Ten Stories of What Works
Liedtka and her co-authors Andrew King and Kevin Bennett set out to demystify the practicalities of 'design thinking', the process of building a new bridge from current reality to a new future, as successfully exemplified by Apple and IDEO.
Key attributes of design thinking
- it emphasises the importance of investigation prior to solution generation
- it expands the boundaries of definition of both problem and solution
- it is enthusiastic about engaging partners in co-creation
- it commits to running real-world activity rather than historical data analysis
Four stages of design thinking
The authors offer a model that builds a bridge from point A (the known) to point B (the solution), using what they describe as an "end to end process". This entails four questions, which need not be followed in a linear fashion.
- What is? - explores current reality
- What if? - envisions multiple options for creating a new future
- What wows? - makes choices about where to focus first
- What works? - moves to the real world to try things out with actual users
Tools to use in the process
Knowing the process is not enough in itself. The authors also offer some practical ethnographic tools that can be used during any or all of the above steps. They include:
Visualisation - envisioning possibilities and bringing them to life
Journey mapping - assessing the existing experience through the customer/client's eyes, enabling us to map other people’s personal experiences by walking in their shoes
Mind mapping - allows us to understand the values, assumptions, beliefs and expectations of individuals, to see the world through their eyes as they walk through their journeys
Customer co-creation - enrolling customers to participate in creating the solution that best meets their needs
Assumption testing - isolating and testing the key assumptions that will drive the success or failure of a project
"Each problem that I solved became a rule which served afterwards to solve other problems."René Descartes