In the may+june 2009 issue of interactions Elaine Ann writes an interesting article on the wider role of designers, illustrating it with a large scale case study labelled What’s Design Got to Do with the World Financial Crisis?
I don’t fully share the idea that designers would have created a perfect financial system. The complexity lies not only in caputuring a good understanding of the system, but in the implementation with all potential human errors.
Nevertheless, Elaine Ann highlights the role of designers as relevant advisors and critical, creative thinkers in the design of highly complex systems that lie far outside the traditional scope of what designers are perceived to work with.
I will probably return to the role of designers in the context of the financial crisis, but I would strongly recommend reading Elaine Ann’s article for some thought provoking inspiration.
