The Deep Dive

Although the first few minutes of "The Deep Dive" stirred up memories of a previous viewing (how could I forget Ted Koppel's wavy coif and Basset Hound jowls?), considering I couldn't really remember when, where, or why I watched it, my memory of the content of this episode was also lacking. So Wednesday's viewing was a nice refresher of IDEO's modus operandi. From all appearances, IDEO seems like a unique consultancy firm full of extremely creative and intelligent people, and I find their open-ended approach to the design process extremely appealing.

Their original take on design is evident just from seeing their unusual office, adorned with everything from a basketball hoop to a DC-3 wing. Their playful environment is significant because, as Heskett notes, "...environments are frameworks for activities, significantly affecting patterns of use, behavior, and expectations in home life, work, leisure, and a range of commercial ventures." It's not surprising that the ideas flow freely through IDEO's walls when they are covered in such a quirky miscellany. Their collection of toys offers some hope for the would-be designer, for it is heartening to see that for every brilliant idea they have, they probably come up with hundreds of turds (like Monster Shoes).

The environment at IDEO allows for a very open forum for new ideas, as all ideas are welcomed, even those odd, silly, and borderline stupid. All these ideas are coming from a team filled with people coming from very different backgrounds of study. This allows for new designs to be seen many different multiple perspectives, so all aspects of the user's interaction with the object is considered. The result of this loose design process is a very tight final product; well planned and smartly designed.

What I liked most about IDEO's design process is that it represents the viability of office structures alternative to the common corporate business structure (which I hear can be quite soul-crushing and evil). Although when I see the employees' contraption for hanging bikes, I have to wonder if they are perhaps overindulging in their freedom a bit. Can they not just install bike racks and lock them outside? That seems to be a much simpler solution and a less arduous process than carrying them inside and hanging them from ropes.