Page 192 - Design meets Business:An Ethnographic Study of the Changing Work and Occupations of Creatives

180 Design Meets Business
new situation. Elaborating on Chapter 2, in Chapter 3 it is suggested that as the work of designers is becoming more abstract, designers with a back- ground in business are attracted to the emergent occupation of Service Design. In this Chapter, it is explored how occupational members cons- truct an occupational mandate despite increased heterogeneity within the occupation. It is suggested that the arrival of new occupational members, with different backgrounds and visions, challenges the development of an occupational mandate. Developing an occupational mandate is key in the institutionalization of occupations, and hence needed for the occupation to grow and survive.
Chapter 4 is located in the context of the innovation hub Waag. This chapter suggests that the role of creatives in creative projects is chan- ging. Instead of being at the center of creative processes themselves and developing creative products for their clients, they now engage in crea- tive processes with their clients and help their clients to become crea- tive themselves. In doing so, this paper suggests that creatives take the role of ‘ceremony masters’ in rite-de-passages. As ceremony masters they facilitate ‘liminality’, a transformative experience in which clients break away from existing organizational realities and envision new ones. In order to achieve this, creatives need to both ‘activate’ others and ‘morph’ themselves into creative processes. As a result, their involvement in creative processes is constantly changing, depending on their client’s commitment and needs.
So, this dissertation research suggests that one the one hand, creatives adapt their daily work routines to the changing situation, and on the other hand, creatives put efforts in keeping it the same. The papers presented in this dissertation research suggest that creatives have changed their inte- ractions with clients and within the occupation themselves, while at the same time protecting the material practices that are inherently linked to their own ‘craft’ identity.
In what follows, I first offer a more detailed summary of the key findings presented in this dissertation research. A summary of my key findings can be found in Table 5.1. Based on these findings, I answer the main research question posed in this study. Then, I identify how this dissertation research contributes to existing theoretical debates. In particular, I argue that this study contributes to organizational research on design, liminality and occupations. After this, I identify directions for future research and practical implications. Finally, in my methodological reflection, I reflect on what it means to do ethnography and suggest that doing ethnography is a practice in craftsmanship..