She leads the Design for Planet mission at the Design Council and introduced speculative design to government policymaking, applying it to projects on ageing and rail, and led a major engagement initiative to create the world’s first Government AI & Data Ethics Framework.
In our recent conversation, Cat, who's also the Faculty Member at Future London Academy, shared how designers can better communicate their value, why sustainability belongs in every designer's toolkit, and what it takes to influence entire systems. Below are our favourite insights – you can watch or listen to the full episode on Spotify, Apple or Pocket Casts.
One of the biggest barriers to design's influence isn't the work itself. It's the language. Designers say prototyping, systems thinking, journeys, frameworks. Business leaders say growth, efficiency, risk, return on investment. Two languages that rarely meet.
Cat's advice? Become a translator, not an explainer. Don't explain the process - explain the outcome. Don't say prototype - say testing an idea before spending big on it. Don't say systems thinking - say cutting risk or lifting performance.
Many organisations still see design as something that happens at the end of a project, making a product, service or website look good before launch. But design can also be a powerful strategic tool.
If you want design to have more influence in a business, the most effective way is often not to mention design at all. Start with the challenge the business is facing. Are costs rising? Are customers leaving? Is growth slowing down? Once the problem is clear, design becomes part of the solution rather than another function asking for attention.
Over the years, Design Council has collected significant data showing the commercial impact of design. One programme found that every £1 invested in design generated £20 in return. Another showed that 95% of businesses using design were still operating five years later, compared with 47% of businesses that did not.
These numbers matter because they move design from being seen as a creative expense to being viewed as a strategic investment.
…And it's roughly two-thirds the size of the entire UK financial sector. That's a big number for something people still call a nice-to-have.
Today, design contributes around a fifth of all UK service exports – much of it through digital products, platforms and experiences. A very useful number to have on hand next time someone calls design "just" a creative service.
Cat's favourite example of design solving more than one problem at once is Decathlon. The sports retailer discovered that just 1% of its 12,000 products accounted for 30% of its total carbon footprint. And that's exactly where they focused their redesign effort.
Their Kipsta football boot went through a proper data-led rethink of materials and manufacturing. The result: a 63% cut in carbon, a €5 lower price for customers, and a 220% jump in sales.
Same product, same purpose but dramatically better outcome, for the planet and for the business.
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