The term “professional designer” can apply to anything from a service provider to a strategic partner, depending on a person’s individual experience, their approach to problem solving, and their relationship with a client. At one end of the scale, a design vendor simply responds to a specific request made by a client and provides them with a commodity. They perform tasks that can be easily replicated by others. Competition at this level is based primarily on cost. In the middle of this scale are design professionals who offer direction and some degree of specialization. They bring not only expertise to the table, but also a degree of professionalism. At the far end of the scale stands the design consultant. They are able to serve in an advisory role, guiding the client through the design problem solving process. As design problems become more complex and require broader collaborative thinking, advisors provide not just solutions, but actually lend insight and depth, and help synthesize information amassed or created by collaborators.

Many designers think of themselves as experts in their field. This is often evident in the “trust me, I’m a professional” response they typically give clients who challenge their direction or advice. Seemingly a reaction to the marginalization that designers have experienced in the past, this type of bluster is an attempt to position the designer as authority figure, one who knows “what’s good for the client.” Unfortunately, the end result is often a breakdown in the trust previously established between client and designer.

In contrast, a design consultant positions themselves as a collaborative partner, facilitating the problem solving process. As Jagdish Sheth noted in his book Client for Life, “in the twenty-first century the knowledge workers who excel will be those who transcend simple expertise and are able to provide insights to clients in the context of a collaborative, learning relationship.” Designers that make the leap from craftsperson to collaborator, who don’t necessarily have all the answers, but at least boast a methodology for facilitating design thinking, will be able to position themselves as a trusted consultant. As such, a designer does not tell; rather, they listen. They do not control. Instead, they collaborate. In addition to being able to offer expertise in a specialized area, the design consultant provides a broad and sophisticated body of knowledge. (Sheth 2000)

Tim Bruce, principal of the Chicago based design firm lowercase takes client collaboration seriously. Bruce noted that involving clients at key points in the process is critical. As he puts it, “We involve the client for certain projects, like annuals. We do this for several reasons. One, they have good ideas. Two, it brings them along because they help create it so they end up supporting it. We do this more with businesses that are public companies where there are layers of groups that we need to sell through.”

“There are only two ways to secure design’s opportunities: reputation and personal relationships.” So says Rick Valicenti founder of Thirst, the internationally recognized design firm dedicated to taking their client to the edge of the “Discomfort Zone.” As Valicenti notes, graphic design, like most professions, is about the quality of the relationships we form with clients. Design is collaborative work and requires that both designer and client pull together. Clients hire designers to help them solve business problems; designers push clients to communicate their unique value in fresh and unexpected ways. The resulting tension can actually push development of ideas that are balanced and that consider multiple sides of a problem. Gaute Godage, founder of the world’s leading independent computer game developer, Funcom, notes that managing this tension can only be achieved through trust.

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