What do the three rings of the compass represent?
The three rings represent Design for Market (commercial viability, inner ring), Environmentally Sustainable design (lifecycle impact, middle ring), and Socially Responsible design (ethics and community, outer ring). A strong product idea scores well across all three.
The inner ring, Design for Market, examines whether your idea is commercially viable and user-centred, covering criteria such as cost, distribution, user needs, quantity, uniqueness, and marketing. The middle ring, Environmentally Sustainable, assesses lifecycle impact across efficiency, materials, energy, longevity, alternatives, and end of life. The outer ring, Socially Responsible, looks at safety, inclusivity, ethics, influence, fairness, and social impact.
Each ring represents a distinct lens of quality, and the methodology holds that a genuinely good product idea must pass scrutiny on all three: a product that is commercially compelling but environmentally destructive or socially harmful is not a complete solution.
