MANAGING DATA-DRIVEN DESIGN: A SURVEY OF THE LITERATURE AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS

Abstract

Data-driven design is expected to change design processes and organizations in significant ways. What actions should design managers take to ensure the best possible outcomes in this new data-driven design environment? This paper employs an interdisciplinary literature survey to distill key impacts that data-driven design may have on designers, design teams, organizations and product users. Findings reveal that designers may need a broader set of skills to be successful. For data-driven design to be most effective, design managers will be challenged with many integration tasks, including the integration of AI-based tools into design teams, the closer integration of interdisciplinary teams, the integration of qualitative design thinking methods with new data-driven design paradigms, and the integration of data and algorithms into traditional human-centred design practice, in an effort to overcome cognitive limitations and augment human skill. This paper identifies gaps in the literature at the intersection of data-driven design and design management, design thinking, and systems thinking.