What Is Design Thinking?
Today we see the impact of design across the business, education and government sectors. It is having an impact on the way we interact with companies and an increase in service experience. It is driving organisational strategies, increasing market share and customer loyalty for businesses such as IBM, Apple, Google, ANZ, Commonwealth Bank to name a few. Governments around the world are using these methods to build better experiences for industry and citizens. Design has finally come of age, and the power of ‘design thinking’ is what fuels it.
So what is design thinking?
Design thinking is used to solve problems through creativity, research, empathy, collaboration and is driving by a design framework. The result of design thinking is a product, space, business, new or improved services that puts humans at the centre. Design thinking is a methodology, it is not a perfect process. It’s a human-centric way to explore problems and develop solutions through creativity and collaboration.
It’s a human-centric way to explore problems and develop solutions through creativity and collaboration.
Design thinking as ideology
Design thinking is the intersection of creativity and innovation. So, let’s get back to basics.
Creativity - The ability to create. The quality of being creative
Design - To plan and make decisions about (something that is being built or created) : to create the plans, drawings, etc., that show how (something) will be made. To plan and make (something) for a specific use or purpose. To think of (something, such as a plan) : to plan (something) in your mind
Design thinking - Is human-centric, it is more than ergonomics or aesthetics. Design thinking is a mindset shift that embraces - empathy, culture of learning, optimism, ambiguity, experimentation, thinking through making.
The Design Thinking Process
Design thinking is an exploration of the user or customer experience to solve problems iteratively with tangible and testable products or services.
Design is a plan for arranging elements in such a way as to accomplish a particular purpose. - Charles Eames
There are six stages of the design thinking process. While there is a process it is not a perfect one. The stages in the process are:
Empathise
Define
Ideate
Prototype
Test
Implement
1. Empathise
In the empathise stage, you want to understand your audience and user. Get to know their wants, needs and objectives. How do they interact with the world, what do they feel and think, why do they make certain choices. This stage isn’t about finding a solution to a problem. It is about understanding the mindset of your users and the problems that are impacting them.
2. Define
In the define stage, you are now understanding the problem. There is no point in solving a problem that isn’t a problem. In the empathise stage, your users have told you their pain points and their reasons for inaction. In the define stage, you can better articulate the problem you need to solve.
3. Ideate
The ideate stage is where you move from research into creativity. Here, you brainstorm possible solutions for the articulated problem. It’s important to not restrain yourself to what you think is possible. Ask yourself: what would actually solve the problem?
4. Prototype
The prototype stage looks to build physical, testable minimum viable products (MVPs) of some of the ideas from the Ideate session. NNGroup describes the purpose of this stage: “…to understand what components of your ideas work, and which do not. In this phase you begin to weigh the impact vs. feasibility of your ideas through feedback on your prototypes.”
5. Test
In the testing stage, you take prototypes back to your users and get immediate feedback. While this is known as the last stage in the process, it’s not the end of design thinking. Once you get feedback, you may need to go back to the ideate or prototype stage, or even the define stage.
6. Implement
Influencing and collaborating with the right people inside and outside the organisation is important to making sure the solution gets the funding and attention it needs to bring it to life. Design thinking is about iteration - As users and audiences change, their experiences and problems also change. You need to test and evolve the solution overtime.
Courtesy: Nielsen Norman Group
Key takeaway
Design thinking:
Provides tangible value
Uses creativity and innovation to solve complex problems
Is human-centric
Is both an ideology mind shift and a process.
Read More
If you’ve made it this far, then you’ve got a hold on the basics of design thinking. You can learn more by reading:
HBR published Why design thinking works
Neilsen Norman Group published Design Thinking 101
InVision’s Inside Design published What is design thinking, and how do we apply it?
Interaction Design Foundation published Design Thinking
Or, if you’re a visual or auditory learner, watch:
Creative Confidence by Tom Kelley and David Kelley
What is creativity by Ken Robinson
Get In Contact
Are you looking to thrive in a world of rapid change and shifting customer expectations? Reach out to Arteri to discuss how our design-driven approach can help your organisation build products, services and strategies that target your people and investment in solving the right problems - https://www.arteri.com.au/contact