UK and design

The UK continues to lead in incorporating design into the economy. As a recent Business Week story --
How Britain Jumpstarts Design -- relates:

Designing Demand is the brainchild of Design Council Chairman Sir George Cox, part of a pioneering program which aims to use design strategically to make small businesses a viable engine of national economic growth. The initiative, which is being rolled out nationwide this year, is supported by $40 million in funding from England's nine regional development agencies. (The Design Council itself, which is entirely funded by the British government via the Department for Innovation, Universities & Skills, developed the program, while the regional development agencies finance its delivery in each region. The Design Council takes care of the program's overall coordination, ensuring that it is rolled out evenly and consistently.)

Here's how it works: interested companies apply to their regional development agency for entry into one of three free programs. "Generate" is a six-month program that focuses on one specific project; "Innovate," a yearlong program aimed at high-tech businesses, offers an initial three-day workshop followed by one-on-one mentoring for two hours each month. "Immerse" is a service aimed at larger businesses that offers an initial three-day workshop with a dedicated design associate providing 12 days of advice over the following 18 months. The latter two workshops include a visit from a team of four independent experts in branding, product development, and design management, selected and paid for by the Design Council. They identify areas where design could be used to kick-start innovation and then act as mentors to management, highlighting potential design opportunities and offering advice on how to implement them.

The US Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) is thinking of something similar. But I am concerned that their strategic plan and their new Innovation Services are geared toward innovation-as-new-product-development and design-as-cool-products. I don't think that they have caught up with the design thinking. They should.