Design Principles

Design is the art of making smart, effective decisions that create a desirable outcome. We use a set of 11 Design Principles to help guide our decisions. We began with the Ten Principles of Good Design by Industrial Designer Dieter Rams which we continue to adapt for our own purposes.

1. Good design is innovative—It does not automatically follow convention.
2. Good design makes a product useful—It does work for people.
3. Good design is aesthetically beautiful—It makes your heart skip a beat.
4. Good design makes a product understandable—Anyone can use it instantly.
5. Good design is unobtrusive—It lets the content, learner, instructors shine.
6. Good design is honest—”I know exactly who designed this!”
7. Good design is long-lasting—Hot new trends don’t worry us.
8. Good design is thorough down to the last detail—We care about it all.
9. Good design is good for everyone—All people and the living things around them.
10. Good design is as little design as possible—If it doesn’t add value, it’s not going in the design.
11. Good design teaches—Experiencing it should help me then apply it