Facing a steep revenue drop and weak value proposition, Harman International Industries invited Designit to re-wire their thinking. Over 18 months, Designit established The Harman Design Centre -- a change-making collection of people and processes, embedded within the audio company’s base in Shenzhen, China.

1. 2014 Harman
Enabling corporate design thinking
From technology to experience-driven products in 18 months
Harman Case
2014 Harman

2. Product design boosted
Designit Munich in the pioneering years.
2014 Harman

3. Close collaboration with AKG
2014 Harman

4. Harman . enabling corporate design thinking
2014 Harman
Harman wants to learn how to design.
The challenge

5. Shutting down Northridge
Profound restructuring program for Harman
2014 Harman

6. Ramping up Shenzhen
Product development “At Speed”
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7. 2011
Challenges
2014 Harman
Slow time to market
Small volumes
Weak value propositions
No design resources
Loss in market share
$400m in annual revenue

8. Why Designit?
2014 Harman
Experienced - proven track record
Reliable – size matters
Calculable – fixed budget
Fast – talent and processes

9. Harman . enabling corporate design thinking
2014 Harman
“Do you want to go to China for one year?”
Mission

10. Mission
2014 Harman
1. Implement Designit processes and methods.

11. Mission
2014 Harman
1. Implement Designit processes and methods.
2. Build up a multidisciplinary Design Team with a global mindset

12. Mission
2014 Harman
1. Implement Designit processes and methods.
2. Build up a multidisciplinary Design Team with a global mindset
3. Complete shift from technology driven to user centric approach

13. Mission
2014 Harman
1. Implement Designit processes and methods.
2. Build up a multidisciplinary Design Team with a global mindset
3. Complete shift from technology driven to user centric approach
4. Restructure portfolio and improve value propositions accordingly

14. Mission
2014 Harman
1. Implement Designit processes and methods.
2. Build up a multidisciplinary Design Team with a global mindset
3. Complete shift from technology driven to user centric approach
4. Restructure portfolio and improve value propositions accordingly
5. Create innovation through design thinking

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Ni hao. Settling down in China
Harman . enabling corporate design thinking

16. Shenzhen 1983
A fishermen village with a population of 30.000 .
2014 Harman

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Shenzhen 2011
12 million people, 99% immigrants, $50 billion GDP

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May 2011
Masc and Maga taking off to China

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Moved in...
...right next to the Eiffel Tower

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Home sweet home.
Generously sized… including strange details.

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Kickstarting the Harman Design Center
Harman . enabling corporate design thinking

22. Challenge #1: Catching up
In the first months it was the two of us designing
day and night...
2014 Harman

23. well... not only two but actually three.
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24. Challenge #2: Installing a creative space
How many cubicals do you need?
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25. We got the warehouse...
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26. Right on. So we made a plan...
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27. and visualized it.
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28. And after just 4 weeks...
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29. ... the Harman Design Center was ready
to be populated with the first Designers.
2014 Harman

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Challenge #3: Finding the right people
Hey, do you want to move to Shenzhen?

31. ...they said YES!
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After 12 months we have become a big family.
A truly multi-disciplinary, multi-national team.

33. 2014 Harman
Welcome to the corporate life.
Harman . enabling corporate design thinking

34. Bringing the own team up to speed
Implementing Design Thinking Processes.
2014 Harman

35. Your passion needs to be contageous
Daily collaboration with the engineering team.
2014 Harman

36. You have to manage your manager.
Conducting workshops with the management team.
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37. Politics are massive.
Understanding everyone’s agenda.
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38. Communication is key.
Bilateral and multilateral.
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Making it happen
Harman . enabling corporate design thinking

40. Challenging the organisation,
Defining new product concepts,
Creating value propositions,
Structuring the portfolio
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JBL Pulse
Harman Case
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42. 2014 Harman
JBL Authentics Series
Harman Case
2014 Harman

43. 2014 Harman
Harman Case
2014 Harman

44. Making it happen. 30 products in 18 months.
2014 Harman

45. 2011
Challenges
Slow time to market
Small volumes
Weak value propositions
No design resources
Loss in market share
$400m in annual revenue
2014 Harman

46. 2014
Leaving Harman
50+ products launched in 2 years
Multiple SKU with over 1m volume
Focused on user centered innovation
Multi-disciplinary design team
61 design and innovation awards
$800m in annual revenue
2014 Harman

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Presentation Title
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Part 01
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Learnings
What would we do different?
Harman . enabling corporate design thinking

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2014 Client Name
Part 01
Presentation Title
Pioneer upfront
Listen and understand
the processes and structure first.
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1

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2014 Client Name
Part 01
Presentation Title
Deadlines are fuzzy
Set your own milestones.
The deadline sets the level of perfection.
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2

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2014 Client Name
Part 01
Presentation Title
Design for the pricepoint
Keep it real
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51. New deck section
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2014 Client Name
Part 01
Presentation Title
Make CMF a key element of your strategy
Have ammunition against all subjective arguments.
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52. New deck section
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2014 Client Name
Part 01
Presentation Title
Undecided details will haunt you forever.
The details are not the details, they are the design.
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53. New deck section
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2014 Client Name
Part 01
Presentation Title
Process is the key to design-thinking.
Design-doing has become a commodity.
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6

54. 2014 Harman
Passion Forward.