Ben Terret at NoisyDecentGraphics has an interesting article about his observations that design is becoming the new management consultancy. Yes, I agree and from a strategic point of view it makes totally sense as well.

One of the main tasks of management consultancies is helping companies finding and strengthening their competitive advantage - a finding a space for differentiation from its competitors that leads to higher profits. Higher profits can be achieved by reducing costs or charging higher prices. But here is the problem: You will reach a point where you are simply not able to significantly reduce costs without increasing the effort to do so.

The only way to increase your profits then is to be charging higher prices - something that can only be achieved with improved products and services. And this is exactly the stage where designers come in. Just to make things clear: the designer is not the guy doing the layout for your marketing folder. Designers are the individuals that create and re-define your products and services to deliver a unique and improved experience for your customers. And they are the ones that can help define something fresh and innovative which can be used to improve your products and services.

Is this a management task? I would say so because it is about the organizations positioning and competitive advantage which should definitely be on top managements agenda.

Nevertheless the question remains: does this really lead to higher profits? This certainly depends on your cost-control measures but if you are able to deliver improved customer experiences, you can certainly be sure that your customers are willing to pay a price premium for that.

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