A current buzzword, Design Management means many things to many people. But what is design management? And why is it the topic on everyone's lips?

Design Management, put simply, is the management of the design process. In researching this article I've decided that design management has two main focuses: internal and external. And its the internal focus with which designers are most familiar.

Consultants such as Robyn Robins, a design management and communication expert, are responsible for the increased awareness among designers of the importance of design management to their business. Robins has lectured on design management related topics for most AGDA state chapters during the last few years. Under her tutelage designers have been given the tools and strategies to make them more professional and business-like in running their design practices.

Design management is a growth industry and is of paramount importance to the continuing professionalism of Australian designers. AGDA, recognising this fact, has published a practice note Design Management: unlocking the graphic design process. Aimed at designers and their clients, the publication discusses design, its value to business and explains the design process. Detailed information on the stages in the process and a comprehensive checklist are provided. The publication is available as a PDF file for downloading from members only section of the web site.

The 1998 AGDA/ISS Professional Fellowship, designed to fill a skills gap in the design industry, was awarded to Lucy Elliott, a student studying for her second degree, in Business. Elliott attended a design management conference in Amsterdam, and on her return will disseminate to AGDA members information on the intricacies of running a design studio.

All of these initiatives ? design management seminars, publications and awarding fellowships ? are directed at the internal focus of design management: that of educating designers encouraging them to become professional and business-like in running their design practices.

While this is an important issue, it is the external focus of design management that will have the greatest impact on our industry. This external focus ? the promotion of design and the understanding of its worth to business, industry and culture ? can affect the relevance with which the business and corporate community views our profession.

The Design Management Institute (DMI) is an international association based in Boston. Founded in 1975 at the Massachusetts College of Art, the DMI envisions a future in which design is managed in the best possible way and all industries and organisations value design as a crucial business tool.

The DMI's objective is to advocate for the economic and cultural importance of design, and to make accessible a body of knowledge on design effectiveness in business.

Through its case study program, the DMI sponsors and develops research methodologies that explore and document the exact role design plays in business success. The published case studies, now numbering over 30, document the value of design and are taught at many of the world's leading business schools, including Harvard.

The DMI advocates the inclusion of business issues understanding in undergraduate design education, has recently established a MBA in Design Management, publishes The Design Management Journal each quarter and runs an international program of conferences. Regularly drawing sell-out crowds, these conferences demonstrate the importance placed on design management by today's international design industry.

Current DMI members number more than 650, and the list of corporate members reads like a who's who of the business world: AT&T, Bankers Trust Co, Colgate-Palmolive Co, Eastman Kodak Company, Hewlett-Packard Co, IBM Corp, Kraft Foods Inc, Procter & Gamble Co, Reebok International Ltd, Revlon Inc and Xerox.

For the DMI, design is a serious business. Its about strategic innovation and problem solving solutions which make a business more competitive and profitable.

Earl Powell, President of DMI and a speaker at SD99, explains the growing importance of design management, "more than ever before, companies are relying on design to support their business objectives. And as the crucial contribution of design gains recognition in the business community, the place of design management within organizations is growing and changing."

While Australian designers are beginning to understand the importance of design management to their practices, the industry as a whole has little information or research on the impact of design on a business's bottom line. It is through associations such as the DMI, and thereby the international network of design management professionals that this information and research will be made available to us.

By reading the existing case studies and analysing the research models we can begin to replicate them in our industry, and develop our own body of research that documents the role Australian design plays in Australian business success.

Visit their website and start the education process: http://www.dmi.org.