Collaborating with the business community promotes the students’ learning outcomes: design challenges 

Michael Mose Biskjær has included companies as partners in his teaching on the second semester of the Master’s degree programme in digital design on several occasions. He was the primus motor behind the first of these initiatives (known as design challenges); and the same concept is now used on the information studies degree programme as well. Design challenges are anchored in design courses, and the other courses during the same semester support the process – ensuring that the issues dealt with are covered by all the courses in the semester in question. 

An external partner (normally a private company) presents three issues of current concern which are developed and defined in close collaboration with the teachers so they can be resolved in a way that ensures compliance with the learning outcomes of the course concerned. These issues normally consist of themes or cases which the students work on during the teaching. The students choose one of these issues (or sometimes a combination of them), and then work on this project throughout the semester. Each group also meets the company involved to gain feedback and discuss and ask questions about the issue concerned. This normally happens when they present their projects halfway through the semester. The students are also taught how to pitch a creative concept, equipping them to present a brief and interesting pitch at their final presentation, which is held in the form of an exhibition attended by the companies, the teachers, the other project groups and any other interested students and teachers. It’s normally great fun! 

The first design challenge  

The first design challenge at the Department of Digital Design and Information Studies was held in 2015 with a partner called Designit – one of the largest design agencies in Europe (it actually started life in Aarhus). The three issues presented by Designit were: “future mobility,” “empowering minorities” and “supporting patients.” The partnership with Designit was based on a personal network. Since then, companies such as Almindelig Brand and Danske Bank have also been partners, and other companies often ask to join in. The companies taking part gain a perspective on relevant themes and issues of current concern on a larger scale than they are used to. This is because the students can approach the task in the kind of detailed, challenging and exploratory manner that the companies don’t normally have time for. Evaluations of these partnerships prove that the companies involved regard the innovative and often challenging concepts and ideas contributed by the students as extremely useful. For instance, Danske Bank were inspired to reconsider the established ritual associated with payments in the retail trade – including socio-cultural norms and understandings, which are rarely challenged as thoroughly as they can be in a design challenge. 

Michael Mose Biskjær’s reasons for including a business partner in the teaching:  

• The students like the design challenge format because their learning outcomes are linked more closely to practice than those of many other courses. The design challenge format gives the students a taste of the kind of tasks that could await them in various workplaces. 
• The design challenge process takes place during the third semester of the Master’s degree programme, providing an effective springboard leading to a project placement in the following semester. At this stage of their degree programme, the students tend to be more confident of their academic identity. They are starting to think even more strategically and purposefully because they are approaching the end of their degree programme and have started to focus increasingly on job opportunities. 
• The students learn to communicate in a consistent, professional manner when pitching their concept. This adds to their ability to communicate academically. 
• Working with specific issues of current concern helps the students to understand the labour market and their future access to it. 
• Collaborating with an external partner expands the teacher’s network and may lead to new research collaborations (for instance when applying for research funding). 

Michael Mose Birkjær’s good advice and points of focus:  

• The issues presented in the design challenge format must maintain a focus on the objectives of the teaching and the students’ learning outcomes. It’s all about finding a good balance based on useful dialogue. The learning outcomes and academic approach must be respected on the one hand, while the demands of the external partner also need to be considered on the other – they are entitled to expect that the design challenge process will generate useful new insights and ideas. So it’s important that the issues presented are sufficiently specific – as well as allowing the freedom for interpretation and detailed consideration. 
• Conducting a course with an external partner that incorporates a design challenge process requires a lot of extra preparation, so it’s difficult to stick to the prescribed preparation time. On the other hand, the teacher will enjoy the sight of the students growing to meet the challenges with which they are faced, including their (inevitable) frustrations and minor victories. The whole thing culminates in the final exhibition, which is generally a very popular event characterised by the students’ pride in their finished concepts. 
• It is important to reach a clear agreement regarding the expectations of all the parties concerned. For instance, the students must be given the opportunity to take a few chances and choose a path that may lead to a dead end. This is because a design challenge is part of their degree programme and must therefore be regarded as an opportunity to test new ideas. If external partners are interested in more specific and useful concepts and solutions, it is important to discuss this from the outset, underlining that the whole process will only be relevant and mutually beneficial if the students’ learning outcomes are respected.