Design Forecast 2016

Gensler Design Forecast 2016
Consumer Goods
Bringing the walls down to
promote collaboration
Developing, testing, and selling consumer
products are no longer seen as silos, so the
physical boundaries between these activities
are eroding. Coworking, the maker movement,
and team-based medicine are precedents for
how to accommodate hands-on, collaborative
practices in the workplace. Artificial
intelligence (AI)—both people-to-products and
the Internet of Things—will play into this by
streamlining work processes and deepening
the understanding of consumer engagement.
development, there’s an increasing need for
internal advisors and analysts whose
backgrounds now range far beyond the
fields of expertise that have traditionally
been tapped. They include specialists
such as mathematicians, meteorologists,
economists, academics, and post-gender
psychologists. Accommodating them is
now a workplace issue, as the focus shifts
toward creating spaces to support
these specialists.
As consumer products companies invest
more heavily in social and behavioral research
to assess their markets and steer product
above: Stylex NYC
below right: Tuohy WorkStyles
bottom right: “Link” by FilzFelt
below: Dressbarn, Mahwah, NJ
Product Design
Products get smarter
and craft returns
Product design isn’t just about the visible
world of things, but also about the invisible
world of interactivity that extends them,
makes them “smart,” and melds them into
everyday experience. The “made environment”
encompasses all of this holistically, adding
up to user experience (UX) that feels right and
enhances our iHumanity.
The Internet of Things will make products
smarter in how they interact with us and with
each other. They will be both autonomous and
fully integrated and interacting with networks
that connect them to people and the world.
The ability of smart products to support shared
use and self-manage maintenance and the
ordering of supplies may change consumer
attitudes toward ownership.
The revival of craft resembles the Arts
and Crafts Movement of the late 19th and
early 20th centuries. Craft in the 21st century
is a counterpoint to digitized life. People
want to find personal meaning in products
by linking them to their makers, artists, and
artisans. They look for evidence of craft as
handwork. In parallel, there is a renewed
interest in making, often with the ambition
of finding markets for handmade goods.
By emphasizing local production as a sign of
authenticity, small-scale producers are
enjoying wider appeal.
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