Mark Phillips

Mark Phillips serves as Design Director of Design Futures Product within Sheffield Hallam University's College of Social Sciences and Arts, bringing over 25 years of product design innovation experience across medical, consumer, and industrial sectors for clients including adidas, Gillette, and Unilever. He teaches BA (Hons) Product Design and MA Design courses while leading strategic research initiatives.

His educational background includes an MDes from the Royal College of Art/Imperial College. Research focuses on human-planet centred design with projects spanning gamification for exercise, smart wearables, mobile hyperspectral imaging, sustainable composites, and health monitoring devices. Collaborations extend to clinicians, material scientists, and social researchers to develop future-facing product solutions.

Publications demonstrate consistent innovation in health technology, sustainable design, and user experience, with recent work emphasizing medical applications and environmental impact reduction. Scientific recognition includes:

• Fellow of the RSA (Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce)

Phillips has led undergraduate programs at Sheffield Hallam and served as external examiner for Nottingham Trent University's MA Product Design. Research funding from UKRI and Innovate UK supports applied projects addressing real-world challenges in healthcare and sustainability. He directs the Design Futures Product group, fostering interdisciplinary partnerships to advance product design innovation across multiple industry sectors.