In our dynamic and fast-paced business world, innovation is not just important but vital to companies that want to be competitive. Either you are developing a new product, service, facing a new problem or bringing new ideas to your company, and we all know that innovation processes are, by their nature, risky and tough.
More and more companies are utilizing “Design Thinking” as a method to drive their innovation processes. Design thinking goes beyond developing products, as companies are now willing to learn how to think like designers and apply it to the workplace itself.
Design-led companies like Coca-cola, Whirpool, Apple, Nike, have outperformed the S&P 500 over the past two years by 219%.
What is Design Thinking?
Design thinking is a user-driven method to develop processes, services, products or solve complex problems. Its application can go much further – you can design the way you lead, manage, create and innovate your business and even your life.
The method is based on three main pillars: immersion, co-creation, prototyping. It has a solution-focused mindset that uses imagination, systematic reasoning and intuition to find a desirable solution for user needs.
Design thinking provides us with a simple and iterative framework which enables us to pursue innovation and add real value to customers while reducing the risks of innovation. It brings the concept of involving the user in the process, which help designers to identify, understand and translate customer needs into actions for the innovation process.
This cartoon, The Design Process, gives a good example of how the Design Thinking process can be applied in product development processes.
Every time is the time to innovate! Start by designing something simple and see how it works for you.
Have any questions? Please, send me a message: mathias@thebusinesstherapist.com
