IS6117 Ebusiness Development Project Lecture 3: Design Thinking for Radical Innovation Rob Gleasure

IS6117 Today’s lecture  Reminder  Design Thinking The emergence of design thinking The core concepts Empathising Defining Ideating Prototyping Testing  Exercise

The emergence of design thinking The origins of design thinking are generally associated with Rolf Faste in Stanford and David Kelley in Ideo It grew from growing realisation in the 1970s onwards that design problems are not like the ‘solvable’ and quasi-mathematical problems in the natural sciences Design thinking is now one of the leading business concepts in a range of industries

The core concepts of design thinking Design problems are ‘wicked’  Not bounded – limitless number of variables  No stopping rule – they are never completed and each problem is in some way(s) unique  Solutions are not correct/incorrect – some are better/some are worse At its core, design thinking is about understanding users’ needs  The better defined a problem, the better it can be solved

The core concepts of design thinking Design thinking is as much a mindset, central to which is  Human-centrism  Empathy/contact with users  Open-mindedness Design thinking also emphasises the diversity of teams  A good designer is ‘T-shaped’  Duplicate expertise is not so much valued

The design thinking process The design thinking process basically involves five steps Note: this is not a ‘waterfall’ model – this is an iterative and parallel process Image from course-in-stanfords-design-thinking-here-it-is-for-free-pt-1-empathy/ course-in-stanfords-design-thinking-here-it-is-for-free-pt-1-empathy/

Empathising In order to empathise, we need to understand our users  We need to research our market Some of this can be done through web research, e.g. scaling the problem, gaining a foothold understanding of how users operate However the real empathising starts in the context of ongoing dialogue with potential users  ‘Why-bombing’ The ideal outcomes from this stage are surprises

Empathising This leaves us with two key dimensions These are complimentary (most projects will include them all) Existing information New information Detailed view of users Birds’ eye view of users Reading cases, forums, reviews, etc. Interviews Market statistics and competitor analyses Surveys Here you are assuming you know the right questions to ask Here you are trying to figure out the right questions – use observations and ‘why’ bombing

Defining List pain points, i.e. things that users complain about List workarounds and awkward behaviours Formalise these into a problem statement.  This statement should: Make it clear whom the user is Aggregate smaller concerns into one larger issue  This statement should NOT: Narrow the problem down in a way that lends itself towards specific solutions

Ideating This stage is where your opportunity to flex your creative muscles comes in Quantity is your friend! If you are struggling to come up with ideas, then your problem statement was too restrictive Abandon judgement – no idea is a bad idea as long as it fits with the needs identified in your problem statement Visualise things! Get a pen and paper out (or whatever medium you find comfortable) and draw pictures, bubble-diagrams, etc.  You can be surprised what jumps out when you can see what you’re thinking

Prototyping Prototypes consist of anything from paper based representations to fully functional websites It allows three things  You can figure out if and how your idea can be implemented  It gives you a way of discussing things with users in a shared language, i.e. “is this what you meant?”  Ideas can be tested with users Types of Prototyping  Low-Fidelity Prototyping  High-Fidelity Prototyping

Testing Testing serves two purposes  To evaluate ideas  To generate new ideas from users With this in mind, a few tips:  Test with users that are representative and appropriately critical  Try to minimise users’ nerves/sense that they are being observed  Prioritise key tasks (you can’t test everything)  Present your task instructions in as natural a way as possible (but take care not to prompt people with these instructions)  If users can’t do something, remind them it’s not their fault and that this is valuable to you  Other than that, stay quiet!

Example 1: An MRI for Children Designers at GE had designed a MRI machine for internally scanning patients for tissue damage, tumours, etc. Some of these machines were for paediatrics wards (children) Children found the machines terrifying, yet the scan only works if you hold completely still inside them  Up to 80% of children had to be sedated The designers adopted a design thinking approach to try and understand the children’s journey, their feelings, and how they were building negative feelings  Huge drop in sedation, huge increase in satisfaction

Example 1: An MRI for Children Images from

Example 2: Radically Low-Cost Incubation Image from

Exercise: The Wallet Project This is a minor amendment of an exercise developed by Stanford University as part of their design curriculum The idea is to get you used to the process of design thinking Some suitably nondescript music at

1. Go! (3 minutes) Design the ideal wallet/purse This can include material changes, the addition of hardware or software – whatever you like

2 Interview (2x4 minutes) Form groups of two (these will be your groups throughout the exercise) One of you should take 4 minutes to ask your partner to describe their wallet/purse, what they use it for, the sorts of things they carry, what they like/don’t like about it. Take notes as you interview them After 4 minutes, switch roles so the second person asks the first about their chosen module

2 Dig Deeper (2x4 minutes) Again taking turns, you should take another 4 minutes to explore some of your partner’s answers. Ask ‘why’ and really search for surprises Again, take notes as you interview them, particularly of things that surprised you After 4 minutes, switch roles

3 Capture Findings (3 minutes) On your own, take 4 minutes to jot down  Your partner’s needs from their wallet – these should be verbs  Any insights you learned about your partner (how they feel about their wallet, their worldview, etc.) In particular, try and make note of areas where his/her needs differ from yours, as well as where they are the same.

4 Define a Problem Statement (4 minutes) Once more on your own, take 4 minutes to create a really rich problem statement for your partner  Remember, this should be juicy enough to afford multiple different approaches It should take the rough form My partner _______partner’s name________ needs a way to ___ partner’s need from their wallet____________. Unexpectedly, in his/her world, ________________insight________________________________.

5 Capture Findings (8 minutes) Again on your own, take 8 minutes to come up with 3-5 radical ideas that could meet your partner’s needs  Don’t get hung up on whether they are practical, nor how they could actually be put together – the goal here is to come up with as many interesting and creative ideas as you can  Draw these ideas where possible, use words sparingly

6 Share ideas and Capture Feedback (2x4 minutes) One of you should take 4 minutes to talk your partner through your ideas Ask them what they like/don’t like but remember  The best outcome is new ideas! Avoid defending ideas, other than to clarify what it is your partner doesn’t like After 4 minutes, switch roles

7 Reflect and Create a New Solution (4 minutes) This may be a refinement of a previous idea or something completely new It’s completely ok (good, even) if you need to change your problem statement as part of this re-design Try and create some drawing that will really make it clear what you are thinking about creating

8 Discuss New Solution (2x3 minutes) One of you show your partner your new solution Again, remember – the point is not to confirm your design, it’s to foster discussion and create new insights After 3 minutes, switch roles

Want to read more? Links and references  For general discussions of design thinking Brown, T Design Thinking, Harvard Business Review (86:6), pages Buchanan, R Wicked problems in design thinking. Design issues (8:2), pages Design thinking and innovation at Apple, HBR case study  For an in-depth discussion of the philosophy of design (this one isn’t for the faint hearted) Simon, H. A The sciences of the artificial, MIT press, Cambridge, Massachusetts.