#8 The Business Designer

Martin Charlier is a designer specialising in UX, business strategy and service design. He’s the co-founder of RainCloud and has previously worked at Random International, Frog, Fjord and Accenture. He's writing a book about user experience and the Internet Of Things. I'm thrilled that Martin is going to work with the new Digital Experience Design students during their Business Strategy Module.

1. What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt over the last year?

A simple, achievable idea that might be boring to you as a designer can have a much bigger impact on your client’s business than a grand, creative one that you find interesting but that the client can’t realise.

2. What’s your burning question of the moment?

There are so many burning questions! Is there a future for design consultancies doing more than mere execution? If yes, what’s the model? Is the world of connected products and the Internet of Things going to catch on or is it just a fad? With this ‘hardware revolution’ approaching, how do we build physical products in a sustainable and circular way so we’re not just adding to landfill?

3. What’s the most inspiring thing you’ve seen/ heard/ read in the last year?

Rory Sutherland’s lecture ‘The third eye’. It left me thinking that every designer has to know their way around the intersection of behavioural psychology and economics that Sutherland talks about so eloquently.

4. What would be your one piece of advice to students on Hyper Island's new MA in Digital Experience Design?

Ideas are the easy bit! Place your focus on learning and improving how you explain, structure and underpin them so that businesses understand them, see their business value, and can realistically achieve and implement them.