How Might We: Simplexity in Design Charrettes

Copyright © 2018, Peter Jones
Design Thinking with Simplexity:
As a Design process
Peter Jones, PhD
Redesign & OCAD University, Toronto

Peter Jones, Ph.D @redesign
Associate Professor, OCAD University, Toronto
MDes Strategic Foresight & Innovation
Design for Health
Managing partner Redesign Network
• Design-led product & service innovation
• Educating MDes learners in systemic design,
innovation research methods, foresight methods
• Leading systemic / system design in:
Healthcare & public health
Strategic foresight in organizational planning
Scientific & medical information products
Climate adaptation
Community & civic engagement
Team & organizational development
• All “design + systems” problems

OCAD University
Toronto, Canada
Established in 1876
15 undergraduate programs
6 graduate programs
4400 students
Master of Design programs

Greg Van Alstyne | sLab | OCAD UniversityCo-creating Foresight Culture in Government | WorldFutures 2013, Chicago
Problem Finding (foresight)
Problem Framing (strategy)
Problem Solving (design)
Design strategies and shape plans
Innovate by generating insight-driven ideas
Create strategic, transformative, sustainable change
The SFI Approach

Strategic Foresight and Innovation OCAD University
systems thinking
+ visual thinking
Strategic
Foresight for
Innovation
futures
thinking
design
thinking
business
thinking

History with Simplexity (@OCAD U)

Early adaptations of Simplexity
as design thinking

SFI MDes
profiles
2018
orientation

Simplexity
From Design for Care (2013)

Design Thinking: IDEO HCD Design Process
Design Processes
• Hear = Problem Finding & Learning (Facts)
• Create = Problem Definition & Solution
• Deliver = Evaluate, Select & Implement
IDEO Human-Centered Design Toolkit

Essence of Design Thinking
Design process is a rigorous exploration of desirable options.
Design Thinking finds opportunities from collective experience.
Divergent Exploration Discovery & framing
Learning from users Empathic observation
Convergent Designing a Concept Based on evidence
Testing the Concept “How well does it work?”
<
<
DISCOVERY DEFINITION EXECUTION

Essence of Design Thinking
DISCOVERY DEFINITION EXECUTION

Double-Diamond Design Process
Each diamond combines a long stage of Divergence <
with a complementary stage of Convergence >
Frame Discover Design Develop
Deliver
Double Diamond is a well-known design process defined by the UK Design Council, 2005.

Levels of Design Complexity
D4.0 Social / Policy / Plan
Multi-Stakeholder Engagement
Program Planning
D3.0 Org / Strategy / Process
City / Corporate Organization
Organizational workshops
Strategic Planning
D2.0 Product / Services
Planning Products & Services
Apps & Maps
D1.0 Materials / Communications
Campaigns & Comms
Websites, Collateral

Simplexity as Design Process for Innovation
Generate problems, ideas
Combine, align , refine
Frame problems as questions
Scan trends, signals
Identify trending facts
Conduct field study
Produce research story
Review research
Analyze & synthesize
Interpret data together
Reframe problem
Generate possible solutions
Create framework that connects
Prototypes
Specify all viable solutions
Build & run tests
Evaluate with users
Identify resources, schedule
Analyze build paths
Select team / vendors
Marketing
Competitive position
Create sales story

A Simplexity Charette
(A charette is a design workshop for a group of people with a shared purposes, using
collaborative methods to engage non-designers in co-creation & evaluation.)
U Michigan - Stamps MDes program
w/ Ann Arbor VA Center to develop Primary Care solutions for veterans care in
the community. “Preconsult” was exploratory, with design school, not the VA

Simplexity in the Design Studio
1. Problem Finding – Also called framing. Its speculative,
generative, iterative, agreement on “problem space.”
2. Fact Finding – We might have research. If not, we build on
what we know about people in the problem area.
3. Problem Definition: Ever do visual challenge mapping?
4. Idea Finding - Generate ideas & models to co-create it.
Here we jump into modeling & sketch prototypes.
5. Evaluation with real users / people. And plan…
Or its all just for fun.

Process in Design Workshop
Conduct field study
Review research
Reframe problem
Prototypes
Specify all viable solutions
Build & run tests
Evaluate with users
Identify resources, schedule
Analyze build paths
Select team / vendors
Marketing
Competitive position
Create sales story

Form Groups – Workshop Purposes
1. City Renewal in Rust Belt towns
2. Local Climate Change Planning
3. Rethinking Higher Education for Gen Z
4. Healthcare – “Hospitals to Homes”
5. Other complex situations?
Today we are called upon to cocreate responses to complex social challenges
outside our knowledge or comfort zone.

1. Problem Finding

1. Start with Problem Finding
• Framing: Divide into teams by Challenge area
• Find initial Challenges – Within groups create a list of
challenge questions (text & visual):
1. Problem Finding: What are the most significant
challenges experienced here (in this context)?
Name this challenge & define a boundary.
2. Who are the stakeholders & users today?
Rapid generation of stakeholders & roles.
20 min

2. Fact Finding
Conduct field study

2. Fact Finding / Research
• “What do we know about this fuzzy situation?”
• What is of value / pain points for stakeholders?
• Generate for 10 minutes
Then converge on 3 issues, find priorities (+ 5 min)
• Identify human needs:
Where is value realized in the context here?
• Who is the “user” among your stakeholders?
Full-body empathy map process for 1-2 “end users.”
Review and share in dialogue
20 min

Mapping Empathy for the Situation
Draw this little person-in-the-
center as exercise
Generate responses in regard
to your challenge:
• What do they See in their
experience?
• What do they Hear around them?
• What do they Think about?
• What are they typically Doing?
Saying?
• What Pains do they experience?
Now add the whole body
• What is their Situation?
• What do they Feel?
• What can they Touch?
• Where are they Walking?
• How are they Moving?

3. Define Problem
Review research
Reframe problem

Create a Challenge Map
Ends
Ends
Means
Means

Problem Definition: Challenge Mapping
• What is the core problem as experienced by users?
Go back to the empathy map
HOW MIGHT WE …
• Choose 1-3 HMW Challenges & converge on a map:
• Arrange answers by higher-lower purposes or functions.
• Ask Why? Push to top.
Ask How? (What’s Stopping Us?)
10 min

4. Idea Finding
Prototypes

Idea Finding
• Converge & box priorities from your Challenge Map
• Generate ideas in response to the selected HMW
• Select (as table) key ideas that respond to the challenge
• Develop these ideas with either/and:
Visual sketching or storyboarding of a narrative
Sketch (or sticky note) a user journey of the idea
Prototype a concept, e.g. Lego, mock-up sketch, collage.
This is where the design process lives. The embodiment
of the idea we test in Step 5.
15 min

Discussion
• How does Design Thinking extend Simplexity?
• What methods do you use today? Where do they fit?
• Where are your entry points for such a process?
• How might this change your innovation processes?

How Might We: Simplexity in Design Charrettes

More Related Content

What's hot

Similar to How Might We: Simplexity in Design Charrettes

More from Peter Jones

Recently uploaded

How Might We: Simplexity in Design Charrettes