INNOVATE Issue 12 by HKS, Inc.

a publication of

THE DESIGN ISSUE NUMBER TWELVE 2010

IN THIS ISSUE:

LETTER FROM RALPH

AROUND THE WORLD

ON THE BOARDS

RE:VISION DALLAS

CLIFFHANGER HOTEL

WATER: SOURCE OF LIFE

TOM KELLEY

INNOVATEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new masthead is derived from the size and shape of the previous magazine.

INNOVATE MAGAZINE number twelve 2010

Dear Reader, You may have noticed the new look of INNOVATE! Opposite this page, you will see the past 11 issues and our new logo. We have not only redesigned the graphics and text, but also the size of the magazine. This redesign is reflective of our ongoing listening, innovation and delivery of our own brand and product. We hope you enjoy it. As mentioned above, at HKS, we listen, innovate and deliver. This is not just an empty tagline but a description of an integrated, collaborative design process. We begin every project without any preconceived notion of the final design outcome. We have the means to help our clients understand the key issues behind multiple potential solutions and provide them with the tools needed to determine value for themselves. Dan Noble, FAIA, FACHA, LEED AP, executive vice president with HKS, has directed this issue of INNOVATE toward our efforts in design and represents the best of the best as a designer and leader within our office. He firmly believes that the most successful, full-bodied design solutions arise from a collaborative process that begins with a holistic approach to problem-seeking. Before we can solve a problem, we have to identify the essence of what it is we are trying to solve. Problem-seeking and -solving is a dialogue of discovery through respectful interaction with the industry’s most inventive multi-disciplined minds. We are considered thought leaders in many building sectors and can “dig deep” to understand our clients’ businesses in a disciplined, focused fashion and extend these lessons learned into our other sectors. This cross-pollination of ideas leverages our collective knowledge and allows us to become a valuable asset to our clients. We understand our clients’ business needs and translate these needs into a design response that establishes the building as an ally to the business at hand. In this issue, we celebrate design along with Dan. We had the distinct honor of interviewing Tom Kelley, general manager with IDEO, to talk about how design affects everything around us and will continue to be pivotal in today’s society. We also take a look at a number of award-winning designs including Re:Vision Dallas, Cliffhanger and a unique comprehensive cancer center. In addition, we hope you will check out our “Around the World” and “On the Boards” sections. Please enjoy this issue of INNOVATE. Sincerely,

H. Ralph Hawkins, FAIA, FACHA, LEED AP

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GOOD ARCHITECTURE IS DEPENDENT ON GOOD CLIENTS – HENCE THE IMPORTANCE OF AN ENLIGHTENED PUBLIC THAT APPRECIATES ARCHITECTURE’S POTENTIAL TO LIFT THE SPIRIT AND ENRICH THE PUBLIC realm.

Paul Hyett is a principal of HKS Architects Limited in London

Why does the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) bother to run the UK’s largest architectural awards programme? It is costly to administer, difficult to manage, demanding of sponsorship, and a generator of never-ending and bitter conflict. Yes, all of these things are true, but like the Turner and Booker prizes for British art and literature, there is a key intent: to promote interest in and aspiration for the subject. This essential and underlying purpose springs directly from the RIBA’s charter. Good architecture is dependent on good clients – hence the importance of an enlightened public that appreciates architecture’s potential to lift the spirit and enrich the public realm. So the thinking is this: casting an annual spotlight on architecture through a well-publicised awards programme leads to heightened levels of ambition amongst those who sponsor and deliver buildings. But how rigorous is the RIBA’s judging process? Can any old Tom or Dick win? Can any Henrietta improperly influence the outcome? The answers are, respectively, “totally,” “no,” and “not a chance.” A major part of the RIBA’s great success in this field is the brilliance and professional dedication of Tony Chapman, head of the awards programme for the last 11 years. Initially trained as a television producer, but possessing a love of architecture, he is well used to extracting order from chaos. The selection process begins annually deep in the regions of England and the devolved countries of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Each runs its own independent programme, albeit Chapman quietly “shepherds” the process, guiding the local directors in the briefing of judges and persuading those whose enthusiasms need dampening to restrict awards quotas to reasonable levels.

There are no particular categories, either by way of project type, size or class of win. One endorsement – a “RIBA Award” – covers all, from florists’ shops to university, and from museums to lavatories... All disarmingly simple. (And yes, a combined public lavatory and florist shop designed by trendy CWZG Architects was a winner one year!) From there, the winning projects (all of which have been visited by the judges) are presented to the RIBA’s national awards panel for consideration for the Institute’s highest accolade: the annual Stirling Prize named after the great architect, Sir James Stirling. When agreed upon by the awards group, a final shortlist of six or seven projects, together with any new overseas entries considered worthy of inclusion, is passed to another specially selected and quite separate judging panel. (I have already noted that this is a rigorous and incorruptible process!) Following additional visits to every project, the Stirling judges reconvene on the eve of the Annual Awards Dinner – the high spot of the Institute’s annual calendar. This event, together with video footage of the projects and judges at work, is televised live across the nation. An inevitably intense debate has taken place prior to a secret ballot for the winner, and the RIBA president concludes the evening in high drama by opening an envelope, handed over by Chapman, and announcing the year’s winner. Shrieks of joy are inevitably accompanied side-stage by the tears of runners-up, whilst journalists frantically scribble quotes of delight and outrage in equal measure.

1. Barajas Airport: Winner 2006 RIBA Stirling Prize

3. View of bridge with Baltic Centre for Contemporary Arts beyond

2. Gateshead Millennium Bridge: Winner 2002 RIBA Stirling Prize

4. Paul Hyett as RIBA president operating controls to “open” bridge

Other special awards cover schools, housing, conservation, public spaces and “Client of the Year” together with the Stephen Lawrence Trust award generously sponsored by Past-President Marco Goldschmeid, in memory of a young student murdered in a vicious racial attack. Further leverage in terms of industry and public influence comes in the form of an annual publication illustrating entries accompanied by learned texts on the state and direction of contemporary architecture and, most recently, a wonderful, glossy coffee-table book edited by Chapman under the title The Stirling Prize: Ten Years of Architecture and Inspiration. Others who run UK architectural awards include the Civic Trust and Building Design magazine, but the intent is always the same: to inform public opinion, raise the profile of architecture in the public imagination and encourage greater quality and ambition in the architecture produced year after year. All, as seasoned critic and commentator Paul Finch says, “a formal celebration of design achievement.” He well knows the significance of the awards programme ... his Architects’ Journal has gifted some £500,000 of sponsorship over the last five years. One last point of interest is the cancellation of a longstanding award for sustainability. The reason: sustainable architecture should now be routinely embodied in all work. In short, sustainable architecture is not necessarily good architecture, but architecture can no longer be deemed good unless it is also sustainable. Now that’s progress...

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On the Boards: At HKS, we believe a rational exploration into a facility’s needs and a wholly developed concept embraced by all team members will result in buildings that exude a sense of harmony and enjoy an organic relationship with the site. Done correctly, this process encourages a balance between the poetic and the pragmatic that allows our work to be both passionate and grounded. “On the Boards” is a snapshot of this creative process, featuring some of our latest and most innovative projects still in development.

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Straits Forum Convention Center

Qatar Hospital

Dubai Hospital Cancer Center

INNOVATE MAGAZINE number twelve 2010

On the Boards:

Straits Forum Convention Center The Straits Forum Convention Center will serve as an iconic symbol to the community and region of Xiamen as a gathering place, celebrating the reunion of and open communication between mainland China and Taiwan through progressive, bold and sophisticated architecture rooted in meaningful form.

Embrace: The design is based on the concept of two parties reuniting as a whole, symbolized architecturally by the union of two sweeping arcs. Each arc represents an individual party intersecting with the other to form a grand and communal space that embraces and embodies a unified sense of peace and hope. Flight: In Chinese culture, the egret represents strength, purity, patience and longevity. Inspired by the grace of a bird in flight, the architectural response celebrates the significance of such a meaningful place through uplifting, graceful and dynamic roof forms â&#x20AC;&#x201C; recalling the wings of a bird floating above the oceanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tide. One Roof: This concept will embody the simple and pure idea of reuniting two parties under one roof, as one family. The curved ridge line of the traditional Southern Fujian dwelling is reintroduced in a powerful, modern gesture to symbolize the reunion of two parties.

“One Roof” concept as viewed from water at dusk thumbnails: 01 Aerial view of “Embrace” concept 02 ”Embrace” concept as viewed from water at night 03 Aerial view of “Flight” concept 04 ”Flight” concept as viewed from bridge at night

Embrace

Flight

One Roof

From the architect ... Borrowing from the natural world and traditional Chinese architecture, three distinct symbols were created. These symbols suggest the uniting of two parties, mainland China and Taiwan, through an iconic representation of the peoples’ common values and history.

These symbols represent the basis of three design concepts, “Embrace,” “Flight” and “One Roof.” The resulting architecture will symbolize the overarching concept of invitation and gathering expressed through simple and pure forms lending credence to the power of the place and to the opportunity to shape a peaceful future.

We asked Associate Architect Heath May to share with us a few tidbits about the design of the Straits Forum Convention Center. Here is what he had to say: Q: Did any of the concepts have special meaning to you? Did the highly political nature of the project arouse passions about architecture or bettering humanity? A: “One Roof” has very special meaning to me. My original title for this concept was “Balance,” and my intent was to convey, in form and space, the idea of mainland China, this juggernaut of political and economic influence and power, meeting the geographically tiny and ideologically defiant Taiwan in a place that served to place both parties on equal terms, to level

the playing field. I wanted to show this balance, which in my mind also expresses the delicate instance when things are in stasis, still, and yet screaming with the life, tension and energy embodied in the place at that particular moment in time. I’ve always held a deep admiration for the underdog, the little guy bowing out his chest in the face of certain loss, and I think that shapes my view of certain things and explains the feeling that I had to express this – it was one of those things that I had to say. To read the rest of the interview go to http://www.hkstracepaper.com/?p=1358.

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On the Boards:

Qatar Military Medical Center

diagram A Sustainable Design:

The site plan and the hospital’s architecture are inspired by the powerful landscape of dunes and rock outcroppings found within the region. The site is organized along a linear oasis that forms the connector between the residential and hospital components of the site. The linear green integrates with the hospital and becomes a secure roof garden for patients and visitors. The hospital building is sited and designed to both protect the building from the harsh sun and harvest the sun’s energy for reuse. It purposefully integrates the daylight through courtyards and geometric screens to create restorative and healing interior spaces for staff and patients.

(1) Limestone (2) Glazed aluminum wall system (3) Perforated screen wall (4) Perforated sunshade canopy (5) Louver system (6) Metal panel system (7) Outdoor balcony

uilt to the highest standards of healing and environB mental sensitivity, the facility is designed to provide a high-performance, multi-mission military medical center to meet the challenges of advanced peacetime care as well as the full spectrum of contingencies during war, disasters and epidemics. To achieve this vision, the center will be designed with specialized capabilities, surge capacity and protective features to ensure mission success as well as the latest in application of evidence-based design for the healing arts and environmental design techniques. he complex, multi-objective requirements of this T project will demand systematic design strategies. While the design strategies will utilize the latest knowledge of technologies, materials and processes, the greatest value will be thoughtful implementation of these solutions to minimize the necessity of highcost applications, except where unavoidable. o all those who see, visit or work at the Qatar Military T Medical Center, the facility will represent medical excellence â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a home for healing, safety and security â&#x20AC;&#x201C; as well as reflect the values of the nation.

thumbnails: 01 Balcony shaded by a series of panels and louvers 02

03 Entry approach with forms inspired by windswept mesas 04

Southwest aerial view showing linear oasis formation

Southwest aerial view showing hospital expansion

On the Boards: 01

The Dubai Hospital Cancer Center is envisioned as a beacon of health, guiding patients in their challenging journey through cancer with confidence and hope.

Dubai Hospital Cancer Center The Sail: The hospital’s sail-like form extends an invi tation to the people of Dubai, the United Arab Emirates and their world neighbors. The elongated verticality of the tower reaches toward the sky in an uplifting gesture for patients as they seek inspiration and healing. Multi-Layered Dynamic Forms: These forms reflect the need for a dynamic connection to daily life as well as the community, region and world; the multilayered complexity of this devastating disease; the sophisticated technology and advancements in medicine needed in seeking treatments and cures; and the vital exchange of communication required between Dubai Cancer Center and other leaders in cancer care.

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Bridge to Healing: Water surrounds the building, and the tower meets the earth in a gentle embrace to form a comforting portal that honors all who enter this realm of healing. A bridge extends as an invitation to the pathway to healing, welcoming patients and their families with gracious hospitality and dignity. Places of Respite: Therapeutic gardens and water features evoke Arabic gardens, places for protected sheltered relaxation and spiritual reflection, as well as family and social activities. Garden spaces create buffers to the adjoining high-speed vehicular traffic and create a place of refuge.

thumbnails: 01 The tower’s sail-like form is symbolic of Dubai’s maritime heritage and location on the Gulf. 02 The building includes an inpatient tower atop an angular horizontal base. 03 Cancer Center sits on the eastern edge of an existing medical campus in Dubai. 04 The inpatient tower is divided into two distinct volumes based on the building’s orientation.

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VISION:

Revitalize a blighted inner-city tract into a prosperous, sustainable, carbon-free community while serving as a catalyst to enhance the surrounding area.

RESPONSE: Re:Vision Dallas 32˚46.52’ N | 96˚47.72’ W The creation of a flourishing inner-city community began when the world’s top architects eagerly embraced an international design competition to “re:vision” a blighted area in downtown Dallas. HKS’s fascination with this unique competition led to assembling a complete, integrated team of architects, engineers, planners, landscape designers, financial market analysts, BIM specialists and construction managers. Inspired by new urbanism, sustainable living and regenerative design solutions, the team began to work side-by-side to craft its entry. As a result, a first-of-its-kind, net-zero, mixed-use development emerged, founded on the principles of creating social equity, prosperity and environmental sustainability.

HKS team: Henderson Engineers (MEP); MESA (landscape); Walter P Moore (structural); Satterfield and Pontikes (contractor); Green Bean Analysis (financial advisor); HKS, Inc. (architect; design, leadership, sustainability)

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The design solution for the community maximizes open space on the site while providing 500 residential units and 75,000 square feet of commercial and retail space housed in dual towers. The architectural forms and their orientation optimize natural daylight and prevailing breezes – minimizing direct solar heat gain during summer months while providing shelter from harsh winds during the winter season. The buildings’ unique, interspersed sky parks promote neighborly interaction and community development on a personal scale. An inclined park at ground level provides space for food production, habitat and a gravityoperated water-scrubbing system that utilizes native flora for water purification. The project’s progressive design is a look into the future of architecture as we move closer to a world powered by renewable energy and a stronger dialogue with our natural surroundings. The team went to unprecedented lengths to assess all plausible alternative energy sources. After careful evaluation, the team elected to tap into a deep-seated, and previously unused, energy source: enhanced geothermal. According to research by Southern Methodist University’s Geothermal Laboratory, Dallas sits atop a geothermal fault line, and the city is a prime location to explore viable geothermal power generation. Integrated with other thoughtful strategies, such as an extensive photovoltaic array on the façade of the north tower, these natural systems allow the development to be a net-zero power provider of carbon-free energy. This “re:vision” is a transformation into an exemplary model for sustainable development worldwide – one that balances the needs of its people and their planet. The HKS team earned special recognition for “breadth of research” in the Re:Vision Dallas design competition presented by the City of Dallas and Urban Re:Vision in partnership with Central Dallas Community Development Corporation (CDC) and Building Community Workshop.

This living building design solution crafted by HKS’s integrated design

The site orientation and building massing were influenced by the

team is a net-positive energy producer, net-zero water consumer and

site’s solar orientation, prevailing summer breezes and a desire to

provides large areas of arable land for urban food production.

maximize open space.

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After considering biomass and photovoltaic power generation, the

Computational Fluid Dynamics studies were performed, which

To maximize natural ventilation and daylight within the living units,

enhanced geothermal system was determined to be the best solu-

influenced the architectural form to maximize the use of natural

the team chose a single-loaded corridor design. Exterior bracing

tion to achieve a carbon-neutral design.

cross-ventilation strategies.

was designed to laterally support the two thin towers.

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CLIFF HANGER HOTEL Cliffhanger is the ultimate hotel experience based on the concept of suspension in space and immersion in environment. With its modular design, the experience can be recreated in many locations across the world. Such locations could include the Golden Gate Bridge, California’s redwood forests and an ice fissure in the Andes. Each hotel will follow the same principles of suspension and immersion, with emphasis on minimizing the ecological footprint on the site. The idea is threefold: get in quickly and efficiently, enjoy the location, then remove all traces of the hotel and human impact as one leaves. The modular concept, based on a vertical, structural truss suspended with tension rods, embraces a stack of individual guestrooms – one per floor – to maximize the drama of the surrounding environment. Guests immerse themselves in panoramic views. Interiors will transform slightly, corresponding to local surroundings, through colors and finishes. Guest arrival will be by car or helicopter atop the cliff. Entering the organic pathway offering a framed window to the Grand Canyon, guests will be directed to a state-of-the-art elevator that will transport them to a dramatic 4-story glass lobby – the pinnacle of the hanging structure – overlooking the Grand Canyon below. Passing the cozy lounge area and the concierge check-in desk, guests will walk to the grand stairs leading them to the bar and tapas lounge.

Cliffhanger includes 27 organic contemporary guestrooms with colorful local accents and materials used to furnish the rooms. Upon entering any suite, guests will experience a 180-degree view of the Grand Canyon. Opening the glass sliding door to the right reveals the bathroom. The guests will see a double vanity with two cantilevered sinks and a large mirror. To the right of the vanity will be a walk-in closet and a private water closet. To the left will be the wet room, with its rain and double-head shower and infinity tub. A sliding door to the terrace will lead to the outdoor shower and mini spa-like lounge area, a unique personal amenity offered with every suite. An open fireplace divides the bedroom and the living space. All suites will feature a king bed with two organic side tables and red pendant lights, creating the setting for a romantic and adventurous experience at Cliffhanger. The lounge area will feature a custom lounge sofa accented by a cowhide rug. Guests will find a MacBook on the wooden coffee table, offering a paper-free method to browse concierge services, plan adventurous day trips, download trip photographs, catch up with friends and family, and control the suite’s electronic environmental systems. Each offers a high-end Klipsch sound system, and each room features a large terrace overlooking the Grand Canyon with lounge seating for further immersion in the experience.

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Guest Suite •

180-degree view

•

double vanity with two cantilevered sinks and a large mirror

•

rain and double-head shower

Public Lobby

•

infinity tub

•

outdoor shower

•

mini spa-like lounge

•

open fireplace

Public Lobby

•

king bed

•

luxury bar

•

organic side tables

•

tapas lounge

•

electrochromic glass

•

concierge check-in desk

•

Klipsch sound system

•

grand stair

•

large terrace

•

panoramic view

Guest Suite

To provide electricity without tapping the electrical grid, Cliffhanger unfurls a solar-tracking photovoltaic array that rests on the Canyon rim, collecting energy from the tremendous natural resource of the sun, while welcoming guests and visitors with a visual clue to the ecological sensitivity of the hotel. Sized to accommodate the electricity needs of the hotel, this array shares the same minimal site impact as the hotel itself, designed for quick and easy transport and installation with modular components for scalability to particular locations.

temperatures are high, helping to reduce the cooling load on systems. At night, when the ambient temperature drops, this heat radiates back into the space, thus reducing heating loads.

TERMS:

Positioning the exterior shower wall to catch morning sunlight allows for the capture and storage of solar energy to heat water for showers, providing a thoughtful integration of passive sustainability with the forward-thinking technology of Cliffhanger’s environmental systems.

is seldom enough to meet requirements of a

Utilizing electrochromic glass with a triple-glazed system, Cliffhanger effectively mitigates solar gain during the early morning hours of the summer before the shading of the south-facing balconies can be fully realized. Assigned to an electronic timing system, a CPU calculates solar altitude and azimuth for the exact location of the unit each minute of every day, automatically engaging the electrochromic system to keep the guestroom temperature comfortable and reduce unnecessary solar gain in the summer, while welcoming it in the winter to allow for passive solar heating.

With analysis and consideration of the ecological character of a location as well as the natural resources inherent in the site, Cliffhanger seeks to challenge existing hotel norms and provide a new way of thinking about travel, leisure and enjoying the vast richness of the wonders of our natural world. As the prototype of a growing list of potential locations, Cliffhanger establishes qualitative goals rather than seeking to influence individual project program or methodology. Suspension in space and immersion in environment are the ultimate goals.

its opacity when electricity is applied. It allows

Selectively allowing sunlight to penetrate the glass envelope and strike the concrete floors of the guestroom provides a means for storing heat in the thermal mass of the concrete slab. In the high-desert environment of the Grand Canyon, this method allows the slab to store heat during the day when ambient

HKS’s “Cliffhanger Hotel” entry qualified in the top four in the

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international Radical Innovation in Hospitality award competition and was recognized with an honorable mention. The design team was presented with the award in September 2009 during the Hospitality Design Boutique Exposition and Conference in Miami Beach, Fla.

Photovoltaic Array – A linked collection of solar cells. The cells convert solar energy into direct current electricity via the photovoltaic effect. The power that one module can produce home or a business, so the modules are linked together to form an array. Large photovoltaic systems offer electricity for commercial and residential applications. Electrochromic Glass – Glass that can change for the control of the amount of light and heat that pass through. A window can go from clear to opaque at the push of a button. Use of this glass can reduce costs for heating, air-conditioning and lighting and eliminate the cost of installing and maintaining motorized light screens, blinds or curtains.

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The new facility will become a beacon to the community for the research, treatment and prevention of cancer. The siteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s topography allows unhindered views of the river, state park and wooded areas from many points in the buildings. The creative use of materials provides a modern and efficient design, with forms arising from the critical functions provided. A dramatic campus entry will promote a strong sense of arrival: green space and views will be used as orientation devices. The new project also will maintain collegiality of campus by establishing the main circulation corridor, stitching the entire campus together. Campus community is enhanced by public and private courtyards. The orientation of each building maximizes views and celebrates extensive existing vegetation and unique site conditions to create a natural sanctuary. Circulation paths between buildings promote interaction via bridges, plaza space and glass-enclosed open spaces. Interior and exterior water features mask noise and promote tranquility. The project physically brings together experts in research and clinical care to achieve the best possible outcomes for patients. Circulation paths between buildings are glass boxes that dematerialize and sit within the landscape, providing an indoor/outdoor duality. The spaces contain the majority of the public spaces such as waiting, dining and circulation, and allow for a variety of chance, serendipitous meetings and collaboration opportunities. The intent is to allow the research scientists to interact with physicians and caregivers.

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Careful siting of the building will retain existing vegetation and create a natural sanctuary â&#x20AC;&#x201C; as well as preserving and repurposing an existing historic structure as a possible patient and community education facility. The facility will utilize building materials that promote healing and regeneration, such as pre-painted copper panels, and maximize natural daylighting and views. Additional sustainable measures include a proposed wind farm for on-site renewable electricity generation; erosion prevention and sedimentation control to improve water and air quality for the area; and opportunities for storm water management, water-efficient landscaping and innovative wastewater technologies. Energy-efficient MEP systems will provide a safe and healthy environment for all. The Comprehensive Cancer Center received the 2009 AIA National Healthcare Design Award for an unbuilt project at this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s AIA Academy of Architecture for Health (AAH) and American College of Healthcare Architects (ACHA) Summer Leadership Summit, held July 24-26 in Chicago, Ill. The submission was one of three selected by the AIA AAH from nearly 100 entries for exhibiting a strong project concept that not only responded to the requisite functional and sustainability concerns of a hospital, but the aesthetic, civic, urban and social concerns, as well.

RESEARCH

1. View of plaza/connector between hospital & research institute 2. Perspective view 3. Perspective view 4. View of research institute/plaza 5. Perspective view of main entrance

HOSPITAL

CLINICS

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VUJÀ DÉ

Have you ever clicked on an Apple mouse? Operated a Palm V? Or, been

compelled to select Samuel Adams’ Boston Lager’s distinctive tap handle? If so, you already have been introduced to the innovative work of Tom Kelley’s firm, IDEO.

INNOVATE MAGAZINE number twelve 2010

Tom’s mantra: foster a culture of creativity and develop processes for continuous innovation. He believes that everyone can contribute creatively to a project and that innovation can be made a cultural way of life in an organization. And, Tom has mastered the methods for bringing this about.

Tom Kelley serves as general manager of IDEO, a Palo Alto-based design firm, which for more than 30 years has guided clients through a strategic innovation process that has led to the creation of thousands of new products and services – from the Aerobie football to the lifesaving Lifeport Kidney Transporter. When he joined his brother’s design group, then called David Kelley Design, the firm employed 19 people. The firm was responsible for taking a problem and developing an analytical and, in many cases, a technological solution. Everyone was an engineer, except Tom, who graduated with a master’s degree in business. In 1991, his firm hired what he calls anthropologists. Defined: anthropologists are people who are extremely good at observing actual human behavior and finding solutions that spark a breakthrough. While he thought the idea was a little questionable at the time, he’s flipped 180 degrees today – noting that the anthropologist role is the single biggest source of innovation at IDEO. Kelley talks about these anthropologists as well as how to better worldwide business in his two best-selling books, The Art of Innovation and The Ten Faces of Innovation. His first book focuses on the tools of innovation, while the second focuses more on the individual – highlighting 10 pro-innovation roles that allow people to make a bigger contribution to their companies.

You spoke at the 2009 Design Firm Leadership Conference at the Harvard Graduate School of Design regarding “Being the Devil’s Advocate: Building a Winning Innovation Team.” What was your key message to architects? In the general public, with respect to architecture, the focus is always on the building’s aesthetics: the appearance of architecture. But, in fact, we think the way a building “behaves” is much more interesting. How it supports a certain kind of behavior. Or, how it helps people. We’ve been working on this for 25 years. There isn’t a short answer. It’s a combination of observing first and then asking questions – because sometimes it’s hard to interpret what you are observing. Next, you have to actually try some things out. Mark Twain said, “It’s not what you don’t know that gets you in trouble, it’s what you know for sure that ain’t so.” In your opinion, how does design help companies build cultures of innovation? Design integration and innovation overlap a lot. In fact, the lines are blurred all of the time. IDEO started as a design firm and later became an innovation firm. To be honest, I can’t separate where one ends and the other begins. As a practical matter for many companies, if you are looking to turn up the heat on a culture of innovation, you first must look at your existing resources. As a leader, you work with the team that you have and

[ i ] Did you Know?

IDEO FACTS • IDEO (Pronounced “eye-dee-oh”) • 550 employees • Eight office locations

Founded in 1991, IDEO is an innovation and design firm that uses a human-centered, design-based approach to help organizations in the business, government, education and social sectors innovate and grow in three ways: 1. Identify new ways to serve and support people by uncovering their latent needs, behaviors and desires. 2. Visualize new directions for companies and brands and design the offerings – products, services, spaces, media and software – that bring innovation strategy to life. 3. Enable organizations to change their cultures and build the capabilities required to sustain innovation. To learn more about IDEO, visit www.ideo.com.

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supplement it and fine-tune it into the culture you want. Only entrepreneurs get the luxury of starting from scratch. If you are looking around your organization for help on the topic of innovation, designers are always a really great source.

Vujà Dé: When you have been in a place that you’ve been a million times before, but you suddenly see it with fresh eyes.

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the top of the organization and then everybody else just implements. In reality, great ideas happen when everybody feels that they have a voice. Creating a culture that says, We value ideas, the truth and the telling of it, and we’ll take ideas from anyone in the hierarchy. I think that is a real key success factor.

What do you feel is the perception of the architectural profession worldwide? Are we seen as visionaries and innovators?

In this global market, how can you make sure your business does not become a commodity?

I think people look up to architects. Everyone understands that a building is created by an architect. You have the opportunity to be the great innovators. If you are going to change something, there is no better time to do it than when you are changing the facility. When being moved into a new physical environment, people know they are going to have different behaviors and a slightly different outlook on life. In most cases, they are in a state of readiness to do things in a new way. I think architects are the enablers of a lot of organizational and cultural change within the organizations they serve.

As soon as you are truly a commodity, you can’t win against China and India. Companies need to maintain that edge that makes their offering special. That includes the nature of the relationships you develop, the quality of the work you produce and the innovation and creativity that you bring to the process. Architecture has this very special place in the design world because of the permanence of the work. I feel like, in some ways, we are entering this golden age of architecture – using the best computer-aided design tools and structural engineering and the latest materials. You are almost unbound from the traditional structure.

What do you think is the single most important variable in developing a creative design solution for a project?

What has been your greatest accomplishment working at IDEO?

I think one important variable in developing a creative design solution is to establish an idea-friendly environment. We sometimes find ourselves in hierarchies in many corporations, where it’s almost like there is a social contract that says the big ideas must come from

One of my favorite things that we worked on was the portable heart defibrillator. Working with Heartstream – a start-up company out of Seattle – we tested the effectiveness of alternative defibrillator configurations with different users to help develop a highly mobile

and easy-to-operate product. If you are on an airplane and go into cardiac arrest, the portable heart defibrillator can save your life. So while we have made our client many, many billions of dollars in other categories, this one has saved hundreds of lives for sure. My other big accomplishment, in my eyes, is creating this unique culture and leadership. I love the way ideas are percolating up all of the time. I was recently in a workshop with a half-dozen IDEO people, and I found myself looking around admiring each team member. There are definitely people in the world who drag themselves into work because they hate their job or hate their boss or have intense difficulties with their colleagues. But, wow, not so much here. I feel like this is a great group of people, and I’m proud to be among them. What strikes you the most about how the newest generation of worker thinks and works? It’s been fascinating to watch. We went through an era where the new generation coming in was thinking only about time and money. It was all about a chance for great wealth, about flipping companies and stuff like that. Then it’s almost like a light switch flipped, and now this new generation only wants to work on social innovation. And, God love them for it. I feel like they have changed us more than we have changed them. We have a strong component of the firm now who would really like to work exclusively on green projects – on social innovation. If we could afford to, we would focus solely on that. What do you look forward to in the future? I think this permission to work on broader issues is the future. We are working on human needs as opposed to a narrow definition of a problem. And, human needs get expressed as physical objects or services. We are starting to really question on a deeper level, “How are we going to deal with population growth in the world?” or “How are we going to make sure that most people in the world have access to clean water?” I think we are starting to work on that already. I think we are going to get permission for designers, broadly defined, to be the people that you turn to for help with such issues. In the old days, you always turned to a management consultant. Not that they don’t have value. I think the world seems to be turning towards designers for help. According to Kelley, if you approach a topic with humility, setting aside what you think or know, and try to observe what people actually do or where they stumble or have trouble with the status quo, that’s when you can find a differentiator between you and your competition. He notes, we’ve all heard of déjà vu. A feeling we’ve been there before. He believes in the opposite of déjà vu. It’s what he calls vujà dé. When you have been in a place that you’ve been a million times before, but you suddenly see it with fresh eyes. You say, “Gee – why do we make it happen that way?” As Kelley’s children head off to college, his plan is to broaden his global business horizons with his wife of 23 years by his side. Wherever the road leads for Kelley, one thing is for sure. He will find a new and innovative untraveled path.

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