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COMM 394 – Coding Literacy for Managers

Topic 3 - Fundamentals of Design Thinking

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Design Thinking

No- Low- Full-

Code Code Code

Design Thinking
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Design Thinking
Design thinking is a hands-on way to solve problems by focusing on people's
needs, coming up with new ideas, and quickly testing and improving them. It
offers a practical approach to tackling challenges by keeping the customer or
end-user at the heart of every decision. It promotes brainstorming, trying out
prototypes, and learning from feedback to create products or solutions that
genuinely meet user needs.

Design thinking helps you solve real-world problems by first

understanding what people really want, instead of rushing to a solution.
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Empathize - Definition

Empathize is the first step in the design thinking

process, where you focus on truly understanding
the people affected by the problem. This means
putting yourself in their shoes—feeling their
frustrations, understanding their desires, and
getting a sense of their experiences. In a business
setting, this could involve learning how customers,
employees, or other key players interact with a
system, product, or service.
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Empathize - Objective

The goal of the Empathize phase is to build a user-

centered understanding of the problem. You are
trying to uncover:

• Pain points: What are the frustrations or

problems users are facing?
• Needs and desires: What are they trying to
accomplish or improve?
• Context-specific insights: What business
constraints or opportunities could affect how the
problem is solved?

This phase is essential for designing a solution that

fits the real needs of the business.
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Empathize - Process
There are several ways you can use to empathize with
your users:

• User Interviews: Talk one-on-one with stakeholders

like customers or employees to learn about their
experiences, motivations, and challenges. Focus on
asking open-ended questions to gain deeper insights.

• Observation: Watch how people currently interact

with the system or product. Look for body language or
actions that indicate frustration or confusion, even if
they don't say anything outright.

• Surveys/Questionnaires: Use surveys to gather data

on common issues and trends from a larger group of
stakeholders.

• Empathy Mapping: Build an empathy map to visually

organize what users say, think, do, and feel. This can
help spot patterns that lead to meaningful solutions.
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Define - Definition

The Define stage is all about clearly outlining the

problem you aim to solve. After gathering insights
during the Empathize phase, this step focuses on
analyzing and organizing that information to
identify the main challenges users face. The goal
here is to craft a clear problem statement that will
guide your team as they develop a solution. In a
business setting, this often involves narrowing
down which specific issues need attention to
improve a system, product, or service.
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Define - Objective

The goal of the Define phase is to create a clear

and actionable problem statement based on the
insights gathered about users, their needs, and the
challenges they face. A well-defined problem leads
to focused, effective solutions. Your problem
statement should capture:

• Who is affected by the problem (e.g.,

customers, employees)
• What their main needs or pain points are
• Why solving this problem matters to the
business or users

By the end of this stage, you should have a clear

understanding of the core problem that your
design efforts will address.
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Define - Process
The Define process is about refining the data from the Empathize stage into a clear and actionable
problem. Here is how it usually works:

• Synthesize Findings
Review all the information gathered during user interviews, observations, and surveys. Identify
key themes, recurring issues, and important insights.

• Create User Personas

Develop user personas to represent the main types of users affected by the problem. These
personas help ensure that user needs are front and centre throughout the design process.

• Craft a Problem Statement

Using the insights collected, write a clear problem statement. This should highlight the user,
their needs, and the challenge to solve. For example: "Customers need an easier way to
navigate our website because they often get frustrated and leave before completing a
purchase."

• Set Criteria for Success

Define what a successful solution would look like. How will it help meet business goals? How
will it improve the user experience?

By clearly defining the problem, your team can stay focused on addressing the most pressing
issues, leading to more targeted and effective design solutions.
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Ideate - Definition

The Ideate stage is where creativity kicks in. Once

the problem has been clearly defined, the next
step is to come up with as many ideas as possible
for potential solutions. This phase encourages
open brainstorming, helping the team explore a
variety of possibilities before narrowing them
down. The goal is to think beyond the obvious and
uncover fresh, creative approaches that could
effectively address the problem.
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Ideate - Objective

The main goal of the Ideate phase is to generate a

wide range of ideas that could solve the problem
you have identified. It is not about choosing one
solution right away but about exploring different
possibilities. Promoting open-mindedness and
teamwork ensures more creative and diverse ideas
surface, which can lead to better, more effective
solutions later on. By the end of this stage, you
should have a large pool of ideas to evaluate and
refine.
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Ideate - Process
The Ideate process is focused on generating a high volume of ideas and then narrowing them
down to find the best options. Here is how it usually works:

Brainstorming
Start by holding brainstorming sessions with your team. Encourage everyone to share as many
ideas as they can, even if they seem unconventional. The focus here is on quantity over quality.
Record every idea, even those that seem unrealistic at first.

Mind Mapping
Use mind maps to visually organize your ideas and explore how they connect. This technique
helps expand thinking by showing how different concepts might link together or build off one
another.

SCAMPER Technique
Apply the SCAMPER method (Substitute, Combine, Adapt, Modify, Put to another use, Eliminate,
and Reverse) to rethink existing ideas or processes. This structured approach helps you view the
problem from new angles and can spark innovative solutions.

Sketching and Prototyping

Create quick sketches or simple prototypes of your ideas to visualize them better. Turning abstract
concepts into something more concrete can give your team a clearer picture to discuss and
improve.

Idea Filtering
After generating lots of ideas, it is time to filter them. Assess each idea based on how practical it
is, its potential impact, and how well it fits the problem. This step helps you figure out which ideas
are worth pursuing further.
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Prototype - Definition

The Prototype stage is where ideas start to take

shape. It is about building simple, scaled-down
versions of a solution to test and refine.
Prototyping brings abstract ideas into the real
world, helping the team spot potential issues early
and make necessary adjustments. These early
models are not final products but tools to explore
different options and figure out what works and
what does not.
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Prototype - Objective

The goal of the Prototype phase is to build basic

models of your ideas to see how they perform in
practice. This stage is all about experimenting—
you want to learn how the solution could function
in real-world situations and identify any flaws or
areas for improvement. Testing prototypes
provides valuable feedback that will guide the
development of your solution. The aim is to use
these early models to shape a final product that is
both effective and easy to use.
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Prototype - Process
The prototyping process involves creating testable versions of your ideas, experimenting with them, and
improving them based on feedback. Here is how it typically works:

Build Low-Fidelity Prototypes

Start by building low-fidelity prototypes—basic, simple versions of your ideas. These could be physical models,
digital wireframes, or even rough sketches, depending on the nature of the project. The goal is to quickly turn
your concept into something tangible without investing too much time or resources.

Test and Get Feedback

Once you have a prototype, share it with users or stakeholders to see how they interact with it. Gather feedback
on what works and what does not. Pay close attention to user reactions and how well the prototype addresses
the problem you are trying to solve.

Iterate and Improve

Use the feedback you have collected to make changes to your prototype. Prototyping is an iterative process,
meaning you will likely go through several rounds of building, testing, and refining before arriving at a final
solution. The more you tweak your prototypes, the closer you get to a workable solution.

Create High-Fidelity Prototypes

As your ideas become more polished, you can start creating more detailed, high-fidelity prototypes. These
versions will be closer to the final product, with additional features and a more complete design. High-fidelity
prototypes offer a clearer picture of what the final solution will look and feel like.

Evaluate and Finalize

After multiple iterations, your prototypes should result in a solution that is ready for final evaluation. At this
point, compare your test results with the original problem to see if the solution effectively addresses it. If
everything checks out, the final product should be just about ready for implementation.
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Prototype - Definition

The Test stage is when you check out your solution

with real users to see how well it works. After
building prototypes, you now need to see how
people interact with them and if the solution meets
their needs. The goal is to gather feedback to help
you improve the design. Testing is a back-and-forth
process—meaning you might need to make
changes based on what you find.

In a business setting, testing often means showing

a prototype to users, customers, or stakeholders to
see how it performs in real-world situations.
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Prototype - Objective

The main goal of the Test phase is to see how

effective the solution is and find areas that need
fixing. You want to find out if the solution truly
solves the users' problems and if there are any
issues that need attention. Specifically, you are
looking to understand:

• Usability: Is the solution easy to use?

• Effectiveness: Does it meet the needs or solve
the problems identified earlier?
• Feedback: What do users like or dislike about
it?

Testing gives you the insights needed to improve

the design or even rethink some parts of the
solution to ensure it works well for your users.
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Prototype - Process
The Test process is all about getting real feedback on your prototype by putting it in
front of users. Here is how testing typically goes:

User Testing:
Let users interact with your prototype. Watch how they use it and ask questions about
their experience. Focus on spotting any confusion, frustrations, or unexpected
behaviours.

Gather Feedback:
Ask for honest feedback on what users liked or did not like. This can be done through
interviews, surveys, or just by observing how they use the product.

Analyze Results:
Review the feedback and test results to find patterns. Are there issues that multiple
users faced? What parts of the design worked well, and what needs improving?

Refine the Prototype:

Based on the feedback, make changes to the prototype. You might need to simplify
features, fix usability problems, or rethink the overall design. Once changes are made,
test again to see if the solution has improved.
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Design Thinking Canvas

Context Solution

Problem Requiremen
Definition ts
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Design Thinking Canvas - Context

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Design Thinking Canvas – Problem Definition

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Design Thinking Canvas – Problem Definition

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Design Thinking Canvas – Problem Definition

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