Inclusive Design Is Automotive’s Overlooked Growth Opportunity

2026-06-29 · Source: Featured Blogs - Forrester · Field: Business & Management — Corporate Strategy & Leadership, Project & Product Management, Operations & Process Management · Depth: Intermediate, quick

Summary

Forrester's latest report, "Design For Inclusion To Drive Growth And Innovation In Automotive," positions inclusive design as a strategic lever. It drives growth, innovation, and brand differentiation within the automotive industry, moving beyond mere compliance or ethics. Many OEMs currently design for an "average" driver, overlooking diverse needs. This misses opportunities for innovation that benefit all customers, a phenomenon known as the curb-cut effect. The report identifies key barriers. These include designing for a narrow "average" user, which deprioritizes segments like older adults and people with disabilities. Other barriers are siloed teams and fragmented ecosystems that hinder collaboration. Legacy designs and brand identities also limit innovation. Solutions involve expanding research and testing to reflect real-world diversity. They also include aligning teams around shared inclusive design requirements. Finally, they suggest utilizing industry transformations like the shift to EVs and software-defined vehicles to rethink design fundamentals.

Key takeaway

For automotive product managers and executives facing innovation pressure, prioritizing inclusive design is crucial. You should expand user research beyond traditional personas to uncover unmet needs, ensuring your products serve a broader customer base. Align your design, engineering, and production teams early on with shared inclusive requirements. Utilize the shift to EVs and software-defined vehicles as opportunities to fundamentally rethink legacy designs, driving both innovation and market differentiation.

Key insights

Inclusive design in automotive drives growth and innovation by addressing diverse user needs, benefiting everyone.

Principles

• Design for diverse needs, not an "average" user.
• Align teams on inclusive design requirements.
• Utilize industry shifts for design fundamental changes.

Method

Expand user research and testing to reflect real-world diversity. Align design, engineering, and production teams on shared inclusive requirements. Use transformation moments (EVs, SDVs) to rethink design.

In practice

• Install standard fixing points for adaptations.
• Allow users to customize HMI modules.
• Enable users to switch off functions.

Topics

• Inclusive Design
• Automotive Industry
• Product Design
• Software-Defined Vehicles
• Electric Vehicles
• User Experience

Best for: Product Manager, Executive, Consultant

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Editorial summary, takeaway, and curation by AIssential. Original article published by Featured Blogs - Forrester.