Design Leadership Ignited, and what about Saudi design?

I have noticed that Saudi design is currently thriving with exciting initiatives ongoing and ahead – by government, academia, and industry. Many Fortune 500 companies have already embraced design, and how to take design to the next level in an organization is well described in the award-winning book “Design Leadership Ignited: Elevating Design at Scale.” This publication from Stanford University Press is a unique academic and industry cross collaboration between the authors Eric Quint, Gerda Gemser and Giulia Calabretta.

This book resonated well with me because they extensively explore how to navigate change and cultivating effective design leadership. The book provides a model for building design excellence, including numerous strategic tools to empower design leaders to take in-house design teams to the next level while embracing the complexities that comes with it. The book also makes a compelling case for the strategic relevance of design in large organizations, resulting in increased impact and value through design.

The unique context in Saudi Arabia, and the Middle East as a whole, is not yet on the map. The question then arises in my mind: how, can Saudi design as a collective of industry leaders, academics, government representatives and designers contribute to future international research and literature on design leadership?

I think the answer lies in understanding the potential of design, collaboration and translating the lessons of this revealing book into the Saudi cultural and business landscape. This will move Saudi design towards maturity and provide an opportunity to also contribute in the future to the international dialogue on design with new unique experiences of scaling design for Saudi Arabia and the Middle East.

Join me and ADHLAL in this journey as I will continue to dive into an extensive reading list of other books on design leadership and management looking forward to shaping the future of design in our region together.

Enjoy reading! 

Nourah Al Faisal – Founder Adhlal

https://www.combinedacademic.co.uk/9781503613966/design-leadership-ignited