A new design organization?

Designers have been asking for that for years. It’s the Holy Grail for our profession… If anyone can come up with a licensing test similar to those given to PEs or architects, and get states to adopt it, then you’d have something. The design profession (even just industrial design) is just too broad.

Licensing is different than certification. Certification would be more attainable.

I was certified as a New Product Development Professional (NPDP), and that’s much broader than ID! It required about 1 week of training to pass the course. Here’s their study guide FYI.

Certification, like a brand, acts as a stamp of approval. A promise. Unlike your ID degree, certifications usually require keeping up with education credits, which ensures updated knowledge of agreed-upon best-practices.

Interesting, I’m a recent PDMA member so I’ll take a look at this… Thanks.

w

No, no, the opposite, walking in, explaining what we do with passion, critiquing their existing work at point blank and getting a large project on the spot. I don’t think I’ve ever walked out of a meeting where someone did not grasp what I do by the end. It is my job to explain it, and explain it well with conviction, heart, and logic.

not secret, very public, just exclusive. Thought I love the idea of getting designers onto one searchable data platform… maybe there could be an open content section, and then an elite member group with the review that could further authorize the best work.

Exclusive? Sounds like… THE HARVARD CONNECTION. Winklevii say yes.

As a student I think something exclusive that gives people a goal to work towards is nice. Once your’e in, you’re gold.

Just as long as once you are in you need to continue to prove yourself… not what have you done, but instead what have you done lately.

i.e. Police depts. don’t require their people to pass a yearly physical Fire Dept do… look a the physical diff.

NO TENURE! like what we find in the educational system. Also a code of ethics that is not just written on down but is actually enforced!

So…

  1. Would you be evaluated by other designers, or would you be evaluated by a diverse board of product development decisionmakers, or a split of both? I prefer the latter two options as they are more reflective of how designers are really evaluated.

  2. If you decide to spend a few years homesteading or vagabonding, your membership would be revoked? I think rather than constantly keeping up appearances, maybe it’s every five years or so.

  3. Would you have to be involved in the MASS production of goods? Kind of a barrier to one-off-ers and social criticism-design-collectives that create fine art statements in designer clothing.

  1. I like the ideal of “would you be evaluated by a diverse board of product development decision makers, or a split of both?” one of my issues with the design industry right now is i feel at time too much emphasis is put on conceptual design and really pretty pictures. and not on how the design meets a variety of other criteria… Marketing, manufacturing, costing, engineering.

  2. I think every year may be to much, sabbaticals are always a good thing so maybe every 2 -3 years and even a sabbatical can count if you can demonstrate how you kept / refined / honed your skill sets.

  3. I think both are needed but once again various organizations tote the one offs to much, because it is easy to sell the “sex appeal” with visuals. oppose to the say a simple profit chart - some of my best work although not sexy by any means are products that I redesigned / managed were in we pull out cost provided a cleaner and fresher look, displaced the competition gaining great shelf space and saw increased profits.

Chevis W

Chevis - I was unclear on comment 3. My POV is that if a designer isn’t involved in the mass production of goods, or their work focuses on social critique, then they aren’t really part of the Industrial/PD world. They are probably fine artists or craftsmen. Personal aside: when I see one-off art pieces by Dutch “design” collectives, it kind of makes my blood boil to see it is presented in a design context. It is art or satire or social critique. Not design. The fine artists would be barred from membership in my scenario.

Really? i’m not alone in my feelings for when a one off design is toted as the be all end all of industrial design and when I design something for a price point and mass production some people view it as less of a design because hey look at what this person came up with… a 19.00 product that would cost 300.00.

bcpid i would like to buy you a drink!

A toast…TO CONSTRAINTS!

To Constraints!

Cheers!

Back to the question of certification / licensing etc.

I think in order for it to work, this would have to be done on a modular basis, and there would need to be an element of peer review and standardized knowledge. For instance, you might test or certify separately on:

  1. plastics technology - std
  2. plastic forming operations - std
  3. Voice of the customer - std
  4. form development - peer
  5. ideation skills - peer
  6. scenarios and designing interactions
  7. product development cycles
    etc etc etc etc.

There could easily be 20 or 30 modules. There may be a core of 5 that all designers must demonstrate mastery of, and then another 5 to form a concentration, and a third group of 5 to either deepen or expand to a second area, and so on. Seems like that would at least provide some structure to it, while providing a useful amount of flexibility since ID is a big tent.

Any thoughts?

I understand the feeling that more training/certification is beneficial, but I’m opposed to having a design org fill that role when universities are so much better at it.
If your school didn’t introduce all of the aspects of design in the real world, and show you how to go and teach yourself what you need, when you need to - don’t expect an underfunded volunteer based organization to do that for you. Network instead.

the general lack of prestige of IDSA membership will have to find another vehicle - perhaps peer admission as YO suggests.

Generally though I think the rest of what YO describes could be achieved by a sufficiently motivated local chapter.
the need to go have beers with other designers is one thing, to drive across state(s) or get on a plane to do so is unrealistic.
the need for inspirational activities is greatest in the hinterlands not big cities, inclusive virtual interactions will have to be part of whatever the new world order involves.

funding/membership dues are going to be the biggest hurdle. YO, how would you charge?

I would not be a part of any organization where an engineer decided if I was a designer or not. Since non designers could not be in the organization, it makes no sense that they would decide who could be.

I think you would have to be reviewed by “the founders” a select group within the select group. “the founders” would be the people that founded the organization at first, in time, others would be nominated to join… not unlike the moderator group here at core77. The core77 founders selected the initial group, eventually they made me admin, which meant I was able to knight future moderators, but we do it as a group with at least a minimal quorum.

Ditto.

I work with motivated local people to do IDSA stuff. There are the local (and regional) students, a few designers, and us/ the board who are motivated. Everybody else seems to be lethargic and disinterested, but that is a staple of the area I live in. I think if you are in a city that is generally optimistic your local chapter can really do cool things and have a good turn out for everything, Chicago comes to mind.

Funding and bookkeeping are always a hassle. I would think that there is some firm somewhere that dose that sort of thing. Then since it would mostly be online with maybe a regional or national conference every year, it wouldn’t be all that hard. Building additional value for membership would be the hard part.

How about some health insurance. IDSA group rate.

There is… take a look:

http://www.idsa.org/content/health-insurance-available-idsa-members

~w~