…because that’s how design can best move forward

It seems odd and demotivating to print your article on staff costs without featuring a younger perspective on the argument (News in Depth, DW 29 January).

‘Get rid of those who aren’t pulling their weight,’ says Ian Cochrane. What is he going on about? I believe that in these hard times everyone is pulling their weight, especially in creative departments.

Cochrane also feels that ‘students should get out of this business’. What do we do in a couple of years when potential Design Week Award winners are still working in fast-food outlets? How about offering placements with manageable expenses, or shared graduates across consultancies?

Then Michael Peters offers us the ‘performance-related payment structure’. Won’t this just stifle the kind of creative, unexpected design that our young guns are employed for?

Design is a balance of the viable and the experimental – this is how we move forward. Commercial performance can’t be the sole motivation for the creative process.

John Wynne, Creative partner, BrandMe, by e-mail