BOBD: Interview with Cathy Huang

Cathy Huang is a renowned expert in the design industry and is an active strategy leader. CBi, a design strategy consulting firm under her lead, has developed into a first-class consulting firm in China.

Cathy Huang used to work at GE/Fitch as its first marketing director in China. Prior to joining GE/Fitch, she worked at Haier as program manager in its design department. She has both abundant experience and extended networking resources in the industry.

She has served as a judge for many famous awards for seven consecutive years, including Pentaward, China’s Most Successful Design Award, IF Design Award China, CCTV Creativity Award, Cottontree Award, and the Electrolux Global Industry Design Award.

As a thought leader in the design field, she is frequently asked to talk at many famous conferences and events. She also shared her experience with students in many universities, including China Europe International Business School, Demark Design School, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Central Academy of Fine Art and Tongji University. She has also written widely-published books and articles such as Mobile Inspiration and Managing Design for Business Success.

Q: Would you please give our readers a brief introduction to your company?

A: CBi is short for China Bridge, the English name of my company. The aim of my company is to connect, to deliver solutions and to empower. To connect means by providing our clients with research-based cultural and consumer insights, we help them better connect with the trends and behaviors that influence their target audiences; to deliver solutions means that we provide our clients and partners with solutions that empower them to choose the best strategy when creating products and services designed for Chinese consumers. We also have expertise in how best to position brands, products and services for the Chinese market; to empower means supporting our clients with practical training methods aimed at insuring that innovation and design management is integrated into their department or organization in a healthy and effective way. We first work with clients to identify areas where effectiveness of innovation and design can be increased. We then develop a collaborative training scenario, which focuses on developing their organization one step at a time.

Q: CBi has grown into a first-class design strategy consulting firm under your lead. Would you like to share with our readers some of your experience? 

A: I would like to summarize my experience with the following words: jumping outside of my comfort zone. I quit from what many people considered as a golden position, with well-paid positions at Haier and GE/Fitch. It was hard but I gained a lot from such decisions. Now I have my own company. CBi has continuously expanded into a first-class consulting firm with a team of about 30 experts from various fields, including five foreign colleagues. Most of our team members have a master’s or above education. All of our Chinese colleagues have either overseas education or experience in foreign companies. They are all excellent people. My company lies in central Shanghai, a quiet location in an old townhouse structure built in the 1920s. The company has a beautiful working space, including a nice balcony, a meeting room and an observation room.

Q: What changes have you observed in the design industry these years?

A: The first change I observed is that design on a strategy level is becoming more and more important. Back in 2003 when I started this company, there were a lot of industry design firms but none of them ventured beyond traditional industry design. They were not able to foresee the importance and future of design strategy and design management. As design becomes an inextricable part of strategy, traditional design firms are becoming less and less attractive. On the other hand, my company is continuously growing and attracts more and more customers. The progress is fast and stunning. This cannot be achieved without deep insights within this industry. The second point I would like to put across is that more and more international companies are recognizing the importance of studying Chinese consumers. We have worked with many famous companies like Panasonic, Philips, Samsung and health care companies. The third point is that more and more Chinese companies are becoming willing to invest in design. I recall that it was very rare for Chinese companies, even the big ones, to invest heavily in design. Nowadays, spending millions investing in design will not make big news in the industry. As Chinese companies become bigger and competitive, they are willing to pay extra.

A: My company’s business lies upon design research. When a client approaches us, we ask them why they want us do the job, why they are undertaking this project, what they know about the industry, what their competitors’ strategies are and what are the traits of their consumers. We will start the project after the client answers all these questions. Research is the foundation of our designs and is what make us different.

Q: I heard that there is a very interesting business notion in CBi, which combines the five elements philosophy with modern Western management theories, can you elaborate on that?

A: The five elements creativity and management system is a unique approach developed by my company. It is based upon the traditional five elements Chinese philosophy. The five elements have sophisticated relationships by which they mutually enhance and restrict each other. Traditional Chinese medicine adapts the analysis of illness into this five elements framework. The whole human body is viewed as an integrated system in this theory. I borrowed this notion, and view creativity as an integrated system too. We tell our clients that creativity consists of interconnected factors including strategy, leadership, creativity, culture and communication. These factors should be treated equally in order to strike a success. We also imitate the inspection methods adopted in traditional Chinese medicine to interact with our clients in order to probe into their problems. I think a brilliant consultant should be able to interact with clients and look into the matter from a client’s perspective. Such is the combination of traditional philosophy with modern Western management theories. I am writing a book called Five Elements: Creativity and Management in both Chinese and English, and will introduce my idea in detail in that book.

Q: As a successful entrepreneur, what is your favorite achievement?

A: My favorite achievement of my career is having the opportunities to engage with many elites and thought leaders in the field and to grow with my clients. Such high-level communication of minds and practices is what attracts me most, however tiring it can sometimes be. My favorite achievement in life is my family, with a tender husband and two lovely children.  

Q: What is your plan for the company’s future?

A: Our aim is to be the preferred choice of foreign companies that wish to understand the Chinese market and Chinese companies that wish to be first-class international giants. We will work to improve and broaden the idea of design and creativity in society. We will be a leader in this market in China and change the opinion of our foreign counterparts with regards to the design industry in China.

Q: There will be a global creativity event called Global Service Design Jam from March 11 to 13, during which time designers in more than 50 cities around the world will design a service on the same theme. You are the coach for the activity in Shanghai. Would you like to give us an introduction to the event? I am sure that many designers are curious about it.

A: The Global Service Design Jam originates in the UK, and has grown to a global event involving more than 50 cities. This is the first year that a Chinese city has participated in the event. Designers arrange themselves into groups and design a service, using the same theme as a starting point. All the themes are kept secret until the day of the event. It is very interesting.

Q: Would you like to give some advice to young designers?

A: First, don’t fear failure. I interviewed a designer recently. I called to ask him if he is fluent in English, since English is our working language besides Chinese. He said no. We encouraged him to come and try anyway. But he refused. I am confused as to his attitude and wonder why he gave up so easily. It could have been a very good opportunity for him to learn practical experience. I think a young man should not fear failure. The second point is to be diligent. No pain, no gain. CBi welcomes willful and diligent young people to join us, and we will be happy to support them in their career development.

Thank you for your talk with us. We wish you and your company a brighter future in 2011.