Jochen Backs, 35, is a principal industrial designer at the San Francisco office of Design Continuum, an international consultancy with a holistic, user-focused approach to product design and development. Backs first came to the US from Germany while in college in the late 1980s. He worked at companies in California, and then returned to Germany to complete his studies. He later returned to the US, working at IDEO for eight years. He has been with Design Continuum for two years. Backs has received numerous awards during his career, including the Red Dot award for Highest Design Quality.

Monster.com: How has transitioning to being a designer in the US been?

Jochen Backs: Design is sort of an international language, and that makes it a lot easier for people to work all over the world. If I were a lawyer, it would be much more difficult for me to work in different countries. You would need to articulate everything in English, and the communication would be much more a priority over the shapes and forms.

Mc: Is life in the US what you expected?

JB: There was a certain expectation of what it would be like here. Thinking back, the only thing I knew about the area around San Francisco was from magazines about Silicon Valley and technology. But I remember, when I was younger, I grew up watching "The Streets of San Francisco." It sounds ridiculous, but that gives you a certain perception, so it was actually a positive experience coming here and seeing the real San Francisco, versus the show. It's not as violent and full of crime as on the show.

Mc: What do you think of the US's work culture?

JB: A lot of companies here are very open for change. They're very open-minded, mainly about what products to invent, where to branch into. It's very opportunistic and flexible. Maybe in Germany things are a bit more rigid. If a company does, let's say, anesthesia delivery systems, and has done that for the past 30 years, they wouldn't think about doing anything else. Whereas here, maybe the company is more open-minded into looking into other things, like laser technology. Flexibility and open-mindedness are big positives.

Mc: How does that play out in your field?

JB: Companies listen to your opinions more, and you are potentially able to influence things on a larger scale by really coming up with unique and crazy ideas that may be implemented.

Mc: What do you do in your job?

JB: I'm mainly responsible for project management on a number of programs. Let's say we have seven or eight different projects; I'm responsible for the quality and outcome of the work, ensuring it's appropriate and right for the client, and also looking at the financial side. I like staying close to the design side and working with designers.

Mc: Have Americans become more attuned to product design in recent years?

JB: There is certainly a change in awareness and appreciation for design. Companies realize the difference in products is not necessarily the technology but may be the design. The insides might be the same on a lot of products, and the only way of making a difference is the design. It may also be the case that a lot of companies in America are marketing driven, so the people in key positions are marketing people, and they understand the value of design.

Mc: Are some designs particularly adept at crossing cultures? Is design wholly international?

JB: A great example is the Porsche 911 -- a fairly international car. You could drive that anywhere, and people love it anywhere. It's not designed for a specific market. I think it's getting harder and harder to say a product is designed for Europe versus the US, because there's always this notion that what I don't have is what I like. I see it often; in the US, the European style is being sold, and in Europe, the American style is being sold.