Design Thinking It is a term that is heard more and more in talks, webinars and courses. This concept may seem unknown or innovative, but since 1959, John Edward Arnold, a teacher at Stanford University, introduced it in mechanical engineering.
This idea became more popular in Zygmunt Bauman's "liquid modernity", the era in which we seek to transform the reality around us. This is linked to the fact that today's clients demand immediacy and when they need something they want it as soon as possible. In this way, they choose the company that satisfies their needs in the shortest time and manner.
This liquid modernity places clients at the center of any business. In reality, this has always been the case, but never as much as now. A company that wants to survive in these times must have the ability to understand the real needs of its clients, channel innovation, develop spaces to devise creative solutions and capture their feedback.
It is here where Design Thinking takes much more strength, since it has the ability to offer tools for companies to meet the needs of their clients.
So what is Design Thinking and how can we apply it?
Design Thinking is a creative approach to problem solving. The process begins with understanding the needs and motivations of the end user. This is achieved through empathy, where the designer puts himself in the user's shoes to understand their experiences and challenges.
Once the designer has a clear understanding of the user's needs, he/she can ideate and generate potential solutions. At this point, the designer experiments and tests different ideas to determine which will work best.
For its part, the iterative process of Design Thinking means that solutions are continually refined and improved based on user reviews. This feedback can be gathered through user testing, surveys or other methods.
Then, the designer can use this information to make changes and improve the solution. This is repeated until the designer has created a solution that not only solves the problem but also provides a positive user experience.
But why "thinking"? Because it's not about doing but thinking, it's not about doing innovative things but thinking in innovative ways. It is not about doing different things but about being different. This change in the way of thinking is the key to acquiring this capability.
For a Design Thinker it is not important the product or the technology that will be used to obtain it, but the design process. The ability to design the precise solution to people's underlying needs.
Finally, Design Thinking has been applied in a wide range of industries, from technology and product design to healthcare and education. It has proven particularly effective in complex and rapidly changing environments.
He Design Thinking promotes a culture of innovation and encourages designers to think outside the box to find new and creative solutions.