Design Is How It Works

Design is a subject that's caught my interest of late. Hence, it was an easy decision to have a gander at Jay Greene's Design Is How It Works: How Companies Turn Products into Icons.

The book's title and rationale are derived from an interview between Steve Jobs and Consumed columnist Rob Walker, which Greene recounts thus:

"Most people make the mistake of thinking design is what it looks like," Apple CEO Steve Jobs told Walker. "People think it's this veneer -- that the designers are handed this box and told 'Make it look good!' That's not what we think design is. It's not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works."

Hence, the book explores how companies can successfully use design as a means of winning over customers ever more concerned about the kind of experiences that what they consume have to offer. To his credit, Greene shies away from the obvious tack of writing at length about Apple. Instead, he opts to examine eight companies in different industries and of different sizes that leverage design to deliver exceptional customer experiences: Porsche, Nike, Lego, OXO, REI, Clif Bar, Ace Hotels and Virgin Atlantic.

An alumnus of BusinessWeek, Greene is no stranger to quality business journalism, which is perhaps how best to describe Design Is How It Works. With separate chapters dedicated to the abovementioned companies, the book reads like a savvy profile of their underlying corporate cultures and business philosophies, especially as these pertain to design.

Personally, I appreciated the storytelling approach Greene used in Design Is How It Works. Overall, I felt the book was effective at making the case for bringing design front and center into a company's consciousness. "Design is about creating something that customers crave," Greene writes. "Design isn't just for companies that make clothes, consumer electronics, or cars. No matter how mundane the business, design can help."

Businesses would do well to take note.