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59 MARCH : APRIL 2016 — COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION INDUSTRY EVENTS • SUMMIT COVERAGE D esign is a key component of fnancial success. In a design-led experiential economy, brands that depend on brick and mortar for their primary customer interface maximize design efforts to create important elements of their customer experience. This may encompass the fow of how customers enter or navigate the store and how goods are displayed. More importantly, the materials, colors, composition and organization say everything about the quality and persona of the brand. In other words, design is the physical expression of your brand DNA. The long struggle of design has been to justify its value. Design has been lacking a kind of science that supports its value and impact on business performance. Design is strategy fused with a problem solving methodology that helps companies know why, how and what to make in order to help people feel how they want to feel. Why are some business activities mandatory when others are discretionary? What is the ROI of accounting? How does HR contrib- ute to shareholder value? Why is investment in design discretionary when HR and accounting are not? Businesses say they want creativity and innovation. Design delivers both, yet is regarded more like art than science. The design process is mysterious to most business executives. How could those drawings cost so much when they are just lines and dimensions on paper. The drawing is in a computer, so it must be easy to change it, right? Simply put, the design process is a se- quence of ideas that develop and fow to create a tangible a solution once executed. Most creations are intangible or have considerable intangible elements, making it diffcult to see the value until the result is realized. It has been shown that: • Every $1 invested in design returns $2.25 • Where design is integral to the business, less than half compete mainly on price • Shares in design-led businesses outperform stock indices by 200 percent • On average "design alert" businesses increased their market share by 6.3 percent through design efforts What is a "design-alert" business? Designers are positioned in key managerial roles. The companies often use external design consultants and likely have design training for employees. These companies use design, because they see their ability to develop higher quality products and services will provide added value to their customers. Beyond anecdotal evidence, how does a brand know if the dol- lars spent on design efforts are returned? Metrics targeted to analyze design investment have slowly developed over the last decade and should align with the corporate goals established at the beginning of the project. CCR Dawn Hollingsworth, LC, FIALD, is a certifed Lighting Professional by the National Council on Qualifcations for the Lighting Professions (NCQLP) and a Fellow of the International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD). She has more than 35 years experience with a diversifed background in theatrical and architectural lighting design and consulting, marketing, business management, product management and development, manufacturing, scenic design and event production. The value of design Presentation by: Dawn Hollingsworth, LC, FIALD, ZUZINK Businesses say they want creativity and innovation. Design delivers both, yet is regarded more like art than science.