For whom is Design Thinking applicable?

According to IDEO Design thinking is applicable no matter your role or industry. Whether you work in business, government, education, or nonprofit, design thinking can help you develop innovative solutions based on the needs of your customers.

Cynefin framework: Different types of problems

Is Design Thinking a good method and mindset for any problem? The answer is: No. When is it wise to apply it and when can you better use an alternative approach? The model called the cynefin framework, created by Dave Snowden, gives a good overview.

1. Obvious problems

In this quadrant the solution for the problem is obvious to all. There is one way to solve these kind of problems and no one argues about it. If the grass is too long, use a lawn mower.

2. Complicated problems

In this area you will see most consulting firms active, as there are more than one solution and an expert comes at hand to find the right solution for you. This is the area where knowledge is available to solve the challenge. However, in this quadrant you will find also many challenges suitable for Design Thinking, if you feel that the more obvious solutions might not be the real solution, as the core problem isn’t clear (enough). applying Design Thinking enables you to find the right solution for the right problem.

3. Complex problems

This is the area where Design Thinking is very useful. It is the area where there is no clear solution and solutions have to be tested via experiments and exploration. This leads to brand new solutions, usually no one has came up with yet. Solutions are hard to predict, only hindsight delivers the understanding if something will actually solve the problem. This is the area for unknown unknowns.

4. Chaotic problems

In this area you don’t have time to look for a solution, but immediate action is required.For example when a dyke breaches. Act first to stop the flooding, afterwards you can discuss if it was the best solution.

5. Disorder

This area is in the middle and is applied if you cannot apply any of the other four areas. This is applicable to situations where a lot is at hand and becomes too big to handle. Split up the area into smaller chunks that fit into one of the previous areas and handle them step by step.

Why is it important to reframe challenges to boost innovation?

Reframing challenges means looking at a problem from a different perspective, or reinterpreting it in a way that helps you approach it in a more productive or creative manner. There are a few reasons why reframing challenges can be beneficial:

1. It helps you find new solutions. By looking at a problem from a different perspective, you may be able to see new solutions or approaches that you hadn’t considered before.
2. It helps you overcome obstacles. Reframing challenges can help you see obstacles as opportunities, rather than as insurmountable barriers. This can help you stay motivated and focused on finding a solution.
3. It helps you stay positive. Reframing challenges can help you maintain a positive attitude, even when things don’t go as planned. This can help you stay resilient and better able to cope with setbacks.
4. It helps you learn and grow. Reframing challenges can help you learn from your experiences, and use that knowledge to improve your skills and abilities. This can help you become more resilient and adaptable in the face of future challenges.

Overall, reframing challenges is an important skill that can help you find new solutions, overcome obstacles, maintain a positive attitude, and learn and grow.

Innovation project vs process

Peter Drucker, Innovation and Entrepreneurship GURU (read his book!) confirms that innovation cannot be seen as something you do as a project, but rather as a process. This means that innovation must be an uninterrupted process of learning and adapting to both internal and external conditions. It never stops. To succeed in changing environments, you need a system and a workflow that you can easily integrate into your daily work.

And that is where processes like Design Thinking, Design Sprints, Lean Start-Up and Agile Scrum come in. These have all in common that they leave room for unforeseen insights. They help to become more comfortable with the ‘fail fast — learn fast’ approach that is needed to mitigate risks in innovation.

Design Thinking vs Lean Startup

The cynefin model helps us understand the complexity of different situations. Similarly, Design Thinking and Lean Startup are two different approaches to solving problems. Design Thinking is particularly useful in the early stages of a project, helping you to identify the right problem to solve. On the other hand, Lean Startup is more focused on finding the right solution to a problem that may not exist. This is why many organizations begin their problem-solving process with Design Thinking, and then use Lean Startup and Design Sprints for continuous improvement.

Geert Claes — When, which … Design Thinking, Lean, Design Sprint, Agile?

As you can see there are many different methods out there that can help you solve problems in a more innovative and creative way, like Design Thinking, Design Sprints, Lean Startup, and Scrum. But sometimes it can be confusing to know which one to use and how to fit them all together.

That’s why we’ve developed the Dutch Design Delta model, which breaks down the problem-solving process into three key phases: context design, concept design, and market design. If you also want to simplify the complexities of problem-solving read then our this blog about STUDIO.WHY’s Dutch Design Delta model 

38 Design Thinking Situations in your workday

We did research with our 7500 participants from 197 organizations and discovered this list of 38 moments to help your team innovating without noticing. There are different innovation tools that you can use. You will see those some effective tools in this post: Design Thinking for Innovative Problem Solving (The 9 Step Entrepreneurial Approach)

1. Design a kickoff meeting that aligns team members with a shared purpose for the new project.  
2. Clarify the project goals and objectives for team members through design thinking principles to overcome an overly broad innovation assignment.  
3. Create co-ownership among multiple problem owners by utilizing design thinking strategies.  
4. Utilize a design sprint to develop an effective innovation assignment for a client open to modern problem-solving methods.  
5. Empower stakeholders and transfer ownership of potential solutions through design thinking principles before the project begins.  
6. Engage multiple stakeholders in the design thinking process to develop effective solutions for a project involving diverse perspectives.  
7. Reframe existing solutions through design thinking principles to ensure they are still effective.  
8. Apply design thinking strategies to effectively recruit internal clients.  
9. Utilize design thinking methods to understand customer needs, despite difficulties in directly engaging with them.  
10. Quickly and effectively address an urgent problem involving multiple stakeholders through design thinking.  
11. Develop interview skills and expertise for the team through design thinking principles.  
12. Avoid premature solutioning by applying design thinking strategies to ensure the team is solving the right problem.  
13. Research and respond to relevant trends that are impacting the challenge through design thinking methods.  
14. Conduct research and gather insights to inform the development of new solutions for outdated approaches.  
15. Explore opportunities to expand services and increase customer trust through design thinking.  
16. Focus on key insights from the target group to inform future decisions and actions.  
17. Engage stakeholders to co-create solutions and establish shared ownership through design thinking principles.  
18. Clarify the problem statement and focus on the right questions before moving forward with solutions through design thinking.  
19. Generate a diverse range of potential solutions through design thinking methods to avoid limiting thinking.  
20. Re-evaluate and redesign outdated approaches through design thinking principles.  
21. Include stakeholders in the solution development process to increase engagement and buy-in.  
22. Explore multiple options and alternatives to a challenge or situation through design thinking.  
23. Concretize vague ideas through design thinking methods to make them actionable.  
24. Connect ideas with the customer or target group through design thinking principles.  
25. Use design thinking strategies to evaluate and select the most viable idea from a pool of possibilities.  
26. Communicate and present the solution effectively to outsiders through design thinking.  
27. Develop a business model for the proposed solution through design thinking principles.  
28. Prepare a compelling pitch for decision-makers by utilizing design thinking strategies.  
29. Effectively transfer a project to another team within the organization through design thinking methods.  
30. Develop a well-substantiated problem-solution combination for pitch through design thinking.  
31. Provide concrete proposals for further development of approved ideas through design thinking.  
32. Collaborate with the team to create a practical implementation plan for the solution using design thinking.  
33. Determine the most effective manifestation of the solution through design thinking methods.  
34. Develop an interactive prototype for testing and validation with the target group through design thinking.  
35. Prepare a market-ready prototype by incorporating marketing perspectives through design thinking.  
36. Gather feedback and reactions from the target group to improve the solution through design thinking.  
37. Validate the solution against the practical needs and context of the target group through design thinking.  
38. Obtain buy-in from relevant stakeholders through design thinking strategies.

Reminder: curious to the tools for these situations? Check out this post: Design Thinking for Innovative Problem Solving (The 9 Step Entrepreneurial Approach)