Page 19 - Design meets Business:An Ethnographic Study of the Changing Work and Occupations of Creatives

1. Introduction 7
July 2nd, 2016. I was three months into my fieldwork at the design firm Fjord. Like every Friday around 2 p.m., the designers gathered with loud chatter in the common area for a design clinic. This time, Fjord’s strategic director Luca, reflected on the latest developments of the occupation ‘de- sign’, opening with the provocative words:
“It is time for a wake-up call. Design, as we now know it, will die!”
The designers immediately fell quiet. Luca continued and explained that especially due to the recent acquisition of their design firm by the management consultancy Accenture, the daily work of designers has changed significantly. Whereas before the designers “could do whatever they want”, now their work was subjugated to the pressures of bureaucracy and efficiency. He cautioned the designers: “we are moving from Fjord to Fjordism, the industrialization of Fjord has started”. He then talked about the implications for how designers organize their work:
“Design is changing and we cannot stay fixed to our manners and methods. Tempting as it is, this is not the solution. You need to get up from your desk and walk around. Talk with clients. Move away from your computer screen. It is time to open our eyes... Design is shaping the world that is coming, and going to places it has not been before. I do not know if we are aware, let alone, ready for it ... We need to understand the game, how to play it... We are living in an Accenture world and there are a lot of opportunities.”
After Luca’s words, the atmosphere was tense in the common area. The designers looked worried. A vivid discussion among the designers started. They asked questions like: “what does this mean in terms of our training?”, “how do we to set a standard and have an impact?”, “how do we protect ourselves from becoming like Accenture?” and “how do we keep ourselves relevant in this context?”
These observations capture the challenges of a particular group of crea- tives, designers, who experience changes in their work as a consequence of an acquisition by a typical business firm. As an ethnographer interested in synergies between the creative industry and business, I was hooked.