Impact of organizational conditions on corporate design agility

Abstract

The scope of activities and roles of a corporate design function have expanded and changed

therefore, agility capabilities are required for them. However, the agility capabilities for corporate design function have received little investigation in design management research. Therefore, the research focused on agility capabilities for corporate design functions and their supportive organizational conditions with four aims: (1) to determine the relevant factors for organizational agility framework, (2) to establish different patterns in agility strategy and organizational conditions of the design function, (3) to examine the relationships among the factors, and (4) to propose the utilization framework and tools for corporate design functions. First, relevant literature from design management and organization theories was examined to provide background for the research, which used both quantitative and qualitative analysis. The relevant agility capabilities were determined through literature review and the Delphi method. Moreover, relevant organizational conditions that impact the design function and the design quality criteria in the corporate context were determined. Subsequently, the conceptual agility framework for corporate design function is established. The factors identified in this stage were used as the factors of the quantitative analyses in the second and third research stages. To examine the interrelationships between organizational conditions and agility capabilities in the holistic view, the research explored how particular states of agility capabilities with organizational conditions and design quality criteria manifest themselves as patterns. Here, the research found that the agility capabilities and organizational conditions are interrelated and influence the design quality criteria of the design function. Particularly, the three organizational condition types and two agility capability types of corporate design functions were determined. However, the direct correlations among the factors were not examined through the holistic research. Therefore, the empirical research to examine the statistical relationships between the organizational conditions and the agility capabilities were carried out. Here, the research examined what agility capabilities could enhance the design quality criteria and what organizational conditions could enhance the agility capabilities. The research was too complicated to understand and utilize the results of the overall study. Therefore, based on the overall research, the utilization framework and company tools were proposed. Further, suggestions for future research with limitations were proposed at the end of the dissertation. The value of the research could be identified as follows: 1) the relevant agility capabilities and supportive organizational conditions for corporate design function were highlighted and empirically investigated and 2) the agility utilization framework for corporate design function embracing all research outcomes would have significant value by suggesting a ready-to-use framework and tools for the company.