It’s been shown that diverse teams result in better products and outcomes. Design Thinking helps us challenge assumptions in our work, and it also puts us in a position to evaluate who is and how we are doing the work. How can Design Thinking help us build more collaborative and inclusive teams? The process involves seeking out diverse perspectives to better understand user needs. This reduces the impact of our cognitive biases, which then also helps to find alignment across differences and leads to more creative solutions. It changes the conversation by reframing the problem around user-driven criteria. Design Thinking involves and values all team members throughout the process and results in building the best solution for our users. As we walk through the process step-by-step, attendees will gain insights they can leverage to introduce a design thinking mindset within their organization and learn how it can be used as a tool to collaborate effectively within and across teams.

1. Design Thinking for
Inclusive Collaboration
Sandi K. Barr
Senior Software Engineer

2. Benefits of The Design Thinking Process
https://www.slideshare.net/DavidAllanChin/evaluating-the-impact-of-design-thinking-in-action-webinar-recap

5. Plant a Flag
Define the mission to provide focus and clarity.

7. Stoke Activity
standing warm up
actively engage, listen, think, and do

8. Empathize
The problems you’re trying to solve are rarely your own.

9. Observe. Engage. Watch and Listen.

10. User Interviews
Ask users about what matters to them.

11. Beginner’s
mindset
Don’t judge
Question everything
Be truly curious
Find patterns
Listen. Absorb.

12. Interview for empathy
Seek to understand thoughts, emotions, and motivations.

13. User Interview Timeline
Plan ahead but let the conversation flow.

14. Ask why
Don’t ask about “usually”
Encourage stories
Look for inconsistencies
Pay attention to nonverbal cues
Don’t be afraid of silence
Don’t suggest answers to your questions
Ask neutral questions
No questions with one word answers
Be prepared to capture
User Interview Field Guide

15. Take notes
Designate an official note-taker for each interview.

16. Instant Expert
Dig deeper into your observations.

17. Unpack
Process what you learned and make connections.
wocintechchat.com

18. Process visually and out loud
Write headlines. Use sharpies. Be bold.
wocintechchat.com

19. Flare vs Focus

20. Structure and Facilitation
(an essential part of the process)

21. Define: Point of View
User
Context
Need
Insight
Craft a meaningful
and actionable
problem statement.

22. User:
specific, vivid character
Context:
specific place and time
Need:
deep and meaningful
Insight:
non-obvious, unique,
and surprising
Define: Point of View

24. Define:
Do: Bring focus
and clarity
Don’t: Design by
committee

25. Using tension as an
energy source
requires a culture of
safety and vulnerability

26. How might we
provoke specific, unique ideas

27. Space Energy Constraints
Facilitating a Brainstorm

28. One conversation at a time
Go for quantity
Encourage wild ideas
Headline!
Build on each other’s ideas
Stay on topic
Defer judgement
Brainstorming Rules

29. Ideate
Get beyond the obvious
Uncover unexpected areas
of exploration
Harness the collective
perspectives and strengths
of your team
Create a high volume and
variety of solutions

30. Radical Human-Centered Design

32. Harvest The Brainstorm

34. Half sheets: elaborate and create shared understanding

35. Prototype
to learn what you don’t already know

37. In later stages prototypes get more refined.

38. Prototype to answer specific questions

39. Why Prototype?
Ideate and problem-solve
Communicate and inspire
Start a conversation
Solve disagreements
Gain further empathy
Fail quickly and cheaply
Test possibilities
Manage the solution-building processJennifer Wadella, Founder of Kansas City Women in Tech

40. Prototype to confirm or let go
of your assumptions:
Start building
Don’t spend too
long on one idea
Identify what’s
being tested
Build with the
user in mind

41. User Testing
( )
more like
Purrito,
amirite?

42. Refine prototypes and solutions
Learn more about your user
Refine your Point of View
Prototype to Test

43. Show don’t tell
Watch how they use
(and misuse!)
Create experiencesAsk users to compare

44. User Testing
1. Prototype
2. Context or scenario
3. How you interact
with the user
4. Observe and
capture feedback

45. Debrief: Feedback Capture Grid

47. a fundamental part of process
Iteration

48. non-linear progression
Design Thinking

49. Core Abilities for Design Thinking
Navigate Ambiguity
Learn from Others
Synthesize Information
Experiment Rapidly
Move Between Concrete and Abstract
Build and Craft Intentionally
Communicate Deliberately
Design your Design Work
https://dschool.stanford.edu/about/#about-8-core-abilities
Andrew Kuklewicz, CTO at PRX

51. !
But not a demand for change.