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McKinsey & Company release world-first study quantifying the financial value of design to business
The words \"The Business Value of Design\" are written in white text on a black background. The black background has white specks on it that resemble planets. In the foreground there is a hot pink apartment building and a white hand holding a phone.
30/10/18
Global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company released their first-ever study of design's financial value to business. The study tracked the design practices of over 300 publicly listed companies in multiple industries and countries for a five-year period.

 

The companies were assessed on four main design themes; these themes were the basis for the McKinsey Design Index (MDI), which rates companies on how strong they are at design.

 

Simply put, companies who scored the highest on the MDI also performed the best financially over the five-year period of study. Their revenue growth and total returns to shareholders (TRS) over the five-year period were much higher than their lower MDI counterparts (shown in the photo below).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photo: McKinsey & Company

 

"The final results of the survey suggest that senior executives no longer have the option to treat design as a luxury," says McKinsey & Company's media release. "While design was once largely thought of as a way of making products more attractive, it is now a way of thinking: a creative process driven by the desire to better understand and meet consumer needs."

 

The full study is now available online. Click here to read the full study.

 

An online version of the MDI survey will be open in November for organizations to self-assess their design strengths and opportunities; click here to sign up if you'd like to be notified when the survey becomes available.