Text size – +

Stylists vs. Neanderthals

By mwelch September 26, 06 10:57 AM

Source: Fast Company


neanderthalballet.jpg
Photo by Grabthar via Flickr

It's a familiar tension in business. Businesspeople think designers are mere stylists and designers think businespeople are Neanderthals who forfeit quality for profit. That's because traditional business runs on logic that is inductive (using observation to prove something works) and deductive (using a set of principles to prove that something must be). But designers rely on abductive reasoning. Huh? It's the logic of what might be. Abductive logic requires temporary project teams that work iteratively, not linear processes with permanent assignments. A traditional reward is a big staff and big budget. But innovation teams are rewarded for solving problems. The key is to balance the yin and the yang..."quantifying the now and intuiting what's next."

http://www.fastcompany.com/subscr/109/open_design-tough-love.html

About business filter A daily catch of stories you don't want to miss.
see all globe blogs
contributors Learn more about Business Filter contributing author Maura Welch.
archives Select a month