Continuum Founder Designates Harry West CEO, Maintains Role as Corporate Visionary and Chief Design Officer

Business Wire, June 23, 2009

NEWTON, Mass. -- For the first time in its 25-year history, leading global innovation and design consultancy Continuum has a new CEO at the helm. Co-founder and long-time CEO Gianfranco Zaccai today announced he has appointed Harry West, a 15-year veteran of the firm and its former head of strategy and innovation, as Continuum’s new chief executive reporting to Zaccai. As CEO, West will take responsibility for the day-to-day leadership of the firm, directing its growth and expansion worldwide. As chairman, president and chief design officer, Zaccai will continue to set the company’s long-term strategic course and actively lead significant strategic design engagements.

“Continuum has been a leading force in innovation and design for more than two decades, and in all that time, we’ve never seen the kind of urgency there is today for business innovation and transformation,” said Zaccai. “Companies are hungry for new ideas and approaches that will help them redefine their customer value in light of new socioeconomic realities. As a result, we see a tremendous growth opportunity for Continuum both domestically and abroad. Harry’s proven acumen in strategic design thinking, deep understanding of client needs and insights into global consumer behavior make him an ideal steward for our business as we continue to expand our footprint worldwide and embark on our next 25 years.”

Harry West first joined Continuum in 1994. During his tenure with the firm, he has worked with a wide variety of brands in a broad range of industries, including American Express, Andersen Windows, AstraZeneca, Fidelity, LL Bean, Master Lock, Motorola, Procter & Gamble, and Sprint. For P&G he led teams that helped to create Swiffer® and ThermaCare®, and the new designs for Pampers diapers. Under his leadership, his teams have received IDEA, ID and Red Dot awards, and numerous design and utility patents.

Prior to joining Continuum, West was associate professor of mechanical engineering at The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). In 1990, in collaboration with faculty from Tokyo Institute of Technology and with the support of NHK and NEC, he founded the International Design Congress for research and education in international collaborative design. He holds an M.A. in engineering from Cambridge, an S.M. in technology and policy from MIT, and a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from MIT.

"This is a great opportunity to help guide the next phase in Continuum's growth and development," said West. "The scale of change the world is going through is unprecedented - culturally, technologically, competitively - everything is being reset. People are making different decisions about how they want to live, and how they want to spend their money. Organizations across the globe are working hard to adapt to these rapid changes in consumer behavior and Continuum offers solutions for clients to not only navigate these changes, but capitalize on them."

About Continuum

Continuum is a global innovation and design consultancy that helps turn ideas into realities. Through exhaustive investigation and user research, Continuum undertakes a deeply immersive role in a client’s businesses to formulate design and brand strategies that are both fiscally sound and consumer relevant. Since 1983, Continuum has created meaningful design for companies worldwide including American Express, Andersen Windows, Procter & Gamble, BMW, Master Lock, Moen, Samsung, Johnson & Johnson. Continuum has offices in Boston, Los Angeles, Milan, Seoul and Shanghai. www.dcontinuum.com