The perils of data-driven design are explored by Dr Angus Campbell. (A highlight of Auckland University's Raising the Bar talk series)

Are you perpetually underwhelmed by the products you buy?

According to design expert Angus Campbell, this is most probably because they are the result of data-driven design.

This trend has dampened creativity and led to products which are boring and also less effective than they should be, says the Auckland University lecturer.

In a world with complex problems, we need creatives to take back the reins and be more innovative, Campbell argues.

To support this position, he cites two examples of human-centred design - that is based on data - going awry.

In the first, designers have been developing a new Bluetooth speaker. In the consulting rooms of the design agency, against a wall, they have stacked different-coloured versions of the speaker.

In the session, when the consultants asked what colour the participants preferred, their choices spread across the whole gamut of colours that they could see.

At the end of the session, though, when the design consultant said to the participants, "Thanks for your time. In appreciation, please take one of the speaker prototypes with you when you leave," guess what happened?

They all chose the black speaker.

This is a clear example of people saying what they think others want to hear, Campbell says. But when it comes down to it, their real desire can be quite different.

Another example of this comes from an honours student project he supervised while working for the University of Johannesburg.

In 2008 they travelled to Grupo Desportivo Dominique - an integrated community football club on the border between Mozambique and Zimbabwe that uses sport for social good.

One of the student teams decided to work directly with the football players, and after watching a practice game and undertaking interviews with them, they identified a clear problem with their football boots.

Most of these are designed for plush, grassy pitches in Europe, not the hard sand and abrasive dirt that you find in Africa. As a result, the grip never really works because the studs are unable to penetrate the surface, and after a few games they eventually wear down. And then they completely don't work.

Campbell's students creatively partnered with local cobblers, exploring ways to resole the boots, using discarded car tyres. This seemed a fantastic solution, reusing waste to make much more durable boots with much-improved grip.

However, despite all the enthusiasm from the football players during the process, when they got the final prototype, they couldn't get even one of the players to test them on the pitch. What had gone wrong?…

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details