- Define design thinking - Demonstrate design thinking as a human-centered process focusing on customers and their needs - Describe the role of empathy in the design-thinking process [SLIDE 1] Let's start by watching an example of design thinking in action. The two founders of Hövding certainly identified an opportunity to reinvent the bicycle helmet, but they also did something more: they used design thinking. In the context of design thinking, needs are considered to be human emotions or desires that are uncovered though the design process. Those companies that succeed in identifying and satisfying the needs of customers have a better chances of gaining that all-important competitive edge. [SLIDE 2] It is important to distinguish design thinking from design. Great designers such as the home furnishings designers Jonathan Adler and Jonathan Ive, previously Apple's Chief Design Officer, spent years learning their skills and honing their craft. We do not intend to teach you design skills during this course! The focus of design thinking from an entrepreneurial point of view is not on studio training, but on the way to solve problems to best meet the needs of the people for whom you are designing. In other words, how do you identify new solutions that meet the needs of a market? That is the essence of design thinking and it can be taught to entrepreneurs. The essence of design thinking aligns with many of the facets of the Practice of Entrepreneurship which we have already discussed. It involves getting outside and taking action; it requires continuous practice with a focus on doing in order to learn; and it works best in unpredictable environments. It incorporates the core elements of the practice and the essential skills of play, empathy, reflection, creation and experimentation we discussed a few lessons ago. It helps put the practice into action because it requires you to collaborate, cocreate, accept and expect setbacks, and build on what you learn. [SLIDE 3] One of the biggest obstacles to design thinking is the fear of failure. What if the idea doesn't work out? What if the prototype fails to meet expectations? However, design thinking does not see failure as a threat as long as it happens early and is used as a springboard for further learning—in other words, "Fail early to succeed sooner." Design is a process of constructive conflict that merges into unifying solutions through the power of observation, synthesis, searching and generating alternatives, critical thinking, feedback, visual representation, creativity, problem-solving, and value creation. By using design thinking, you the entrepreneur will be better able to identify and act on unique venture opportunities, solve complex problems, and create value across multiple groups of customers and stakeholders. How do we become successful design thinkers? The first step is being human. [SLIDE 4] In typical situations where new ideas are being vetted, we often jump to answer two questions: Can it be done? Will it make money? But human-centered design involves a different starting point in the creation process. Taking a design thinking approach forces you to answer an entirely different question in the beginning while not even addressing feasibility and economic viability. The questions of feasibility and viability come later. The first question is: What do people need? Leading innovation and design firm IDEO has popularized design thinking and is featured several times in this lesson to illustrate design thinking in action. IDEO takes on all sorts of diverse design challenges from developing new ways to optimize healthcare, to designing advertising campaigns, to finding different approaches to education. The CEO of IDEO, Tim Brown, credits one key phrase for sparking the design thinking process: "How Might We?" The "how" part presumes that the solutions to the problems already exist and they just need to be unearthed; the "might" part suggests that it is possible to put out ideas that may or may not work; and the "we" part means that the process will be a fruitful and collaborative one. In short, those three words encourage the design thinker to believe that anything is possible. [SLIDE 5] Design thinkers welcome constraints and see them as opportunities to identify innovative solutions. An idea is deemed successful if it strikes a balance among three main criteria:
  1. Feasibility, or what can possible be achieved in the near future
  2. Viability, or how sustainable the idea is in the long-term
  3. Desirability, or whether anyone wants to use or buy the product or service
The key point is desirability – what do people need? It's not about building a new product and service and then searching for customers. It's about going to customers first, determining their needs, and then creating something to meet their needs. A good example of an organization that has successfully achieved this balance is Nintendo. Rather than competing with other gaming companies which were focusing on graphics and consoles, Nintendo used new technology to create the Nintendo Wii. Through innovative thinking and design, with a fresh new focus on enhancing the user experience, Nintendo broke through the competitive constraints of the gaming industry to create an affordable yet profit-generating product that has become hugely popular with consumers. The human approach ethos is not just based on thinking about what people want, but by exploring how they behave, asking them what they think, and empathizing with how they feel. By truly understanding the emotional and cultural realities of the people you are designing for, you will be more able to design a better solution with real value. This is why empathy is so important to the design process. [SLIDE 6] We all have the ability to practice empathy, but how do we actually do it? The answer lies in observation, engaging people in conversation or interviewing, and watching and listening. Let's take an example of a real problem challenging the design thinkers at IDEO: A woman called Shanti, living in a poor area of India, fetches her water from an open borehole about 300 feet from her home. The water is free, but it's not as safe as the water provided by the local community treatment plant. So why does Shanti continue to use unsafe water? Because the local facility requires her to buy 5 gallons of water per day and carry it back to her home in a 5-gallon jerrycan. Not only is the weight too much for Shanti to carry, but she doesn't actually need 5 gallons of water a day. Start with developing empathy for Shanti. How would you feel if you were forced into drinking unsafe water because you could not afford, carry, or even need the fresh water from the local facility? What do you think needs to be done to make Shanti's life a bit easier? Design thinkers will use their empathy for Shanti as a means of working towards constructive and experiential ways to resolve the water problem. While rationalism and analytical techniques are important when creating products and services, as we have seen, design thinking is very much a human-centered approach and looks at the emotional as well as the functional side of problems. It allows us to express ourselves through our own feelings -- to put ourselves in the shoes of someone like Shantia and think about better, safer ways of making her life a little easier. As best we can, in order for us to solve Shanti's problems, we need to be Shanti. [SLIDE 7] There are many ways in which we can use empathy to relate to the people around us. The process starts by identifying different categories of people and then trying to understand their needs In an innovative way for students to empathize with older people, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) created the AGNES suit (Age Gain Now Empathy Suit) which is designed for the wearer to experience the physical discomfort that many elderly people have to deal with every day, such as joint stiffness, poor posture, bad eye sight and hearing, and lack of balance. This is a very powerful way of encouraging people to empathize with older people to identify their needs. Given that our aging population is growing, there is ample opportunity for entrepreneurs to consider ways in which they can make the lives of the elderly more comfortable. This is yet another example of how empathy is one of the key elements of the design thinking process used to solve complex problems and identify needs.