A designer is part of a greater community.

The conclusion of the design process is just the beginning of a much larger endeavor. Such matters as the practical bulwark of documentation and material lists and manufacturing plans used to build the product must be created. Vendors must be found. Parts must be ordered and tested, assembly procedures and tools worked out and literature developed and printed. Even the cardboard box must be decided upon along with the methods of shipment and where the distribution centers might be.

And even then there is no money coming in yet... not until the product is publicized, sold, distributed and paid for. A product must be seen and heard and tried and talked about. Without stores and advertizing and a handshake or two, nothing gets off the ground -- not even the best of product ideas and designs.

And so the designer must recognize that he or she is part of a greater community that begins with the owner's vision and ends with a satisfied customer. And if that chain is not intact and functioning well, there will be no more designs, no more products, and no more paychecks.

Yes, what the designer does is critical. Without a detailed product description there can be nothing to sell. But in reality --without the rest of the company-- the designer's task would be nothing more than an elaborate hobby.

A design may create the product in its finished form, but it takes a business to turn that product into revenue.