The forward-thinking, dmi:Design Management Conference “SHIFT: Transformations in Design & Innovation Leadership” will address evolving challenges, emerging frontiers, and the future of innovation, equipping design leaders with the insights needed to navigate change and lead with agility in a dynamic landscape.

The conference will take place from 1 to 2 April 2025 at Oosterdokskade 163, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

There is also an optional workshop on 31 March from 2 to 6pm. 

Conference attendees will: 

• Explore and share how Design Leaders are embracing or plan to embrace AI as a catalyst for transformation.
• Share or gain insights into new methods, processes and tools, essential for navigating the shifting business landscape.
• Hear how leaders are driving innovative solutions to meet evolving market changes and disruptions.

Browse conference topics, speakers and registration fees.

Access the DBA member discount code for 10% off the conference registration fee. 

• Blair frames the sales process as a sample of the engagement to follow; how you behave throughout the sales process sets up conditions for doing your best work and making the most money.
• There are only two roles agencies can occupy in client/agency relationships: vendor or expert.
• The goal is to occupy the expert role and a key way to achieve this is by building your reputation through strategy, positioning (relative to your competition) and marketing – put content out there to be judged by people. 
• While it is possible to move from a vendor to an expert after you’ve been appointed – it might be difficult. Use Blair’s ‘one client at a time’ approach and frame how you’d like to work more expansively and creatively, but still giving them the option to work in the way you’ve always worked. See each client as an opportunity to move to working in this way.
• Using multi-option proposals with different price points is crucial for increasing closing ratios and proposal values. Anchor high.
• The value conversation framework (uncovering your client’s desired future state, KPIs, value of hitting KPIs, pricing guidance) is a game-changing skill for transforming your financial fortunes. Plus, do this well and you’ll have the foundations for your effectiveness case studies.
• We had a conversation on the role of business owners in sales and Blair raised that this role shouldn’t be offloaded too quickly – qualifying conversations could be conducted by someone else, but the value and closing conversations should be typically handled by owners.
• He suggested you should only outsource the sales function when you (the owner) have a process you can pass on to ensure success. 
• For all the detail on how to navigate each of the four conversations, the frameworks and principles you need to embody, you can buy Blair’s book on Amazon. 

Coming up

There was much, much more covered in the hour. Our next meeting will be back in the regular slot on Monday 3 February, 4-5pm GMT.

Design effectiveness has never been more important.

If you want to set yourself apart from the masses, there’s nothing more compelling than being able to prove the effectiveness of your past client work to build trust in your capabilities.

That’s why, in 2025, we’re giving every DBA member one free entry to the DBA Design Effectiveness Awards. Because every DBA member has work in their studio that could and should be awarded. Whatever your size, and whatever your design discipline. And we’ll help you prove it.

The ability to talk about the effectiveness and value of your work is key to the success of a design business or in-house team. In 2025 we’ll be running a programme of online content, free for members, which will support your ability to work with your partners to gather data, build case studies, and understand how to properly articulate the results of your work.

Membership of the DBA will not only give you the practical means to develop your focus on effectiveness this year, it is here to support your whole business. From benchmarking key indicators of performance across your business, to training your team to thrive in our industry. From essential tools and templates, to networking, inspiration, community building and access to industry expertise.

Make sure you are taking full advantage of all the benefits membership brings.

You can access a handy snapshot of the ways the DBA can support you and your team this year.

And here’s a taster of what we’ve got lined-up for January:

The first of our monthly, online DBA Members’ Forums on 13 January at 4-5pm GMT will be an opportunity for members to talk with Blair Enns founder of Win Without Pitching and author of three bestselling books, including the hot-off-the-press ‘The Four Conversations: A New Model for Selling Expertise’.

In the member exclusive hour, Blair will dive into the core of his newest book and take us through the fundamental differences between selling design expertise and selling products and transactional services. He’ll share his approach to effortlessly navigate sales in a way that is intuitive to selling expertise, the same way you deliver it – with confidence and integrity.  

And our first webinar of the year on 30 January at 4-5pm GMT will be a fireside chat with Dr Mary McBride from the Pratt Institute.

For those of you who attended The Design Effect event at The British Museum in October 2024, you will know what a treat this will be. It is essential viewing for anyone in a leadership or strategy position.

Head here for more details about these events. You can also reserve your place for the launch of the 2025 What Clients Think Report on 27 March, with early bookings now being taken for this unmissable event.

And there’s much, much more to come… we look forward to seeing you, and supporting all of our members this year.