Systems-oriented design

Design is getting more and more complex for a number of reasons, for example due to globalization, need for sustainability, and the introduction of new technology and increased use of automation. Many of the challenges designers meet today can be considered wicked problems. The characteristics of a wicked problem include among others that there are no definitive formulation of the problem and that the solutions are never true-or-false, but rather better or worse. A traditional problem solving approach is not sufficient in addressing for such design problems. S.O.D. is an approach that addresses the challenges the designer faces when working with complex systems and wicked problems, providing tools and techniques which makes it easier for the designer to grasp the complexity of the problem at hand. With a systems-oriented approach towards design, the designer acknowledges that the starting point for the design process is constantly moving, and that 'every implemented solution is consequential. It leaves 'traces' that cannot be undone.' (see Rittel and Webber's 5th property of wicked problems).