Aaron, a 21 year old recent business graduate, has been struggling to find a full-time job after graduating. He has been feeling down, embarrassed, and worried that he hasn't found a job yet like many of his friends. However, after attending a networking event, he realized the benefits of networking. Networking helped him grow professionally and personally, learn about different industries and jobs, and led to job interviews. He now sees that networking is more helpful than the university's career services and articles. Going forward, he plans to improve his networking skills by connecting with others in his field and learning from their experiences to enhance his job search.

1. Problem statement
Stakeholder
NEEDS AWAYTO
(describe person using empathetic language) (needs areVERBS)
DO
SAY
THINK
FEEL
BECAUSE
InsightNeed
STAKEHOLDER
Insights
DesignThinking Action Lab 2013
Univ.
career
services
was
of
no
help
Aaron.
21
year
old.
Recent
business
major
grad.
Working
part-­‐Ame.
Looking
for
a
full-­‐Ame
job.
Struggling
trying
to
find
a
job.
Handicapped
that
he
wasn’t
able
to
find
a
job
Felt
down
on
himself
as
he
felt
that
he
would
be
able
to
find
a
job
by
now
Embarrassed
that
a
lot
of
his
friends
were
working
and
he
was
not
Felt
energized
as
to
the
level
of
support
he
has
received
in
this
phase
Excited
to
meet
new
people
and
learn
from
them
and
their
experiences
You
someAmes
have
to
make
the
best
of
a
given
situaAon
Networking
really
helped
him
grow
as
a
person
and
professional
There
is
no
subsAtute
for
meeAng
and
talking
to
people
Should
have
learned
how
to
interact
and
network
with
people
sooner
–
Probably
would
have
had
a
job
by
now
College
and
course
of
study
didn’t
prepare
him
for
the
professional
world;
internships
did
Met
a
lot
of
cool
people
through
networking
Networking
has
been
the
reason
he
has
goSen
the
interviews
he
has
so
far
Networking
really
helps
personally
and
professionally
Learned
things
like
professional
eAqueSe,
different
industries,
and
pros/cons
of
various
jobs
Good
balance
of
research
and
networking
is
needed
If
it
wasn’t
for
networking,
he
wouldn’t
have
goSen
out
of
his
comfort
zone
and
met
cool
people
Used
LinkedIn
to
find
friends
at
companies
he
wanted
to
work
at
and
met
with
them
Connected
from
one
person
to
the
other
based
on
introducAons
Networked
via
mass
emails
to
friends,
family,
former
colleagues,
etc.
Improved
networking
skills
by
just
doing
more
and
more
of
it
and
learning
from
people
Using
professionally-­‐focused
social
sites
worked
beSer
than
career
services
for
geZng
interviews
set
up.
Wishes
that
he
had
learned
how
to
network
sooner
than
he
did,
so
that
his
iniAal
conversaAon
would
have
been
as
producAve.
GeZng
advice
and
learning
from
people
worked
beSer
than
reading
any
arAcles
on
networking
and
personal
and
professional
growth.
Aaron,
a
21
year
old
recent
grad,
has
been
seeking
a
job
for
a
few
months
now,
and
has
had
a
few
interviews,
but
with
no
luck
(now
geZng
fearful)…
Improve
networking
skills,
meet
people
to
learn
from,
and
connect
with
friends
who
work
in
companies
he
is
interested
in...
Networking
and
speaking
with
people
have
helped
him
more
than
his
university
career
services.