(This list is intended only to provide examples of companies operating in this sector, and is therefore not comprehensive. It should not be taken as a recommendation of their services.)
BMW
www.bmw.com
BMW uses design very overtly to drive innovation. It has design centres in Munich, Germany and southern California, working on cars as well as a wide range of BMW-branded products such as sun glasses, cufflinks and children's cars.
British Airways
www.ba.com
More than most other airlines, BA has used design to differentiate itself and communicate its culture and values. Examples are its Waterside Headquarters and its award-winning Club World seat.
Herman Miller
www.hermanmiller.com
Unlike many other furniture companies that subscribe to the value of design, this company goes further and uses design to push the boundaries and existing models in the industry. One 'motor' for innovation is the company's drive for sustainable development using external as well as internal designers.
In more depthInterested in sustainable design? Read Beatrice Otto's article on
sustainability
IDEO
www.ideo.com
IDEO has consistently delivered innovative design and innovation since its inception in 1991 through the merger of a British and an American design consultancy, employing not only designers but people with all kinds of backgrounds - including physicists, ergonomics specialists, biologists and engineers. IDEO also has offices in Palo Alto, San Francisco, Boulder, Chicago, Boston, Munich and Tokyo.
Philips
www.philips.com
Philips is a company that has consistently placed design and innovation among its core values. It has an in-house design consultancy that works for all of its divisions. Philips Design also has offices in Amersfoort (The Netherlands), Atlanta (USA), Hong Kong, London, New York, Paris, Pune (India), Singapore, Taipei (Taiwan), Vienna.
Innovation Network
www.thinksmart.com
This US-based website is a rich source of articles, book recommendations, a great tool for understanding innovation called Innovation DNA and much more.
UK government innovation website
www.innovation.gov.uk
This was set up to help organisations become more innovative. Much of it is still under development. It also offers an electronic version of the Design Council's tool for the assessment of an organisation's innovativeness (click on 'Managing successful innovation').
Doors of Perception (Doors)
www.doorsofperception.com
An international conference and knowledge network which sets new agendas for design in order to help organisations to learn to innovate. The website provides articles, links and more information about the organisation that has grown out of the Netherlands Design Institute.
The Corporate Design Foundation
A non-profit educational and research organisation founded on the belief that individual and organisational interests can best be served through the effective use of design disciplines: product design, communication design and architecture. This site contains resources for business leaders, designers, faculty members, students and others interested in the integration of design and business.
www.cdf.org
Design Management Institute
Some aspects of this US-based website are only available to DMI members.
www.dmi.org
Agency for the Promotion of Industrial Creation - APCI
Created in 1983 in France, on the initiative of the industry and culture ministries, to contribute to the bringing together of culture, research and industry, the APCI became entirely private in 1993. The APCI, in collaboration with its members and its partners, develops tools and group actions that provoke the economic, social and cultural aspects of French design in France and abroad.
www.apci.asso.fr/l_apci_uk/index.php
Royal Society of Arts (RSA)
Throughout its existence, the society has promoted the relationship between innovation and design.
www.rsa.org.uk
d-school at Stanford
Initiated by David Kelley, co-founder of IDEO, who is working with a group of faculty at Stanford University in the US to establish 'a place for Stanford students and faculty in engineering, medicine, business, the humanities, and education to learn design thinking and work together to solve big problems in a human-centred way.'
www.stanford.edu/group/dschool
Brunel University
The 'Exploring Design and Innovation' section of Brunel's website discusses issues around design and innovation and acts as a resource for lecturers and students of industrial, product and engineering design, as well as design management and business studies, both at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. 'Exploring Design and Innovation' is the result of a joint venture between Brunel's Design Department and the Design Council.
www.brunel.ac.uk/research/exploring
De Montfort University
The Department of Art and Design History, Management and Cultures offers a BA (Hons) in Design Management and Innovation directed both towards students from a design background and those with a more business orientation but with interest in the creative disciplines.
www.dmu.ac.uk
Open University Department of Design and Innovation
This department is one of the few that is devoted to the subjects of 'design' and 'innovation' generally, rather than focusing on any one particular professional area of application. The research and teaching range from product and graphic design, engineering design and design for manufacture, to architecture, transport and town planning, as well as national and international aspects of innovation and technology policy. There is no one person specialising in design and innovation in particular and you may therefore want to visit the website to find out more about the academics associated with it, and their particular research interests.
www.design.open.ac.uk
Zollverein School of Management and Design
A newly founded institution dedicated to the joint education of managers and designers. The first MBA in Management and Design started in February 2005.
www.zollverein-school.de
CENTRIM (Centre for Research in Innovation Management)
This is part of the University of Brighton. Its main focus, as the name suggests, is innovation. But design has featured in some of its research activities.
www.centrim.bus.bton.ac.uk/
Design and Innovation Research Group, University of Salford
The Design and Innovation Research Group, based at the University of Salford, has design-related issues as its main focus. But much of its work is equally relevant to innovation. Future work anticipates interdisciplinary work in virtual environments, the applications of virtual reality and product design and the application of virtual reality in heritage design and interpretation.
www.isr.salford.ac.uk/artdesign.htm
SINTEF - STEP Centre for Innovation Research
This Norwegian group was set up in 1991 to support policy-makers with research on all aspects of innovation and technological change, with particular emphasis on the relationships between innovation, economic growth and the social context. They have published an interesting report on Design and Innovation in Norway. Visit their website (see below) for more information and to download articles.
www.step.no
ESRC Centre for Research in Innovation and Competition, UMIST
The CRIC group at UMIST is active in researching into the strategic management of R&D, the strategic use of information technology, design collaboration, globalisation of technology and environmental innovation management. Over the last decade, it has received substantial research funds from the ESRC, EU, Design Council and other public and private sector organisations.
www.les1.man.ac.uk/cric/