By Rachel Won / 15 October 2018 / Tags: Entrepreneur Journey

Design Thinking as an approach to problem-solving that holds relevance for a much wider scope of challenges than simply those that are related to the traditional design arena. Design Thinking can prove useful in the design of products or services, but may just as well result in the improvement of processes, situations or even organizations.

Design thinking is a unique way of solving problems that is not just about what is beautiful or cool but, rather, can be used to tackle a big range of creative and business problems.

Understand the users
It is always important to find out from the users, what are their current experiences like to use the services or products. Find out what works for them and what isn’t. Companies use design thinking to achieve human-centred solutions to generate value for customers, employees and stakeholders.

Asking the right questions
Effective questions are questions that are powerful and thought provoking. Effective questions are open-ended and not leading questions. They are not “why” questions, but rather “what” or “how” questions. When asking effective questions, it is important to wait for the answer and not provide the answer.

Effective questions can help by:

• Connect with my clients in a more meaningful way
• Better and more fully understand my client’s problem
• Do more solution-oriented problem solving
• Gather better information

Clarifying is a combination of asking and clearly articulating what we have heard. By asking questions, our client knows we are listening and filling in the gaps. When our client is being vague, it is important for us to clarify the circumstances. We can assist them to see what they can’t see themselves by making a suggestion or giving an example. It is to check if our understanding is aligned with our clients’ intention.

“I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.” – Confucius

Learn best by doing
I found that working on design thinking with SMEs works better. It strengthens co-creation by engaging with the business owners directly. Whereas working with big organisations, they are seeking what is available in the market and the best practices. The best practices may not be the right solution for the organisation.

The smaller companies are more willing to create an environment where employees can innovate and experiment, without the fear of failure. We focus on human needs and experience. Put ourselves in the shoes of users whom we are designing the solution for.

“Lifelong learning is the way to go, to know and understand how things work and to be able to create a product or a service that can be recognisable as useful.” – Rachel Won

#BusinessInnovation #DesignThinking

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