Problem-solving is just one aspect of design thinking. Instead, the emphasis here is on coming up with creative solutions. Human-centered problem solving is at the heart of this approach since it emphasizes creativity, innovative thinking, and practical application. It may also be characterized as common sense.

Rather than starting with a preconceived notion of what a problem should be, design thinking begins with the people who will be affected by it. As a result, this must be a creative answer. In addition, design thinking is often linked to a company’s ability to outperform the competition.

Design thinking is a process that begins with a problem and ends with a solution. 

Design Thinking Process

Design thinking is, at its core, a process that travels from issue to solution via a series of clearly defined intermediary stages. The following is the classic method, as suggested by Herbert A. Simon, which is presented here:

• Define – when the issue is specified as precisely as possible before any attempt to solve it.

• Research – During which the designers review as much data as they deem necessary to be able to participate in the issue solving process completely.

• Ideate – In this method, the designer begins developing prospective solutions without first determining whether or not they are viable until many options have been offered. Once this is completed, unrealistic ideas are either discarded or experimented with until they become feasible options.

• Prototype – It involves simulating some of the most innovative concepts to allow for user evaluation of their potential worth.

• Selecting – when the greatest concept is chosen from among a number of different prototypes.

• Implement – where the concept is developed and then provided as a product.

• Test – where the product is evaluated with the consumer to confirm that it effectively answers the original issue.

Example of Design Thinking

Uber Eats

This article by a former UberEATS designer describes how the company approaches its food delivery service with a design thinking mindset. One of the most important lessons from the essay is the importance of empathy in their work: “We regularly immerse ourselves in the areas where our clients live, work, and dine in order to understand all of our diverse markets and how our goods fit into the physical environment of each city.” We can’t truly understand a person’s experiences on the streets of Bangkok or London from our offices in San Francisco or New York.”

Stanford Hospital 

Design thinking has even made its way into the field of health, and many consider it crucial to the future of wellbeing. This case study discusses how the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford utilized design thinking in a two-day seminar to examine methods to enhance the patient experience in the emergency department.

Furthermore, the paper shows how Stanford officials have used design thinking to anticipate potential novel medical experiences: “SHC personnel completed a proposal to remodel two nursing units in the present hospital to serve solely cancer patients using design thinking.”

Bank of America

We’ll end with one of the classic design thinking examples, which comes from Bank of America. Invision’s case study shares how the bank partnered with design consultancy IDEO in 2004 to understand how to get more people to open bank accounts. They ultimately came up with the Keep the Change program. This highly successful banking initiative came out of the design thinking research the IDEO team did where they found savers were intentionally rounding up when writing checks.

Design Thinking Principles

Design thinking: Understand, Improve and Apply is a book that discusses design thinking. Plattner and Meinel propose four basic design thinking principles in this book:

• Human – all design is social in nature.

• Ambiguity – Design thinking is characterized by the preservation and embracing of uncertainty.

• Redesign – In reality, all design processes are re-designs of already existing processes.

• Tangibility – The design process will make it easier to communicate the concept since it will result in something concrete.

It is also important to note that design thinking operates independently of the design approaches used in any specific design process. Design approaches are the instruments used (such as interviews, user research, prototypes, and so on), and it is assumed that there are various pathways that may be taken (e.g., alternative combinations of methods utilized) to get the same “optimal” outcome.

Conclusion

Design thinking is a method of issue solving used by innovators. It employs analytical, synthetic, divergent, and convergent thinking to generate a large number of alternative answers before narrowing them down to a “best fit” option. There are several methods to employ a design thinking process to include diverse approaches while yet achieving the same goal.

Experience OneNXT Design thinking workshops: 

Running a design thinking workshop is a great method to inspire your product team and foster a user-centric mentality. These programs are activity-based and may be done in person or remotely. With OneNXT, we can assist you in gaining a deeper understanding of your end consumers. As a result of our user-centered workshops spontaneously generating significant learnings and innovative ideas, we are able to boost company value and user loyalty.

To connect with one of our design thinking specialists and learn more about our workshops, contact us now.