An Intimate Approach to the Management and Integration of Design Knowledge for Small Firms

In August 2012, I presented a paper entitled ‘‘The Fuzzy Front End of Product Design Projects: How Universities Can Manage Knowledge Transfer and Creation’’ at the International Design Management Research Conference. Via a series of design projects and design support schemes, the paper investigated how a higher education institution with a particular approach to the management and integrating of knowledge on behalf of small firms could bring together manufacturers, subcontractors, design consultancies, market researchers, intellectual property specialists, funding bodies, and other higher education institutions to make for an extremely effective design support network. In particular, the paper dealt with the dynamics of knowledge acquisition during the fuzzy front end of product design projects. It was suggested that, through this novel approach, the management and integration of the different players involved in new product development (NPD), higher education institutions could help small firms in particular achieve effective knowledge transfer, develop new knowledge, and generally reduce and manage uncertainty in the process and therefore utilize design more effectively in generating new products and increasing profitability. This article investigates the work that has taken place in the ensuing years, including material that led to outstanding impact in the 2014 UK Research Excellence Framework evidencing significant economic growth as a result of this approach to the management of the NPD process for small firms. It proposes that the management and integration of those factors leading to successful NPD for small firms require an intimate style of engagement to be effective, demanding a broad knowledge of, and/or an ability to manage, those factors pertinent to the needs of small firms. Based on four case studies, this article attempts to identify the nature of this intimate approach and therefore its potential significance.