EVERY organisation needs an artist now! And here’s why

There’s an increasing number of courses at third level in Ireland that have the words “Design Thinking” in their title. I should know – I’m currently on one of them. Its become quite the hot topic across business and government recently. The Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform just published its Action Plan for Designing Better Public Services – A Roadmap for Embedding Design in the Public Service 2024 – 2025.

Minister Pascal Donoghue, states in the introduction “Through our collective efforts, we are charting a course towards a more dynamic, inherently responsive, people-centric future for Ireland. I want to strongly encourage public servants at all levels to adopt design approaches in how they work, and I look forward to seeing the outcomes and experiencing the impact”.

He also states that “The design tools, processes, principles and mindset outlined in this document can help us work in new ways, ask different questions and take on our challenges with empathy, insight and imagination”.

Its been something of a shock to discover that the Design Thinking mindset and so very many of its tools and techniques are essentially how artists think and what they do. Sure, there are some tweaks in what things are called and some formal diagrams and tempates but fundamentally Design Thinking is about returning artists and artistry to the heart of planing, development, decision making, strategy, policy etc.

Lets just take a look at some of the key phrases in design thinking and see how they map onto the work of artists:

1. Innovative Problem Solving: Artists see problems from multiple perspectives almost as a matter of course. Its hard to imagine not seeing the world this way. Its what allows artists generate innovative solutions/responses/ideas that would not be immediately apparent through rational thought processes.
2. Visual Thinking: Artists are adept at communicating complex ideas visually (and aurally!). That means they condense complex concepts into compelling images, metaphors, scenarios, making them more accessible and engaging, providing focus but allowing for interpretation.
3. Empathy and Understanding: This is the bread and butter of the artists existence. Sometimes its the curse. They are (mostly) inherently empathetic because they draw inspiration from human emotions and experiences. This model of empathy is central to design thinking! Design Thinking asks policy makers and strategists and planners to prioritize understanding the needs and desires of people (end users, audiences, communities). Design Thinking claims that by putting ourselves in their shoes, we can create solutions that truly resonate with their needs. Artist, anybody?
4. Iterative Prototyping: The idea of rough prototyping and many iterations of the same idea is another key principle of Design Thinking and the daily work of the artist. Test and test again refining our strategies, our sentences, our colours, until they meet the desired outcomes.
5. Attention to Detail: Hello! Artists thrive on detail!

Before I became a consultant I was a theatre director and acting coach, so lets look at Design Thinking from the perspective of that particular art form.

1. Empathy Building: Check. Actors need to understand and embody different characters’ perspectives and emotions, and they need to be sensitive to the actor they’re working with. It can be an overload from time to time but building characters (Design Thinking calls them “personas”), and understanding the arc of a character (Design Thinking calls it “journey mapping”) is literally what we pay actors to do.
2. Role-Playing and Scenario Building: Role-playing and scenario building. Check. Actors improvise situations all the time to understand context, structure and motivation. If you want someone to accurately and creatively simulate user experiences and anticipate their reactions to various solutions call an actor. By extension most organisations can be understood as great big dramas with multiple characters and motivations, with subtext and subterfuge. Actors can step into the the shoes of different stakeholders, and tells us how that person actually sees and experiences the world!
3. Storytelling: Check! Acting is fundamentally about storytelling, and it conveys complex ideas and emotions in a compelling and memorable way. Actors and theatre folk can use storytelling techniques in design thinking and create narratives and immersive experiences that resonate with stakeholders.
4. Creative Collaboration: Check! A rehearsal room , a film set, a live performance is built on effective collaboration and trust among actors, directors, designers, and crew members. These people understand the value of of listening, improvising, and building on each other’s contributions to achieve a shared goal. All of this is Design Thinking in action.
5. Embracing Uncertainty and Iteration: Check. A good production will spend 80% of its time asking questions, researching, experimenting, refineing, and adaptating based on constant feedback and about 20% of its time pulling a finished product together. Solutions emerge in this work and frequently they are not solutions but resolutions. The die hard Design Thinkers will get what I mean by that. The point here is that this iterative process mirrors the iterative nature of design thinking, where solutions evolve through continuous prototyping and testing. Theatre artists – and all artists – spend a lifetime embracing uncertainty and view failure as an opportunity for growth – because there’s not really another choice.

So what’s my point? It seems like all those odd behaviours and ways of thinking that led family and friends to worry about you and ask questions like “when will you get a real job? ” or “when are you thinking of joining us in the real world?” are finally being recognised for what they are: necessary, complex, valuable and, above all else, quintessentially human.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting that Apple or Google or the World Bank are going to employ you to paint a picture or write a novel! At least not anytime soon. But the landscape is changing and if you chose to bring your artist “mindset” to market then there are enormous opportunities in front of us now. Yes, you will need to pick up some new tools and some new terminology but the talent, the “unique perspective“ and the “mindset” are all in place.

LIkewise if you’re reading this and you want to embed Design Thinking in your organisation then remember that artists have a head start on this, a deep understanding of its musculature and nervous system. Maybe it is time to test Richard Boyd Barret’s plan for every Government Department to employ artists!

I’m going to leave you with a quote from one of the Godfathers of Design Thinking, Bruce Mau, who writes in his last book The Nexus “In a time of increasing complexity and uncertainty, we need a new way of thinking to innovate and lead into the future. Blurring the boundaries between the largest domains of human creativity — art, technology, and science — leads to a dramatic augmentation of thinking spaces and a wealth of possible ideas. Myths and stereotypes in each field, however, have stood in the way of innovation …The key to succeed in reaching THE NEXUS, the place where these modes of thinking converge and synergize, is to be open to new ideas and to seek inspiration from domains outside our own.”