What is design thinking?

What is design thinking?

Design thinking is a way to engage creative problem-solving skills.  It is a way to brainstorm with your team and resolve issues in creative ways, even if you are not trained as a designer.  Design thinking can be a useful strategy for everything from leadership development or management training to product design. This article from IDEO U explains the fundamental principles of design thinking.

IDEO explains: “In employing design thinking, you’re pulling together what’s desirable from a human point of view with what is technologically feasible and economically viable. It also allows those who aren't trained as designers to use creative tools to address a vast range of challenges. The process starts with taking action and understanding the right questions. It’s about embracing simple mindset shifts and tackling problems from a new direction.”

Three key components to design thinking are:

• Empathy - thinking about who you are designing for, and how to relate to their experience or feelings

• Ideation - generating as many ideas.  One common method for ideation is brainstorming.

• Experimentation - testing out the ideas that you come up with.  This could mean creating a prototype or running it by someone on your team.

Design thinking is a way to get creative in the workplace, even if your field isn’t traditionally design-oriented.  Using these strategies can help you explore areas of opportunity and lead you to innovative solutions.