News + Opinion

Design by committee is a term used to describe a decision-making process in which a group of people with different opinions and priorities collectively make design decisions. While collaboration and diverse perspectives can be valuable, there are many instances where design by committee can lead to inefficiencies, compromised quality, and missed opportunities. Here are some examples and evidence of why design by committee doesn't work.

I got a call recently from my car breakdown people. I’d called them out recently so I assumed that this was a follow up. I don’t have a problem with follow-up calls in principle – feedback is always good, especially bad feedback. But as it turned out this was a sales call masquerading as a follow-up (so a slight ruse on their part really). To be fair, I don’t really have a massive problem with sales calls either: they may well be offering something that I could just need so, assuming I have the time, I like to keep an open mind.

A subject that is often discussed in the office is the difference between left and right brain thinkers, the difference between people who are great at maths and English, and people who are not – does this make them less important? I don’t think so, and here is why.

And not just people but things in general. For example, you know when you watch a film that lasts for hours and you sit there and eventually stumble out of the cinema nursing a sore behind and you wonder “so what was the point of the 1st hour?

It’s fascinating to see that the most inspirational and ground breaking brands in the world are not created by strategists, moreover, strategists help the creative see the target, however it is the magic ingredient when a designer manages to create something special.

The resent Aldi re brand has lead me to write a piece about change and audience relevance, and how having a broader understanding on how brands relate to customers, in the process struggle of brand change, the important core is often replaced with fear induced waste.

I recently read the news that Heinz is considering changing the name of Salad Cream to Sandwich Cream – I find this fascinating!

I can’t say if I think this is a good thing to do or not, but I have to say that my initial instinct is that it isn’t necessary. Don’t get me wrong, I am a big believer in getting naming right and aligning brands to consumer expectation, but this feels instinctively ‘unnecessary’. Ok, so this is my logic, and let me just preamble with the fact that I have no background data on this, no surveys, polls, no qual research, it is only a feeling.