A synergetic design project to fortify the university-company collaboration

On a global scale, universities have recently emerged from the lingering impact of the pandemic. However, as university campuses gradually reopen, university administrators must acknowledge the inherent challenges of reverting to a pre-pandemic situation. Universities today face mounting expectations to revitalize their curricula by emphasizing real-world learning. This paradigm not only entails heightened classroom engagement but also imparts an essential contextual framework for nurturing enduring social competencies, the capacity for critical analysis and decision-making, and the proficient articulation of ideas. Over the years, the establishment and fortification of collaborative ties between universities and companies have been the subject of thorough discourse, and there is a widespread acceptance of the notion that companies can genuinely contribute to teaching content by sharing cutting-edge knowledge, expertise, and resources. According to a study conducted by Deloitte in 2017, it is evident that designers will only be partially characterized by their creative and innovative capabilities shortly. Business acumen is increasingly considered a precious attribute for professionals in this field. Integrating design and business principles has emerged as a pivotal determinant of achieving superior dynamic performance in diverse industries. Consequently, augmenting the synergistic relationship between university and company and ensuring constant and constructive long-term dialogue has become an urgent need in contemporary education. This paper investigates the disparity between universities and companies within the realm of design, aiming to shed light on potential solutions for fortifying the collaborative bonds between these two sectors. The authors introduce a design project executed in collaboration with a prominent global high-technology company, featured consistently on the Fortune Global 500 list for the fifth consecutive year, as a case study to demonstrate the efficacy of such endeavors in bridging the university-company divide. Drawing upon their distinct vantage points, the authors offer innovative insights into the interrelationship between academic research and design application. They delineate strategies for seamlessly integrating these domains to stimulate innovation and advance scholarly knowledge. The authors aspire to furnish fellow researchers in cognate fields with a valuable reference point, informed by the experiences gained from this project, to explore further and enhance design practice, achieving more substantial and consequential outcomes.