Solving Complex Problems with Design Thinking — with Jared Lee | Level Up Webinars

Design thinking is a creative methodology that helps you address the underlying needs of the user, whether for new products, services or even a new way of thinking about a question. Through developing an empathetic mindset you can understand the problem from a user’s perspective.

Join Jared Lee and learn how to discover breakthrough solutions to complex problems that require being creativity, open-mindedness, and experimentation.

[krp]

I had to prepare a presentation for an interview on integrating Design Thinking with Agile. I came across this video as on of the videos and I would like to thanks Jared for his clear explanation. This is more than what I needed and I learnt a lot from this. Very detailed info and insights presented in this video.

[ahsanmohammed]

Good info in video.
Thank you for sharing McGill. Appreciated.

[CimolOk-nzyj]

🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation:

00:00 🎵 *Introduction to the webinar and hosts*
- Introduction to McGill Executive Institute's Level Up webinar series and the session's interactive format.
- Instructions on how to interact during the webinar and information about session recording.
00:58 👨‍🏫 *Introduction of Jared Lee and design thinking*
- Jared Lee's background in engineering and business, and his connection to McGill.
- Overview of design thinking as a blend of problem-solving and business organization.
02:26 🌍 *Audience engagement and poll initiation*
- Launch of a poll to understand the audience's industry and job function.
- Emphasis on design thinking's core principle: empathy for the audience.
03:37 📊 *Analysis of poll results and audience segmentation*
- Discussion on audience's diverse backgrounds and tailoring the presentation accordingly.
- Introduction to the importance of customer needs and desires in design thinking.
05:59 🤔 *Defining design thinking and its application*
- Exploration of design thinking definitions and examples from audience input.
- Emphasis on customer-centric problem solving and iterative design processes.
08:59 🧠 *Deep dive into understanding customer needs*
- Importance of understanding what customers truly need and want, beyond superficial requirements.
- Examples illustrating how businesses misunderstand customer needs and how to correctly identify them.
13:22 🕵️ *Investigation phase in design thinking*
- The challenge of truly understanding client wants and the methods to uncover these insights.
- Introduction to the investigation, creation, and experimentation phases of design thinking.
21:36 💡 *Innovation through personal experience*
- The creation of Nebia's ultra-low flow showerhead stemmed from the founder's personal dissatisfaction and experimentation.
- Illustrates the power of solving a problem you personally face, leading to innovative products.
23:01 🕵️ *Observation changes product direction*
- Febreze's pivot from odor elimination to a freshening spray was inspired by observing actual customer usage.
- Demonstrates the importance of watching how clients use products, revealing unexpected insights that can redefine product marketing and development.
26:28 ❓ *The value of asking informed questions*
- After observing and experiencing as a client, asking specific, informed questions can uncover deep insights.
- Example of Nordstrom's innovation lab highlights how direct engagement with customers can inform product and service design.
31:24 🗣️ *Breakout discussion on COVID-19 purchases*
- Encouragement for participants to share and explore the deeper reasons behind their pandemic purchases.
- Aims to practice understanding the 'why' behind decisions, highlighting diverse motivations for similar actions or products.
39:22 🤔 *Insights at intersections of needs and wants*
- Analysis of shared reasons behind various purchases during COVID-19, emphasizing the value of understanding underlying needs for design thinking.
- Encourages looking at similarities and differences in why people choose certain products or services to uncover innovative solutions or marketing strategies.
41:25 🧭 *Exploration of underlying needs through diverse solutions*
- Identifying multiple approaches to satisfy the same core needs of clients.
- Highlighting the importance of understanding the 'why' behind consumer choices to innovate effectively.
42:21 💭 *Emphasis on volume for creative ideation*
- Stressing the need for a high volume of ideas to reach innovative solutions.
- Encouraging a no-judgment, open-minded approach to brainstorming to foster creativity and diversity of thought.
47:31 🔄 *The iterative process of refinement and learning*
- Discussing the importance of iteration and learning from every attempt, regardless of its initial success.
- Presenting the concept that failure is a step towards understanding and improvement, not an end.
51:15 🚀 *Experimentation and the value of rapid prototyping*
- Advocating for the early testing of ideas through minimal viable products to maximize learning and minimize the cost of failure.
- Using real-world feedback to refine concepts and ensure they meet the actual needs of users.
54:00 📈 *Summary and key takeaways*
- Recapping the essential lessons of design thinking: understand the deep needs of clients, the necessity of bad ideas for great ones, and the value of learning through testing.
- Encouraging immediate action and application of design thinking principles to uncover new opportunities.

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[johnferraz]

Many look outside the box for innovation to occur...often the box itself is overlooked....in the rush to be different. Slow down...the box may have been in place for a while...it has worked well up to this point...What has changed? Examine...what conditions have now forced outcomes to be unsatisfactory. How do we pivot ourselves to embrace the parameters of that change and see them as opportunities instead of challenges? Design Thinking and Systems Design Approach, when used in a strategic way....may suggest perspectives that we have not considered as viable options.

[dagwould]

The Design Thinking trope misses two points that dominate the day or real designers. Firstly, design is not about the reductive convergent focus of 'problem solving'. In doing design we of course solve problems, a million along the way for even a simple building ( I'm an architect), but first of all, we are finding opportunities as we intervene in a social system to provide meaningful accommodation that opens possibilities and enables people to create a different future. That's what design is about!

Second, it is not a step process, but has multiple recursive loops as we work from opportunity to functional performance, test options, then review the parameters of the opportunity, the factors that go to function and the drivers of performance constantly reviewing with the owner, the users, the owners' customers, etc.

The iPhone is a case in point. It didn't 'solve a problem', it changed the future with huge opportunities opened up.
That said, in 'design' there are no easy answers, short cut routes or simple paths to a 'solution', whatever that word might mean in the creative world. We don't churn out 'solutions' like a problem in Algebra 101; we find the route to a new future.

[ahsanmohammed]

6:42
Cartoon.
White side, red head, cross.
Opposite side. Black guy. Horns.