Whether creating future environments or the elements within them, the prospective design approach helps to understand and shape multiple futures that are possible, and allows for the design of tomorrow’s products and services in a constantly evolving world. Prospective design is emerging as a key methodological discipline in project management, particularly regarding innovation management and the reduction of failure risks.
Prospective design for facing the unknown
In recent years, the concept of “foresight design” has become increasingly popular in research and design practice. Projects are indeed generally often described as being forward-looking, but foresight is often confused with “user-centered” or “preventive.” Until now, a comprehensive definition of a foresight design process and its outcome (the foresight-designed product) has been lacking. In practice, it is not enough to simply engage in foresight design and know the user, the context, the system, etc. It is necessary to have an easily accessible knowledge base containing concrete factors to consider if goods and services are to be designed with foresight.
Individuals and companies have a limited capacity to deal with the unknown and the unexpected. Whatever is said or done, the future is perceived as being out of sight, and it is deliberately or instinctively dismissed from the mind in our society and broader culture. Developing a capacity for reflection and applying it through design thinking and innovation could unlock the imagination, push the boundaries of what is possible, and save time in problem-solving.
Thinking outside the box
Through the prospective design approach, designers have the opportunity to explore, experiment, and create within the framework of design projects specifically oriented toward the future. Strengthening prospective and anticipatory capacity in design practice, as well as in learning experiences, can better align both the design process and its results with the values, needs, and aspirations of prospective thinking and action, contributing to increased global well-being. Anticipation could inform design and innovation processes, develop designers’ capabilities, and foster goals such as sustainability and longevity, so that designed goods and services can continue to provide value over the long term.
Prospective design has established itself as a true strategic asset for industrial players because it provides them with better innovation planning and offers a means to rethink the company’s mission by focusing on creativity, innovation, and design. To succeed in this challenge, companies must learn to manage creativity by relying on multidisciplinary and talented teams capable of understanding consumers’ real needs and formulating and confronting impactful ideas to generate the right concept at the right time.
Discover the Master of Science in Engineering in Prospective Design (PRODE), a 2-year program offered by Mines Saint-Étienne. Unique in France due to its components in foresight, social innovation, engineering, and creation, this Master of Science in Engineering aims to train versatile innovation practitioners.
