Design Thinking: Customer-centric Approach to Problem Solving

The idea that applying the principles of design to strategy and innovation would lead to higher success rates was validated by a 2014 study conducted by the Design Management Institute, this makes Design Thinking a mandatory tool for every leader that is serious about building a Digital Product Company.

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Society changed and leaders need support in the way how they lead and design their digital product organizations, that is the reason why the ADAPT Methodology® was created, but now let’s get a deep dive into the Design Thinking topic.

Results of the study showed that design-focused businesses like Apple, Coca-Cola, Nike, and Procter & Gamble exceeded the performance of most S&P 500 companies by an astounding 219% over the last ten years. This has led to more organizations becoming interested in design thinking – a framework that designers use to solve problems.

When faced with a problem, a person's first reaction is to solve it. But some question how the problem came about in the first place; believing that doing this will help in the development of a good solution. This is essentially what Design Thinking is about. When the principles of design are adapted to strategy and innovation, the chances of discovering a worthwhile solution dramatically increase.

Understanding the Principles of Design Thinking

From a designer's viewpoint, Design Thinking is a methodology for finding the best solution to complicated problems. Designers are trained to concentrate on the solution rather than the problem.

They are geared more toward creating the future they want and working on making it happen. This process demands that one has intuition, imagination as well as logic, and systematic reasoning. These skills help one to explore all possibilities and come up with a solution that will give the end user the most benefits

.For the longest time, most educators and businessmen dismiss the positive impact Design Thinking can bring to their system. But in his book “Designerly Ways of Knowing,” author Nigel Cross explained that “Everything we have around us has been designed.” He also pointed out that design ability is one of the three main aspects of human intelligence.

Aside from design, a person's cognitive abilities also depend on art and science. Art because it deals with discovering the contrast among similar things while science is all about looking for the similarities among contrasting things. The design then brings together improbable situations or “parts” to develop a solution or build something “whole.”

Advantages of Using the Design Thinking Method

Design Thinking is more than just solving a problem; it's about finding a better way of doing something. The process assists a person to go beyond conventional means and find a new solution to an old dilemma. More importantly, this process is not just for technology or design-oriented companies.

Design Thinking also gives non-profit organizations, government agencies, the financial industry, and the healthcare sector numerous advantages. Here are some of them:

Users are Given Top Priority

Design Thinking gives end users a top priority. The process aims to develop solutions and products that are in sync with what the user needs. Design Thinking is inherently human-centric, so designers have to get close to the end users to determine how the problem affects them, how to improve their lives and enhance user experience.

Process  Directs Collective Knowledge

Design Thinking involves the creation of multidisciplinary teams and engagement with numerous experts. This helps designers to break out of their niche and influence collective knowledge and experience. And because different philosophies and skills are involved in Design Thinking, solutions are adaptable and inclusive.

It Focuses on Empathy

The Design Thinking process revolves around empathy, an ability that allows one to understand how another feels. However the term is used, it requires identifying and understanding the needs and challenges faced by the end user, the experience, or the system used.

Design Thinking Leads to Breakthroughs

“Design, test, and repeat” is the philosophy behind Design Thinking. This opens problem solvers to surprising breakthroughs via the quick development of prototypes and generating swift feedback from real users and customers. More importantly, this is achieved before the company wastes a lot of time and money on one solution. The Design Thinking process might not be as straightforward as traditional problem-solving methods, but it does create more interesting and powerful results.

Crucial Problems are Resolved and Values are Developed

There's more to Design Thinking than just creating new products and services. It also creates value and finds better solutions to current problems. The process utilizes design principles to solve the different issues present in every industry.

When done correctly, the Design Thinking process captures the interest and demands of the end user. It also provides the designer with the means to explore the opportunities that the client's needs will open. The method can also be used as the linchpin of your company's services and offerings.

5 Steps in the Design Thinking Process

The Design Thinking method is a great way of dealing with problems that have ill-defined or unknown variables. What designers have to do is to understand what people require and then assess the problem in a human-centric way.

Afterward, they can begin brainstorming for different ideas and then proceed to build prototypes and test them. While Design Thinking can be used to solve problems in whatever setting, one has to understand the methodology first.

There are different Design Thinking models, each with its own process and steps. One of the most commonly used models was developed by the Hasso-Plattner Institute and has five steps – Developing Empathy, Determining the Problem, Generating Ideas, Building Prototypes, and Testing.

1. Developing Empathy

The first thing you have to do in Design Thinking is to empathize with your client. Walk a mile in their shoes to better understand the problem you are required to solve. One way to do this is through immersion. You have to literally live with the problem or situation so as to develop a keen understanding of the issue.

Another way is to talk with experts and learn more about the problem via observation and engagement to know their motivations, way of thinking, and experiences.  Empathy is crucial to a deeply human-centered method like Design Thinking as it lets designers stay in order to have an unbiased understanding of the client's needs.

As such, this step is where data starts to be gathered. In most cases, the data collected is massive but is vital in the next stage. The gathered information is also used to construct the best understanding of the consumer, their demands, and the obstacles that will arise when developing the product.   

2. Determining the Problem

After enough information has been gathered, the designer can then start determining the problem. The designer will have to evaluate and study the data and arrange them so that it will be easier to identify the key problem. A problem statement should also be developed so that the problem is stated in a human-centric way.

Most companies would think of the problem as one thing they need to do. For instance, businesses might come up with a statement like “We have to enhance the company's market share among teenage boys by 20 to 10 percent.” But if one wants to approach this problem using a human-centric approach, one would state it as something like “Teenage boys need nutrient-dense food to grow taller, stay healthy, and thrive.”

This step in the Design Thinking process is also where the problem-solving team starts to generate ideas about the uses, features, and other critical aspects that will aid them in solving the dilemma or assisting consumers to work out issues with minimal help or challenges. This is also the point where designers start preparing for the third step by constructing questions that can bolster the development of solutions.

For instance, the designers might start asking questions like “How can the company encourage teenage boys to take the necessary steps to stay healthy while using our service or product?

3. Generating Ideas

Step number three in the design process entails the solutions team is ready to generate all kinds of solutions. Using the empathy the team has developed for the client and a clear view of the problem, they can commence generating ideas to either build new solutions or come up with a different means of looking at the problem. At this point, designers are starting to push their creative boundaries to come up with solutions, even unorthodox ones.

Luckily, design teams have a number of idea-creation techniques they can use. Some of the more popular ones are Brainstorm, SCAMPER, and Worst Possible Idea. While each one has its advantages and disadvantages, it's important that the design generates as many ideas or solutions as it can before moving to the next step and building prototypes.

4. Building Prototypes

The fourth step in the Design Thinking process is both exhilarating and tiresome. At this stage, the team will be producing several prototype models of the product. Some of these models might carry specific features that the team can examine. These scaled-down models are usually shared and examined by the company's design team, by other concerned departments, or by a select group of individuals outside the company.

There's a lot of experimentation going on at this stage in the process as the designers try to select the optimal solution for the problems determined during the project's initial stages. These solutions are then tried using the prototypes, analyzed, and then approved, improved and reevaluated, or rejected. Any rejections are based on customer feedback and experience.  

This stage is vital for designers as it gives them an idea about the product's limitations and provides them with insights into how consumers will feel, behave and think when handling the product.

5. Rigorous Testing

The fifth and last stage of the design process has the team rigorously testing the end product using the solution decided on during the prototype stage. This can be a boring and repetitive process as testing is done many times.

The results of the tests are then used to reassess problems and update how consumers think, feel, and behave about the product and the conditions the final product is used. The product is still being changed and refined at this stage in order to rule out every problem and develop a better understanding of the consumers and the product.

It should be emphasized that while these five steps were discussed in a linear style, the design procedure is flexible and easy to adapt. For instance, the different steps can be done simultaneously by the design team. Designers can also continue to get information and build prototypes during the whole project so they can keep visualizing each and every roadblock and the corresponding solution. Results from the testing stage could also lead to new ideas and start another stage of brainstorming or prototype building.

Design Thinking in a Business Setting

Design Thinking has been proven to be the ideal method for developing unique solutions. Through this method, a business can enact changes and make decisions based on what consumers really want instead of just relying on historical data or taking risks. They can base their actions on tangible proof and not just depend on instinct. This can help the business save money in the long run.

Bear in mind that every enterprise comes with a laundry list of goals, from designing and rolling out new products and services, to increasing sales by keeping customers engaged in giving clients improved customer support. However, a lot of time and money is used every time a business, particularly a large corporation tries to meet those goals.

Applying the Design Thinking process can help a business save money as it focuses on distinct solutions that customers require. This is done by using various ways of looking at the situation while providing perspective and information that would be utilized when designing a solution.

Government agencies can also benefit in a major way from Design Thinking. For instance, the method has already helped the US Department of Veteran Affairs Center for Innovation in better understanding how veterans interacted with the agency. The different Design Thinking steps revealed the type of obstacles veterans face every time they have to deal with the VA. It also supplied critical insight as to what employees can do to empathize and connect with their customers in order to serve them more effectively.

There's no denying that Design Thinking is the way of the future. Companies can really satisfy the demands of their clients and find the best solutions to problems using Design Thinking. However, one needs a clear understanding of what this method is and how to use it if one wants to remain on top.  

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