Design Thinking
Key question
What do we actually know, and what don't we?
It doesn't start with the solution, but with the question of what it is really all about. Those who decide what the outcome should be too early overlook the people they are designing for.
Learning objective: You are able to frame a design challenge, identify stakeholders, and prepare an interview.
Those who find the solution too early overlook the problem.
2.1 / Framing the challenge
Not too tight, not too wide.
A design challenge outlines the task the team is working on. If it's too narrow, the solution is already baked in: "Design a ticketing app." If it's too broad, nobody knows where to start: "Improve mobility."
A challenge is well-framed when it specifies a target audience and a need, but leaves open what the solution looks like: “How might we make the commute easier for commuters?”
The challenge defines the people and the goal, not the solution.
2.2 / Prior Knowledge and Participants
What we know, what we suspect, and who is affected.
First, gather what you already know and separate it from what you only suspect. Assumptions are permitted, but they must be tested.
OCCUPIED
Knowledge
Based on data, experience or sources.
SUSPECTED
Assumptions
Assumptions that are tested in the research.
OPEN
Knowledge gaps
Questions you cannot answer yet.
A stakeholder map shows everyone involved: users, decision-makers, employees and people who are indirectly affected. Pay particular attention to those who are often overlooked.
Assumptions are hypotheses, not facts.
2.3 / Preparing interviews
Good questions unlock stories.
Interviews reveal experiences, reasons and feelings. Open questions invite people to share stories: ‘Tell me about the last time you …’ Closed questions only yield a yes or no, while leading questions already suggest the answer.
Ask about specific experiences rather than opinions, and probe further with 'Why?'. Obtain consent before recording, and explain what the statements will be used for. You can find more about surveys and their limitations in Design Psychology, Section 8.4 Methods.
Ask about experiences, not opinions.
Exercise
Stakeholder Map and Guide
Task: Prepare the research for your group challenge.
STEP 1
Frame the challenge as an open question.
STEP 2
Collect knowledge, assumptions and knowledge gaps on three colours of sticky notes.
STEP 3
Draw a stakeholder map: Who is directly affected, and who is indirectly affected?
STEP 4
Write a guide with five open questions and check it in the tool.
Evaluation: Which assumptions do you want to test first? Who did you almost forget?