THE APPLIED DESIGN THINKING COURSE

LEARNING TO SOLVE WITH EMPATHY

At the core of conceiving and developing new innovations is the ability to fundamentally drill down to the real problem to be solved and from that, to figure out which solution will best solve that problem.   This ability can be developed by anyone when they come to understand that there is a process to be used, and that this process is chock full of incredibly powerful tools for unwrapping insights and using them to define best solutions.

We call this process Design Thinking.   Learning to use it well reduces the risk associated with new innovation, while increasing the innovation success rate.   Analogously, the creative toolset associated with Design Thinking we call Design Methods.   With scores of Design Methods available, there are a number of ways for digging into a problem and sorting out a solution, but, again, knowing when, where, and how to apply each Design Method is critical for getting the process to "flow".   Some Methods are best suited for exploring problems, while others, for example, are best suited for converging on solutions.   To be proficient at Design Thinking, the practitioner must know what each Method is best suited for, and when, where, and how to put them to good use.

This 3 day course is designed to educate participants broadly and deeply on the subject of Design Thinking, including how to use Design Thinking for understanding needs and opportunities and from that conceiving and validating best solutions.   It introduces participants to a broad selection of Design Methods and, just as importantly, explains which Methods are best suited to each phase of the process and how to use them effectively.

This course is well–suited to all levels of staff across the organization.