“I’ll be there for you ... this song from the series “Friends” was produced by students at a Musical Comedy. The performers, business students from various programs, clearly enjoyed presenting their show. They worked together in a sporty and entertaining way, at an excellent level. At the end of the performance, each student was called on stage and individual contributions were valorized, showing support, warmth, and encouragement for each student. Their mutual support was remarkable. Seeing students perform with such commitment and being so supportive to each other was inspirational, specifically, since we had just discussed a decline in student’s study engagement in the classroom with staff and student representatives. What if … we could build a community with students willing to motivate one another beyond this theatre challenge, encourage one another in their studies, in the development of their creativity and in multiple other activities. A warm, supportive environment could lead to keen students, and to a greater alumni network. An exploratory project “I’ll be there for you” was born to investigate this issue. In a Design Thinking class, 101 students of 4 different programs, from bachelor to MBA’s, were asked to develop projects to reinforce peer culture, to imagine how to help each other more. During these Design Thinking projects, the insight emerged that some students are feeling lonely. From the outside it looks that students are having a great time. Knowing that some of the students feel lonely is not fitting within the culture we would like to have in our institute. Moreover, research indicates that when students have a sense of belonging, their happiness increases and with it their engagement in learning and academic performance.

In January 2021, a year into the Covid-19 crisis, many academic institutes were forced to switch their education from face-to-face toward online delivery. In this virtual environment quite out of sight of their teacher, but supported by their peers, undergraduate business students were challenged to build their creative self-confidence. Whereas this course usually makes it difficult for them since they are not designers, the students were encouraged to help each other online with their individual projects. In the protective environment of on-line break-out rooms, working in small buddy teams, creativity boosted against initial pedagogical expectations. An eye-opener during the sessions was that fostering creativity happens well in the on-line sessions and even let to an unexpected self-determining working attitude and peer support by the students. Working in the virtual break-out rooms boosted peer-to-peer support and creativity.

Creating well-designed products is key to differentiating a company from its competitors. Since consumers (here, “the users”) are charmed by attractive designs, companies in competitive markets integrate a mix of charismatic elements in their products. Among others, these include functionality, aesthetics, branding, meaningful symbols, and an element of surprise. How best can they be combined and packaged so as to appeal to customers? The article proposes an overview of the various elements of product language and is intended to facilitate discussion among designers and managers. The “Offenbach theory of product language” is at the origin of this updated overview. The article further describes the use of this updated model in the context of business education and the relevance of product language.

Utiliser les outils du designer pour développer des solutions innovantes et compétitives en entreprise ? Le Design Thinking, c’est l’art et la manière d’apporter des solutions inattendues à des situations complexes. Cette démarche créative, inspirée du design industriel, permet aux collaborateurs et aux managers de dépasser rationalité et idées reçues. Focus sur le travail conduit avec la SNCF

Abstract: Imaginary thinking is an important quality within companies, needed for innovation and problem solving. Yet not everyone in a company is at ease when it comes to imagination. Apart from design school graduates, the majority of people are more trained in analytical thinking. Only few business school graduates are at ease in processes demanding a creative dimension. Empowering business students to gain confidence and experience in their creative thinking is a pedagogical challenge for business schools. This paper describes a pedagogical activity that helps business students onto the path of creativity. Pushing them outside their comfort zone through a guided effort, supported by a workbook, repeatedly surprising themselves and others with unexpected solutions. This activity makes them realize that they can further muscle their imaginative mind-set. Some students happily call it the development of their inner creative self. Academic peers awarded the Getting Creative exercise for its pedagogical innovation. To cite this article: Josiena Gotzsch (2017) Getting Creative Again. Awaking Your Inner Creative Self, The Design Journal, 20:sup1, S1072-S1079, DOI: 10.1080/14606925.2017.1353051

A product’s desirability is influenced by functionality, brand value and newness, but also by meaningful associations inspired by its design. Companies producing consumer products for competitive markets are therefore increasingly creating products with user-focused meaningful expressions. The present chapter examines this specific aspect of the new product development process.

Aesthetic quality is at the artistic roots of the design profession, but design means more than aesthetics only. Today, environmental constraints and social injustice have placed green and ethical issues on the agenda of designers. Embracing environmental and humanitarian questions is an appealing, exciting challenge for innovators and an opportunity for business. In some exemplary cases ethics and design truly meet; Conserve India is fighting poverty by designing fashion items out of trash, while the multinational Philips donates design expertise to confront a stunning health problem. These are exceptional stories of innovation for environment and society - Designing for a better world.