Appendix 2:
Stakeholder
Interview Report
1.0
INTRODUCTION
Twelve interviews were undertaken with key industry stakeholders in order to provide
over-arching context on the development of the design industry since 2008.
Interviewees were drawn from a range of organisations such as industry associations,
universities, and private industry to provide a variety of viewpoints.
Interviewees are shown in the table below:
Name
Title
Organisation
James Harper
President Victoria Branch
Design Institute of Australia
Simon Goodrich
President
Australian Interactive Media
Industry Association
Jim Antonopoulos
Vivienne Filling1
Victoria Council President
AGDA
National Manager, Business
Advisory Services
Australian Industry Group
Herman Mott and
Russell King
Business Advisers
Enterprise Connect
Roger Simpson
Founder & Director
Design Synergy Pty Ltd
Brad Dunstan
Dr Robert Treseder
Greg Branson
CEO
Director
VCAMM
Australian Design Academy
(ADA)
Professor Ken
Friedman
Dean, School of Design
Swinburne University
Adjunct Research Fellow
President Icograda (20092011)
Director Spatial Info
Architecture Lab
Swinburne University
Kristin McCourtie
Manager
agideas
Emily Lai
Manager, Colour and
Materials Design
Ford Australasia Pacific &
Africa
Russell Kennedy
Professor Mark Burry
1
Chair, Advisory Board,
ADA
RMIT
Anne Younger responded to Wallis indicating that Vivienne Filling now oversees the AI Group activities relevant to this
research. Wallis met with Ms Filling, along with Herman Mott and Russell King, Business Advisers from Enterprise Connect.
2.0
DEMAND FOR DESIGN SERVICES
2.1
OVERALL DEMAND FOR DESIGN
Interviewees who were able to comment on the demand for design services reported
that conditions had been challenging for many sections of the industry since 2008. A
range of estimates were offered on the overall demand for design. These tended to be
‘steady since 2008’, or, if anything, a slight decline. A few interviewees remarked that
the flat demand experienced by the design industry was similar to that felt across the
broader economy. Some respondents with links to the manufacturing sector observed
that the high Australian dollar was of greater concern to industry than the issues
associated with the GFC.
While the challenging economic conditions may not have led to a mass reduction in
the design work required by industry, some respondents spoke of significant changes
to the way in which designers were being engaged. Companies using design have
become more cautious about doing so, and are driving a much harder bargain on
cost, according to some interviewees. As a result, cost has become a more prominent
determiner in awarding work, and design firms are expected to do ‘more with less’.
Some manufacturing firms are reported to be lengthening their product life-cycles in
response to the leaner economic conditions. For example, this may mean releasing a
new version of a product every few years, whereas it may previously have been
updated yearly. This is thought to have affected the industrial design sector.
2.2
DIFFERENCES AMONG SECTORS
According to interviewees, the challenging economic conditions have been affecting
the various design sectors in different ways. According to some, visual communication
(viscom) and marketing-related design activities have grown relatively more strongly
since 2008. The changes in technology during this period have also had an influence.
For example, the increasing importance of the internet and mobile devices has meant
strong demand for designers engaged in these areas. Industrial design, by contrast,
has been an area of limited, or isolated, growth opportunities. One interviewee
remarked that physical sector design activities, for example architecture and interior
design, tend to move in parallel with the overall economy. Hence these areas have
seen subdued demand, especially in the states not associated with the mining boom.
3.0
COMPETITIVENESS OF DESIGN SERVICES
3.1
VICTORIAN DESIGN SERVICES
Interviewees were generally very enthusiastic about the reputation and
competitiveness of Victorian designers. Some interviewees commented on Victoria’s
rich heritage of manufacturing, and the world-class design ‘know-how’ that emerged
to support this industry.
Presently, according to interviewees, Victoria is well-regarded nationally, and is
expected to do well. The receipt of various national design awards by Victorians thus
comes as no surprise. Victoria is also seen as a state where design has been taken
seriously at the state government policy level for some time (although some would
argue that further support should be provided).
The challenge for Victoria is that other states are being seen as ‘narrowing the gap’
and beginning to make inroads into Victoria’s traditional area of strength in design. It
is not seen as the case that Victoria’s offerings are slipping, it is that other states are
developing their capabilities. Queensland was identified by a number of interviewees
as a state that was improving its design capabilities.
A number of factors were identified in explaining the tendency of other states to be
‘catching up’ with Victoria. These included:

The increasing tendency for the economy to be ‘borderless’ in terms of states.
Larger firms will operate across states, and the workforce is increasingly
mobile. This leads to a level of cross-fertilisation of ideas.

Improved information technology means that the sharing of ideas has become
quicker and easier.

Other states, notably Queensland, have taken more of a policy interest in
design.
One interviewee identified a number of initiatives happening outside Victoria that are
positive in terms of better use of design in a transdisciplinary context, these were:

The establishment of the Prime Minister’s task force on Manufacturing, which
is being advised by Goran Roos, a Professor at the University of Warwick, and
Founder of Intellectual Capital Services

The work of the QMI Solutions in partnership with QUT

The establishment of the Advanced manufacturing Council in South Australia.
These initiatives indicate that other states may be moving ahead of Victoria in finding
practical ways to integrate universities, designers and industry.
3.2
AUSTRALIAN DESIGN SERVICES
Respondents often felt that Australian designers were well-placed to secure
international work. Some commented that Australian designers were world-renowned,
or that they could ‘compete anywhere’. Some interviewees noted that Australian
designers were securing work in emerging markets such as India and China.
Australian designers are considered to hold a number of attributes that can make
them appealing on a world stage. Interviewees noted the reputation of Australian
designers as hard-working, having a hands-on approach to design, and being willing
to travel. One interviewee commented that Australians winning work abroad were free
from some of the ‘cultural baggage’ that Europeans or Americans might carry in
certain countries.
Despite the international competitiveness of individual Australian designers, and even
some particular design firms, interviewees did not tend to have a high view of the
competitiveness of the Australian design industry in general. In this area, it is felt that
we still lag behind the US and certain European nations. There were a number of
reasons put forward for this. One such reason surrounded the scale of the Australian
market. When competing overseas, Australian design firms are not generally able to
boast of the massive international portfolios that major American and European firms
can. One interviewee outlined a second, and more ingrained, impediment to
Australia’s international competitiveness. This interviewee felt that Australia’s isolation
had historically fostered an ‘it’ll do’ design culture, and that this needs to be overcome
in order to be more globally competitive.
A number of interviewees provided example of design-using firms that are
successfully competing internationally (generally, these were in manufacturing /
industrial design areas). These international successes had a number of common
elements. They involved the application of design to develop genuinely world-leading
products. These products were also designed for specific niche markets, rather than
having mass-market appeal. This approach to design and manufacturing was seen by
such interviewees as the only way forward for Australia. The ‘race to the bottom’
associated with competition by price was not seen as a sustainable long-term
strategy.
The question of Australia’s geographic isolation was sometimes identified during
discussions about competitiveness. However, this was seen as a diminishing issue.
The continued development of more sophisticated communication technology means
that the sharing of information is becoming progressively easier. While ‘time on the
ground’ in other countries was still identified as critical for those wishing to compete
internationally, a variety of more cost-effective and strategic approaches (such as
being involved in a consortium) were identified.
Some interviewees saw Australia as well positioned in relation to the Asia–Pacific
region. Australians are more used to operating in countries such as China, Thailand
and Vietnam than their European or American counterparts. Although these countries
are advancing their manufacturing base, they are still relatively less sophisticated in
terms of design. Hence international companies have the chance to use Australia as a
design base.
3.3
DEVELOPMENTS IN DESIGN
Participants in the research were asked about developments in design, such as the
use of new materials, stemming from advances in nanotechnology, biotechnology or
other research areas. There appeared to be little happening in this direction.
Generally these advances are likely to come out of university research departments or
bodies such as the CSIRO. Working designers do not have the connections or
integraton with such places in order to incorporate such advance into everyday
designs.
The demise of nanoVictoria was lamented by those who had been aware of its work.
4.0
CLIMATE FOR DESIGN IN VICTORIA AND AUSTRALIA
4.1
PUBLIC PERCEPTION OF DESIGN
A number of interviewees noted that design is enjoying a more prominent place in
public consciousness. People are increasingly becoming aware of the design of
products, programs and spaces that they use. One interviewee captured this shift,
noting how in the past, someone might have commented ‘this chair is uncomfortable’.
Nowadays, the same person is much more likely to note that the chair is ‘poorly
designed’.
4.2
INDUSTRY ENGAGEMENT WITH DESIGN
The relationship between design and industry was explored more fulsomely in
interviews, and the emerging findings are more complex and nuanced.
The increase in public awareness of design has been mirrored to an extent by
increases in the awareness of design across some areas of industry. ‘Design thinking’
has been adopted by some firms in an attempt to harness the creativity and problemsolving associated with the discipline of design. While this is a good start, some
interviewees note that this approach does not go far enough. They argue that issues
facing businesses would best be solved by designers, rather than people trying to
emulate designers’ thought processes.
Most interviewees noted little widespread development in the ways in which SMEs are
using design since 2008. It was felt that, at a practical/operational level, few SMEs are
taking design into account.
An area where some interviewees did note developments was the increasing use of
design by SMEs as a source of differentiation. Such use of design might, for example,
incorporate a firm-wide integrated re-design of branding, communications and office
layout. An interviewee noted that not-for-profit organisations, in particular, had been
making increased use of this type of design since 2008.
One interviewee expressed concerned with an increasing use of these more ‘shallow’
applications of design. This interviewee felt that an increased focus on design
activities aimed at styling products/services was occurring at the expense of design
activities that would provide greater value to end users of products/services.
The Victorian manufacturing sector’s approach to the use of design has tended to be
quite unsophisticated, according to one interviewee who has had a close involvement
with the sector. Firms that have tried to use design as part of their innovation
processes have sometimes been ‘side tracked’ by the development of the technology,
and not properly researched the feasibility or potential demand for new products. As a
result, many of such firms have developed an aversion to using design, due to
previous poor experiences.
The level of integration between firms’ design function and overall activities continues
to be an area of interest in the literature. There was some variation between
interviewees in their assessment of the extent to which this has been occurring since
2008. Some interviewees felt that design had taken a more integrated place within
businesses activities, especially in the area of branding and marketing. A smaller
number pointed to the challenging economic climate as a driver behind the use of
design occurring in a more fragmented and ad-hoc manner.
4.3
DESIGN EDUCATION
Most interviewees felt that Victoria is producing good quality graduates across the
design disciplines.
Predictably, assessments of graduates’ ‘work readiness’ varied between the
respondents. Those interviewees who felt that graduates were adequately ‘workready’ pointed to increases in work experience components of various courses, or
initiatives like Swinburne University’s Design Factory, that provides students with real
exposure to industry during the course of their studies. Respondents who felt that
graduates were not generally work-ready listed concerns with graduates such as a
lack of commercial understanding regarding time and budgets, or a lack of
professionalism in terms of communication and time-management skills.
As was found in previous research, some interviewees did express concerns about
design education. It was felt, for example, that design students are too readily allowed
to use CAD, and lacked conceptual skills, or the ability to sketch a design and “think
with a pencil”. Lack of attention within courses to the practical aspects of real world
design, such as the sourcing and costs of materials, was also mentioned.
One particular area where interviewees identified a mismatch between graduates’
skills and market requirements was in the area of SMEs. The nature of SMEs demand
that new recruits need to be particularly flexible, applying multi-faceted skills to
situations, and adopting a strong problem-solving approach. Some interviewees felt
that further equipping of design students with such skills would be highly beneficial.
The quantity of design graduates was not explored as frequently with interviewees as
the question of graduate quality. However, one respondent in particular outlined some
of the concerns arising from what they considered to be an oversupply of design
graduates (across all design disciplines). This interviewee felt that an oversupply of
graduates meant that many were not able to secure quality roles that provide critical
early-career development. As a result, the ‘bottom end’ of the design market tends to
have a lot of sole proprietors, sometimes competing on price alone, who may not be
producing a product that is edifying to reputation of the industry overall.
A small number of respondents commented that they would like to see a greater focus
on ‘thinking skills’, or skills around researching and developing ideas, within design
education. These respondents felt that there was currently too great a focus on
training students in the use of various technologies. It was remarked that such
technologies will inevitably change and develop, whereas the teaching of problem
solving and idea development will provide students with the framework to apply
whatever technologies are available to them in order to solve problems.
The emergence of ‘trans-disciplinary’ approaches within design education was
identified as a positive by a number of interviewees. The Swinburne Design Factory
was the most frequently-cited example of this approach. The lack of experience of
design graduates from traditional courses in working effectively with other disciplines
(e.g. engineering, architecture, marketing) was seen as a weakness in design
generally.
4.4
COLLABORATION AND MENTORING
Big problems require solutions that draw from a wide range of design disciplines,
technological areas, and understandings of the ways in which people and systems
interact. Various interviewees pointed out that collaboration therefore becomes a key
component in solving complex issues.
Many of the respondents were positive in their assessment of the level of
collaboration among the stakeholders in the design area. Some felt that an increase in
the willingness to collaborate had been one of the main changes in the design
landscape since 2008. One interviewee observed: ‘Times are changing. There’s a real
convergence between the design industry, business and the education. I think
everybody wants to work closer together’. Another interviewee commented that
collaboration among businesses was becoming easier, whereas this had been one of
the most difficult areas in the past. This interviewee observed that the troubling
economic times may even have been a catalyst in this regard; up until 2008
‘everybody had been busy making money’, so there was little perceived need
amongst businesses for collaborative efforts.
A number of interviewees were more tempered in their assessment of collaboration,
noting that collaboration was still an emerging phenomenon, and was still very much
based on individual/personal contacts.
The use of mentoring was widely acknowledged among interviewees as a helpful
strategy to encourage more effective use of design among companies. A number of
interviewees had experience with a variety of programs that incorporated mentoring,
either with the explicit or implicit aim of better integrating design within firms. These
included the Design Integration Project, and the Business Advisers and ‘Researchers
in Business’ programs delivered through Enterprise Connect. Interviewees who had
been involved with such programs were enthusiastic about their potential to radically
transform the operations of SMEs that participated in the programs.
4.5
THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENTS
Discussions about collaboration and mentoring often led to consideration of the role of
governments in facilitating or encouraging such collaboration. Respondents generally
recognised that the government had a key role to play in providing an environment
conducive to collaboration. Governments were seen to have a number of levers
available to them such as incentivising collaboration, providing the role of ‘trusted
intermediary’ (either directly, or by funding arm’s-length bodies to undertake such
roles) or through procurement policies. The use of arm’s length bodies were seen by
some interviewees as more advantageous than direct government involvement, due
to a greater perceived resilience to electoral cycles.
The demise of Design Victoria inevitably arose in discussions with some interviewees.
Generally the view appeared to be that Design Vic had mainly acted in the role of
publicist and advocate for design, rather than having been an effective catalyst for
more effective use of design. However, its activities in facilitating the mentoring of
smaller companies to link up to design consultancies were seen as valuable.
At the time of the interviews, participants were waiting to see what the new
government’s attitude and policies were going to be. The axing of Design Vic with no
new policies was seen as having left a vacuum. Government cutbacks in expenditure
were also seen as likely to impact the design sector. One interviewee produced a
guide to government publications produced by the Treasury, which contained no
illustrations or graphic material (and recommended the same) as evidence that the
government’s restraints were going to have a strong impact on the Viscom sector in
Victoria.
The issue of a national design policy was discussed in most of the interviews. Most
interviewees were positive toward the idea of a national policy, although there was no
clear consensus on the best way to approach this. Some respondents urged that any
national policy needed to take account of Australia’s, and the States’ unique contexts;
it was not simply a matter of transplanting a successful policy from another country.
One respondent, who was cooler toward the notion of a national policy, pointed out
that there was a danger in people thinking that the ‘job was done’ once any national
policy had been implemented.
Interviewees were asked about the work of the Australian Design Alliance (ADA). All
of the interviewees were aware of the ADA, and some had been involved to a greater
or lesser extent. The consensus was that progress had been slow in regard to
lobbying for a national policy on design. A few of the respondents felt that the ADA
may be too broad in its constituency to present a clear and compelling voice.
Some of the respondents voiced an opinion on the current Victorian government’s
approach to design. Of these, a few felt that the current approach was ‘too timid’ or
that risk-aversion was leading to the government being unable to make decisions.
Following this line of argument, one stakeholder commented that they would like to
see the government identify specific initiatives/areas of promise, and then take a risk
to ‘back’ these initiatives/areas.
5.0
CONSIDERATIONS FOR THE RESEACH
5.1
FURTHER CONSIDERATIONS
One of the chief developments since 2008 has been a greater understanding of the
need for collaboration between stakeholders involved with design, and the increased
use of mentoring to develop the design capabilities of SMEs. Accordingly, we have
drafted questions to be included in the design consultancy, and general business
surveys to gauge such activities.
The contextual information gained through this stage of the research will be
particularly useful in ‘unpacking’ the results that emerge from the surveys.