How a Design Prototype Became an $800M Business Opportunity for Philips

How a Design Prototype Became an $800M Business Opportunity for Philips

From Creative Capes by Future London Academy

July 17, 2025 · 1h 25m

About this episode

Sean Carney discusses how design at Philips led to significant business impact and transformation.

Join us for the fifth episode of our Chief Design Officer Series, where we talk to Chief Design Officers from the most forward-thinking companies. This time, we are joined by Sean Carney, former CDO of Philips. At Philips, Sean led a team of 700+ designers and helped generate over $800 million in sales pull-through.Sean shared a powerful case study of how design contributed directly to business transformation and aided a positive change in the world.Watch to learn how to:- Drive real business impact with design- Calculate and communicate ROI on design- Balance creativity with business strategy at the C-level- Build a design team that influences revenue and strategy00:00 — Welcome to the CDO Series: Why Design Belongs in the Boardroom00:49 — Meet Sean Carney: Former Chief Design Officer at Philips02:55 — Sean’s Unplanned Path to Becoming a Chief Design Officer04:42 — From Solo Creator to Strategic Leader: The Power of Diverse Teams07:43 — Why Today’s User Research Isn’t Enough: Designing for the Future10:24 — Philips' Visionary Design Approach13:24 — 📍 Case Study: How Philips Built the NICU of the Future20:05 — 📍 Case Study: Embedding Strategic Design into Business Strategy at…

People in this episode

Host: Future London Academy

Guest: Sean Carney

Topics covered

  • design
  • business transformation
  • ROI on design
  • strategic foresight
  • user research

Keywords

  • design prototype
  • business opportunity
  • Chief Design Officer
  • sales pull-through
  • strategic design

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Philips

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