity that it has brought about, a sea change in conventional approaches to management is readily apparent. Old paradigms have been rejected, leaving space for new structures of guidance and learning. In a time where networks and relationships define the backbone of our society, leaders should privilege communication as a primary tactic for soft power relations.
The means by which managers support processes of organisational socialisation – in which newcomers can feel secure and involved – requires the implementation of clear guidelines within the organisation, preferably in the form of a handbook which is accessible by all.
IGNITION
Inspired by recent influxes within the volunteer pool – both within senior and youth communities –and the increased demand for volunteer workers, due to the beneficial effects on the organisation; volunteering has been identified as a fast growing area of opportunity. The powerful emotional connections individuals experience in undertaking these roles can help in the understanding of a sophisticated process of organisational socialisation. Key research insights were developed within a start up environment, where organised group collaboration is imperative to ensuring the company maintains a level of efficacy and does not dissolve into a state of crisis and chaos. RESULT
As an individual’s environment influences his or her emotional involvement, there is a need for communicative leadership which advocates social value and truly cares for its workforce. Managers who acknowledge this need will ensure that their organisation maintains a degree of prosperity and effectiveness. Accordingly, by providing appropriate platforms for direction and learning, there are opportunities to develop communication strategies that will serve to effectively motivate volunteers within an organisation.
The Volunteer Manual sets out to clearly introduce the organisational structure and present meetings agenda and mentorship sessions. This is the step through which managers will communicate support and encourage situations where individuals can be freed from psychological stress and feel motivated to offer their work and knowledge to the best of their ability.
“There is an opportunity to encourage volunteering as a valuable strategy which improves workforce efficiency.” RE-IGNITION
Further research on how the manual should be effectively delivered requires a deeper understanding about the volunteer’s targets and needs. A subsequent step will consider the design of a Volunteer Manual for a brand new non-profit organisation, which is still in the process of developing its organisational strategies. A set of new volunteers will be utilised to help test and guide the development of the manual, with the volunteers involvement being monitored through surveys and interviews. With social responsibility gaining more and more attention, there is an opportunity to encourage volunteering as a valuable strategy which improves workforce efficiency. It would allow business goals and social values to be blended in an environment of collaboration and structure, helping to build a more stable and prosperous environment.
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Public creative event stimulate social innovative culture with the society.
Public co-creation project, 100% Design, 2011 Photo by Yujia Zhai
Social Capital : Design
Public Creative Events and a Culture of Innovation Yujia Zhai FUSE
AFTERMATH
Innovation is a challenging topic in developing countries such as China, which are facing rapid social transformation. This project explores the approaches by which soft innovation can be activated and an innovative culture can be built through social and creative interaction. As culture has a direct impact on human behaviour, there is a link between how cultural initiatives can help build up an innovative culture and in turn influence the progression of innovative undertakings by inspiring participants.
As the frequency of these type of events grows globally, it is important for organisers to explore an ecological and sustainable approach for their longterm development. However, challenges reside in a number of key areas: the lack of long-term planning and event management professionals, insufficient investment and support, weak collaboration between the government and business community and lack of public participation.
IGNITION
In China, key government and corporate decisionmakers may not be open to these forms of soft innovation. This is primarily because they do not have the arts, design and innovation knowledge to understand the potential of the proposition, but also because of the weak value system which surrounds creativity and innovation. As making radical changes within the existing education and political system is not a pragmatic solution, attempting to grow an innovative culture through the influence of these institutions is unrealistic. Therefore, it is essential to look for solutions within the public domain and initiate change in the set power relations from that angle.
“Public creative events can initiate the transformation of culture across industries and cities� RE-IGNITION
Based on the social value created by such events, further research is needed into the specific social impact of these events, the management practices surrounding them, and the ways by which the public, business community and third sector participates interact and benefit from them. Furthermore, a critical evaluation of the overall influence these events have on the greater community should be considered.
RESULT
The research shows that public not-for-profit events with an arts and design-focused agenda can resolve this challenge. The social value created by such events arises by demonstrating and communicating the meaning of creativity and innovation to a diverse group of actors in society, educating, entertaining and inspiring people with art and creativity. The key elements of this social change include cross-disciplinary programming, active audience engagement, an integrated vision of globalisation and localisation, utilisation of social media and new technologies, networking and resource sharing. With this approach, the transformation of culture across industries and cities can be initiated, giving individuals and organisations a stronger connection through social movement.
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Industry Collaborations
MA Innovation Management has a growing network of industry partners outside of Central Saint Martins; built through collaborations on live projects, as well as recognition in student and professional design and innovation platforms. These relationships are integral to the course, with its emphasis on the successful implementation of ideas. Students learn to manage their development process and deliver outcomes within real world contexts, with real briefs from clients who span a variety of industries.
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Online Platform Development for an International Publishing House
Every year MA Innovation Management is challenged with a client brief as part of the ‘Uncertainty Project’. The purpose of this project is to experiment with uncertainty, risk-taking and failure in developing and understanding innovation and strategy in ways that are qualitatively different from traditional management paradigms. Students were tasked with developing concepts that could tackle such eventualities, or offer new approaches to growth and development. The Uncertainty Project uses the intellectual, practical and creative aspects of the design process to engender, manage and implement innovation. It explores solutions in an environment where business, design/creativity and sociocultural issues converge; and generate value through creative collaboration in a multicultural context, by bringing together people from different cultures and educational backgrounds. Student teams deliver two outcomes, one ‘safe’ and one ‘experimental’. The first does not stray too far from what is immediately feasible and can be easily implemented. Developing the ‘experimental’ outcome demands that the students deliver concepts that are disruptive and which challenge the brief. This two-pronged approach allows the students to create their own space for experimentation and helps them understand the meanings of, and the thresholds between, safety and risk, success and failure. The graduating class of 2013 was approached by a global publishing house to explore opportunities within the 50+ demographic for building an online community to complement their online courses. The 50+ age group in the UK has the largest percentage of disposable income of any demographic. Digital awareness is patchy and many consumers want to use and buy from websites, but often are wary of doing so. Informal learning has been identified by external research as being of strong interest in this demographic group. It was a bold step for the publisher to move into a direct-to-consumer market, with an online learning product. The learning programmes were aimed at creating a new revenue stream for the organisation. The outcomes of the two month project were presented to the company’s development team at their London headquarters, and concepts and insights informed the overall project development strategy.
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Building Digital Capacity for the Arts: BBC Academy & Arts Council England
In 2012 Central Saint Martins hosted the seminar, ‘Emerging Business Models for the Digital Environment’, as part of the broader program, Building Digital Capacity for the Arts. The initiative aims to guide and empower the arts sector to maximise the creation and distribution of high quality arts content for online audiences. The seminar hosted key thinkers from the arts and digital world including Mel Norton (Creativektn), Marcus Romer (Pilot Theatre), Jane Finnis (Culture24), Hen Norton (WeDidThis) and a keynote from Nicole Yershon, Director of Innovative Solutions at Ogilvy. In the lead up to the event, a group of MA Innovation Management students contributed their views on the program website, seeding discussion topics and providing commentary on key issues including micro-funding, branding in the digital age and the convergence of arts and commerce. Mayor’s Low Carbon Prize 2012
Now in its second year, the Mayor’s Low Carbon Prize was launched to encourage students to develop innovative, sustainable ideas for improving London. In 2012, they were challenged to present ideas for cutting carbon emissions in the city. Over 100 entries were received and judged by a panel including architect Sir Terry Farrell and Zac Goldsmith MP. Amongst the six shortlisted, were projects from Kingston University, Bartlett School of Architecture, and Imperial College London. Students from MA Innovation Management were highly commended for their project, ‘Second Skin’, a proposed line of clothing created using nanotechnology. It was designed to respond to external temperature, and warm or cool a person depending on the room temperature thus rendering central heating obsolete. The submission stemmed from a business proposition the students had developed during their Incubation project. Insights Research & Market Repositioning for Global Alcohol Brand
In 2012 London-based innovation firm Mangrove Consultancy approached MA Innovation Management for user research and developing insights that would help drive brand strategy workshops with their client, a global alcohol distributor. The company was looking to reposition one of its international liqueur brands, with the objective of revamping the product’s performance across territories. Students were brought in to help push the conceptual boundaries of the brief and identify the brand’s potential with new eyes. Over the course of the summer, students generated six key insights, that were presented to the global management. The insights were used to stimulate work sessions during a 3-day strategy development workshops lead by Mangrove Consulting.
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Industry Links
7bn
Net-A-Porter
Arup
NESTA
Arts Council England
Pearson
BBC
Pernod Ricard
Board of Innovation
Pret A Manger
Bow & Arrow
ProChile, Chilean Embassy UK
Browns Fashion
Procter & Gamble
Caravan KX
RMO
Clear Village
The Space
D&AD
Seedcamp
Design Council
Sidekick Studios
Diageo
STBY
Edengene
Transport for London
Erdem
We Are Can
The Fellow
What If? Innovation
Hot Spots Movement Innovation Centre, CSM Innovation Leadership Forum INTO KEASS Creative Association MADE-BY Mangrove Consulting Maven Consulting
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Class Directory
39. Adam Bick
Studied BA Product Design at CSM in ‘07 progressed his career into marketing and now works within commercial film. Through this MA he has further explored creative strategy and management – while design process and the influence from his sporting career remains a common root within his work. contact@adambick.com adambick.com @adambick 45. Agata Ballaun
Mash-up. Arts, anthropology, culture, business. World is not what it looks like. It’s what you want it to be. Out of comfort zone. Innovations made by people for people. Building. Destroying. Creating. There is always more to explore. People. Emotions. Paths. Possibilities. Let’s innovate! a.baloon@gmail.com
9. Agata Nowicka
Previously in marketing, now shifting towards design research and insights identification. Prefers taking roads less travelled. Known for questioning: ‘But why?” On an explorative journey, but with the iron goal to implement findings in her homeland. nowickaagata@gmail.com @MissSaucer
15. Amishi Parekh
Originally from India, she is a designer and perpetual nomad. She uses design to create experiences that can blend into the vocabulary of the people who interact with them. Philosophy: Listen, Think, Make. amishi.parekh@gmail.com www.amishiparekh.com @AmishiParekh
21. Amy Blumberg
A digital Marketing Executive, she began her career working as tennis legend Billie Jean King’s personal assistant, and has since worked for The Ritz-Carlton, NBA, Giorgio Armani, NET-A-PORTER and Nike. She can be found in New York, London or Jetsetting. Instagram: AMZBLU23 amypblumberg@gmail.com
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41. Arielle de la Loyère
International Business, Marketing and Innovation Manager, interested in Sustainability, Open innovation and Digital Service. Develops InnovEnviro, an online collaboration concept creating strategic large-scale sustainable innovations and customised business models. adelaloyere@hotmail.com www.Innovenviro.com @AdeLaLoyere 17. Chenbo Lu
An industrial designer with a drive to create awareness of societal issues. His design process was highly valuable in the sense that it identified his positioning within innovation management, and allowed him to identify and verify innovative opportunities in many fields. luchengbo888@yahoo.com.cn
23. Firas El Jechy
A futurist and strategist with a background in advertising, who is unafraid to explore new grounds. Always on the look out for new approaches that encourage human interactions and all things ‘phygital’. firas.eljechy@gmail.com @Eljish
33. Florencia Adriasola
Creative Designer and Art Director, she has also worked as a professor and in areas related to cultural management. MA placement at the Embassy of Chile, supporting Chilean designers at the London Design Festival. florenciadriasola01@gmail.com
27. Jason Melissos
Following experiences in PR and branding, both in-house and in an agency environment, as a fashion communications professional, he enjoys overcoming challenges, and achieving objectives on time, with excellence and creativity. jason.melissos@gmail.com
11. Kristoffer Parup
Fresh Old Fashioned. Talkative introvert. Deadline enthusiast. Remixed conservative. Flexible pedant. Economical innovator. kparup@hotmail.com @KParup
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25. Magda Tomaszewski
Orchestrator. Brand architect. Translator between tech heads and storytellers. Brandscaping enthusiast. Aspiring beach bum. Earned her branding stripes within the music industry, managing festivals across the muddy fields of Australasia. magda.tomaszewski@gmail.com @tomosushi
43. Meng Wang
Managing the licensing projects for both Beijing 2008 and London 2012 Olympic Games has been an interesting and exciting experience. A key driver to discovering emerging markets and developing valuable innovation opportunities is an open attitude towards different cultures, values and business environments. seashine819@hotmail.com
29. Nan Zheng
Branding and marketing manager in the creative industry. Event/Exhibition/ Show/Drama planner and producer, currently working on fashion innovation projects and promotion of indie fashion designers. Devoted to verifying and implementing innovation opportunities behind the business scenes. mrzinn@hotmail.com @nanzhg
31. Semi Lee
Graduated with a BFA in Fashion Design at Parsons School of Design. Following her experiences at Tommy Hilfiger, Sweetface, ZARA and Pronovias, she pursued an MA in Innovation Management at Central Saint Martins. She is currently the design director at Atea, a luxury women’s wear start-up brand. semileekim@gmail.com
19. Tag Christof
Designer and writer who crosses fences and countries in search of photographic narratives of the built environment. Advocate for a deeper engagement with space through design, making and brickand-mortar entrepreneurship. tag.christof@mac.com www.tagchristof.com / tagchristof.tumblr.com @tagchristof 47. Valentina Conti
Applied creativity. Business designer with a keen interest in sociology. Explores platforms of interconnection that can generate social value – thus encouraging and maintaining a culture of innovation. Smile! ivalentinaconti@gmail.com @ivalentinaconti 58
13. Vuong Tong
Specialises in new product and service development. He identifies product and service opportunities that are based on behavioural and market insights. To make these a reality, he co-develops innovation strategies that inform new business models. vuongtong@gmail.com vuongtongdesign.com @vuongtong 35. Yu You
Awarded the Chevening Scholarship to study at CSM. She has specific expertise in generating innovations for new markets. During her time in London she worked as Innovation Director for a company and prior to her MA, had experience in FMCG, international investment consulting and media. yynikita@hotmail.com
49. Yujia Zhai
A marketing maven, event player, design lover, arts enthusiast and life survivor. Asian heart with a global outlook, dedicated to integrating creativity and innovation into business development and urban transformation through interaction. imzhaiyujia@gmail.com @Yujia_Zhai
37. Zifei Wang
An innovation manager and fashion model, with an academic background in economics and finance. She is a professional with a flexible skill-set focused on media strategies and project/ design management. wzf119@gmail.com
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The business landscape has been shaken by dramatic shifts. From consumer relationships to entire business models, not a single industry has been spared significant disruption. A staggering 87% of companies from the 1995 Forbes 500 list no longer exist. And as this pace of change only stands to accelerate, it will be those companies who embody an entrepreneurial spirit, those who view change not as a threat but as an opportunity, that will thrive. From the heady revolution unleashed by Gutenberg’s press, The Colourhouse continues a long tradition of innovation in print by harnessing its most cutting-edge potential. Their equipment is at the vanguard, their sensibility impeccable and their product, as a result, is standout: no small feat in a digitally saturated landscape. The Colourhouse live and breathe print. In a world of outsourcing and fragmentation, it is indeed a rare occurrence to find pre-press, printing, finishing and shipping all under one roof. Its immaculate and state-of-the-art production space beautifully showcases the latest technology, and is a testament to print’s enduring viability. Efficiency in process is prominently on display, and the company has committed to lowering environmental impact at all stages of production. The company’s driving philosophy of ‘Perfection through Improvement’, based on the Japanese notion of ‘kaizen’, drives investment in people, environmental sensitivity, and never-say-no service that has resulted in more than 70 industry awards. Its exemplary mindset has made The Colourhouse into an industry leader, with a client list of esteemed organisations who similarly place great value on the highest standards. We thank the true innovators at The Colourhouse, with whom we feel a great kinship, for their very generous support as principal sponsors of MA Innovation Management’s 2013 degree show.
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Acknowledgements
Alltype Roofing & Building Supplies
As a brand, we embrace innovation, so the opportunity to support an educational programme like Innovation Management at Central Saint Martins, and providing the raw materials used in the construction of their degree show was something we were privileged to do.
Thanks to staff of MA Innovation Management and Central Saint Martins College of Arts & Design
Michael Bedward Dr Jamie Brassett Dr Lawrence Green Dr Monika Hestad Tim Hoar Ken Hollings Mark Irving Jo Morrison Rakhi Rajani Nick Rhodes Prof Dale Russell Dani Salvadori Prof Roy Sandbach Beth Shepherd Dominic Stone
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