Icsid Members, Strate School of Design and I.D.E.A, both from France, are leading the way in innovative design education. We asked Dominique Sciamma, Director of Strate School of Design, Cecilia Talopp, Head of International Affairs, Strate School of Design and Fabien Mieyeville, Programme Director, Science; Philippe Silberzahn, Programme Director, Business and Jean Patrick Péché, Manager Design Thinking at I.D.E.A to share their definitions of industrial design, thoughts on how the profession is changing and how their programmes prepare students for the reality of the industry.
Q: Does your school currently have a definition of industrial design? If so, can you share it with us?
Strate: Industrial design is dead, long live ‘design’!
We define ourselves as a post-industrial design school. Indeed, industrial design is a kind of design linked to a society that existed at the time of its birth, namely the second half of the 19th century. Today, the issues are no longer industrial ones. There are societal challenges; it is about living together and about the quality of life. It is the designer’s responsibility to now address these types of issues.
I.D.E.A: In our view, ‘industrial design’ is contained in the word ‘design’ because we believe that design implies a creative action aimed at improving an existing situation. The position of industrial design has been embedded since the beginning of its history in all areas of activities (whether craft or industrial). Design takes into account all dimensions of a project by considering the patterns of use, aesthetics, and techniques.
Using this holistic approach, we see design thinking as one of the best modes of project management in a complex environment. It also facilitates the creation of innovative business. We see the advent of design thinking as an extension of the practices in industrial design management.
Q: Tell us more about your specific programme and how interdisciplinary training factors into it?
Strate: Strate encourages students to “think and live differently” and to “consume differently”.
The way we teach at Strate corresponds to a multidisciplinary approach. Students need to be confronted with different points of view. Design is like the glue between human sciences, engineering sciences and marketing. Creativity is a condition linked to freedom of thought. Students have to take a stand and form their own opinions. We believe this will make them think and live differently. To ‘consume differently’ means we have someone in charge making sure issues linked to the designer’s responsibility are taken into account with each project.
Our teachings are anchored in reality and this is why our teachers are professionals in their field rather than strict academics. On the one hand, design is both a discipline and a practice. On the other hand, the designer does his or her best to solve problems linked to human situations, which requires them to be linked to professional reality, with onsite proximity.
Above: Strate School of Design in Paris.
I.D.E.A.: The IDEA Programme is a management degree created jointly by a business school, an engineering school and it is sponsored by the French government. The designation of this programme was the result of a reflection on the future of management and the importance of emphasising, to future managers, the ability to thrive in a complex and rapidly changing environment. Design thinking was chosen as one of the cornerstones of the programme as it is a powerful method of change, not just at the product or service level, but also at the company level to rethink the organisational approach to innovation. ‘Effectual Entrepreneurship and the Arts’ are also considered as essential to innovation training and development. The last pillar of teaching we employ is problem-based learning nested in a project-based learning approach deployed in the programme in conjunction with the FabLab – a free space for collaborations, prototyping and problem solving on campus.
The interdisciplinary approach, which starts with the recruitment of a diverse body of students, is fundamental because the complexity and rapid changes of the environment can only be taken advantage of if a manager is able to adopt a different perspective and to work with all the functions within the organisation. Abolishing the functional silos is of primary importance to innovation and this can happen when two conditions are met: the manager was trained in an interdisciplinary way and the manager has a methodology and the tools to put this interdisciplinary approach into practice.
Q: Why are internationalism and a focus on partnerships of importance to your programmes?
Strate: Designers are players of an open, diverse, complex world. It is a necessity that the young adults we train discover this world. We believe that culture shock will lead to an awareness of the world’s complexity. Strate organises the students’ curriculum so that all designers are curious and open to the world around them. Internships are a requirement of our programme.
The aim of our new international programme is to allow students who do not speak French to have access to our diploma, our French touch. The curriculum is the same, reinforced with artistic practice.
I.D.E.A.: We want to take the interdisciplinary approach as far as possible so we certainly do not limit our partnerships with designers. If we adopt mindsets and methodologies of designers then design as a learned discipline is as important as business, engineering and social sciences. The future is about open innovation and we have to start right at the beginning of the programme. This is why our teaching team, made of professionals and academics, comes from different horizons and fields. We make internal diversity a priority, which in return helps us communicate and partner with a host of various institutions because, there is always someone on the team who can speak to another institution.
Q: How have you seen the industrial design profession changing since your introduction to it?
Strate: Since 1993, when Strate first opened its doors, we have observed that industrial design is not industrial anymore. Reality has changed. It is about looking at the changes happening worldwide and the impact on design and of design. In 1993, the Internet was not accessible. In 2014, the Internet structures our lives. In 1993, we talked about globalisation, but we did not experience it. Nowadays, we are overwhelmed by new technologies. The environmental, societal and ethical problems have multiplied through new powers. Can we continue with industrial design as we did 20 years ago? No, it is over. Industrial design did not change, but the world did. Thus, we have to adapt to welcome this new reality.
I am an Icsid Member because…
Strate: “the world is flat” and there is a real need to contribute to the existence of a French approach, but first and foremost to reconnect France to the world reality. For us, becoming a member of Icsid is the implementation of this expression. We have things to say as a French entity, but we also have a lot to hear.
I.D.E.A: Icsid is historically the only international institution representing design professionals with a particular concern regarding the constant improvement of good design practices through ongoing collaboration between design professionals, academic institutions and industrial entities. As design thinking forms the cornerstone of the programme, it seems only natural to create strong links with the design community and particularly with Icsid. It is also important because we are not simply a practical degree programme. We are building a research programme on design, education and management. As mentioned above, one of our goals is to promote the design thinking approach within the management studies department. This can only be achieved on a broad scale by working with other like-minded people and Icsid is clearly the ideal organisation for this collaboration.
