Aspect Design
Creating a strategy to get ahead of the curve
2023
Business Design
About
Aspect Design Pvt. Ltd. is a mutli-disciplinary architecture and design firm based in Mumbai, India. Started by a group of former FITCH designers, it has quickly grown to a full-service retail design firm, providing services from strategy and design through to FF&E and on-site execution.
As the firm grows post-pandemic, they seek to expand into different avenues of design and architecture, without diluting the experience they give their clients.
Assessing the Current State
In order to understand the current state of the company, as well as it’s digital maturity, I conducted a series of assessments, including Digital Threats and Opportunities,Digital Business Model, Digital Competitive Advantage, Emerging Technologies, Organizational Capabilities, Competitor Identification, SWOT and Leadership Readiness.
This resulted in a Digital Maturity Model, that shows the current state of the company, as well as the future state across 8 dimensions.
Company Assessment
Digital Threats and Opportunities Assessment
Digital Business Model Assessment
Digital Business Model Assessment
Digital Competitive Advantage Assessment
Emerging Technology Assessment
Emerging Technology Assessment
Organizational Capabilities Assessment
Leadership Readiness Assessment
SWOT Analysis
Target Market
Competitor Identification
Digital Maturity Model
Initiatives
Based on the desired target state, strategic objectives & digital maturity, I identified 5 key problem areas, and 10 possible initiatives to address them.
Build digital marketing practices into business processes
01
Social Media Representation
Improve the firm’s presence on social media platforms through a streamlined strategy (see below)
02
Periodically writing and publishing thought leadership articles, trends reports etc. to gain a presence on design blogs and portfolio websites.
Thought Leadership
03
Share the day-to-day work and processes within the organization as a form of organic brand building.
Transparent Organization
04
Build a client database and proactively reach out to customers proactively with possible initiatives while customizing communications to match the needs of those clients.
Client Coaching
Automate support functions
05
Revamp HR protocols to focus on the larger business goals rather than individual business functions, and redefine KPIs to match.
HR Re-vamp
06
Periodically map the processes within the organization and study best practices in technology to automate non-design processes.
Continuous Automation
Implement formal data archival and protection systems
07
Implement a series of protocols around data storage, data management and cybersecurity.
Data Management Protocols
08
Improve the Site survey process with the use of 3D scanners and drones.
Drone Enhanced Surveys
Explore the capabilities of new technologies
09
Identify possible creative technologists within the organization and provide time and funding to experiment with incorporating new technologies into existing workflows.
Creative Technology Team
10
Use rapid prototyping tools such as 3D printing to create tangible artifacts for client discussions.
Rapid Prototyping
Initiative Prioritization & Timelines
I then created a matrix to prioritize the different initiatives, measuring the effort to implement each initiative, as well as the impact each one would have. Based on this prioritization, I created detailed project plans and timelines for each initiative to ensure ease of implementation.
Social Media Representation
Thought Leadership
Transparent Organization
Client Coaching
HR Revamp
Continuous Automation
Data Management Protocols
Drone Enhanced Surveys
Creative Technology Team
Rapid Prototyping
Overall Plan and KPIs
An overall plan and timeline helps the team keep track of all the different initiatives. Additionally, KPIs and targets were assigned to each of the problem areas to ensure that the initiatives were having their desired effect.
Strategic Objective
KPI
Targets
Build digital marketing practices into business process
Number of Impressions
1,000,000 / Year
Percentage of projects coming from organic leads
>50%
<20%
Automate support functions
Amount of time spent on support functions
<95%
Implement formal data archival and protection systems
Percent of data accessible from central server
Explore the capabilities of new technologies
Number of new technologies / techniques studied
4 per year
Team & Resources
Finally, based on the requirements of the initiatives, and the digital transformation project as a whole, I detailed the team for the effort, and the resources required. This included adding 2 new positions to the company: a Digital Marketing Specialist and a Creative Technologist, with the digital team growing each year, along with the growth of the company as a whole.
Other Initiatives
Alongside the initiatives for the digital transformation, I also presented initiatives for the team to improve their overall business processes.
Brand Audit
01
Brand Audit
A brand audit is conducted every quarter, where the website, social media, and credentials are reviewed and updated as necessary
02
Annual trend reports and trend maps are a way to ensure that everything we do is current and relevant. These ask designers to look at the world around them, and see what is relevant now and what will be relevant in the coming years. Trend reports are also great for sharing with clients, on the website and on social media.
Trend Reports
03
Every quarter there's a competition to create a new brand collateral.These could be the start of giveaways for clients. The judging is anonymous / third party and the prize could include tickets for a design conference.
New Collateral Designs
Growing Capabilities
05
Maintain a list of employees and how comfortable they feel with various aspects of the business. This would include both hard skills (software, drawings etc.) and soft skills (presentation, negotiation etc.).
Ask employees if they want to improve in any specific areas, and give them the opportunity to train and improve during work hours.
Team Development
06
The IT Team reviews employees’ proficiency with different software tools every month.
Employees should be given the opportunity to practice with software they are not familiar with (Lost Dogs, Capriccio, Internal Competitions), and to learn new tools presented during the tech review.
Tech Training
Exploring New Avenues
07
Lost Dogs are a way to practice design,develop skills and improve process and workflow. They are reworkings of concepts and ideas that weren't selected or executed, but redone under a new label.
At least 4 “Lost Dog” projects should be completed every year. These can then be added to the credentials, website and social media.
Lost Dogs
08
Improve the Site survey process with the use of 3D scanners and drones.
Drone Enhanced Surveys