META and UTS are partnering up to help Australian businesses adopt a Design Led Innovation (DLI) approach with a new innovation hub.
The new META Design Thinking for Export & Competitiveness Hub, a META initiative, will connect manufacturing businesses and researchers to address the challenge to develop high value-added product and service solutions and advance Australian manufacturing into a globally integrated and competitive industry.
“The latest update to the nation’s national accounts was buoyed by an unexpected surge in mining exports, but it hides a deeper story about Australia’s global competitiveness,” said Zoran Angelkovski, META Managing Director. “Our future success depends on creating the high value exports the world wants, and we believe the META Design Thinking for Export and Competitiveness Hub is the way forward for companies that want to compete in the global economy.”
Design Led Innovation is a framework aimed at helping companies to develop improved products and services through deep customer understanding.
The Hub has been established to accelerate the development of a design led approach across the Australian manufacturing sector and has particular relevance to firms wishing to expand into export markets.
The Design Thinking for Export & Competitiveness Hub will act as a virtual meeting point and place to access best in practice information while also building this capability across the Australian manufacturing sector. It will bring together leaders from firms, across various industry sectors and areas within Australia, that have already applied Design Led Innovation and who will act as mentors to other Australian companies – those interested in applying Design Led Innovation to their businesses. As mentors, they will provide understanding, support and insights into how they used Design Led Innovation to drive export competitiveness.
Backed by a strong commitment to product innovation, Design Led Innovation Champion and Hub member, Nigel Spork, Centor Managing Director believes businesses need to look inwards at their company DNA and make design a key focus, not an afterthought.
“A better understanding of how Design Led Innovation can shape business strategy and organisation value is required. Successful businesses are using design thinking frameworks and tools to form a clear strategy for innovation that delivers world class customer value and geographic market expansion,” Spork said.
“Australia risks lagging behind the rest of the world due to a lack of collaboration in Design Led Innovation. The hub will allow participants to share ideas, experiences, learnings, problems and opportunities as they integrate the Design Led Innovation framework into their business processes.”
The Design Thinking for Export & Competitiveness Hub will be facilitated by Professor. Sam Bucolo, an academic and practitioner in the emerging field of Design Led Innovation, with support from META. The mentor companies will work with Professor Bucolo to develop a toolkit based on a time tested approach to learning where META members see one, do one and teach one. META members will see examples of case studies and success through the hub, do the process in their own organizations and teach their learnings to others through the collaboration hub.
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