no|inc is an independent digital communications consultancy focused on solving business problems through user-centric design thinking and emerging information technologies.
Our vision of the company came into focus as a direct response to the commodization of the discipline. Designers were seen as purveyors of style. This view ran counter to our belief that designers are strategic problem solvers who are uniquely qualified to bridge the gap between business objectives and user needs.
As print and television continue to converge with interactive media, design will remain the fundamental conduit between client and audience.no|inc Business Plan (1999)
Design, to us, is the results-focused process of informed planning. If we have not defined results or have not produced any insight upon which to plan, then we are not designing. We are styling. And style doesn't solve business problems. It decorates them.
This thinking was, in 1999, perhaps a bit academic for mass consumption. But this so-called process of "design thinking" is now being widely accepted as a potent strategic approach in pursuit of business innovation and bottom-line accountability.