Toshiba's Approach to Customer Value Design

Abstract

This paper describes the practice of "design thinking" in a Japanese company that tends to operate in an in-house-completed work context under a rigorously divided function-based vertical organization. In order to respond to significant shifts in the business environment accompanied by technological advances and changes in people's values, Toshiba introduced "Customer Value Design,” customized design thinking. Customer Value Design is characterized by "co-creation" of customers’ value with customers, "collaboration" in a Cross-Functional Team (CFT) of various experts transcending organizations and categories of expertise, and the "customer perspective" in co-creating experiential value, enterprise value, and social value. In order to compensate for the deficiencies in organizational culture, mindset, and literacy, and to promote penetration of design thinking, Toshiba simultaneously launched a foundation that integrates and promotes cooperation encompassing the three factors of "process," "people," and "place." The customized design thinking activated projects that realize value for various stakeholders through co-creation and collaboration from a customer perspective. With the aim of transforming marketing and development processes in response to the changing business situation, Customer Value Design provides an evolving system with iterative improvement through trial and error. These co-creative and collaborative efforts amplified various activities directed toward comprehensive open innovation inside and outside the company.