Growing up, I never heard the term “designer” uttered despite the fact that I’ve acted like one since birth. I find this to be true for most of my peers in the same age-bracket as myself. It wasn’t until college that the phrase “graphic design” was added to my vocabulary with a mostly-accurate understanding of what the trade actually entailed. Without the help of several knowledgeable folks who gently directed me, I never would have ended up on the path that led to my career as a designer. But it seems times have changed vastly since I was a kid. The word “designer” (be it interactive, print, product, web, mobile) has become somewhat of a buzzword. I’m running into more and more young people with that title. And there now appears to be a certain formula when starting a company – a designer is most definitely in the first batch of hiring. Additionally, larger, established companies are not only hiring more designers, but also bringing them to the forefront as important decision makers. One important reason for this change is that technology has reached a point where consumers no longer care about it’s intricacies. As Nick Bilton says in his New York Times article “It just works — for the most part — and therefore consumers no longer need to think about it.” Because of this, design has become an increasingly important asset. This is not a new phenomenon. It happened with the automobile as well. Bilton says if you “walk into most car showrooms in America and sales clerks might spend more time explaining the shape of the heated seat than the engine that moves the car along. Several decades ago, he might have been heralding pistons and horsepower.” Now we’re starting to see design as an essential part of growing technology, be it a website, app, or product. Engineers are certainly still an integral part of development, but now “the worship of design has also taken designers out of the back offices and into top executive jobs.” Design used to be much of an after-thought. Sometimes even forgotten. However, with this new trend, it looks like that may no longer be the case. Now design appears to be an essential tool for technology and businesses to flourish. And that’s something everyone can benefit from.