Tag Archives: Design Thinking

You Can’t Innovate Without This One Thing

You Can't Innovate Without This One Thing

GUEST POST from Robyn Bolton

It just landed on your desk. Or maybe you campaigned to get it. Or perhaps you just started doing it. How the title of “Innovation Leader” got to your desk doesn’t matter nearly as much as the fact that it’s there, along with a budget and loads of expectations.

Of course, now that you have the title and the budget, you need a team to do the work and deliver the results.

Who should you look for? The people that perform well in the current business, with its processes, structures, and (relative) predictability, often struggle to navigate the constant uncertainty and change of innovation. But just because someone struggles in the process and structure of the core business doesn’t mean they’ll thrive creating something new.

What are the qualities that make someone a successful innovator?

70 answers

A lot of people have a lot to say about the qualities and characteristics that make someone an innovator. When you combine the first four Google search results for “characteristics of an innovator” with the five most common innovation talent assessments, you end up with a list of 70 different (and sometimes conflicting) traits.

The complete list is at the end of this article, but here are the characteristics that appeared more than once:

  1. Curious
  2. Persistent
  3. Continuously reflective
  4. Creative
  5. Driven
  6. Experiments
  7. Imaginative
  8. Passionate

It’s a good list, but remember, there are 62 other characteristics to consider. And that assumes that the list is exhaustive.

+1 Answer

It’s not. Something is missing.

There is one characteristic shared by every successful innovator I’ve worked with and every successful leader of innovation. It’s rarely the first (or second or third) word used to describe them, but eventually, it emerges, always said quietly, after great reflection and with dawning realization.

Vulnerability.

Whether you rolled your eyes or pumped your fist at the word made famous by Brene Brown, you’ve no doubt heard it and formed an opinion about it.

Vulnerability is the “quality or state of being exposed to the possibility of being attacked or harmed, either physically or emotionally.”  Without it, innovation is impossible.

Innovation requires the creation of something new that creates value. If something is new, some or all of it is unknown. If there are unknowns, there are risks. Where there are risks, there is the possibility of being wrong, which opens you up to attack or harm.

When you talk to people to understand their needs, vulnerability allows you to hear what they say (versus what you want them to say).

In brainstorming sessions, vulnerability enables you to speak up and suggest an idea for people to respond to, build on, or discard.

When you run experiments, vulnerability ensures that you accurately record and report the data, even if the results aren’t what you hoped.

Most importantly, as a leader, vulnerability inspires trust, motivates your team, engages your stakeholders, and creates the environment and culture required to explore, learn, and innovate continuously.

n + 1 is the answer

Just as you do for every job in your company, recruit the people with the skills required to do the work and the mindset and personality to succeed in your business’ context and culture.

Once you find them, make sure they’re willing to be vulnerable and support and celebrate others’ vulnerability. Then, and only then, will you be the innovators your company needs.


Here’s the full list of characteristics:

  1. Action-oriented, gets the job done
  2. Adaptable
  3. Ambitious
  4. Analytical, high information capacity, digs through facts
  5. Associative Thinker, makes uncommon connections
  6. Breaks Boundaries, disruptive
  7. Business minded
  8. Collaborative
  9. Compelling Leader
  10. Competitive
  11. Consistent
  12. Continuously reflects (x3)
  13. Courageous
  14. Creative (x3)
  15. Curious (x4), asks questions, inquisitive, investigates
  16. Delivers results, seeks tangible outcomes
  17. Disciplined
  18. Divergent Thinker
  19. Driven (x3)
  20. Energetic
  21. Experiments (x2)
  22. Financially oriented
  23. Flexible, fluid
  24. Formally educated and trained
  25. Futuristic
  26. Giving, works to benefit others, wants to make the world better
  27. Goal-oriented
  28. Has a Growth mindset
  29. Highly confident
  30. Honest
  31. Imaginative (x2)
  32. Influential, lots of social capital
  33. Instinctual
  34. Intense
  35. Iterating between abstract and concrete thinking
  36. Learns through experiences
  37. Likes originality, seeks novelty
  38. Loyal
  39. Motivated by change, open to new experiences
  40. Networks, relates well to others
  41. Observes
  42. Opportunistic mindset, recognizes opportunities
  43. Opportunity focused
  44. Passionate (x2)
  45. Patient
  46. Persistent (x4)
  47. Persuasive
  48. Playful
  49. Pragmatic
  50. Proactive
  51. Prudent
  52. Rapidly recognizes patterns
  53. Resilient
  54. Resourceful
  55. Respects other innovators
  56. Seeks understanding
  57. Self-confident
  58. Socially intelligent
  59. Stamina
  60. Takes initiative
  61. Takes risks
  62. Team-oriented
  63. Thinks big picture
  64. Thrives in uncertainty
  65. Tough
  66. Tweaks solutions constantly
  67. Unattached exploration
  68. Visionary
  69. Wants to get things right
  70. Willing to Destroy

And the sources:

Image Credit: Pixabay

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The Experience Economy

Why Design Thinking is Your New Competitive Edge

GUEST POST from Art Inteligencia

Remember when companies competed fiercely on product features, then on service quality? Today, that battlefield has shifted. We live squarely in the Experience Economy, a landscape where customers don’t just buy what you sell; they invest in the emotions, the convenience, the sense of belonging, and the holistic journey your brand orchestrates. From that initial flicker of interest to long after a transaction, every single touchpoint shapes their perception, their loyalty, and their willingness to advocate for you.

As a human-centered change and innovation thought leader, I’ve witnessed organizations stumble when they cling to old paradigms. In this new reality, your competitive edge is no longer just about what you create, but about **how you make people feel**. And the most powerful methodology to master this nuanced art is **Design Thinking.**

Design Thinking is not a fleeting trend or a niche methodology for creative agencies. It’s a profound, empathetic shift in problem-solving that places human needs, desires, and behaviors at its absolute core. It’s an iterative, non-linear process that challenges ingrained assumptions, reframes complex problems, and propels teams to discover truly innovative solutions that resonate deeply with the people they serve.

Beyond Features: Orchestrating Unforgettable Experiences

To truly flourish in the Experience Economy, organizations must transcend a mere feature-list mentality and adopt a holistic, human-centric approach. Design Thinking equips them to build solutions that embody these critical outcomes:

  • Profound Empathy & Insight: It forces you to step into your users’ shoes, understanding their motivations, pain points, and unspoken desires through deep ethnographic research, immersive interviews, and genuine observation – moving far beyond mere surveys.
  • Problem Clarity & Reframing: Instead of rushing to solutions, Design Thinking demands a pause to truly define the *right* problem from the user’s perspective. This often involves reframing the challenge, uncovering root causes, and identifying hidden opportunities previously overlooked.
  • Expansive Ideation & Rapid Prototyping: It liberates teams to generate a vast array of potential solutions through divergent thinking. This is swiftly followed by building rapid, low-fidelity prototypes and testing them directly with users. The goal isn’t perfection; it’s learning quickly and cheaply to iterate towards the optimal solution.
  • Continuous Learning & Agility: Design Thinking inherently fosters a culture of iterative learning. Every “failure” or unexpected user feedback becomes a valuable data point, propelling continuous refinement and ensuring that solutions remain relevant in a dynamic environment.
  • Seamless Cross-Functional Collaboration: It naturally breaks down internal silos, bringing together diverse expertise – from engineers and marketers to customer service and finance – to co-create holistic experiences that span an entire organization, ensuring consistency and coherence.

Case Study 1: Kaiser Permanente – Humanizing Healthcare Journeys

Transforming Healthcare with Patient-Centered Design

Kaiser Permanente, a sprawling integrated healthcare provider in the U.S., delivered strong medical outcomes but often struggled with patient satisfaction due to complex processes and an impersonal environment. Recognizing that patient experience was becoming as crucial as clinical excellence, they embarked on a journey of human-centered redesign.

  • The Challenge: Improve the emotionally charged patient experience, particularly during stressful moments like emergency room visits, without compromising medical quality or drastically increasing costs.
  • Design Thinking in Action: Kaiser Permanente didn’t just survey patients. Multidisciplinary teams immersed themselves in the patient journey: they shadowed patients and staff, observed interactions in waiting rooms, and conducted deep empathy interviews. They uncovered anxieties stemming from long waits, confusing signage, and a lack of clear communication. They learned that small changes, like allowing patients to choose their own gown color, significantly boosted their sense of control and dignity. One of their most famous innovations involved redesigning the nurse shift change: instead of huddling in a back room, nurses now conducted handovers at the patient’s bedside, increasing transparency, reducing errors, and making patients feel more involved in their own care.
  • The Outcome: This empathetic approach led to innovations ranging from simplified wayfinding and redesigned waiting areas to standardized communication protocols. The result was a significantly more human-centered healthcare experience, leading to improved patient satisfaction scores, measurable reductions in medical errors, and enhanced staff morale, all stemming from a profound understanding of the patient’s emotional journey.

**The Lesson:** Design Thinking moves beyond efficiency, focusing on the emotional landscape of the user, leading to compassionate solutions that benefit both people and the bottom line.

Case Study 2: Commonwealth Bank of Australia – Reimagining Digital Banking with Empathy

Reimagining Banking for the Digital Age

Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), one of the nation’s largest financial institutions, faced the challenge of an increasingly commoditized and impersonal banking landscape, particularly for digitally-native younger customers. They understood that their future competitive advantage lay in delivering intuitive, seamless, and emotionally reassuring digital experiences.

  • The Challenge: Simplify inherently complex banking processes, enhance digital engagement, and build deep trust in a rapidly evolving financial ecosystem where traditional loyalty was eroding.
  • Design Thinking in Action: CBA made Design Thinking a foundational element of its digital transformation. They established dedicated “customer rooms” where cross-functional teams (comprising designers, developers, product managers, and even frontline branch staff) directly observed customers interacting with prototypes of new digital features. They moved beyond traditional focus groups, actively bringing customers into the ideation, testing, and refinement phases. For instance, when overhauling their mobile banking app, they deeply explored common pain points like bill payments and money transfers, meticulously simplifying workflows based on actual user behavior and expressed needs. They iteratively built and tested dozens of versions of seemingly simple features, ensuring each step felt intuitive, secure, and empowering.
  • The Outcome: This human-centered rigor led to a highly acclaimed mobile banking app featuring intuitive tools like “Spend Tracker” for budget management and streamlined payment flows, alongside a significantly more user-friendly online platform. By empathizing with the emotional journey of banking—from anxiety about managing finances to the joy of reaching savings goals—they built digital products that felt profoundly empathetic and empowering.

**The Lesson:** By deeply understanding the human emotions tied to financial interactions, Design Thinking enabled CBA to create digital solutions that fostered trust and loyalty, not just transactional efficiency.

Embrace Design Thinking: Architecting Your Experiential Future

For organizations determined to lead in the Experience Economy, integrating Design Thinking is no longer an optional extra; it is the strategic imperative. Here’s your roadmap:

  1. Cultivate Profound Empathy: Train and empower your teams to truly listen, observe, and feel what your customers experience. Go beyond data points; immerse yourselves in their lives. Conduct ethnographic research, build detailed customer journey maps, and lead with empathy interviews.
  2. Champion Problem Reframing: Resist the urge to jump to solutions. Encourage your teams to step back, question assumptions, and redefine problems from the user’s perspective, unlocking unexpected avenues for innovation.
  3. Promote Relentless Prototyping & Iteration: Shift your culture from “big-bang” launches to rapid, low-fidelity prototyping and continuous testing cycles. Embrace “fail fast, learn faster” as a mantra for accelerating insights.
  4. Forge Cross-Functional Power Teams: Deliberately break down internal silos. Bring together diverse expertise from across your organization—from R&D to marketing to customer service—early and often, to ensure holistic, seamless solutions.
  5. Foster a Culture of Psychological Safety: Create an environment where testing new ideas, challenging the status quo, and learning from “failures” is not just tolerated, but actively celebrated. Risk-taking is the engine of innovation.

In a world where products are rapidly commoditized and services easily replicated, the human experience stands as the ultimate, enduring differentiator. Design Thinking provides the robust, empathetic methodology to consistently deliver those exceptional, unforgettable experiences—transforming fleeting customers into fervent loyalists and securing your organization’s indelible position as a true leader in the Experience Economy.

“If you want to create breakthrough products, you need to think like a designer. You need to fall in love with the problem, not the solution.”
– Tim Brown, IDEO

Extra Extra: Futurology is not fortune telling. Futurists use a scientific approach to create their deliverables, but a methodology and tools like those in FutureHacking™ can empower anyone to engage in futurology themselves.

Image credit: Gemini & Braden Kelley

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Design Thinking in Non-Design Industries

Design Thinking in Non-Design Industries

GUEST POST from Art Inteligencia

Welcome to a future where the rigid processes of traditional industries are infused with a profound sense of purpose and a touch of human ingenuity. For too long, “design thinking” has been mistakenly confined to the studios of creative agencies and the tech hubs of Silicon Valley. But as a staunch advocate for human-centered change and innovation, I’ve witnessed its transformative power unleashed in the most unexpected arenas: healthcare, finance, education, and even heavy manufacturing. It’s time to redefine its reach.

At its heart, design thinking is not about aesthetics; it’s about empathy-driven problem-solving. It’s a robust methodology, rooted in the designer’s approach, that masterfully integrates what is humanly desirable, technologically feasible, and economically viable. More than just a process, it’s a revolutionary mindset that challenges assumptions, encourages rapid experimentation, and champions continuous learning from real-world feedback. These are precisely the qualities that make it indispensable for sectors historically characterized by linearity, risk aversion, and an often impersonal approach.

Consider the typical landscape of non-design industries: they are often defined by their complex systems, deeply ingrained procedures, and an almost singular focus on efficiency, compliance, and scale. While these pillars are crucial for stability, they can inadvertently lead to solutions that are technically sound but critically disconnected from the very people they are meant to serve. This is the profound gap that design thinking expertly bridges, offering a dynamic pathway to innovation that is not only effective but also deeply resonates with human needs.

The renowned five phases of design thinking – Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test – are not a sequential dogma. Instead, they form a fluid, iterative ecosystem. You might find yourself looping back from testing to empathize further, or redefining the problem based on new insights gained during ideation. This inherent flexibility is the methodology’s superpower, allowing it to gracefully navigate the inherent ambiguities and evolving complexities of human challenges.

Why It Works: The Unseen Force of Empathy and Iteration

The transformative impact of design thinking in non-design industries stems from its unwavering commitment to placing the human at the absolute center of the challenge. Instead of presuming needs, it actively, almost obsessively, seeks to understand the experiences, frustrations, aspirations, and behaviors of stakeholders. This profound empathy, meticulously cultivated through immersive interviews, direct observation, and genuine immersion, consistently unearths insights that traditional market research or quantitative analysis often miss.

Hand-in-hand with empathy is the revolutionary power of rapid prototyping and iteration. In industries where the pace of change can be glacially slow and risk-aversion is paramount, design thinking champions quick, low-fidelity experiments. This “fail fast, learn faster” philosophy dramatically minimizes investment in potentially flawed solutions, accelerating the discovery of what truly works. It fundamentally shifts the organizational perspective from merely avoiding failure to actively embracing it as a vital source of learning and growth.

Let’s illuminate this with two compelling real-world examples:

Case Study 1: Revolutionizing the Patient Journey in Healthcare

Healthcare, a sector frequently grappling with labyrinthine bureaucracy and a purely clinical lens, is perhaps one of the most fertile grounds for human-centered innovation. Imagine the formidable challenge of enhancing the patient experience within a sprawling hospital system. A conventional approach might lean on operational efficiency improvements, new technology procurement, or standardized staff training. While these are certainly valuable, they often inadvertently overlook the profound emotional and psychological journey of the patient.

A forward-thinking hospital group in the Midwest embarked on this very quest, adopting design thinking to fundamentally reshape their approach. They began not by analyzing metrics, but by deeply Empathizing with patients, their families, and frontline healthcare providers. Through extensive, intimate interviews, shadowing patients throughout their appointments, and observing interactions in waiting areas and consultation rooms, they uncovered a vital truth.

What they precisely Defined as the core problem wasn’t merely extended wait times, but the pervasive anxiety, uncertainty, and feelings of being unheard that those waits engendered. Patients felt like cogs in a machine, overwhelmed by the clinical environment.

This critical insight fueled an intensive Ideation phase that transcended superficial fixes. Ideas blossomed: from interactive digital displays providing real-time updates and educational content in waiting areas, to dedicated “patient navigators” guiding individuals through complex procedures, and even radical redesigns of recovery rooms to feel less sterile and more comforting, more healing.

They swiftly Prototyped these concepts with remarkable agility: a simple paper mock-up of the digital display, role-playing scenarios for patient navigators, and even reconfiguring a disused room to test new furniture layouts and lighting. Crucially, they Tested these prototypes with actual patients and staff, gathering immediate, candid feedback.

The transformative outcome? A significant surge in patient satisfaction scores, a marked reduction in reported patient anxiety, and even a measurable decrease in missed appointments because patients felt genuinely engaged, informed, and cared for. The hospital didn’t just optimize a process; they profoundly reimagined and enhanced a human experience by centering their innovation around it.

Case Study 2: Empowering Underserved Communities with Human-Centered Financial Services

Financial services, often perceived as an impenetrable fortress of complexity and jargon, stand to gain immensely from a human-centered perspective, especially when serving marginalized or underserved populations. A microfinance institution in Southeast Asia confronted a persistent challenge: stubbornly low adoption rates for its savings products among rural villagers. Traditional solutions had often focused on competitive interest rates or aggressive marketing campaigns.

The institution courageously embraced design thinking, commencing with a period of profound Empathy for the villagers. Their teams lived within the communities, participated in daily chores, and engaged in informal, trust-building conversations, going far beyond the scope of formal surveys. They uncovered a critical insight: while people conceptually understood the value of saving, their daily lives were characterized by extreme unpredictability, with fluctuating, often meager, incomes and pressing, immediate needs. The rigid structures of conventional savings accounts simply did not align with their chaotic reality. Furthermore, a deep-seated distrust in formal financial institutions was a significant hurdle.

The newly Defined problem was not a lack of desire to save, but a critical absence of flexible, trustworthy, and genuinely accessible savings mechanisms that harmonized with their unique financial rhythms and vital social structures.

Collaborative Ideation sessions, involving both financial product specialists and community leaders, generated groundbreaking concepts. These included “group savings” models intrinsically linked to existing local social networks, mobile-based micro-savings allowing for tiny, frequent deposits and withdrawals, and even a system where highly respected local shopkeepers served as informal, trusted banking agents.

They rapidly Prototyped these innovative ideas using remarkably simple, accessible tools: mock mobile interfaces drawn on paper, small-scale community pilots, and even hand-drawn “passbooks” for the group savings initiatives. Critically, they rigorously Tested these prototypes with the very individuals they aimed to serve, gathering raw, honest feedback on usability, perceived trustworthiness, and practical relevance.

This iterative process culminated in a transformative mobile-first savings product that offered unparalleled flexibility in deposits and withdrawals, seamlessly integrated with a robust network of community-based agents who acted as trusted intermediaries. The remarkable outcome was a dramatic and sustainable increase in savings adoption, showcasing how design thinking could unlock true financial inclusion by profoundly understanding and respecting the user’s authentic context and needs.

The Path Forward: Embracing a Human-Centric Future

These powerful case studies unequivocally demonstrate that design thinking is far more than a fleeting corporate fad; it is a pragmatic, universally applicable, and profoundly effective methodology for tackling complex challenges across every imaginable industry. It demands a fundamental shift from a traditional product-centric or process-centric viewpoint to an unwavering human-centric one.

For non-design industries striving to innovate, remain relevant, and thrive in an increasingly volatile and human-driven world, embracing design thinking is no longer an optional endeavor – it is a strategic imperative. It requires organizational leaders to cultivate a culture steeped in boundless curiosity, to foster a climate of psychological safety where experimentation is encouraged, and to possess an unshakeable willingness to challenge deeply held assumptions.

It’s about transcending mere functionality to craft solutions that genuinely resonate, creating value that extends far beyond the quarterly earnings report to profoundly touch and enrich the lives of the people they serve. So, I urge you: go forth. Empathize. Define. Ideate. Prototype. Test. And most importantly, always, always stay human. The future of innovation, in every industry, depends on it.

Extra Extra: Futurology is not fortune telling. Futurists use a scientific approach to create their deliverables, but a methodology and tools like those in FutureHacking™ can empower anyone to engage in futurology themselves.

Image credit: Pexels

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The Importance of Diversity in Innovation Teams

The Importance of Diversity in Innovation Teams

GUEST POST from Chateau G Pato

In a world defined by rapid change and complexity, innovation is the engine of progress. But what powers innovation? The answer lies in diversity—the rich tapestry of perspectives, experiences, and ideas that diverse teams bring to the table. Diversity in innovation teams is not a luxury; it’s a necessity for creating solutions that resonate with a global audience. Diverse teams challenge assumptions, uncover blind spots, and spark breakthroughs that homogenous groups often overlook. In this article, we’ll explore why diversity is critical to innovation, examine two powerful case studies, and offer practical steps for building inclusive teams that drive human-centered change.

Why Diversity Fuels Innovation

Diversity in innovation teams encompasses more than demographics like race, gender, or age. It includes cognitive diversity—different ways of thinking and problem-solving—as well as socioeconomic, geographic, and professional diversity. This multifaceted approach ensures that teams approach challenges from multiple angles, leading to more creative and effective solutions. A 2015 McKinsey study found that companies in the top quartile for racial and ethnic diversity were 15% more likely to achieve above-average financial returns, while those with gender diversity were 25% more likely to outperform their peers.

But the benefits go beyond numbers. Diverse teams foster psychological safety, where team members feel empowered to share bold ideas without fear of judgment. This environment is critical for human-centered innovation, which relies on empathy to address the needs of diverse audiences. However, diversity alone isn’t enough—organizations must cultivate inclusion to ensure every voice is heard and valued. Without inclusion, diversity can lead to conflict or disengagement, undermining innovation efforts.

Case Study 1: IBM’s Design Thinking Transformation

In the early 2010s, IBM faced a challenge: how to stay competitive in a fast-evolving tech landscape. The company turned to design thinking, a human-centered approach to innovation, and prioritized diversity in its teams. IBM assembled cross-functional groups that included engineers, designers, data scientists, and marketers from diverse cultural, racial, and professional backgrounds. These teams were trained to empathize with users, define problems collaboratively, and prototype solutions iteratively.

The impact was profound. Diverse teams helped shape IBM’s Watson AI platform, ensuring its applications—particularly in healthcare—addressed the needs of varied patient populations. For example, insights from team members with international healthcare experience led to features that supported multilingual patient interactions, improving accessibility. By 2018, IBM reported a 300% increase in ROI for design-driven projects, with diverse teams credited for identifying user needs that might have been missed by less varied groups.

“Our diverse teams brought perspectives that challenged our assumptions and made Watson a truly global solution,” said Phil Gilbert, former President of IBM Design. “Inclusion was the key to unlocking their potential.”

[Image: A diverse IBM team collaborates in a design thinking workshop, using sticky notes and whiteboards to map user journeys. Alt text: A group of professionals from varied backgrounds brainstorming around a whiteboard filled with colorful sticky notes.]

Case Study 2: Procter & Gamble’s Connect + Develop Program

Procter & Gamble (P&G) revolutionized its innovation strategy with its Connect + Develop program, launched in the early 2000s. The initiative sought external partnerships to co-create products, and diversity was at its core. P&G formed teams that blended internal employees with external experts from startups, academia, and global communities, representing diverse industries, cultures, and socioeconomic backgrounds. This approach disrupted P&G’s traditional thinking and led to groundbreaking innovations.

The Swiffer product line is a prime example. A diverse team of chemists, marketers, and external designers from varied cultural contexts collaborated to address unmet consumer needs for convenient cleaning. Insights from team members with experience in emerging markets ensured the Swiffer was affordable and practical for a wide range of households. The result? Swiffer became a $1 billion brand within a few years, contributing to P&G’s reported 50% innovation success rate through Connect + Develop.

“Diversity gave us a window into consumer needs we hadn’t seen before,” said Laura Becker, a former P&G innovation leader. “Our global team members brought ideas that transformed our approach.”

[Image: A Swiffer product prototype being tested by a diverse focus group in a real-world setting. Alt text: A group of people from different backgrounds testing a Swiffer mop in a home environment.]

Overcoming Challenges in Diverse Teams

While diversity drives innovation, it can also present challenges. Differing perspectives may lead to conflict, and unconscious bias can hinder inclusion. To address these issues, organizations must invest in training to mitigate bias, establish clear communication norms, and promote active listening. Leaders should also set shared goals to align diverse teams around a common purpose, ensuring that differences become a source of strength rather than division.

Building Diverse Innovation Teams: Practical Steps

Creating diverse, inclusive innovation teams requires intentional action. Here are five practical steps to get started:

  • Recruit with Purpose: Actively seek talent from underrepresented groups and diverse disciplines to build a robust talent pipeline.
  • Foster Psychological Safety: Create a culture where team members feel safe to share ideas and take risks, using tools like anonymous feedback systems.
  • Use Human-Centered Frameworks: Adopt design thinking or similar approaches to focus on empathy and user needs, leveraging diversity to understand varied audiences.
  • Train for Inclusion: Provide regular training on unconscious bias and inclusive leadership to ensure all voices are valued.
  • Measure and Celebrate Success: Track diversity metrics and celebrate innovations driven by diverse teams to reinforce their value.

By implementing these steps, organizations can harness the full potential of diversity to drive innovation that resonates with a global market.

Conclusion: A Call to Action

Diversity is the cornerstone of innovation in a connected world. The case studies of IBM and P&G demonstrate that diverse teams deliver measurable results—higher ROI, breakthrough products, and solutions that serve diverse audiences. But building such teams requires commitment. As leaders, we must challenge ourselves to recruit inclusively, foster psychological safety, and leverage human-centered tools to unlock creativity. The future of innovation depends on our ability to embrace the full spectrum of human potential. Start today—audit your teams, identify gaps in diversity, and take action to build a more inclusive innovation culture.

Extra Extra: Because innovation is all about change, Braden Kelley’s human-centered change methodology and tools are the best way to plan and execute the changes necessary to support your innovation and transformation efforts — all while literally getting everyone all on the same page for change. Find out more about the methodology and tools, including the book Charting Change by following the link. Be sure and download the TEN FREE TOOLS while you’re here.

Image credit: Pexels

Guest AI: Grok

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Real-World Applications of Design Thinking

Real-World Applications of Design Thinking

GUEST POST from Chateau G Pato

As a human-centered change and innovation thought leader, I’ve witnessed firsthand how design thinking can revolutionize the way organizations approach complex problems. Design thinking is not just a process but a mindset that prioritizes empathy, experimentation, and iteration. In this article, I’ll explore some real-world applications of design thinking, showcasing its transformative potential through two compelling case studies.

The Essence of Design Thinking

Design thinking emphasizes an iterative process and involves stages like empathy, definition, ideation, prototyping, and testing. Its power lies in its ability to break down silos, foster collaboration, and create solutions that are deeply aligned with user needs.

Case Study 1: Improving Public Transportation in Singapore

Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) faced challenges in optimizing the city’s public transportation system. With overcrowding and inefficiencies impeding commuter satisfaction, the LTA needed innovative solutions. They turned to design thinking for help.

The LTA began with the empathy phase, conducting in-depth interviews and surveys with commuters, bus drivers, and staff. This approach helped them to uncover pain points such as long waiting times, insufficient information about bus schedules, and crowded carriages.

In the ideation phase, multiple brainstorming sessions were held, bringing together diverse perspectives from designers, engineers, and everyday commuters. Ideas like real-time tracking apps, the redesign of bus stops, and enhanced user information systems were prototyped and tested with actual users.

Through iterative prototyping, the LTA successfully implemented real-time digital screens at bus stops, providing exact arrival times and occupancy levels. This innovation not only improved commuter satisfaction but also led to a 15% increase in public transport usage.

Case Study 2: Revolutionizing Healthcare through Human-Centered Design

Healthcare can often be a challenging field for both patients and providers. The Mayo Clinic, recognized globally for its patient-centered care, saw an opportunity to enhance patient experience further using design thinking.

The clinic embarked on an empathy-driven exploration by gathering insights from patients, families, and medical staff. They discovered that while the clinical care was excellent, the waiting experience and navigation through the facility were areas needing improvement.

With these insights, multidisciplinary teams engaged in ideation sessions, which led to the design of a patient-centric app. This app provided real-time updates on appointment timings, directional aid within the hospital, and educational content about their medical procedures.

Prototypes of the app were developed and tested with patients and staff, leading to refinements based on feedback. The final product was launched, significantly improving patient satisfaction scores and reducing perceived waiting times by 30%.

Conclusion

Design thinking is a powerful tool for organizations seeking to innovate and address complex challenges. By putting the user at the center of the process, organizations can create solutions that truly resonate with people’s needs. Whether it’s revolutionizing public transport in Singapore or enhancing patient care at the Mayo Clinic, the examples above illustrate the tangible impacts of this approach. As we move forward, the continued application of design thinking promises to unlock even greater potential in various sectors worldwide.

Extra Extra: Because innovation is all about change, Braden Kelley’s human-centered change methodology and tools are the best way to plan and execute the changes necessary to support your innovation and transformation efforts — all while literally getting everyone all on the same page for change. Find out more about the methodology and tools, including the book Charting Change by following the link. Be sure and download the TEN FREE TOOLS while you’re here.

Image credit: Unsplash

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How to Cultivate a Design Thinking Mindset

How to Cultivate a Design Thinking Mindset

GUEST POST from Chateau G Pato

In today’s fast-paced world, innovation and adaptability are key to success. Design Thinking offers a structured yet flexible approach for organizations to tackle complex problems and design creative solutions. By cultivating a design thinking mindset, teams can efficiently address challenges in a human-centered way. Here’s how you can develop this crucial mindset in your organization.

Understanding Design Thinking

Design Thinking is an iterative process at its core, focused on understanding the user, challenging assumptions, and redefining problems. It involves five phases: Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test. This approach not only fosters innovation but also empowers teams to create products or solutions that genuinely resonate with users.

Core Principles of a Design Thinking Mindset

Before diving into practical steps, let’s explore some key principles of a Design Thinking mindset:

  • Empathy: Understanding the needs and experiences of users.
  • Collaboration: Bringing together diverse perspectives.
  • Experimentation: Encouraging a culture of prototyping and testing.
  • User-Centered Focus: Placing the user at the center of design efforts.
  • Iterative Learning: Constantly iterating based on feedback and research.

Steps to Cultivate a Design Thinking Mindset

1. Foster Empathy

Empathy is the foundation of Design Thinking. To cultivate it, encourage team members to engage directly with customers. Observational research, interviews, and feedback sessions can help them view the world through the users’ eyes. This understanding leads to deeper insights and more user-focused solutions.

2. Embrace a Collaborative Environment

Diverse teams bring various perspectives that spark creativity and innovation. Encourage collaboration by breaking down silos within the organization. Create spaces where interdisciplinary teams can work together seamlessly, fostering a culture of open communication and shared objectives.

3. Encourage Experimentation

Creating a safe space for experimentation is vital. Allow your team to take risks and learn from failures without fear. Prototyping and testing ideas early in the process enables teams to learn from each iteration quickly, improving overall solution quality.

4. Keep the User at the Core

A user-centered focus is essential. Regularly involving users in the design process ensures that the final product aligns with their needs and preferences. Methods such as user personas and journey mapping can keep your team focused on delivering value to the user.

5. Iterate Based on Feedback

Design Thinking is an ongoing process. Encourage continuous learning by iterating based on real user feedback. This not only refines solutions but also ensures they remain relevant and effective over time.

Case Studies

Case Study 1: Airbnb

Airbnb is a prime example of how design thinking can transform a business. With the company struggling in its early days, the founders decided to deeply understand their users. By renting out their space on Airbnb, they walked in their users’ shoes. This firsthand experience and empathy led them to create features that improved the user experience significantly, such as professional photography services for listings. This approach played a significant role in Airbnb’s growth and success.

Case Study 2: IBM

IBM adopted Design Thinking to reinvigorate its innovation efforts across multiple departments. By training their staff in Design Thinking methods and principles, IBM emphasized empathy, collaboration, and iteration. This cultural shift encouraged teams to focus on user outcomes and iterate on solutions rapidly. As a result, IBM increased its speed to market and improved customer satisfaction substantially, exemplifying the transformative power of a design thinking mindset.

Conclusion

Embracing a Design Thinking mindset offers a competitive advantage in today’s challenging business landscape. By focusing on empathy, collaboration, experimentation, a user-centered approach, and continual iteration, organizations can drive meaningful innovation and gain deeper insights into their users’ needs. Start by nurturing these principles within your teams, and watch as new, creative solutions come to life.

Implementing Design Thinking isn’t a one-off project; it’s a continuous journey that requires commitment and openness. However, the rewards in creativity, innovation, and user satisfaction make it a powerful strategy for any forward-thinking organization.

Extra Extra: Because innovation is all about change, Braden Kelley’s human-centered change methodology and tools are the best way to plan and execute the changes necessary to support your innovation and transformation efforts — all while literally getting everyone all on the same page for change. Find out more about the methodology and tools, including the book Charting Change by following the link. Be sure and download the TEN FREE TOOLS while you’re here.

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Design Thinking versus Human-Centered Design

Clearing the Confusion

Design Thinking versus Human-Centered Design

GUEST POST from Chateau G Pato

In the realm of innovation and creative problem-solving, two approaches often emerge as frontrunners: Design Thinking and Human-Centered Design. While these methodologies share similarities, they are not identical. Understanding their nuances is essential for organizations striving to remain competitive and truly meet the needs of their users.

Understanding Design Thinking

Design Thinking is a solution-focused methodology that revolves around a structured innovation cycle. It comprises five stages:

  1. Empathize
  2. Define
  3. Ideate
  4. Prototype
  5. Test

This approach is both iterative and non-linear, allowing teams to move back and forth between phases as needed. It emphasizes understanding the end-user, challenging assumptions, and redefining problems to identify alternative strategies and solutions.

Exploring Human-Centered Design

Human-Centered Design (HCD), on the other hand, is an approach that prioritizes the users, their needs, and their challenges at every phase of the design process. HCD is deeply rooted in empathy for the user, with a strong focus on co-creation and active involvement of stakeholders throughout the design and development process.

HCD follows a similar journey to Design Thinking with slightly different emphases: Inspiration, Ideation, and Implementation. Its essence lies in creating solutions that are not only innovative but also truly resonate with and enhance users’ experiences.

Key Differences

While both methodologies prioritize the user and involve iterative processes, the key differences lie in their application and focus:

  • Application Scope: Design Thinking is often applied more broadly beyond design contexts, in corporate strategy, service design, and product management. Human-Centered Design, however, remains closely tied to the design field itself.
  • Emphasis: HCD places a stronger emphasis on empathy and user engagement throughout the process, while Design Thinking maintains a balance between user needs and business viability.

Case Study 1: IBM’s Adoption of Design Thinking

IBM’s Transformation Through Design Thinking

IBM is an exemplary case study of how embracing Design Thinking cultivates innovation. Traditionally known for its technical and engineering prowess, IBM found itself needing to pivot towards a more user-oriented approach to keep pace with evolving market demands.

By training over 100,000 employees in Design Thinking, IBM fundamentally shifted its corporate culture. This initiative encouraged cross-functional collaboration and a deeper connection to user insights. As a result, IBM was able to accelerate product development cycles and significantly improve the customer experience across their service offerings.

An example of this transformation is the redesign of IBM’s enterprise cloud offerings. Through Design Thinking workshops, they discovered that the complexity of their product was hindering user adoption. By empathizing with the user and iterating on design prototypes, IBM streamlined its cloud interface, leading to a significant uptick in user satisfaction and engagement.

Case Study 2: IDEO and Human-Centered Design in Action

IDEO’s Human-Centered Design Approach to Healthcare

IDEO, a global design company, is a beacon of Human-Centered Design, particularly renowned for its work in healthcare. One compelling case is IDEO’s collaboration with the healthcare sector to redesign patient experience.

By employing HCD techniques, IDEO involved patients, doctors, and nurses in the entire design process. Through in-depth interviews, shadowing medical staff, and empathy-building exercises, IDEO identified that the anxiety and fear surrounding hospital visits stemmed largely from uncertainty and lack of clear communication.

Taking these insights, IDEO created new hospital layouts that integrated clearer signage and communication touchpoints. They developed prototype communication tools that ensured patients were continually informed of treatment processes. These changes dramatically reduced patient anxiety and improved overall satisfaction scores in the hospitals they partnered with.

Conclusion: Bridging the Gap

To clear the confusion between Design Thinking and Human-Centered Design, organizations need to realize that while both are valuable, their adoption depends on specific needs and contexts. Design Thinking may be better suited for broader strategic or organizational innovation, whereas Human-Centered Design offers unparalleled depth in user-focused product and experience development.

Ultimately, integrating the strengths of both methodologies can create a powerful design and innovation strategy that not only meets user needs but also drives meaningful business results. By cultivating a culture of empathy and user engagement, organizations can transcend traditional problem-solving paradigms and achieve sustainable innovation.

Extra Extra: Because innovation is all about change, Braden Kelley’s human-centered change methodology and tools are the best way to plan and execute the changes necessary to support your innovation and transformation efforts — all while literally getting everyone all on the same page for change. Find out more about the methodology and tools, including the book Charting Change by following the link. Be sure and download the TEN FREE TOOLS while you’re here.

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What You Must Know Before Leading a Design Thinking Workshop

What You Need to Know Before Leading a Design Thinking Workshop

GUEST POST from Douglas Ferguson

Leading a design thinking workshop can completely transform your company for the better. According to the 71% of brands that champion design thinking, making a shift to a design-centered mindset will dramatically improve productivity and work ethic amongst your staff.

Are you ready to take your team to the next level?

If you’re ready to take your team to the next level by leading a design thinking workshop, it’s essential to know the basics of design thinking first. Having a deeper understanding of this human-centered approach will make it easier to get your team on board with this process.

In this article we’ll cover the basics of design thinking and the best way to approach leading a workshop for your team with the following topics:

  • What is Design Thinking?
  • A History of Design Methodology
  • The Six Phases of Design Thinking
  • Leading a Design Thinking Workshop

Understanding Design Thinking

Design thinking is a creative problem-solving method that centers on the needs of the end-user, by considering them first when creating products or services. When you authentically understand the wants and needs of the consumer, you can develop successful products and services they value and use to improve their lives.

Ultimately, a design thinking approach helps you understand the experience of the end-user by adopting the end user’s mindset and creating your product or service from this perspective.

A History of Design Thinking

The human-centered design process is an extension of the design thinking methodology. Though scientists, creatives, scholars, analysts, and engineers have studied this methodology for the past several years, the idea to apply a design mindset to problem-solving as a business strategy didn’t exist until the cognitive scientist and Nobel Prize laureate Herbert A. Simon coined the term in 1969. Simon explained the modern idea of design as an applicable way of thinking about business in his book, The Sciences of the Artificial.

Whiteboarding

Since Simon began the conversation about the design thinking methodology, many academic elites and experts have adopted this concept and expanded upon it. Yet one thing remains the same: the user should be at the core of any design process. The human-centered process is an exploration of how to accurately and innovatively create a product or service that satisfies consumers’ wants and needs.

“We must design for the way people behave, not for how we would wish them to behave.” –Donald A. Norman, Living with Complexity

Women with Laptop Pexels

The Six Phases of Design Thinking

Let’s take a look at the six phases of the human-centered design process to learn how to create with purpose as you prepare for leading a design thinking workshop.

1. Observe & Understand Users’ Behavior

The first phase of the design thinking process is to observe and understand the end user’s behavior to learn as much as possible about their needs. This allows you to better understand the people you are designing for as you approach problem-solving from their perspective. Doing so will allow you to deeply empathize with them and identify opportunities to better cater to and address these issues.

By identifying the end user’s behavioral patterns you’ll have a clearer understanding of what your customers enjoy and what they are dissatisfied with. This phase allows for greater innovation as you build trust and connect to your consumers.

Women Collaboration Pexels

2. Ideation

The ideation phase focuses on brainstorming new solutions based on what you learned by observing the end-user. Remember to stay focused on a human-centered design process while generating ideas. The use of divergent thinking is critical in this stage to foster creativity and generate as many ideas as possible.

In the ideation phase, everything is fair game. For example, instead of worrying about the details of how your potential ideas will work, focus on “why not?”

There are no right or wrong answers, only potential creative solutions to the problems you’ve identified. When you prioritize the needs and desires of the people you are creating for, you’ll arrive at the most successful solutions that you’ll continue to refine through the rest of the design thinking process.

3. Prototype

Now that you have potential solutions, it’s time to bring your best ideas to life with rapid prototypes. In this phase, you’ll test your ideas in real-time with real people to get their feedback. Rapid prototypes are quick and easy versions of the ideas you want to create. Their role is to ensure that your vision is on target and it allows you space to make amendments based on feedback before you make the final product.

This experimental phase isn’t about perfection. The goal is to create a quick, tangible prototype so that you can test it.

Group of People Whiteboarding Pexels

4. Feedback

In the feedback phase of the design process, you’ll test your prototype. This is perhaps the most vital part of the human-centered design process as it will determine whether or not your idea works for the people you are designing for.

Get your prototype in the hands of your target consumer and ask them: how and why does this product/service achieve or fail to reach your needs and desires? During this stage, you’ll want to collect as many details as possible from testers as you’ll use this feedback to finalize your solution.

5. Integration

The integration phase of the design thinking process helps you to identify the usefulness of the proposed solution. Consider the feedback you receive and how you can implement it into your design to make it better. This is a fluid process: integrate, test, and repeat until you reach the best version of your idea. Once your solution is fully-fledged and replicable, it’s time to share it.

6. Application

It’s time to send your idea out into the world! During this last stage of the design thinking process, make the final prototype and share it. It’s important to keep an eye on changes in your target audience and their needs and desires as time progresses so that you can make adaptations to your design as necessary.

With each new update, return to phase one and repeat the process for best results. Remember that the user’s needs change over time, so it is important to anticipate future alterations to best serve consumers’ changing needs.


Leading a Design Thinking Workshop

When we approach innovation with a human-centered design process, we are able to empathize with and therefore better understand the end-user and what they truly desire. Everything we create is an extension from t

When we approach innovation with a human-centered design process, we can empathize with and therefore better understand the end-user and what they truly desire. By leading a design thinking workshop, you’ll encourage your team to innovate in this human-centered way. As you create everything from this level of self-awareness, you’ll ultimately develop better products and services as you improve your company and team as well.

Once you have a clear understanding of the design thinking process, you’ll be able to lead your design thinking workshop with your team. Whether your design sprint is a few days or a few hours, a well-executed design thinking workshop will help you keep your customers’ needs top of mind.

Hiring a professional facilitator is one of the best ways to lead a design thinking workshop at your company. At Voltage Control, our team of facilitators is happy to assist you in your design thinking needs. With a clear understanding of this methodology and an effort to lead your team with the same mentality, you’re sure to see the benefits of adopting a design thinking approach.

This article originally appeared on VoltageControl.com, you can find it HERE.


Do you want to learn more about human-centered design?

Voltage Control facilitates design thinking workshops, innovation sessions, and Design Sprints. Please reach out at hello@voltagecontrol.com for a consultation.

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Problem Seeking 101

Problem Seeking 101 Charles Kettering

GUEST POST from Arlen Meyers

When federal agencies in charge of protecting Americans’ health recommended that there should be a pause in the administration of the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) COVID-19 vaccine, state health leaders listened and suspended its use. People may experience a mild headache after vaccination. The headaches associated with the blood clot occur one to three weeks after the shot and are more severe.

One expert recommended asking patients, “Is this like headaches you’ve had before? Or is the quality of the headache something that you’ve never experienced before?”

The 12 steps to biomedical innovation starts with being a problem seeker, not a problem solver. Eventually, to be successful, customer problems and solutions need to meld around a VAST business model i.e. one that is not just profitable, but that demonstrates:

1. Validity Regardless or which elements of your model you choose, they have to be valid. In other words, the dogs have to eat the food. When the dog won’t eat the food, you’ll have to change your approach and try again.

2. Automaticity At the very start of planning your venture, you should think about how you are going to work on your business, not in it. Reducing hands on time to manage operations will give you more time to lead the company and create strategies for growth and give you more personal time to enjoy the fruits of your success. Outsourcing, automating or using technologies to ramp up operations, sourcing and distribution is a key part of scaling, and something that investors want to see…which brings us to the next piece.

3. Scalability Your business model is primarily a way to create a business machine that can produce an infinite number of products. Think of it as a device that takes in customers and creates profits out the other end and can do so at quicker and quicker speeds.

4. Time and Traction Finally, your model need to create as much profit as quickly as possible with a growing customer base that is loyal to your brand.

Many doctors, scientists and engineers start with solutions looking for a problem. Some find it or, eventually, as their inventions or technology evolves, markets appear to those who have the talent to see them. The more typical model, and one that is more common among the startup community, is to find a problem and devise a solution.

But, how do you pick the IDEAL opportunity given the almost infinite possibilities? Here are some tips:

I Identify the problem: Seeing a problem is an important skill and core competency of savvy entrepreneurs. It typically is the result of personal experience, primary research talking or watching others or secondary research. Whichever problem you pick, look for ones that:

  1. Will make a very big difference in people’s lives if you solve it
  2. Has the potential to be very profitable or create lots of user defined value, typically at least 10x the value compared to existing offerings or the status quo.
  3. Is something that taps into your passion or satisfies your psychic need
  4. Anticipates future customer/stakeholder wants and needs
  5. Has an extremely high level of market pain and frustration, where customers know they have a problem and have unsuccessfully and repeatedly tried to solve it
  6. Has limited barriers to entry
  7. Has the right potential risk-return profile that matches yours
  8. Is not one dominated by incumbents
  9. Is easy to explain and understand
  10. Someone is willing to pay enough for your solution so that you can make it profitably

Where massive success comes – where a good idea becomes great – is when it meets five simple criteria:

  1. It is the first solution to a problem or gap (it is “innovative”)
  2. It is the first WORKING solution to a problem or gap (it is “innovative and effective”)
  3. It is the most affordable, comparable, option for its market (it is “innovativeeffective and affordable”)
  4. It consistently examines its effectiveness and seeks to improve (it is “innovativeeffectiveaffordableand adaptive”)
  5. It is powerful enough to create a loyal following that naturally wants to – and does – share the idea with others (it is “innovativeeffectiveaffordableadaptive and influential”)

How do you find problems worth solving?

  1. 1. Solve a problem that you already face
  2. 2. Observe a problem and solve it
  3. 3. Anticipate a problem and solve it
  4. 4. Create a problem and solve it
  5. 5. You have a personal stake in solving it
  6. 6. The 3 W’s: Will customers WANT it, is it WORTH it, can you WIN at it?

Identifying a problem starts with identifying a customer archetype that has it. Beyond guessing, identifying that person and describing their problem can only be done by talking to, working with or observing potential customers.

Doctors call it taking a pain history and documenting the chief pain complaint, the history of the present illness and their past medical history. In other words, talk to people and have them describe:

  1. Where is your pain?
  2. How bad is it?
  3. How long have you had it?
  4. On a scale of 1-10, how would you describe it?
  5. What have you done in the past to make it better?
  6. What makes it better or worse?
  7. What other problems do you have that makes the pain better or worse?
  8. How have you treated it in the past?
  9. Is the pain constant or intermittent?
  10. What would you pay to relieve the pain?

Startup geeks call this process customer discovery by “getting out of the building”. Doctors call it making house calls. Here is the ultimate list of customer discovery/development questions.

Here is a customer interview script.

Remote patient programs , for example, don’t just automatically work out. They have to be carefully planned and developed in order to gain traction and produce results. Most importantly, they have to target the right patients.

D Define and represent the problem

Primary or secondary research should give you some idea about :

  1. Market size
  2. Market growth
  3. The competitive landscape
  4. Where you intend to play
  5. What you see that others don’t.

Once you have done these things, then you can:

E Explore and experiment with possible strategies or solutions and risks involved with each by identifying customer segments and creating a value proposition canvas and a business model canvas

Here’s an into to value proposition design

When you create new value propositions and growth you need to focus on high-value customer jobs. These are not necessarily the most important jobs from your customers’ perspective. They are the most promising jobs from your perspective as a solutions provider. High-value customer jobs are characterized by the following, they are:

  • Important: When customer’s success or failure to get the job done leads to essential gains or extreme pains, respectively. Examples are managing the security risk of an ecommerce website, or designing and implementing the strategy at a company.
  • Tangible: When the pains or gains related to a job can be felt or experienced immediately or often. Examples are traffic during your daily commute, or managing a constantly overflowing email inbox.
  • Unsatisfied: When current value propositions don’t help to relieve pains or create desired gains in a satisfying way. Maybe the desired value proposition doesn’t even exist. Examples are the inexistent cure for hangovers, or calorie-free chocolate.
  • Lucrative: When many people have the job with related pains and gains or when a small number of customers are willing to pay a premium. An example of the former is listening to music on the go. An example of the latter are rare diseases for which customers or insurers are willing to pay a premium.

Here is a list of stakeholders that represent customer segments. But, job title is only one part of creating a customer persona. Here’s what Linkedin Sales Navigator won’t tell you and how to fill the gaps.

If you listen to or watch customers enough, you’ll be surprised at what you’ll discover. Here are some examples.

Don’t send out a questionnaire. Here’s why you need to interview stakeholders to identify their value factors that are most important until you get saturation.

A Act on a selected strategy or solution

L Look back and evaluate

Most businesses fail because 1) they don’t offer the right value proposition-market fit or 2) they don’t have a viable business model. Your business model canvas is anchored on your value proposition. Your value proposition (doing the job the customer wants you to do, removing the pain they have to endure to do it now and offering a product that meets or exceeds customer expectations) starts with understanding your customers. Focusing on your customers or market segments starts with those who touch the problem every day.

Design thinking describes this process i.e. understanding a problem from the customer perspective, putting yourself in their shoes by either interviewing them, watching them or experiencing what they experience. and create a range of solutions that you then design, prototype and test.

Design Thinking Diagram

Customer centered design means you have to learn how to talk to humans.

Before you do all this, though, decide whether the industry or market you decide to tackle is, the words of my friend, Tom Higley, the CEO at www.101010.net, the right founder-opportunity fit. That usually means finding independence, mastery and purpose and scratching all those psychological itches, be they pathological or not.

Perhaps the most powerful problem is one that you make personal but don’t take personally.

Here’s the problem with saying, “Don’t bring me problems, bring me solutions.”

The education pioneer, John Dewey, said, “a problem well-put is half solved”

That happens when you arm yourself initially with the information you get from being a problem seeker, not a problem solver. Even academic scientists are getting the message.

Image credits: MisterInnovation.com, Interaction Design Foundation

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600 Free Innovation, Transformation and Design Quote Slides

600 Innovation, Transformation and Design Quote Slides on Innovation, Change and Design

Free Downloads for Keynote Speeches, Presentations and Workshops

Looking for a compelling quote for a keynote speech, workshop or presentation on any of these topics?

  • Innovation
  • Digital Transformation
  • Design
  • Change
  • Creativity
  • Leadership
  • Design Thinking

I’m flattered that people have been quoting my keynote speeches and my first two books Stoking Your Innovation Bonfire and Charting Change.

So, I’m making some of my favorite quotes available from myself and other thought leaders in a fun, visual, easily shareable format.

I’ve been publishing them on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.

But now you can download twelve (12) volumes of fifty (50) quote posters, for a total of 600, for FREE from my store:

You can add them all to your shopping cart at once and download them for FREE.

Print them, share them on social media, or use them in your presentations, keynote speeches or workshops.

They are all Adobe PDF’s and the best way to add them to your presentation is to:

  1. Put the PDF into FULL SCREEN MODE
  2. Take a screenshot
  3. Paste it into your presentation
  4. Crop it and adjust the size to your liking
  5. Change the background color of the slide to a suitable color (if necessary)

Contact me with your favorite innovation, design thinking, change, transformation, or design quotes and I’ll consider adding them to my library of future downloads.

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