It is no secret that business in Australia has been affected by an influx of international competition. The companies we have worked with to date are feeling this pressure immensely and looking to design innovation for a competitive advantage to remain relevant in the future. These (small to medium) enterprises are the backbone of our sovereign nation. Companies passed down from one generation to another are the key to driving the national competitive agenda forward in the future.

These businesses (thinking they are doing the right thing) employ well-educated people, qualified with traditional degrees from high-quality tertiary institutions such as the one we work at. There are many more graduates now seeking employment from these traditional degrees than ever before in history. As we ourselves are entrenched in education, we see students select conservative degrees in an age of constant digital disruption. The time to be bold and do things differently is upon us. The more pressing global challenges to come in the future will demand different leadership styles. The first step is awareness by the people making these decisions, and this book is only the beginning.

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Many Foxes and Hedgehogs were invaluable in making this book a reality. Despite only having a decade of experience, we as authors have learnt so much from our traditional design footholds — to become the hybrids we are today.

To the plethora of colleagues and companies that have provided input, we owe special thanks.

There are so many of you to thank. We are deeply grateful in particular to: Dr Rebecca Price, who is responsible for the success that was the Brisbane Airport case study; to Dr Erez Nusem, for the spectacular illustrations throughout this book; thanks to Associate Professor Martin Tomitsch and team at the Design Lab — your support has been a welcomed change. Cj Hendry — for the wonderful front cover design and everything over the years! You are one Foxy lady!

To end on a personal note:

From Prof. C: To the few close to me — you are more than I deserve.

From Dr K: Dedicated to the original Fox — my mother — Angelika Straker.

From us both — thank you to The Sydney School of Architecture, Design and Planning for believing in us and taking a chance on two Foxes who never quit!