Mary Wharmby, a UX Design Director at our agency, taught at UC Berkeley’s one-day educational event RGB 2015. In this presentation, she walked students through the foundations of design thinking, from understanding your users to iterating solutions. The deck, complete with speaker notes, provides a quick snapshot of the most important principles behind using design to solve problems.
Design Thinking & Agile Innovation Workshop combining elements from Design Thinking, Customer Development, Christensen's Jobs to be Done, Osterwalder's Value Proposition Canvas, Javelin Experiment Board, Lean Startup and Paper Prototyping.
This presentation was given at a Design Thinking workshop as part of Philly Tech Week 2017. Topics covered include an intro to design thinking, a User Journey mapping activity, and a Team Design Challenge.
Design Thinking & Agile Innovation Workshop combining elements from Design Thinking, Customer Development, Christensen's Jobs to be Done, Osterwalder's Value Proposition Canvas, Javelin Experiment Board, Lean Startup and Paper Prototyping.
This presentation was given at a Design Thinking workshop as part of Philly Tech Week 2017. Topics covered include an intro to design thinking, a User Journey mapping activity, and a Team Design Challenge.
Laura Mocanu of Elite Vision Coaching has an impressive background as a Marketing Professional in her native Romania. This combined with her own career change and a passion for continuing education sets the tone for her work. A business mentor for the Prince’s Trust and Well Being Officer for NIAMH, her own trajectory is an excellent model for what it takes a client to maximize their potential and illustrative of the "Design Thinking" she teaches.
An audio of this presentation can be found at: https://www.dropbox.com/s/v6x32tx449nofqi/14%20Laura%20Mocanu.mp3?dl=0
www.evisioncoaching.co.uk
@EVisionCoaching
Design Thinking explained with project experiences.
- What is Design Thinking
- What are the steps
- What is SAP Apphaus
- The Next View Design Experience Center Amsterdam
Phil Dillard, Black Ant, @PhilD0210
The objective of the Lean Startup 101 training is to introduce the concepts, terminology and approaches — and, to help organizations overcome resistance accepting the new approach so that exploration and learning can begin. This practical, interactive session will provide a solid foundation for advanced sessions, including the Lean Startup 201 & 301. This training is designed for practitioners in both the enterprise and in startups who are relatively new to the Lean Startup approach or who are seeking a quick refresher. Lean Startup 101 is a perfect way to kick off your week of Lean Startup!
Thanks to Lean Startup Co.’s law firm, Orrick, for being the sponsor for this track.
This is a short talk and workshop (30' + 90') to give a first introduction to design thinking. Gives theory foundation, notes a few different approaches, and then dives into one of them.
This presentation was first done at ImpactON / StartupChile evening in 2015.
Centre for Entrepreneurship (C4E) of the University of Cyprus and Berklee Institute for Creative Entrepreneurship (ICE) present the:
Why are some designs better than others, and what can you do about it? (The workshop)
If you've ever described a poster as heavy, a website as dense, an app as clumsy or an object as whimsical, you probably already know the answer. Recent psychology research is showing that experiential metaphors are key emotional drivers that impact our perception of the world. Applying these findings to design confirms what designers have learned throughout their careers—good design is subconscious first and rational second. Michael will share stories from this research and the IDEO portfolio then share tools to help you be more consciously subconscious.
Design of Business in an Age of DisruptionCraig Martin
We are all acutely aware of the changes occurring in business. Market and socio political drivers are causing interesting business models to emerge and technological changes are resulting in new digital and disruptive business models that are reshaping our traditional industries. There is significant pressure to respond with solutions, products and services that are not only desirable from a human centred perspective but business viable and technologically feasible.
In order to cater for these pressures, new strategic planning disciplines and tools must be leveraged, or in some cases invented. These disciplines need to both help business solve wicked problems, as well as help solution providers inside and outside an organization provide more value based offerings.
This presentation will look at the emergence of design led strategic planning approaches that merge disciplines to help business decision makers test the viability of ideas and strategies, and play these out within an organisation to determine the high value positions necessary to succeed in the market. In this paper we explore on the fusion of design thinking, business design and enterprise architecture to help organizations address these challenges.
http://enterprisearchitectureconference.com.au/keynote-speakers/
Introduction for Design thinking :
What is Design thinking?
Why to use Design thinking?
What is Design thinking mindset?
Balance for Analytical and Intuitive thinking.
Traditional thinking vs Design thinking.
Combination of Divergent and Convergent thinking.
Summary of the strategy of building low-burn-rate startups, i.e. capital efficient and generally frugal. By taking advantage of open source, agile software, and iterative development, lean startups can operate with much less waste.
Design Thinking: The one thing that will transform the way you thinkDigital Surgeons
What's the one thing that will transform the way you think? Design Thinking. The startups, trailblazers, and business mavericks of our world have embraced this process as a means of zeroing in on true human-centered design.
Design Thinking is a methodology for innovators that taps into the two biggest skills needed in today’s modern workplace: critical thinking & problem solving.
Of course, if you ask 100 practitioners to define it, you’ll wind up with 101 definitions.
Pete Sena of Digital Surgeons believes that Design Thinking is a process for solving complex problems through observation and iteration. At its core, he describes it as a vehicle for solving human wants and needs.
Minds are like parachutes; they only function when open. Thomas Dewar was a Scottish whiskey distiller.
Communicating ideas or insights is often the hardest part of the design process. And PowerPoint and Excel spreadsheets are limited in their ability to do this. But the communication tools used in Design Thinking—maps, models, sketches, and stories—help to capture and express the information required to form and socialize meaning in a very straightforward, human way.
The Five things that all definitions of Design Thinking have in common:
1. Isolating and reframing the problem focused on the user.
2. Empathy. A design practitioner from IDEO, the popular design and innovation firm strapped a video camera to his head and it was only then that he recognized why the ceiling is such an important factor when working with hospital patients. As a patient you lay in bed and stare at it all day. It’s these little details and true empathy that can only be realized by putting oneself in the user’s shoes.
3. Approach things with an open mind and be willing to collaborate. Creativity with purpose is a team sport.
4. Curiosity. We have to harness our inner 5-year-old here and really be inquisitive explorers. Instead of seeing what would be or what should be, consider what COULD be.
5 - Commitment. Brainstorming is easy. It’s easy to want to start a business or solve a problem. Seeing it into market and making it successful is not for the faint of heart. We’ve all read about big “wins” (multi-billion dollar acquisitions like Instagram and WhatsApp). What we don’t read about are people like Tony Fadell and Matt Rogers, who work for years before becoming industry sensations.
Pete describes what he refers to as the “Wheel of Innovation” as a process that continuously focuses on framing, making, validating, and improving on your concept. Be it as small as a core feature in your product down to the business model and business idea itself.
Design is about form and function, not art.
What are the business benefits for Design Innovation?
IDEO started an idea revolution when they coined this phrase DESIGN THINKING. Organizations ranging from early-stage startups up to Fortune 50 organizations have capitalized on this iterative appr
Laura Mocanu of Elite Vision Coaching has an impressive background as a Marketing Professional in her native Romania. This combined with her own career change and a passion for continuing education sets the tone for her work. A business mentor for the Prince’s Trust and Well Being Officer for NIAMH, her own trajectory is an excellent model for what it takes a client to maximize their potential and illustrative of the "Design Thinking" she teaches.
An audio of this presentation can be found at: https://www.dropbox.com/s/v6x32tx449nofqi/14%20Laura%20Mocanu.mp3?dl=0
www.evisioncoaching.co.uk
@EVisionCoaching
Design Thinking explained with project experiences.
- What is Design Thinking
- What are the steps
- What is SAP Apphaus
- The Next View Design Experience Center Amsterdam
Phil Dillard, Black Ant, @PhilD0210
The objective of the Lean Startup 101 training is to introduce the concepts, terminology and approaches — and, to help organizations overcome resistance accepting the new approach so that exploration and learning can begin. This practical, interactive session will provide a solid foundation for advanced sessions, including the Lean Startup 201 & 301. This training is designed for practitioners in both the enterprise and in startups who are relatively new to the Lean Startup approach or who are seeking a quick refresher. Lean Startup 101 is a perfect way to kick off your week of Lean Startup!
Thanks to Lean Startup Co.’s law firm, Orrick, for being the sponsor for this track.
This is a short talk and workshop (30' + 90') to give a first introduction to design thinking. Gives theory foundation, notes a few different approaches, and then dives into one of them.
This presentation was first done at ImpactON / StartupChile evening in 2015.
Centre for Entrepreneurship (C4E) of the University of Cyprus and Berklee Institute for Creative Entrepreneurship (ICE) present the:
Why are some designs better than others, and what can you do about it? (The workshop)
If you've ever described a poster as heavy, a website as dense, an app as clumsy or an object as whimsical, you probably already know the answer. Recent psychology research is showing that experiential metaphors are key emotional drivers that impact our perception of the world. Applying these findings to design confirms what designers have learned throughout their careers—good design is subconscious first and rational second. Michael will share stories from this research and the IDEO portfolio then share tools to help you be more consciously subconscious.
Design of Business in an Age of DisruptionCraig Martin
We are all acutely aware of the changes occurring in business. Market and socio political drivers are causing interesting business models to emerge and technological changes are resulting in new digital and disruptive business models that are reshaping our traditional industries. There is significant pressure to respond with solutions, products and services that are not only desirable from a human centred perspective but business viable and technologically feasible.
In order to cater for these pressures, new strategic planning disciplines and tools must be leveraged, or in some cases invented. These disciplines need to both help business solve wicked problems, as well as help solution providers inside and outside an organization provide more value based offerings.
This presentation will look at the emergence of design led strategic planning approaches that merge disciplines to help business decision makers test the viability of ideas and strategies, and play these out within an organisation to determine the high value positions necessary to succeed in the market. In this paper we explore on the fusion of design thinking, business design and enterprise architecture to help organizations address these challenges.
http://enterprisearchitectureconference.com.au/keynote-speakers/
Introduction for Design thinking :
What is Design thinking?
Why to use Design thinking?
What is Design thinking mindset?
Balance for Analytical and Intuitive thinking.
Traditional thinking vs Design thinking.
Combination of Divergent and Convergent thinking.
Summary of the strategy of building low-burn-rate startups, i.e. capital efficient and generally frugal. By taking advantage of open source, agile software, and iterative development, lean startups can operate with much less waste.
Design Thinking: The one thing that will transform the way you thinkDigital Surgeons
What's the one thing that will transform the way you think? Design Thinking. The startups, trailblazers, and business mavericks of our world have embraced this process as a means of zeroing in on true human-centered design.
Design Thinking is a methodology for innovators that taps into the two biggest skills needed in today’s modern workplace: critical thinking & problem solving.
Of course, if you ask 100 practitioners to define it, you’ll wind up with 101 definitions.
Pete Sena of Digital Surgeons believes that Design Thinking is a process for solving complex problems through observation and iteration. At its core, he describes it as a vehicle for solving human wants and needs.
Minds are like parachutes; they only function when open. Thomas Dewar was a Scottish whiskey distiller.
Communicating ideas or insights is often the hardest part of the design process. And PowerPoint and Excel spreadsheets are limited in their ability to do this. But the communication tools used in Design Thinking—maps, models, sketches, and stories—help to capture and express the information required to form and socialize meaning in a very straightforward, human way.
The Five things that all definitions of Design Thinking have in common:
1. Isolating and reframing the problem focused on the user.
2. Empathy. A design practitioner from IDEO, the popular design and innovation firm strapped a video camera to his head and it was only then that he recognized why the ceiling is such an important factor when working with hospital patients. As a patient you lay in bed and stare at it all day. It’s these little details and true empathy that can only be realized by putting oneself in the user’s shoes.
3. Approach things with an open mind and be willing to collaborate. Creativity with purpose is a team sport.
4. Curiosity. We have to harness our inner 5-year-old here and really be inquisitive explorers. Instead of seeing what would be or what should be, consider what COULD be.
5 - Commitment. Brainstorming is easy. It’s easy to want to start a business or solve a problem. Seeing it into market and making it successful is not for the faint of heart. We’ve all read about big “wins” (multi-billion dollar acquisitions like Instagram and WhatsApp). What we don’t read about are people like Tony Fadell and Matt Rogers, who work for years before becoming industry sensations.
Pete describes what he refers to as the “Wheel of Innovation” as a process that continuously focuses on framing, making, validating, and improving on your concept. Be it as small as a core feature in your product down to the business model and business idea itself.
Design is about form and function, not art.
What are the business benefits for Design Innovation?
IDEO started an idea revolution when they coined this phrase DESIGN THINKING. Organizations ranging from early-stage startups up to Fortune 50 organizations have capitalized on this iterative appr
Creating a killer product: where value meets user experience and product designMorgan McKeagney
Creating a great product is as much about psychology and understanding people, as it is about entrepreneurship and great design. In this talk I explore the relationship between value and great design; how you can go about finding problems worth solving, and how to create experiences that resonate with people.
Talk first delivered at BOI Gears, Dublin, 27/5/16.
Why choose salesforce ? Top 10 reasons to choose salesforceValentin DAVID
Why choose Salesforce ? Top 10 reasons to choose salesforce to increase sales and customer satisfaction.
- How are CEOs addressing the issues they consider most critical?
- Top 10 objectives of CEO
- Top 10 reasons executives choose salesforce
- Top 6 Dashboards Every Sales Leader Needs
- 94% of success rate
- Salesforce users report average ROI of 45%
- 91% would refer to a colleague
- 66% have already recommended to a colleague
CareerVisa's way of making important career choice. How do you answer two most critical career questions. 1. What is my passion? 2. Would I be successful following my passion?
Learning Objective: Examine and practice the skillset of delivering a great interview
Job interviews are stressful enough without having to establish a positive and professional self-representation during the interview process. Recruiters are looking for the ideal candidate, and you are trying to come across as friendly and trustworthy while explaining how you’re the perfect candidate, so practice makes perfect. The competition is tough, so it’s no wonder your confidence should be your focus. That’s why you need to be in this seminar. We will deliver practical, step-by-step, proven strategies and interview tips to help you build confidence, become persuasive, and walk into a room locked and loaded, ready to formulate impressive answers to common interview questions. Along with the answers and swagger to pull it off, we will give you the opportunity to perfect your skills before your interview. This session will begin with the knowledge of how to impress recruiters, while the second half will pull it all together in the practice mock interview sessions. Remember, practice makes perfect. You will have the opportunity to sit face to face with professional interviewers in order to prepare effectively for your real interviews.
At the end of this seminar, participants will be able to answer these questions:
a. What are the common interview questions, and how do I prepare my answers?
b. What information do I need to know for every interview?
c. How do I answer difficult questions?
d. What are good questions to ask my interviewer?
e. How do I answer, “So tell me about yourself’?
f. What do I do after the interview?
g. What are common interview mistakes?
h. What does my body language say about me?
i. What information do I need to know before I have my interview?
j. How can I ace my interview from beginning to end?
k. What can I do after the interview to gain an edge on the competition?
Successful Collaboration and Employee Engagement LifecycleDan Keldsen
What is an engagement lifecycle, and why does it matter? Pre-engagement, Rollout. and Re-engagement
How to focus collaboration efforts:
Are you actively engaging, or passively hoping?
What’s in it for THEM?
What are the jobs to be done for collaboration… and beyond collaboration?
30 Minute Engagement Consultation:
http://bit.ly/engagementstrategy
Building Your Personal Brand/Online Presence - For College and High School St...Kelly Barrett
I spoke with college and high school students about how to build their personal brand online, using the web and social media. With humor, this presentation accessibly covers everything from building a website to maintaining appropriate/clean social media platforms and touches on how students can use these tools to increase their professional opportunities and position themselves as a successful leader at their organizations and eventually, an ideal candidate for their future dream job.
Doing customer development (and stop wasting your time)Hans van Gent
Why would you bother to talking to people while you actually could be building your product? Because everything you assume could be wrong. Time to validate those assumptions and start your business on the right track.
You can use social media to build your true-to-self personal brand and work to shape the ways you’re perceived by the world. Learn how with Kelly Barrett, United Way Worldwide’s social media manager.
Can AI do good? at 'offtheCanvas' India HCI preludeAlan Dix
Invited talk at 'offtheCanvas' IndiaHCI prelude, 29th June 2024.
https://www.alandix.com/academic/talks/offtheCanvas-IndiaHCI2024/
The world is being changed fundamentally by AI and we are constantly faced with newspaper headlines about its harmful effects. However, there is also the potential to both ameliorate theses harms and use the new abilities of AI to transform society for the good. Can you make the difference?
White wonder, Work developed by Eva TschoppMansi Shah
White Wonder by Eva Tschopp
A tale about our culture around the use of fertilizers and pesticides visiting small farms around Ahmedabad in Matar and Shilaj.
Transforming Brand Perception and Boosting Profitabilityaaryangarg12
In today's digital era, the dynamics of brand perception, consumer behavior, and profitability have been profoundly reshaped by the synergy of branding, social media, and website design. This research paper investigates the transformative power of these elements in influencing how individuals perceive brands and products and how this transformation can be harnessed to drive sales and profitability for businesses.
Through an exploration of brand psychology and consumer behavior, this study sheds light on the intricate ways in which effective branding strategies, strategic social media engagement, and user-centric website design contribute to altering consumers' perceptions. We delve into the principles that underlie successful brand transformations, examining how visual identity, messaging, and storytelling can captivate and resonate with target audiences.
Methodologically, this research employs a comprehensive approach, combining qualitative and quantitative analyses. Real-world case studies illustrate the impact of branding, social media campaigns, and website redesigns on consumer perception, sales figures, and profitability. We assess the various metrics, including brand awareness, customer engagement, conversion rates, and revenue growth, to measure the effectiveness of these strategies.
The results underscore the pivotal role of cohesive branding, social media influence, and website usability in shaping positive brand perceptions, influencing consumer decisions, and ultimately bolstering sales and profitability. This paper provides actionable insights and strategic recommendations for businesses seeking to leverage branding, social media, and website design as potent tools to enhance their market position and financial success.
Between Filth and Fortune- Urban Cattle Foraging Realities by Devi S Nair, An...Mansi Shah
This study examines cattle rearing in urban and rural settings, focusing on milk production and consumption. By exploring a case in Ahmedabad, it highlights the challenges and processes in dairy farming across different environments, emphasising the need for sustainable practices and the essential role of milk in daily consumption.
16. Who are we
designing for?
What do they need?
What do they hate?
What do they love?
When, where, how do
they engage?
Who are they with?
What is the scenario?
How can we help?
Where are the hand-offs?
What problems are
they facing?
22. Be open and put others at ease.
Observe.
Actively listen.
Ask questions and invite stories.
Request others think out loud.
Create hands-on activities like sketching or games.
Invite ideas, collaboration and co-design.
23. BUT NOW WHAT?
How do we
synthesize and analyze
findings and then
share with our teams?
26. Overview
Platform Preference
Online Frequency
Tech Savvy
Experience
Name:
Low High
Quote:
Desktop Mobile
Low High
Low High
PERSONA TEMPLATE
Joe Smith
“Finding a job is frustrating! I'm working harder at this than I do at my
job. I'm good at what I do but am not sure how to leverage my skills.”
Goals & Needs:
Obstacles & Pain Points:
Opportunities:
27. Overview
Platform Preference
Online Frequency
Tech Savvy
Experience
Low High
Desktop Mobile
Low High
Low High
PERSONA TEMPLATE
Goals & Needs:
Obstacles & Pain Points:
Opportunities:
Name:
Quote:
Joe Smith
“Finding a job is frustrating! I'm working harder at this than I do at my
job. I'm good at what I do but am not sure how to leverage my skills.”
28. Overview
Platform Preference
Online Frequency
Tech Savvy
Experience
Low High
Desktop Mobile
Low High
Low High
PERSONA TEMPLATE
Goals & Needs:
Obstacles & Pain Points:
Opportunities:
Name:
Quote:
A way to make a killer
resume (quickly)
Time consuming and
difficult to create a
resume
Automated
resume builder
Joe Smith
“Finding a job is frustrating! I'm working harder at this than I do at my
job. I'm good at what I do but am not sure how to leverage my skills.”
29. Overview
Platform Preference
Online Frequency
Tech Savvy
Experience
Low High
Goals & Needs:
Obstacles & Pain Points:
A way to make a killer
resume (quickly)
A way to get noticed
Time consuming and
difficult to create a
resume
Not sure how to
stand out in crowd.
What do
companies want?
Automated
resume builder
More insight into
what companies want
Desktop Mobile
Low High
Low High
Opportunities:
PERSONA TEMPLATE
Name:
Quote:
Joe Smith
“Finding a job is frustrating! I'm working harder at this than I do at my
job. I'm good at what I do but am not sure how to leverage my skills.”
30. Overview
Platform Preference
Online Frequency
Tech Savvy
Experience
Low High
Goals & Needs:
Obstacles & Pain Points:
A way to land the
“right” job
Can’t tell from the
outside if it’s
a good fit or not
More insight into
company cultures
Desktop Mobile
Low High
Low High
Opportunities:
PERSONA TEMPLATE
A way to make a killer
resume (quickly)
A way to get noticed
Time consuming and
difficult to create a
resume
Not sure how to
stand out in crowd.
What do
companies want?
Automated
resume builder
More insight into
what companies want
Name:
Quote:
Joe Smith
“Finding a job is frustrating! I'm working harder at this than I do at my
job. I'm good at what I do but am not sure how to leverage my skills.”
32. Role/Situation:
Stage 1: Apply
Name:
What is he/she
Doing:
Thinking:
Feeling:
Where:
w/ Whom:
Opportunities:
JOURNEY MAP TEMPLATE
Stage 2: Stage 3:
Joe Smith
Job Finding Journey
At home
Alone
Searching simplyhired
Endlessly tweaking and
sending out resumes
I’m never going to
find a job!
Provide a better way
to create resumes
and search for jobs
33. Role/Situation:
Stage 1: Apply
Name:
What is he/she
Doing:
Thinking:
Feeling:
Where:
w/ Whom:
Opportunities:
JOURNEY MAP TEMPLATE
Stage 2: Interview Stage 3:
Joe Smith
Job Finding Journey
At home
Alone
Searching simplyhired
Endlessly tweaking and
sending out resumes
I’m never going to
find a job!
Potential employer’s office
Potential employer
Answering questions;
trying to gauge if this
is a good fit
Do they like me?
Do I like them?
Provide a better way
to create resumes
and search for jobs
Provide tips and tricks for
interviewing and presenting
34. Role/Situation:
Stage 1: Apply
Name:
What is he/she
Doing:
Thinking:
Feeling:
Where:
w/ Whom:
Opportunities:
JOURNEY MAP TEMPLATE
Stage 2: Interview Stage 3: Respond
At home
Alone
Searching simplyhired
Endlessly tweaking and
sending out resumes
I’m never going to
find a job!
At home
With friends
Receiving offer letter;
deliberating if he should take
the job
Is this the right move?
Provide a better way
to create resumes
and search for jobs
Provide tips and tricks for
interviewing and presenting
Provide insight into
companies, their culture
and work/life balance
Potential employer’s office
Potential employer
Answering questions;
trying to gauge if this
is a good fit
Do they like me?
Do I like them?
Joe Smith
Job Finding Journey
46. EVALUATE
Demonstrate your solution as early as possible.
Enable as much interaction as possible.
Capture what users are thinking, feeling and doing.
Be open to feedback.
Observe and actively listen.
Invite new ideas, collaboration and co-design.
48. Understand people,
their goals and needs
Create a solution to
meet those needs
Repeat
Evaluate & improve
your solution
PROCESS REVIEW
1
23
49. MOVING FORWARD
Design thinking is a method to solve problems.
Keep the user at the center of your thinking.
Build something as quickly as possible.
Use your artifacts to keep yourself and team on track.
Keep evaluating and iterating.
53. needs a way to
person
goal or need
insight or obstacle
[circle one]
PROBLEM STATEMENT
PROBLEM STATEMENT TEMPLATE
Surprisingly // because // but…
54. 1. What if we used ______________________ to solve ______________________?
2. What if we used ______________________ to solve ______________________?
3. What if we used ______________________ to solve ______________________?
4. What if we used ______________________ to solve ______________________?
5. What if we used ______________________ to solve ______________________?
6. What if we used ______________________ to solve ______________________?
7. What if we used ______________________ to solve ______________________?
8. What if we used ______________________ to solve ______________________?
9. What if we used ______________________ to solve ______________________?
10. What if we used ______________________ to solve ______________________?
“WHAT IF…” IDEATION
BRAINSTORM TEMPLATE
Good morning and thank you! My name is Mary. I’m a UX designer at Spring Studio in San Francisco. Design thinking is the foundation of our process at Spring and informs nearly everything we do.
How many designers in the house today? How many use design thinking in your work?
Today, I’m going to talk about what design thinking is, what makes it powerful, and then dive into the design thinking process and toolkit.
When we hear the term design thinking, many of us imagine fonts, graphics and making things look pretty. But design thinking is not that… its actually about problem solving.
The types of problem spaces you can apply it to include physical products, digital interfaces, services and even the socio-economic problems. Its not about the problem itself, its about the process of understanding, rapidly innovating, evaluating and iterating.
I want to tell you a story that illustrates the difference design thinking can make. I work with a group called Field Innovation Team or FIT. Last week FIT hosted a design thinking workshop for hurricane responders. A business-as-usual response would be reactive, impersonal and could even re-traumatize those involved.
But by applying design thinking, we established understanding and empathy, gaining new insight into the plight of victims.
This positioned us to shift our thinking to become more proactive, more personal and empower survivors in their own recovery and rebuilding.
One team’s idea involved using debris from the tragedy to create artwork, so individuals could redefine their association with the event as well as rebuild community and create economic empowerment at the same time.
There are a number of characteristics that make design thinking so powerful…
The first is that design thinking is Human Centered — We create designs for real people through understanding and empathy. We keep taking people into account at all stages of our process: discovery, design and implementation.
Design thinking is also Research Driven — Its built around understanding and that means research. The focus of research depends on the project. It will generally involve:
People - Who am are we designing for?
Environment - What’s the larger context? What’s working and what isn’t? Find out what people are naturally doing and support those paths (pave over the cow paths).
Inspiration - How are others are dealing with similar problems?
Design thinking is also Practical and Strategic…
…It sits at the nexus between people, technology and business.
Always consider the feasibility and constraints of technology and business when weighing potential solutions.
Design thinking is Collaborative — Complex problems require multidisciplinary teams.
Collaboration is literally built into design thinking with tools for teams to work together toward common solutions. We’ll talk more about those tools later.
Design thinking is Visual and Hands-On — Visual tools (like diagrams, sketches and models) communicate complex ideas to team members and stakeholders.
These graphic representations can model multiple layers of information and enable at-a-glance pattern and trend recognition.
Finally, design thinking is Validated & Iterated — Designs are tested on real people and measured with analytics.
The goal is to start fast and simple then test and improve over time.
Now lets take a look at the design thinking process. Its not new. Design thinking is based on processes we are all familiar with: the scientific method and clinical process, and the very familiar trial and error approach most of us mastered at around age 3.
Step 1 of the process is to Understand — Who is your audience, what are their goals, needs, mindsets? What makes them tick?
Step 2 is to create a solution to meet those needs.
Step 3 is to evaluate and improve your solution.
Then, rinse and repeat.
So lets deep dive into Step 1: Understand.
You must UNDERSTAND a problem before you can solve it.
There are so many questions…
Who are we designing for?
What do they love? Hate?
Who are they with?
What’s the scenario?
How can we help?
How do we know the answers to these questions?
Research.
Research can be as simple as…. people watching, listening or having a meaningful conversation.
Research happens twice in our 3-step process: at the beginning when we seek to understand and at the end when we need to evaluate.
Lets focus on understanding. This phase of research is called “generative” research — we want to generate empathy, insights, ideas and opportunities.
A few rules of thumb for generative research:
Be open and put others at ease
Observe
Actively listen
Ask questions and invite stories
Request others think out loud
Create hands-on activities like sketching or games
Invite ideas, collaboration and co-design
But now what? You’ve done a bunch of research.
How do we synthesize, analyze and share all this information?
We use a set of design tools to help us with this. Two of my favorites are personas and journey maps.
Who’s used personas or journey maps in the past?
So first of all, lets talk about Personas — Personas are archetypes used to summarize the characteristics, mindsets and activities of real people. Personas come in all shapes and sizes depending on the project. At their core, they show needs, obstacles and opportunities.
The goal of personas is to develop a quick understanding and empathy with the user. The collaborative act of creating personas builds common understanding and team focus.
Let’s meet Joe Smith. Joe is not a real person. Joe is an archetype of all the people like him.
Joe is looking for a job but he’s frustrated. He’s not sure how to go about finding the right job for him.
Let’s add some background info about Joe and his technology preferences.
Now we can start layering in Needs, Obstacles and Opportunities.
Joe needs a killer resume fast but he finds it difficult to create one. Maybe we could provide an automated resume builder to help Joe out.
He also needs to get noticed but isn't sure how to go about that. Maybe we could provide more insights into what companies want.
Finally, Joe wants to land the right job but can’t tell from the outside if it will be a good fit. Maybe we could provide more insight into company culture.
Now lets take Journey Maps — Journey Maps are a visual representation of a scenario over time. They are companion documents to personas. They enable understanding of the entire end-2-end experience.
Most journey maps incorporate a “Doing, Thinking, Feeling” lens — adding depth to our understanding of the experience.
Just like with personas, journey maps highlight design opportunities.
So lets look at Joe again. His journey begins with Applying for a Job. He’s at home searching simplyhired.com and sending out resumes. He’s frustrated and wants a better way.
Next, Joe lands an interview. He’s in the prospective employer’s office trying to gauge if he’s a good fit. He could sure use some tips for interviewing and presenting.
Finally, Joe gets an offer. He’s home with friends and is wondering if the job is right for him.
It would be great if Joe had more insight into the company’s culture.
By now we have a pretty good idea about who Joe is and what challenges he’s facing. We also know about all the other Joe’s out there. Now we are designing for a whole category of similar people.
So let’s move on to Step 2: Create. Now, we get to make things.
But first we need to decide which problem to solve. We need to formulate a problem statement based on our research. This will focus our effort and bring clarity to the team.
Research showed that there are several problems we could be solving for. Its up to us to decide which makes the most sense in terms of people, technology and business.
Remember that venn diagram from a few minutes ago?
Our solution has to balance need, feasibility and constraints.
Once we have a problem, our next step is to brainstorm as many potential solutions as we can. At this point, nothing is too crazy to consider. Just put it on the table and go on to the next idea.
Once you've considered as many solutions as possible, choose an idea to prototype first. I say first because your first prototype is never your last.
There are many ways to prototype at all different levels of fidelity. I’m going to talk about three very low fidelity methods today.
The first is Sketch. Storyboarding allows us to quickly capture a complete end-to-end solution. Don’t worry about making great artwork — boxes, arrows and stick figures are fine.
The next method is acting also known as bodystorming. Bodystorming enables the entire team to see how a solution plays out across multiple touchpoints.
It allows for very quick design pivots and iteration. And keeps the team together and engaged.
Lastly, build a low fidelity model. The more opportunity for interaction your model provides, the better.
Use any materials at hand to make the model as illustrative to your end-users as possible.
Use all three methods to prototype your solution if you like.
Okay, now on to Step 3, where we evaluate our work and make a plan to improve it.
Here comes our second round of research, called Evaluative research. Here we determine if our solution is useful, effective, and useable — and what improvements can we make?
A few rules of thumb for evaluative research:
Demonstrate your solution as early as possible
Enable as much interaction as possible
Capture what users are thinking, feeling and doing
Be open to feedback
Observe and actively listen
Invite new ideas, collaboration and co-design
The last step in our process (and the first step in the next round) is to make it better. Based on your evaluative research, iterate your design to improve it.
Here, you will want to revisit your personas, journey maps and early brainstorming.
And it so comes full circle and the process repeats, and repeats.
Moving forward, remember:
Design thinking is a method to solve problems (not make things pretty)
Keep the user at the center of your thinking
Build something as quickly as possible
Use your artifacts to keep yourself and team on track
Keep evaluating and iterating
I’ve put together a few quick-start templates to get you going….
Persona
Journey Map
Problem Statement
What If… Ideation
Evaluation and Iteration Worksheet
That concludes this morning’s quick course in design thinking. Thank you very much!
I think we have time for a few questions….