Strategic design: origins and contributions to intellectual capital in organizations

Date07 April 2020
DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1108/JIC-10-2019-0234
Pages873-891
Published date07 April 2020
AuthorCarmenza Gallego,G. Mauricio Mejía,Gregorio Calderón
Subject MatterInformation & knowledge management,Knowledge management,HR & organizational behaviour,Organizational structure/dynamics,Accounting & Finance,Accounting/accountancy,Behavioural accounting
Strategic design: origins and
contributions to intellectual capital
in organizations
Carmenza Gallego
Universidad de Caldas, Manizales, Colombia and Universidad de Manizales,
Manizales, Colombia
G. Mauricio Mej
ıa
The Design School, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA, and
Gregorio Calder
on
Universidad de Manizales, Manizales, Colombia
Abstract
Purpose This article proposes a conceptual basis upon which to address strategic design as business
intellectual capital.
Design/methodology/approachA literature review wascarried out on the subjects of strategic design and
intellectual capital.
Findings A conceptual basis is derived from the theoretical proposal that strategic design is an intangible,
critical factor, which favors organizational competitiveness, when it impacts the betterment of organizational
and intellectual capital processes.
Practical implications On the level of business practice, this article submits a broadened view of design,
which may be applied to organizational strategic processes and which transcends its emphasis in the
production of goods or services.
Originality/value In previous literature, strategic design has not been addressed as intellectual capital,
which supports the resolution of strategic problems.
Keywords Structural capital, Intellectual capital
Paper type Literature review
Introduction
The study of human design activities, in a broad sense, is the field that examines the world of
objects or ideas, material or otherwise, as created by humans (Simon, 1996). In Manzinis
(2015) words, all individuals possess natural abilities for design, through the combination of
three skills: critical thinking, creativity and practical thinking. Therefore, design is
recognized as a form of thought and behavior, which may be applicable to many
professions and situations. For Krippendorff (2005), the professional design practice differs
from design in daily life, as it is sustained by expertise, methods and an organized form of
language or design discourse.
Buchanan (1992) suggested the existence of four extensive areas in which design is
explored by both professional and amateur designers: the design of symbolic and visual
communication, material objects, complex systems for living, working, recreational and
learning environments and activities and services. The latter area, particularly, includes
communication, construction and systematic or strategic integration designs. In this article,
we investigate how strategic design provides value to organizations arguing that design is
business intellectual capital.
In business, the combination of natural design and professional abilities seeks to
generate superior organizational results. Boland, Collopy, Lyytinen and Yoo (2008),
Buchanan (2015) and Friedman (2016) have studied the application of design in
organizations developing themes such as design management, design and business and
Strategic
design and
intellectual
capital
873
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
https://www.emerald.com/insight/1469-1930.htm
Received 5 October 2019
Revised 17 December 2019
Accepted 21 February 2020
Journal of Intellectual Capital
Vol. 21 No. 6, 2020
pp. 873-891
© Emerald Publishing Limited
1469-1930
DOI 10.1108/JIC-10-2019-0234
design and strategy. This investigative trend has demonstrated that the appropriate
incorporation of design in business generates benefits for both of these disciplines and the
society in general. Junginger (2015) stated that design is part of the business DNA because
there are three design legacies that have organizational components: traditions or practices
(applied design methods), approaches (focused on individuals, oriented toward processes,
problem resolution or cost minimization) and organizational purposes (visions, missions
and strategic objectives). She argues that these design legacies may, in certain cases, be
defective or inadequate, as they must be coordinated, visualized and dedicated in order to
achieve real organizational change. Essentially, the elements of a business design legacy
refer to what, how or why design matters to the organization. Similarly, it refers to the
ability and willingness of the organization to adopt and utilize design capacities to solve
organizational challenges.
The business approach to design initially focused on tangible products; however,
innovation and service design management were included soon thereafter (Zurlo and Cautela,
2013). Design was addressed as a strategic element or factor that could be applied to business
management processes; it is related to corporate strategy formulation (Cooper et al., 2009).
Wolff and Amaral (2016) explained that when design is understood as a strategic factor or
element, it becomes an adequate generator of competitive advantages for companies, which
integrates the following elements. (1) Design processes to better monitor the external
environment in which companies operate. This facilitates improved market orientation,
organizational learning, value creation process evaluation by clients and business
performance. (2) Competencies that require an understanding of ways to combine and
mobilize knowledge, abilities and business design attitudes. And (3) goals or the intention of
design use, in function of an appropriate strategic perspective, in accordance with a given
businesscompetitive environment.
Despite the evolution of the concept of design and its organizational application, the
present document seeks to bridge one remaining gap in the literature: the absence of studies
that explore the contributions of strategic design as intellectual capital. This emphasizes
designs intangible assets, which include: knowledge, methods, processes and approaches
applied to the resolution of strategic organizational problems (Reed et al., 2006). As a result,
strategic design is the application of design in organizations, specifically in strategic levels
for the management of business, which goes beyond the creation of physical artifacts.
The objective of this article is to demonstrate, based on the literature, the contribution that
strategic design makes to business intellectual capital, in accordance with the following goals:
facing and resolving complex problems, generating value for businesses and society in
general and enhancing the use of design in internal organizational processes, transcending
the classic line of research.
The origins and perspectives of strategic design: a literature review
From product design to design management
The possibilities of design application in management have change rapidly in the last
decades. Design, as applied in organizations, initially focused on products and brands;
however, the specialized literature soon demanded the examination of a broader scope and
strategy for these organizational questions (Cooper et al., 2009). One important necessity
demanded from the design literature was to achieve a culture-centered design (Micheli and
Perks, 2015), or a cultural view of design, which is a unique system of competencies,
knowledge, and abilities which, including the artefacts, practices, values, and beliefs of the
design culture, may create innovative solutions that satisfy explicit or latent needs(Deserti
and Rizzo, 2014). This viewpoint helps managers to identify the way in which design creates
value for businesses, by integrating the views of the design world and that of managers
(Borja de Mozota, 2006).
JIC
21,6
874

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