Abstract
Responding to the evolving changes in the energy industry—from government-led infrastructure development to business-driven energy solutions, and nowadays to energy products and services created by householders—this paper explores how design can contribute to this transition and create value across multiple frontlines. The paper begins by outlining the dynamics of the energy industry’s transformation and the reasons behind it, followed by a case study conducted in collaboration with an internationally recognized renewable energy technology company. The case study traces the evolution of design from a peripheral function to a central driver of corporate strategy. It identifies a triple-mechanism model through which design transforms organizations: as a Sense-Maker reframing external pressures, an Institution-Builder gaining strategic authority, and a Value-Creator enabling business model innovation. The study contributes a foundational, empirically-grounded theoretical lens for understanding how organizations actively design their transformative pathways.
Keywords
Evolving Energy Industry; Design Competence; Organization Transformation; Value Creation
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.895
Citation
Tian, Q., and Xin, X. (2026) Design As Strategic Competence for the Evolving Energy Industry, in Simeone, L., Gray, C. M., Verhoeven, A., de Götzen, A., Bakırlıoğlu, Y., Zohar, H., Stead, M., and Buwert, P. (eds.), DRS2026: Edinburgh, 8–12 June, Edinburgh, United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.895
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Included in
Design As Strategic Competence for the Evolving Energy Industry
Responding to the evolving changes in the energy industry—from government-led infrastructure development to business-driven energy solutions, and nowadays to energy products and services created by householders—this paper explores how design can contribute to this transition and create value across multiple frontlines. The paper begins by outlining the dynamics of the energy industry’s transformation and the reasons behind it, followed by a case study conducted in collaboration with an internationally recognized renewable energy technology company. The case study traces the evolution of design from a peripheral function to a central driver of corporate strategy. It identifies a triple-mechanism model through which design transforms organizations: as a Sense-Maker reframing external pressures, an Institution-Builder gaining strategic authority, and a Value-Creator enabling business model innovation. The study contributes a foundational, empirically-grounded theoretical lens for understanding how organizations actively design their transformative pathways.