Chapter 11. The Design Continuum

"There is nothing permanent except change."

- Heraclitus

"Change is an illusion."

- Parmenides

This chapter addresses the following questions:

• What happens to the design once the product has been released?
• In a world of constant and rapid change, how do companies and designers balance the significant investment in the just-released design, with continuous market pressure for new experiences?
• If the new design is very good and effective, what is the point of changing it?

The answers, in a nutshell, are primarily within the domain of design management and design governance. However, first, let's consider the paradox of tradition and trend, and the contrasting properties inherent in the continuous evolution of experience design. Once design X becomes trendy because it is fresh and new, it has often also reached the peak of its social impact, and its decline is imminent because the next fashionable experience--delivered by competing design Y--begins its journey along...