On the Future of Auto & Mobility Design Leadership

December, 2021 (updated Dec, 2022)

My provocation is that evolving digital technologies and infrastructure, core technology replacement, new disruptive business models and the consumer’s focus on high-quality experiences will force a significant evolution in the role, activities, awareness and responsibilities of the next OEM Design Leadership. Most global automotive OEMs are now stating that they are “mobility” companies and are shifting their focus and their portfolios of products and services far beyond vehicle design and into enabling new principles and pillars of (mostly urban) mobility. They are also stating that they are “designing experiences”, for which they mean creating the opportunity for an enjoyable and fulfilling experience. This implies significant changes in the questions that need answering - most importantly designing a new way that the population thinks about and engages in movement.

Historical Design Leadership has always had to maneuver the many variables of their companies. Things like executive personalities, the structure of the organization, role definitions, who owns what data, as well as the culture of ideas sharing, risk and decision making just to name a few. Technologies and disruption are moving at break-neck speed, but the variables of how traditional global corporations are structured and operate seem to be changing at a slower pace. Some of the variables that I have observed include …

• Where does corporate, product and service strategy come from? Who controls operations? Does the decision-making buck stop with Purchasing?

• Are your products striving to offer the most function at the least price? Is utilizing a maximum number of carry-over parts the first assumption?

• Is most of the company’s energy focused on improving what they already provide (legacy) vs. investing in building new things from the ground-up?

• Does your company aspire to be the industry leader or a fast follower? Does the company micro-plan to “lead” in this and this, and be competitive in this, and not compete on this and this?

• What is competitive differentiation based on? How is brand differentiation implemented and validated? Does brand uniqueness (or) industry competitiveness get more energy and funding?

• Do carline / program Chiefs have the final say in design acceptance and the implementation of something new (vs. carry-over components and features)?

• Is there a closed loop of feedback and understanding that validates or disproves decisions that the company accepts?

• How much time and funding is allotted to proving-out a new service? Does the culture support continuous learning and progressive change?

• Is the vehicle considered a service delivery platform of continuous learning and improvement?

• How well integrated are UX (often located in Product Development) vs. CX (often located in Marketing) vs. Design (often a stand-along global team)?

• Are the new Software and Connectivity Chiefs deemed more vital than a well-rounded, seasoned Design Chief?

Maybe it comes down to who has the bigger budget and range of accountability. I dare say that in the near future, both physical and digital design should all be within one organization with one leader. Call her or him the Chief Design Officer (or) the Chief Experience Officer. Then empower that individual to transform the overall brand and user experience, to affect their peers and the entire enterprise and extend the same changes to the next Design organization. What follows are some thoughts on the categories of importance and some particulars of this next evolved Design Leadership role.

Provide a Holistic Design Infrastructure

Ensuring the delivery of high-quality design in products, services and systems remains a primary role of the next Design Leadership. That includes the design of every touchpoint that a customer has with the company / the brand. That includes also designing the standards that exist and are implemented across the company.

These standards are now a representation of a muti-dimensional and multi-sensory set of “design languages”. From traditional physical (exterior & interior), to digital, to motion / animation, to sonic / auditory, to lighting and ambience, environmental conditions, textures, materials and more. They are digital, multi-sensory, physical, cognitive, behavioral and emotional. Some of these are new languages with distinct meanings and all of them should in some way be connected to the others. They are driven by new types of questions and require models and frameworks to communicate and make sense of them. The next Design Leadership must weave these together into something unique and desirable. And they must also put in-place and educate teams on the rules for changing these rules.

These “languages” are the common practices shared by everyone in the company and implemented by the Design organization. They are used to demonstrate the future and then make it real. Regular organization-wide education along with a comprehensive set of design reviews are the primary vehicle of communication. Every design decision that is made on every day in some way contributes to that company-wide vision. These languages and that clear vision is necessary to guide, assist and rationalize each decision.

Who has the final say of the look, feel, behavior and interaction of something that a human directly interacts with – whether it’s a physical knob in a vehicle that triggers a function (or) a digital control in an app that triggers a service component? I think that the Design Leadership needs to have an awareness and exposure to both of those solutions. Or that same individual “signs-off” on the system design rules (or pattern or design language) that dictate or guide the implementation of how those elements are implemented. That same individual ought to also have the final approval of any and all implementations.

If decisions are made based on someone’s personal preference or perceived competitive pressures or the organizations mindset that everything continuously improves, then key parts of the system and its governance are missing. If customer facing physical or digital design solutions go “out the door” that this individual is not aware of, then key parts of the system and its goverance are missing.

Create & Maintain a Blueprint of What’s Next

Exposure to societal shifts, industry trends, consumer behavior and mindsets and emerging technologies inform the Design organizations’ ability to see what’s coming. Most likely, these data sets are constantly being mined by others across the organization. Designers possess unique abilities and techniques to analyze and synthesize them, define a proposition, and then to craft and demonstrate those futures. As the adages go, “Find your flow”, “See the forest through the trees”, “Thin-slice across all that is known to know which choice is best”, “Put only one idea per post-it”, “Be the keeper of the vision”. So many parts of the organization are collecting data and finding so-called answers to their questions. Large, quantitative, statistically significant bodies of data do not reveal what is actually happening at the point of interaction. The triangulation and synthesis of multiple data sources and types is more important and reflective than any single data set.

Technologies are enablers that are available to everyone. It is Why they are applied and Who they are applied to that creates these opportunities or consequences. Industries, companies and employees need this vision of what’s next. Providing inspiration, challenges and clear goals that reflect what the company stands for are part of the company’s obligations. These same emerging technologies and new models force the consideration of the future business that you will be in. At the same time, what the company stands for will influence engagement and choices as much as the design of the products and systems themselves.

Connect Business Metrics to Design

This is potentially the most critical skill for the next Design Leadership – especially for industries that are undergoing extreme redefinitions and transition. In the case of auto mobility, supply chains are being up-ended, core technologies are rapidly being replaced, how consumers transact is changing and consumer mindsets and expectations of my personal data transparency and value are evolving.

Design Leadership must understand how the business is run and have a plan for how the Design organization will ebb and flow with shifting needs, forces of change and market performance. It is also important to define the business metrics that justify and validate investments in innovations and new business models. Perhaps there are new types of metrics that will set the pace for disruption at scale?

The ability to craft a convincing story is also a critical skill required of all C-level executives. Design Leadership ought to posses’ strong powers of persuasion and inspiration. These are communicated via prototypes and business stories iwth multiple actors, versus emails, spreadsheets and bullet in PowerPoint.

How do we “prove-out” a new model or interaction type or business? What is the go / no-go criteria of new business pursuit and what level of knowledge, assurance and risk reduction needs to happen? What is required to incubate and staff a new business now and at what pace should it operate?

As electrification becomes the dominant form of vehicle propulsion and has a significant effect on service, longevity, access and more, what new business / service models will emerge and become a primary source of OEM revenue?

Providing value added services on top of someone else’s operating system is a limited game. How do we design and ignite the stack at the vehicle level, the street level, at the trip-planning level and at the fleet level?

What does a revenue generating, high-margin platform of co-creation, brand engagement and daily customer conversation look and feel like?

Design Leadership must understand what gives the brand value, what triggers deep emotional connection, nostalgia, aspiration and the means to building customer trust and loyalty. Understand which design decisions you can compromise slightly on and which decisions need to be firm and steadfast. Industries are converging and consumers are more connected and sensitive to bad experiences. Tech giants like Apple and Amazon and Alibaba have raised the bar of access, convenience and personal service. Position the Design organization as a strategist, an arbiter and the keepers of the relationships that are formed and experiences that are enabled by every product and service.

Next and as we all know, half of the design challenge lies in internal company structure, behavior, support, collaboration, governance and more.

Build Bridges Across Organizations

The next Design Leadership is a “bridge builder”, they are moderators, they find the right compromise between organizations and when needed, and if required, they work with the CEO to choose the right path. Design by committee is not the path to the significant innovation, experimentation and the guidance that is required to thrive. They also don’t just talk, they illustrate, fabricate, demonstrate and champion the right plans to production. Again, as the adages go, “Seeing is believing”, “A picture is worth a thousand words and a prototype is worth ten thousand (PowerPoint) slides”, “The future is in the hands of the hands-on” and lastly, your prototypes (whether low or high fidelity) are a reflection of your confidence in the solution. Foster a culture of making – and start rough and gradually get more precise.

Great Design leaders of the future will be equally adept at defining the physical experience (of form, ergonomics, anthropometrics, colors / material and finishes, switch feel, etc.) as they are the digital experience (of tone, information architecture, motion, interaction flow, look & feel, etc.). Add on the layer of a sonic vocabulary and the role and character of an intelligent assistant. Design for accessibility, diversity and inclusion needs to be considered in every design domain and activity.

The Design Leader needs to have access to, have conversations with and regularly demonstrate futures with the CEO often and with The Board occasionally. Establishing a direct reporting line along with personal respect and trust seems to be the best way to accomplish this.

Will the era of Peter Schreyer or of Luk eDonckerwolke at Hyundai Motor Group be the first reference of an automotive Chief Design Officer (CDO) or Chief Creative Officer (CCO) to future versions of this list?

Build and Nurture an Organization of Service to Others

Let Design organization members know that there will always be opportunities to learn new skills, to challenge themselves and to be provided hard design challenges that will keep them engaged and proud of their accomplishments. Expose team members to other worlds (via travel and events) as well as what each other are working on. Encourage obvious and uncertain connections and search for innovations and disruptions. Create a community of engagement, support and opportunity.

Simultaneously maintain a pipeline of new talent. Create a gravitational pull across universities, professional organizations, your competitors and elsewhere to be part of the Design organization. Be visible in publications, conferences and events and always bring an informed opinion. Provide employees a career path and a grounding in the position that they currently have and what they need to do to move to the next position.  

Design the way that your organization works with others and brings them along to solve design challenges, realize opportunities and incubate what’s next. Design Leadership should spend at least half of their time with members of the Design organization as well as with critical partners in other organizations. Influence and persuade through inclusion, collaboration and occassional co-creation.

Design leadership should foster an organization of partnership, kindness and respect, a diverse workforce, flexibility, transparency, trust, enablement and so much more.

Be Humble, an Expert Listener and Seek to Understand What Inspires

The next Design Leadership is a professional listener. Exercise restraint and keep your opinion to yourself until it is your turn. Be appreciative of what everyone brings to the table and allow everyone to get an occasional “win”. Be introspective and reflective of what you say and how you are perceived. Imbue a sense of connection, trust and pride. The level of trust and accountability that I am advocating for is going to need to be earned even though it may be given.

Unfortunately, it may be difficult for those who have spent their entire career in the automotive industry to thrive in this position of Design Leadership. The scale of change needed requires Design Leadership to challenge the status quo, to have experienced and adopt best practices from other industries and to constantly contribute new innovative methods and solutions. And despite the dozens of decisions that they might have to make everyday, they also need the bandwidth, sources and tools to look across and learn from other industries. This ought to be built into their job description and performance measures.

Continue to support and nurture those that have a deep expertise or training on a single area or discipline. The subject matter expert or technical expert that enjoys being the “go-to” authority on a particular topic, like Driver Assistance features, system design attributes, Colors, Materials and Finishes (CMF), CAD and machine learning expertise. The next Design Leader will maneuver a vast complexity of exposure to diverse platforms, channels, products, services and systems. Their ability to retain details, appreciate contexts, recall technologies and understand the needs of the business will inform unique connections formed via vision and foresight.

About the Author, Parrish Hanna

I cannot deny the fact that this point-of-view is reflective of my own career journey and experiences -  just like everything is for all of us all of the time <grin>. As a formally trained physical and digital Designer, I have been fortunate to work inside many types of companies in many industries throughout the past 30 years. From consumer electronics, to telecommunications, to automotive and mobility, most of those companies and industries were in a constant state of disruption, with the goal to transform their offerings and redefine how they would operate differently in the near future.

As a consultant, an employee and a boss, I have been immersed in diverse company cultures, both small and huge, Eastern and Western, flat and rigidly hierarchical, and benevolent and hostile. I have defined, built and evolved related organizations and businesses as well as served as a paid advisor and guide to dozens. The maturity of digital technologies like the Internet, software infrastructure and connectivity, data collection, sensors, machine learning and AI have been and most like will continue to be the constant forces of influence, agitation and acceleration of change over my career. The humans remain more or less the same.

movotiv

Product, Service & Emotional Systems Design Consulting & Collaboration - for the Automotive & Mobility industries