The SAP Speaker Series, in conjunction with HanaHaus, held on Tuesday, July 28, 2020, was moderated by Daniel Zimmer, Head of Hanahaus and Ecosystem at SAP Bay Area. He hosted Hartmut Esslinger, Founder of Frog Design, and Patricia Roller, CEO at Vidlet, in partnership with GABA, the German American Business Association. If you didn’t get the chance to tune in live, check out the replay here.
By Glenn Rabena
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The “Good Design Needs a Crisis” session was kicked off by Daniel when he asked Hartmut and Patricia where the title came from and what it means to them. Hartmut found design after a crisis in his own life, being told he wasn’t a good engineer. He then expressed that nothing good ever comes from being in a comfortable situation and that you must push yourself to the limit. Patricia chimed in that in Frog’s history, every new step started from a crisis. When things go completely wrong, you must pick up the pieces and go in a different direction. Design isn’t a straight line or a clean process. It’s often about iteration and pivoting and new ideas. Patricia brought up startups and how they don’t end up in the same place they started. The shifts are painful, but the result of these shifts can be innovation and success.
Daniel also brought up company culture and asked Hartmut and Patricia what they believe contributes to positive company culture. Patricia said it starts with individuals. She said you have to create the culture for yourself. Hartmut said while it sounds silly, respect is crucial. Companies also should request top performance and original solutions. They should ask their people to challenge the status quo and respect them and their opinions when that happens.
Hartmut shares his point of view on the design mindset in organizations. Demonstrating, prototyping, and deciding is a small part of the design process. The missing piece of design thinking is implementation into the organization. Patricia adds that there’s a big difference between design thinking and design doing. It becomes much more difficult taking insights and turning them into solutions and that’s how many companies today fail due to companies having the same solutions. Design thinking is a good element of the overall process but must be connected to the research.
Daniel asks Patricia and Hartmut on what habits and rituals they use to fuel their creative process. Patricia jokingly says, "fighting [with each other].” They often come from extreme opposite ends, but they usually always find their way to meet in the middle. Patricia also mentions how honest communication and introducing yourself to other areas outside of your comfort zone helps with your creative process. Looking into the future, Patricia feels that designers will thrive in a remote setting because they won’t be forced into social norms. You get to know people on a more personal level with virtual calls.
Daniel mentions how there will be less travel and commuting and asks what the superpowers will be in this area as we enter the new era. Patricia states that it will be hard to predict what will be next and that the focus should be on what should we not do? There’s a Silicon Valley disease called incremental innovation and that we “should stay away from copying things ten times and calling it new.”
Hartmut leaves us with a call to action: “If you can, please teach. Share your knowledge and experiences with others.”
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Want to experience the event for yourself? Watch the full video here
Stay tuned for our next SAP Virtual Speaker Series.