BCDconcepts

bcd stands for “business colliding design”. this blog is a place to keep all the bcd concepts spotted online together. quite frankly: it is not an altruist blog, it is almost a personal logbook. welcome however, if you randomly stumble upon it -or if you’re checking it out because i subtly suggested you to- c.c. //

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When you’re innovating, you have to have a strong point of view. You need research, but you can’t research your way to innovation.

Rebecca Sinclair, Head of User Experience Research and Design @ Airbnb

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last week i took part in the "rufus reinvents money" event. this 5-day design sprint aimed to generate innovative ideas that re-imagined the millennial experience with money and banks.

my team's output was "youscore", and i thought things had gone well until i saw this article in fast.co create. then, everything went on to being simply amazing - this really is a huge deal for me!

our image above was missing. but the text said it all: "youscore—a next generation credit rating system designed to enable millennials to better access loans, insurance and contracts—was the product the judges deemed most immediately invest-able". and i just couldn't be happier! 

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Creativity [simply] separates those who can deal with change and chaos and those who can’t.

Bruce Nussbaum

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#todayontheterminologysection: my brand new marketing and advertising slang.

- seo: search engine optimization - sem: search engine marketing - atl: above the line [advertising] - btl: below the line [advertising]

images sources here & here

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oh, the joys of being an innovation designer! 

- comic by andrew wales inspired by patton's character halcolm. bigger image + 2nd part here.

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It wasn't curiosity that killed the cat. It was trying to make sense of all the data curiosity generated.

halcolm [fictional character created by author michael quinn patton]. patton authored "qualitative research & evaluation methods" as well as "halcolm's inquiry parables", where he illustrated various concepts related to being a researcher.

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DISSERTATION DONE!!

after 3 months i've finally finished my dissertation, and I just couldn't be happier with the result!

*click on the image for a full version of the pdf*

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What if I made one small change?

i find myself about to embark on a dissertation i'm not ever sure i'm eager to write, and my life after it is also becoming quite blurry... so my thoughts on motivation and purpose have noticeably risen.

today i found this article on shifting habits, and it hugely inspired me. i know by now smaller goals for quick satisfactions are highly rewarding for a normal brain (maybe even more than achieving life-long dreams that take forever to become a reality) but it is still hard to make a habit out of it. this article however, helped me see it again, and i now feel a bit more motivated to really start practising some incremental changes in my life: for working out, enjoying london, eating healthier...

i figured this mindset could have a massive impact on business innovation and growth, and it is just so aligned with design thinking (prototyping, testing, failing quick, iterating...) but first things first: let's start with day to day life! :) 

#motivationforinnovationsection // image source

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KISS explanation of design management

just keeping it simple and stupid... :)

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According to James Webb Young in 1939

"an idea is nothing more nor less than a new combination of old elements.

[and] the capacity to bring old elements into new combinations depends largely on the ability to see relationships.

[which is why] the habit of mind which leads to a search for relationships between facts becomes of the highest importance in the production of ideas"

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JUST AN ARTICLE ABOUT BRANDING & LICENSING

...by the design council. "are you ready?"

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while exploring the engage for success website, i just thought i should blog the 4 points for employee engagement in macleods report:

1. provide a strong & strategic corporate narrative 2. engage managers as advocates, coaches and facilitators 3. reinforce the employee voice as the key to solutions 4. strive for organizational integrity and zero "say-do" gap

i just know they will come in handy some not-to-distant day. specially if i continue talking about corporate innovation challenges... 

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Design goes hand in hand with civilisation as it is a manifestation of the human impetus to make things better

Design for Innovation paper, December 2011 - Design Council

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TIPS TO GET HIRED. BY IDEO RECRUITERS.

"be empathic" treat people nicely. obvious.

"think outside the resume" and the portfolio. and the cover letter. and the business card. ask: "what would you do if there weren’t things like resumes and cover letters?"

"tell a good story" not just the success bits. life is messy, its good to sometimes acknowledge your messes. show failing and recovering. no buzzwords allowed.

"be targeted" basically don't be a desperate. as much as you want to work for "the" company. stick to one application.

"be yourself" why someone else?

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#todayonthegraphicdesignsection. thanks to ale p!

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DESIGN RESEARCH FOR PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS...

.. . and the complementarity between this and the traditional "market research"

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apologies if i go just a little off-topic here (cause i'm definitely not seeing this with the "business" lens) but i just cant help to fall in love with innovation when it comes to TOYS! 

this debbie girl absolutely convinced me of the value of her idea: get girls building and encourage them to be "more than princesses" by creating a toy that teaches them "how to build the castle"!

by just merging a book series and a construction set, she aims to inspire the next generation of female engineers... and i'm pretty sure she is a good way to accomplish this! no surprise she is from stanford, cause the whole "disrupting the pink isle" spirit is absolutely genious!!

more about this lovely initiative here, and the brilliant promotional video here.