DDes Annual Symposium for Design Research

2024: Design Beyond: Systems, Organizations, and Culture

Join us for a one-day deep dive into systems thinking and organization design. Learn how leading design professionals and researchers approach complex challenges by understanding the interconnectedness of systems.

• Panel Discussion: Hear professional designers and researchers discuss their real-world experiences integrating systems thinking into their projects.
• Keynote Address: Renowned design theorist Richard Buchanan will illuminate the power of organization design as a strategic tool for driving effective change.
• Network: Virtually mingle with fellow design enthusiasts and gain insights from experienced professionals.

This event is your chance to expand your design toolkit and gain a holistic perspective on tackling tomorrow’s challenges. We encourage our traditional design partners and anyone interested in the future of design to attend this transdisciplinary event, including graduate students, faculty, design practitioners, and business professionals.

Friday, August 16, 2024
9:00 am – 2:00 pm via Zoom

Preliminary schedule of events:

• 9:00 am-9:20 am: Introduction and opening remarks with M. Elen Deming, Director of the Doctor of Design program
• 9:20 am-9:50 am: Audience / Mural Introductions and Design Trivia Ice Breaker
• 10:00 am-10:30 am: Intro to Systems Thinking with Dr. Pierce Otlhogile-Gordon
• 10:30 am-11:30 am: Panel: Systems Thinking in Theory and Practice 
• Break (30 minutes)
• 12:00 pm-1:15 pm: Keynote address and Q&A with Dr. Richard Buchanan 
• 1:15 pm-1:30 pm: Closing remarks from Dr. Newton D’souza, our new Director of Doctoral Programs
• 1:30 pm: Facilitated Networking (Optional)

Three Doctor of Design students (Meghan Bausone, Melissa Eggleston, and Lexi Namer) have developed an outstanding symposium for this year, packed with guest presenters that will share real-world experiences integrating systems thinking into their projects. 

Introduction and Panel: Systems Thinking in Theory and Practice

Dr. Pierce Otlhogile-Gordon will first present an Introduction to Systems Thinking before delving deeper into the topic of Systems Thinking in Theory and Practice with a panel of experts.  Panelists include:

• Dr. Andrés Téllez
• Bess Williamson
• Boon Yew Chew
• Dr. Dimeji Onafuwa
• SL Rao
• Dr. Pierce Otlhogile-Gordon

Keynote Presentation with Dr. Richard Buchanan:

Following the panel, our keynote address will be delivered by Dr. Richard Buchanan.  Dr. Buchanan will delve into the heart of his seminal work on the four orders of design. With a particular focus on the fourth order – organizational design – he will explore how design can shape complex environments and cultures. Discover how culture and design intertwine, influencing how organizations process information and make decisions. Learn about the essential role of design in crafting successful organizations and the power of strategic conversations to drive transformation.

Guest speakers:

Dr. Pierce Otlhogile-Gordon works across discipline, industry, and geographical borders,  helping changemakers support their professional and personal goals of system change. He’s guided changemakers at community and national scopes across multiple continents, in the for-profit, academic, philanthropic, and non-profit sectors. Across his vast and eclectic professional journey, his work shares one principle: to orchestrate the spread of agency and creativity across the world. He holds a M.S. and Ph.D. from the Energy and Resources Group at the University of California, Berkeley, and summa cum laude B.S. degrees from the University of Michigan and Morehouse College.

Dr. Andrés Téllez is a designer, researcher, and educator who firmly believes in the power of design to improve people’s lives, build a more open and democratic society, and responsibly create value for organizations. He holds a Ph.D. in Design from North Carolina State University, a Master’s in Education (M.Ed) from Universidad de los Andes (Bogota, Colombia), and a Bachelor’s in Industrial Design (BID) from the same university. Dr. Téllez is joining NC State from Appalachian State University, where he served as an Assistant Professor and Design Foundations Coordinator in the Department of Applied Design. Before joining App State, heserved as an Associate Professor and Department Head at the Department of Product Design at Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano in Bogota, Colombia.

Bess Williamson is a historian of design and material culture with a particular interest in social and political concerns in design, including environmental, labor, justice, and rights issues as they shape and are shaped by spaces and things. She is the author of Accessible America: A History of Disability and Design, which traces the history of design responses to disability rights from 1945 to recent times. She joins NC State from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago where she served as a Professor of Art History, Theory, and Criticism, teaching a range of design history courses, from introductory surveys of modern design history to graduate seminars on issues in design and politics, material culture/”thing” theories, and disability studies in art/design.

Boon Yew Chew is a designer and strategist working on academic and scientific journals at Elsevier. He spends most of his time designing for large enterprises on products, services, and organizational change. He is a local leader with the Interaction Design Association, where he runs a small team for IxDA London, hosting events around design and strategy topics. He served on IxDA’s board from 2015 to 2018.

Dr. Dimeji Onafuwa has been in design management, design strategy, design research, design-thinking, brand communications, service design consulting and design practice for over 15 years. Dr. Onafuwa is a founding member of Common Cause Collective, an impact-focused design collective working toward measurable, sustainable futures for organizations and society and currently manages a team of UX researchers for a Fortune 100 tech company. He earned a BA with honors (summa cum laude) in Advertising/Design & Studio Art from Concord University, MBA in Management from UNC Charlotte, and a Ph.D. in Design from Carnegie Mellon University.

Shree Lakshmi Rao (SL) is a strategist who co-creates new futures in education, health and climate through design inspired system transformation. They bring a system-oriented, equity-centered approach to my work and to how they build, nurture and grow teams and organizations. They are curious and driven by the need to find solutions to seemingly intractable problems. They work as VP of Design Research and Strategy for Optimistic Design and hold a MDes in Interaction Design from Carnegie Mellon University.

Past Research Symposia:

Browse symposia topics and presentations from past years.

2023: Data-Driven: Design Research for Collaborative Futures

To welcome our newest DDes Cohort of outstanding student-practitioners, we mark the sixth anniversary of the program and celebrate the 75th anniversary of the College of Design. 

In 2023, the Doctor of Design (DDes) program is excited to partner with students in the Ph.D. program in Design, to present this milestone event—Data-Driven: Design Research for Collaborative Futures. We are interested in the impact of new data sources design analytics on social and personal technology(s), professional expertise, and, of course, research in design.

Helen Armstrong, professor of graphic & experience design, will open the symposium with a keynote address titled: Augment/ Interrogate: The Critical Intersection of A.I. and Design. She will be joined by respondent Tania Allen, professor of media arts, design and technology. 

2022: Design Futures and Foresighting

This virtual DDes Symposium begins with the big picture—Design Futures—and what that may mean for technology, business strategy, identity, and research in design.

Keynote Presentation:

Gjoko Muratovski, noted thought leader in graphic design and design research, will open the Symposium with a keynote address on Design Today, with a response from Meredith Davis addressing doctoral education in design.  

Panel I: Professional Identity, Authenticity, and Access to Design Futures

• Moderator: Lu Liu (Professor and Head of Graphic Design and Industrial Design, NC State University
• Panelists:
  • Tasheka Arcenaux-Sutton, Graphic Design, NC State University
  • Kaleena Sales, Chair of Art & Design, Tennessee State University

Panel II: Strategic Design Leadership: How Design Practice Meets the Future

• Moderator: Katherine Peele (Leaders Council and LS3P Associates)
• Panelists:
  • Jason Forney, Principal at Bruner/Cott Architects
  • Wendy Steinle

2021: Inclusion in Design Research

First Session: What (and Who) Does Design History Include? 

by J. Dakota Brown, Art Institute of Chicago

The past generation has seen profound shifts in design process and practices—ranging from analog to digital techniques, and from autonomous to networked practices, as well as in the relationships between designers, clients, manufacturers/construction and marketplace/end users.  This session prepares students to understand the values of inclusivity in the evolution of design practices and its potential impact for future design industry enterprises.

Second Session: Authorship, Agency, Ability and Inclusion 

by Upali Nanda, HKS

In a research-integrated design practice, research is both assessed and translated in the course of the design process. The practical value proposition of applied research is apparent but needs to be balanced with the business realities of firms This session will demonstrate how inclusivity in professional research offers a smarter way for firms to do good design and also strengthen their bottom line. 

Third Session: Power + Place 

by Bryan Lee, Colloquate

Increasingly, artists and designers across many disciplines are paying attention to racial equity and social justice in both private and public commissions. This session will discuss elements of complexity, advocacy, and multi-racial inclusion in design practice as a form of Design Justice.

2020: Design Thinking in Health / Thinking Health in Design

Panel 1 – Design Thinking in Health

The morning began with moderated Panel #1 “Design Thinking in Health.”

Dr. Matt Trowbridge, Dr. Bon Ku, and Jacqui McLaughlin spoke for about 10-12 minutes each followed by Q&A.

Moderator: Tsailu Liu, Department Head of Graphic Design and Industrial Design, NC State College of Design

Keynote Presentation

Design for Everybody: Creative Ideas for Wellness and Inclusion by Ellen Lupton

Panel 2: Thinking Health in Design

Panel #2 is a flip of the first panel along the lines of “Thinking Health in Design,” or how we should be thinking about health in the design fields.

Michael Grove, Jessica Bellamy, and Myron Floyd spoke for about 10-12 minutes each followed by Q&A.

Moderator: David Hill, School of Architecture Head, NC State College of Design

2019: Success After Failure: Designing Through Challenges

Panel Session 1: Service Design: Social Innovation Strategies for Change

Moderator: Kevin Fitzgerald, former chief of staff for UNC System, UNC Health Care & School of Medicine, and Director of Social Services NC-HHS

Speakers: Dana Weston, UNC Rockingham Health Care and Patrick McGowan, the Service Design Group

Panel Session 2: Place Making: Spatial and Environmental Design Strategies for Change

Moderator: Katherine Peele, LS3P

Speakers: Scott Levitan, RTP Foundation and Paul Morris, FASLA, CEO & Mission Maker, MCP

2018:  Innovation in Research, Design & Education

Keynote Address: Innovation in Research, Design & Education

Tom Miller, Senior Vice Provost for Academic Outreach & Entrepreneurship

Panel: Transformative Practices – Design Research in Action

• Aly Khalifa, [DB] designbox | Oceanworks
• Lesley-Ann Noel, College of Design | D-School, Stanford
• Karen Lewis, Ohio State University | Karen Lewis Design