The design sprint is a four-day workshop where you go from idea to tested solution at lightning speed. It is a pressure cooker and ‘lean and mean’ version of following the entire framework of design thinking principles: empathy, define, ideate, prototype and test. These are in line with forms of Agile working, such as Scrum and Kanban.
How does it work?
To start with, it is essential to arrange a good team. LINKIT provides the facilitator and designer and, if necessary, IT staff to work out the prototype. We also help you select the right people from your own company.
Now that you’ve formed your dream team, it’s time for action. Of course, it starts on day 1.
Day 1: Investigating the problem
What is your problem, and why? In short: many ‘innovative’ solutions are put together without really investigating why this is really ‘the’ solution that people need. And how they deal with it in practice. To avoid a huge debt, it is highly recommended to give ample attention to this and conduct a customer survey in advance.
Practical: during the day, you zoom in on both the long-term vision and the obstacles to achieving it. When these are clear, you can convert them into sprint questions. For example, when it comes to the user’s customer journey or their pain points.
Day 2: Solution and decision making
Now that the problem is clear, we can work on the solution. Again, this reflects the principles of ideate and design. The core of this is looking for inspiration outside your bubble, thinking associatively and trying to solve the problem from different perspectives. Then you critically examine the solutions together. Then you’ll storyboard some of the best ideas and finally pick the best ones to develop into a prototype.
Day 3: Building the prototype
The most important point is that a prototype does not have to be perfect. However, it must be realistic enough actually to test it with users. Ensure there is enough content and context, and make tough choices about which functionalities you will or will not develop. The designers then work out the prototype, and it is up to the customer to determine which questions they want to be answered.
Day 4: testing
The user test is not only an endpoint but also a new starting point. Intended end-users are presented with the prototype and are subjected to a user test. Does the team previously make the assumptions in terms of usage, behavior, etc.? This generates a lot of relevant feedback that can be incorporated into new functionalities and ideas in the product backlog. During the production process that starts after this, the cycle of testing, learning, and adapting cycle continues.
Do you want to know more about design thinking? Or do you want to carry out a design sprint yourself? LINKIT’s UX designers can help and facilitate you. Contact them for more information.
