Yesterday was day two of teaching my basic design and theory class at Southern NH University. We spent quite a bit of time considering the role of the designer and what makes "good design". It was a particular talkative group, and I left class pondering Dieter Rams and his "Ten Commandments". Even though Rams specifically speaks about industrial design, I feel his thoughts can be applied to any of the design fields.
The Ten Commandments of Good Design by Dieter Rams:
Good design is innovative
Good design makes a product useful
Good design is aesthetic
Good design helps a product to be understood
Good design is unobtrusive
Good design is honest
Good design is durable
Good design is thorough to the last detail
Good design is concerned with the environment
Good design is as little design as possible
All I can say is hell ya!