from problem solving to solution design turning ideas into actions

From Problem to Solution: A Step-by-Step Guide to the Design

Design thinking is an iterative process of understanding a problem, exploring ideas, testing prototypes and refining solutions. It has become an increasingly popular way of tackling complex problems, with many businesses and organizations implementing it in their processes. This guide will walk you through the four steps of design thinking and explain how each can help you develop a successful solution.

Understanding the Design Thinking Process

The design thinking process can be broken down into four steps: empathize and define the problem, ideate and generate ideas, prototype and test, and refine and iterate. Each step builds on the previous one, allowing for a continuous development of ideas until the best possible solution is reached.

The first step of the design thinking process is to empathize and define the problem. This involves understanding the needs of the user and the context in which the problem exists. It is important to consider the user’s perspective and to identify the root cause of the problem. Once the problem is clearly defined, the next step is to ideate and generate ideas. This involves brainstorming and exploring different solutions to the problem. After the ideas have been generated, the next step is to prototype and test the solutions. This involves creating a prototype of the solution and testing it with users to get feedback. Finally, the last step is to refine and iterate. This involves making changes to the prototype based on the feedback and testing it again until the best possible solution is reached.

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Step 1: Empathize and Define the Problem

The first step of design thinking is empathizing and defining the problem. This involves understanding the context of the problem, identifying the stakeholders involved, and developing an understanding of how the problem affects each stakeholder. By fully understanding the problem, you can begin to develop a solution that is tailored to the specific needs of each involved party.

It is important to take the time to really understand the problem and the stakeholders involved. This can be done through interviews, surveys, and other research methods. Once you have a clear understanding of the problem and the stakeholders, you can begin to brainstorm potential solutions that address the needs of each party.

Step 2: Ideate and Generate Ideas

The second step of design thinking is ideating and generating ideas. This involves brainstorming potential solutions to the problem and then narrowing them down to a few viable options. During this step, it's important to think outside the box and consider creative solutions that may not be immediately obvious. It's also important to consider how feasible each idea is in terms of cost, time, and resources.

It's important to remember that the goal of this step is to generate as many ideas as possible, without judging them. This allows for a wide range of potential solutions to be explored. Once the ideas have been generated, the next step is to evaluate them and decide which ones are the most viable.

Step 3: Prototype and Test

The third step of design thinking is prototyping and testing. This involves creating a physical or digital model of the proposed solution and testing it to see if it meets the requirements of the problem. During this step, it's important to get feedback from stakeholders in order to refine the solution before moving on to the next step.

Prototyping and testing can be done in a variety of ways, depending on the type of solution being developed. For example, if the solution is a physical product, then a prototype can be created using 3D printing or other rapid prototyping techniques. If the solution is a digital product, then a prototype can be created using wireframing or other digital prototyping tools. Once the prototype is created, it can be tested with users to get feedback and refine the solution.

Step 4: Refine and Iterate

The fourth and final step of design thinking is refining and iterating. This involves continuously improving and refining the solution based on feedback from stakeholders. During this step, it's important to consider potential issues that may arise with the solution, and make any necessary tweaks or adjustments in order to ensure that the solution meets all requirements.

By following the four steps of design thinking outlined in this guide, you can develop a successful solution to any problem. By fully understanding the problem, brainstorming creative solutions, prototyping and testing solutions, and refining and iterating on ideas, you can develop a tailored solution that meets all the needs of the stakeholders involved.

It is important to remember that the design thinking process is not a linear one. It is a cyclical process that involves revisiting each step multiple times in order to ensure that the solution is the best it can be. Additionally, it is important to be open to feedback and criticism throughout the process, as this can help to identify areas for improvement and ensure that the solution is the most effective it can be.

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From Problem Solving to Solution Design: Turning Ideas Into Actions (Hardcover)

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From Problem Solving To Solution Design Creating solutions to solve problems can often prove very difficult to accomplish, even for seasoned Solution Designers. Complex organizational problems have several stakeholders, endless variables, and a myriad of possible solutions. It's hard enough to figure out where to start, and even harder to realize what the perfect, mutually-beneficial solution is. With their combined tenure of over fifty years, J. Eduardo Campos and Erica W. Campos present their Solution-Designing expertise in From Problem Solving to Solution Design so that you can learn from their successes (and their failures) to craft sustainable solutions for complex problems. Specifically, you will learn how to implement the I.D.E.A.S. framework that they have been perfecting over the years, which includes five critical checkpoints that any Solution Designer must hit to create solutions that are successfully envisioned, negotiated with stakeholders, and implemented to last over time. - IDENTIFY THE ESSENTIAL PROBLEM AND PRIORITIZE YOUR ACTIONS TO SOLVE IT. - DESIGN SOLUTION OPTIONS ALIGNED TO YOUR GOALS. - ENGAGE YOUR STAKEHOLDERS IN THE SOLUTION AND INFLUENCE THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS. - ACT ON THE AGREED-UPON RECOMMENDATIONS AND EXECUTE YOUR GOVERNANCE MODEL. - SUSTAIN THE IMPLEMENTED SOLUTION BY CREATING A FEEDBACK LOOP. Treat this book as your field guide: it offers clear checkpoints for you to assist your organization in designing effective solutions for complex problems.

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From Problem Solving To Solution Design: Turning Ideas Into Actions Kindle Edition

• Print length 178 pages
• Language English
• Publication date 23 April 2018
• File size 15665 KB
• Page Flip Enabled
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Eduardo and Erica have written a very practical guide for dealing with complex problems.Through their" IDEAS (Identify, Design, Engage, Act, Sustain) Framework" they have simplified the complex giving the reader a recipe for success. The concepts are brought to life through the case studies reflecting their own diverse experiences. This is a great field handbook for business leaders and consultants alike. The reader is given tools, processes and frameworks for addressing everyday business challenges. I am already taking some of their concepts and frameworks and integrating these into my practice.'' --Paul O Beirne, Principal, ORCA HR Solutions

"Eduardo and Erica have effectively leveraged experiences in their respective corporate careers to bring the reader easy to understand frameworks for managing complex problems. The case studies illustrate some of their methodologies in practice and provide real life adaptations of their theoretical work. I recommend this book to anyone trying to tackle challenging problems and looking for innovative approaches." --Ed Steidl, Director, Microsoft

"If you're seeking a solution within a complex organization this book is an invaluable guide. I've read other change management texts that get lost in the forest of jargon and theory missing the bigger picture of how to achieve your goal in the real world. Eduardo and Erica have given me the tools to successfully create lasting change in my organization, and their system is one I'll refer to frequently." --L. David Prindle, Executive Director, Accelement

"If you are involved in internal organizational problem solving, you have with certainty faced the wall of silent - or perhaps not so silent - resistance to change. It is innately difficult to lead change from inside. Problem-Solving to Solution Design gives you rational tools, inspiration to innovate your own approaches, and an approach that will make sense to the stakeholders you work with. I highly recommend this book and wish this book had been on my shelf, when I first faced the challenges change-making from inside." --Mariianne Crary, CEO, HubSV.com

"From beginning to end, this book is an excellent read for anyone dealing with complex problems in any organization. Eduardo and Erica really simplified the process of thinking through the main variables, understand stakeholder management and focus on addressing what is essential to address the problem and design the best solution possible. The case studies illustrate the reality of every day and make it easier to digest and understand the concepts thought throughout the book." --Hiram Machado, President and CEO, adaQuest

"Eduardo and Erica hold together the big picture with all its complexity and multi-variable data and at the same time, break down the information, section by section, into manageable, actionable steps. A feat of magic? Rather, an amazing ability to understand what it takes to move a project forward with many stakeholders. Applying design principles like visualizing data, and uncovering priority and hierarchy through charts, graphs and maps, speeds up the process and engages the team toward action. From Problem Solving to Solutions Design teaches you how to engineer and implement a successful project. Highly recommended for anyone who wants to sell their idea through an organization for buy-in, action and impact." --Pascha Scott, CEO, Vertetude Brand Communications and Retail Design

"Problem Solving to Solution Design' is a great compass for all the professionals out there. Having personally worked with Eduardo on tackling very complex and transformational opportunities in emerging markets, I have seen Eduardo apply the 'IDEAS' framework to boil down big, bold ambitions into clearly articulated and structured plans. I have learned a lot from us putting into action the stakeholder engagement plan in order to get buy-in from Senior Leadership Team across multiple organizations, both inside and outside of Microsoft which ultimately led us to launch a large and breakthrough entrepreneurial endeavor in Latin America. I commend Eduardo and Erica for their passion and commitment to drive clarity and simplicity - and for making this project come to life. I strongly believe every professional - be him/her an entrepreneur, senior executive or someone just fresh from MBA - to review and apply the great lessons synthesized in this masterpiece." --Beny Rubinstein, Head of Microsoft Digital Stores in Central & Eastern Europe, Middle East & Africa, and former Chief Executive Officer, Acelera Partners

About the Author

Product details.

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07CMJ5BRG
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ ForbesBooks (23 April 2018)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• File size ‏ : ‎ 15665 KB
• Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
• Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
• Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 178 pages
• #34,084 in Business, Strategy & Management
• #76,125 in Analysis & Strategy

About the authors

J. eduardo campos.

J. EDUARDO CAMPOS, EMPA

Author | Speaker | Solution Designer | Advisor

J. Eduardo is a seasoned strategist who designs sustainable solutions by building bridges across diverse groups. After creating business growth opportunities on four continents

through his leadership roles at PwC, Embraer, and Bell Canada, he spent thirteen years at Microsoft, first as a cybersecurity advisor, then leading innovative Microsoft projects at the highest levels of government in the US and abroad.

Today, J. Eduardo is realizing his dream of building a better tomorrow by leading his consulting firm, Embedded Knowledge, Inc., to develop value propositions, customize business strategies,

and form partnerships that enable organizations and entrepreneurs to design creative solutions for their complex problems.

ERICA W. CAMPOS, EMPA

Erica is seasoned compliance professional who is passionate about using her skills to build transparent, ethical, and sustainable relationships across diverse groups. Currently a Compliance senior lead for Microsoft, Erica

leverages her twenty-five-plus years in global management roles in large corporations in the financial (ABN Amro Banco Real) and consulting (PwC) industries.

Applying her agile collaboration, influencing, and negotiation skills to support the interests of all stakeholders, Erica has a solid record of designing solutions that mutually benefit all involved.

Erica W. Campos

Erica is seasoned compliance professional who is passionate about using her skills to build transparent, ethical, and sustainable relationships across diverse groups. Currently a Compliance senior lead for Microsoft, Erica leverages her twenty-five-plus years in global management roles in large corporations in the financial (ABN Amro Banco Real) and consulting (PwC) industries.

J. Eduardo is a seasoned strategist who designs sustainable solutions by building bridges across diverse groups. After creating business growth opportunities on four continents through his leadership roles at PwC, Embraer, and Bell Canada, he spent thirteen years at Microsoft, first as a cybersecurity advisor, then leading innovative Microsoft projects at the highest levels of government in the US and abroad.

Today, J. Eduardo is realizing his dream of building a better tomorrow by leading his consulting firm, Embedded Knowledge, Inc., to develop value propositions, customize business strategies, and form partnerships that enable organizations and entrepreneurs to design creative solutions for their complex problems.

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From Problem Solving To Solution Design: Turning Ideas Into Actions

J. eduardo campos , erica campos.

178 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 23, 2018

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From Problem Solving To Solution Design: Turning Ideas Into Actions Hardcover – 7 Jun. 2018

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From Problem Solving To Solution Design Creating solutions to solve problems can often prove very difficult to accomplish, even for seasoned Solution Designers. Complex organizational problems have several stakeholders, endless variables, and a myriad of possible solutions. It’s hard enough to figure out where to start, and even harder to realize what the perfect, mutually-beneficial solution is. With their combined tenure of over fifty years, J. Eduardo Campos and Erica W. Campos present their Solution-Designing expertise in From Problem Solving to Solution Design so that you can learn from their successes (and their failures) to craft sustainable solutions for complex problems. Specifically, you will learn how to implement the I.D.E.A.S. framework that they have been perfecting over the years, which includes five critical checkpoints that any Solution Designer must hit to create solutions that are successfully envisioned, negotiated with stakeholders, and implemented to last over time. • IDENTIFY THE ESSENTIAL PROBLEM AND PRIORITIZE YOUR ACTIONS TO SOLVE IT. • DESIGN SOLUTION OPTIONS ALIGNED TO YOUR GOALS. • ENGAGE YOUR STAKEHOLDERS IN THE SOLUTION AND INFLUENCE THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS. • ACT ON THE AGREED-UPON RECOMMENDATIONS AND EXECUTE YOUR GOVERNANCE MODEL. • SUSTAIN THE IMPLEMENTED SOLUTION BY CREATING A FEEDBACK LOOP. Treat this book as your field guide: it offers clear checkpoints for you to assist your organization in designing effective solutions for complex problems.

• Print length 192 pages
• Language English
• Publisher ForbesBooks
• Publication date 7 Jun. 2018
• Dimensions 15.75 x 1.78 x 22.86 cm
• ISBN-10 0998365564
• ISBN-13 978-0998365565
• See all details

Product description

"If you're seeking a solution within a complex organization this book is an invaluable guide. I've read other change management texts that get lost in the forest of jargon and theory missing the bigger picture of how to achieve your goal in the real world. Eduardo and Erica have given me the tools to successfully create lasting change in my organization, and their system is one I'll refer to frequently." ―L. David Prindle, Executive Director, Accelement

"Problem Solving to Solution Design' is a great compass for all the professionals out there. Having personally worked with Eduardo on tackling very complex and transformational opportunities in emerging markets, I have seen Eduardo apply the 'IDEAS' framework to boil down big, bold ambitions into clearly articulated and structured plans. I have learned a lot from us putting into action the stakeholder engagement plan in order to get buy-in from Senior Leadership Team across multiple organizations, both inside and outside of Microsoft which ultimately led us to launch a large and breakthrough entrepreneurial endeavor in Latin America. I commend Eduardo and Erica for their passion and commitment to drive clarity and simplicity - and for making this project come to life. I strongly believe every professional - be him/her an entrepreneur, senior executive or someone just fresh from MBA - to review and apply the great lessons synthesized in this masterpiece." ―Beny Rubinstein, Head of Microsoft Digital Stores in Central & Eastern Europe, Middle East & Africa, and former Chief Executive Officer, Acelera Partners

"From beginning to end, this book is an excellent read for anyone dealing with complex problems in any organization. Eduardo and Erica really simplified the process of thinking through the main variables, understand stakeholder management and focus on addressing what is essential to address the problem and design the best solution possible. The case studies illustrate the reality of every day and make it easier to digest and understand the concepts thought throughout the book." ―Hiram Machado, President and CEO, adaQuest

"If you are involved in internal organizational problem solving, you have with certainty faced the wall of silent - or perhaps not so silent - resistance to change. It is innately difficult to lead change from inside. Problem-Solving to Solution Design gives you rational tools, inspiration to innovate your own approaches, and an approach that will make sense to the stakeholders you work with. I highly recommend this book and wish this book had been on my shelf, when I first faced the challenges change-making from inside." ―Mariianne Crary, CEO, HubSV.com

"Eduardo and Erica hold together the big picture with all its complexity and multi-variable data and at the same time, break down the information, section by section, into manageable, actionable steps. A feat of magic? Rather, an amazing ability to understand what it takes to move a project forward with many stakeholders. Applying design principles like visualizing data, and uncovering priority and hierarchy through charts, graphs and maps, speeds up the process and engages the team toward action. From Problem Solving to Solutions Design teaches you how to engineer and implement a successful project. Highly recommended for anyone who wants to sell their idea through an organization for buy-in, action and impact." ―Pascha Scott, CEO, Vertetude Brand Communications and Retail Design

"Eduardo and Erica have effectively leveraged experiences in their respective corporate careers to bring the reader easy to understand frameworks for managing complex problems. The case studies illustrate some of their methodologies in practice and provide real life adaptations of their theoretical work. I recommend this book to anyone trying to tackle challenging problems and looking for innovative approaches." ―Ed Steidl, Director, Microsoft

Eduardo and Erica have written a very practical guide for dealing with complex problems.Through their" IDEAS (Identify, Design, Engage, Act, Sustain) Framework" they have simplified the complex giving the reader a recipe for success. The concepts are brought to life through the case studies reflecting their own diverse experiences. This is a great field handbook for business leaders and consultants alike. The reader is given tools, processes and frameworks for addressing everyday business challenges. I am already taking some of their concepts and frameworks and integrating these into my practice.'' ―Paul O Beirne, Principal, ORCA HR Solutions

About the Author

Product details.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ ForbesBooks (7 Jun. 2018)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 192 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0998365564
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0998365565
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 15.75 x 1.78 x 22.86 cm

About the authors

Erica w. campos.

ERICA W. CAMPOS, EMPA

Author | Speaker | Solution Designer | Advisor

Erica is seasoned compliance professional who is passionate about using her skills to build transparent, ethical, and sustainable relationships across diverse groups. Currently a Compliance senior lead for Microsoft, Erica leverages her twenty-five-plus years in global management roles in large corporations in the financial (ABN Amro Banco Real) and consulting (PwC) industries.

Applying her agile collaboration, influencing, and negotiation skills to support the interests of all stakeholders, Erica has a solid record of designing solutions that mutually benefit all involved.

J. EDUARDO CAMPOS, EMPA

J. Eduardo is a seasoned strategist who designs sustainable solutions by building bridges across diverse groups. After creating business growth opportunities on four continents through his leadership roles at PwC, Embraer, and Bell Canada, he spent thirteen years at Microsoft, first as a cybersecurity advisor, then leading innovative Microsoft projects at the highest levels of government in the US and abroad.

Today, J. Eduardo is realizing his dream of building a better tomorrow by leading his consulting firm, Embedded Knowledge, Inc., to develop value propositions, customize business strategies, and form partnerships that enable organizations and entrepreneurs to design creative solutions for their complex problems.

J. Eduardo Campos

J. Eduardo is a seasoned strategist who designs sustainable solutions by building bridges across diverse groups. After creating business growth opportunities on four continents

through his leadership roles at PwC, Embraer, and Bell Canada, he spent thirteen years at Microsoft, first as a cybersecurity advisor, then leading innovative Microsoft projects at the highest levels of government in the US and abroad.

Today, J. Eduardo is realizing his dream of building a better tomorrow by leading his consulting firm, Embedded Knowledge, Inc., to develop value propositions, customize business strategies,

and form partnerships that enable organizations and entrepreneurs to design creative solutions for their complex problems.

Erica is seasoned compliance professional who is passionate about using her skills to build transparent, ethical, and sustainable relationships across diverse groups. Currently a Compliance senior lead for Microsoft, Erica

leverages her twenty-five-plus years in global management roles in large corporations in the financial (ABN Amro Banco Real) and consulting (PwC) industries.

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• IDENTIFY THE ESSENTIAL PROBLEM AND PRIORITIZE YOUR ACTIONS TO SOLVE IT.
• DESIGN SOLUTION OPTIONS ALIGNED TO YOUR GOALS.
• ENGAGE YOUR STAKEHOLDERS IN THE SOLUTION AND INFLUENCE THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS.
• ACT ON THE AGREED-UPON RECOMMENDATIONS AND EXECUTE YOUR GOVERNANCE MODEL.
• SUSTAIN THE IMPLEMENTED SOLUTION BY CREATING A FEEDBACK LOOP.

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• ISBN 10  0998365564
• ISBN 13  9780998365565
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How to solve problems with design thinking

May 18, 2023 Is it time to throw out the standard playbook when it comes to problem solving? Uniquely challenging times call for unique approaches, write Michael Birshan , Ben Sheppard , and coauthors in a recent article , and design thinking offers a much-needed fresh perspective for leaders navigating volatility. Design thinking is a systemic, intuitive, customer-focused problem-solving approach that can create significant value and boost organizational resilience. The proof is in the pudding: From 2013 to 2018, companies that embraced the business value of design had TSR that were 56 percentage points higher than that of their industry peers. Check out these insights to understand how to use design thinking to unleash the power of creativity in strategy and problem solving.

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What is design thinking and why does it matter?

Solving problems is a pivotal part of product development. But some issues that come up during product development are more complex than others, and it can be difficult to find the right solution—or even know where to start looking.

That's where the concept of design thinking comes in, keeping users at the center of every process by combining problem-solving with deep empathy.

Last updated

Reading time.

This guide gives you a comprehensive overview of design thinking as a problem-solving approach. In this first chapter, you'll gain a strong understanding of what design thinking is, why it’s relevant, and how it helps you design products that you’re proud to bring into the world—and that your users will love.

Design better products with empathy

Use Hotjar to understand your customer’s habits, behaviors, frustrations, needs, and wants—so you can design a frictionless, user-centric experience.

What is design thinking?

Design thinking is a problem-solving approach to product development that places an emphasis on the user to help teams identify issues, reframe them, and generate creative solutions.  

It’s a solution-based ideology, process, and collection of hands-on methods to solve complex problems in a user-centric way . Design thinking is most useful for addressing problems that are either ill-defined or unknown, by helping you:

Redefine the problem with a user-centric mindset

Identify the challenge worth solving

Develop ideas in brainstorming sessions

Adopt a hands-on approach in prototyping and testing

Who is design thinking for?

Despite its name, design thinking is not exclusively used by designers. Instead, it’s a human-centered approach to innovation practiced across science, art, engineering, and business.

In the world of product development, design thinking has been incredibly successful in showcasing relevant solutions for real problems. With it, teams can do better UX research, prototyping, and usability testing to uncover new ways to meet users’ needs.  

Design thinking helps you focus on achieving practical results and solutions that:

Meet and solve a real human need

Can be developed into functional products or processes

Are economically viable

It also aims to turn ideas into tangible, testable products as quickly as possible, and make changes and improvements before building the real thing.

💡 Pro tip: don’t base your entire product on assumptions. Use design thinking to go beyond what you already know about your users and product. 

Engage with your users as much as possible; run interviews, watch screen recordings to see what your users see and identify their pain points, and use Hotjar Surveys and Feedback widgets to send out a mix of full-scale surveys and quick questions.

Understand what users really think about your site with Feedback

5 things you need to know about design thinking

Design thinking has long been considered the holy grail of innovation. But before you incorporate it into your own workflows, you need to understand what it is and why it’s so popular. 

1. Design thinking came about as a way to teach engineers how to approach problems creatively—like designers do.

The concept of design thinking was fathered by John E. Arnold, a professor of mechanical engineering at Stanford University. From there, it began to evolve as a way of creative thinking and problem-solving, leading to IDEO’s iconic 90s run and Stanford University’s d.school design thinking course as an approach to technical and social innovation.

Today, design thinking gives us the opportunity to reimagine the world and the products, systems, or institutions that reinforce the ways people relate to each other. Some of the world’s leading brands are using design thinking to drive innovation and results—from Apple to Google, and from Samsung to IBM and GE. 

Dive into the Design Thinking Examples chapter of this guide to learn what actions your product team can take related to design thinking.

2. Design thinking means approaching a problem with a designer’s mindset, from the user’s perspective.

As a designer, you have this amazing power of wide-eyed curiosity. What does the world—or even just one person—need in terms of product, user experience, strategy, or complex systems? Can design help achieve it?

A designer is uniquely equipped to deal with these complex problems, with an inquisitive approach that embraces empathy, optimism, iteration, creativity, and ambiguity.

As a solution-based approach to innovation, design thinking draws techniques from the designer’s toolkit to solve problems in a creative and innovative way . The designer’s mindset helps you observe and develop empathy with the user—it asks about what they want and need from your product, and how you can use design to bring that to life.

💡 Pro tip: combine quantitative metrics with qualitative feedback to inform designs and keep users at the center of your work. 

Hotjar’s Feedback widget and Surveys give you clear voice of the customer (VoC) data to back up your discoveries, and Recordings and Heatmaps give you quantitative metrics on where customer issues lie with your current products.

Collect actionable product feedback so you can identify what needs to change—and how to change it

3. There are 5 principles that are pivotal to design thinking. 

The five principles of design thinking are reflected in the design thinking methodology; here they are in summary:

User-centricity and empathy: human-centered design thinking keeps people at the center of every process. A good designer knows that when you stay focused on the people you're designing for—and listen to them directly—you can arrive at optimal solutions that meet their needs.

Collaboration: design thinking techniques and strategies belong at every level of a business. Innovation comes from diverse perspectives and ideas, and should involve colleagues from various departments to create a cross-functional team.

Ideation: design thinking is a solution-based framework, so the focus is on coming up with as many ideas and potential solutions as possible. These are not necessarily new (or good) ideas, but they can become the foundations of new solutions to be tested with prototypes.

Experimentation and iteration: the early and frequent testing of your solutions is inherent to the design thinking process; this way, you can gather feedback and make any necessary changes long before the product is fully developed .  

A bias towards action : design thinking is an extremely hands-on approach to problem-solving. That means turning ideas into tangible prototypes and testing them in real-world contexts—an essential way to assess new ideas and identify the changes needed to make them work.

Learn more about these five principles in the Design Thinking Methodology chapter of this guide.

💡 Pro tip: in design thinking, prototyping is carried out on far-from-finished products, to understand users’ iterative experiences with a work in progress. 

Getting your product ideas in front of real users for feedback can be daunting, but the basis for prototyping early and often is intended to keep you from forming attachments to ideas that may or may not be worthwhile.

Sometimes the key to user empathy is sharing or co-creating a prototype with your users and getting their feedback. By testing your prototypes with real users in context, observing their reactions , and getting feedback , you can refine your point of view, learn more about your users, and make the next iteration of the product that much better.

#Hotjar Heatmaps tools

Source: Hotjar 

4. Design thinking is a solution-based framework, not a problem-focused approach. 

The way you look at a problem can dictate the way you solve it. Design thinking offers an alternative to problem-focused approaches by highlighting what is working (or could work), rather than emphasizing deficits, limitations, and weaknesses.

A problem-focused approach helps to identify the problem , why it exists, and when and where it becomes a pain point for your users. The approach lets you analyze a situation and figure out where the breakdown is occurring—but you still need to figure out what comes next.

A solution-focused approach, on the other hand, helps you solve the problem. Beyond identifying the problem, and when and where it occurs, this approach lets you identify strategies to resolve the issues that are causing the problem in the first place. 

In product development, solution-based approaches tend to yield more positive results and better products. A user-first approach like design thinking simplifies everything across product teams, marketing, sales, and client services, because customer goals and success metrics are the centerpiece.

A solutions-driven organization does everything from the users’ perspective first, allowing you to:

Gain empathy with users’ habits, behaviors, and needs: discover new opportunities to improve the user experience by empathizing with users and seeing an unbiased view of their experience

Design a frictionless user experience: identify pain points in the user experience and design a solution that balances both user and business needs

The focus is on coming up with as many ideas and potential solutions as possible, thinking ‘outside the box’, looking for alternative ways to view the problem, and identifying innovative solutions to the design thinking problem statements you’ve created.

For a closer look, read the Design Thinking Process and Framework chapter of this guide.

5. Design thinking is an iterative and non-linear process that encourages constant experimentation.

The design thinking process fosters creativity, innovation, and user-centricity, and helps you come up with actionable solutions. As noted above, the process outlines a series of principles, or stages, that bring this ideology to life: 

Empathize : getting to know your users and their challenges

Define : homing in on what problem needs to be solved

Ideate : outside-the-box thinking about solutions and angles

Prototype : creating something tangible that users can then try-out

Test : exposing your prototype to real users to determine if your solution is valid or needs some work.  

You can carry out these five-stages in parallel, repeat them, and circle back to a previous stage at any point in the process. 

For example, even once you’ve defined your problem statement, you should keep building empathy with users—use design thinking tools like surveys and feedback software to validate your problem statement and update your assumptions.

The purpose of the process is to allow you to work dynamically to develop and launch innovative ideas. Regardless of how you choose to implement the design thinking process, the goal remains the same: to approach complex problems from a human perspective.

💡 Pro tip: design thinking embraces the principles of continuous discovery to evolve, adapt, and refine ideas and turn them into valuable solutions for your users.

Don’t be afraid to hop back and forth between different stages of the design thinking process to start thinking out of the box. If the creative juices aren’t flowing, go back to your users. Teams can always benefit from building more user empathy with tools like Hotjar Feedback or Surveys .

Intuitive and simple Hotjar Surveys are perfect for capturing all types of feedback

How design thinking helps teams build better products

Design thinking is a tool for creativity, innovation, and problem-solving:

It helps designers gain an understanding of user habits, behaviors, frustrations, needs, and wants.

It allows managers to foster a culture of user-centricity at every level of business.

Most importantly, it helps teams create ground-breaking products that users actually want.

Design thinking empowers teams to get their ideas out and share them. It holds the space for you to be ambiguous and messy, knowing you're moving in the direction of the outcomes you're looking for. It’s a way to start , and be willing to have 100 sketches on the floor that won’t work, before finding the one that does—from ambiguity to clarity, refinement, and launch. 

Design thinking can impact and provide innovative solutions to issues product teams truly care about:

Tackling complex challenges

Design thinking encourages creative problem-solving. It pushes you further into the process of questioning: questioning the problem, the assumptions, and the implications. 

A good design thinking framework will give you new perspectives on the lives of your users—including the challenges they face in your product, and the moments that delight them. Having this empathy can give you the insights you need to solve hard, worthwhile problems.

This is especially useful in a product development context—whether it’s designing a competitive product, optimizing internal processes, or reinventing an entire business model.

Moving faster, with iterative speed

Design thinking stops you from falling into assumptions and designing patterns out of habit. Instead, it shifts the focus from your problem to the solution that works best for your users. 

Designing a product with insights from user observation is much more productive than starting from scratch. This shortens the development process by helping you design better products that your users actually want, from the get-go.

Design thinking also helps scale the design process through large organizations. It keeps the team and stakeholders on the same page and improves efficiency with an agile design thinking approach to early-stage feedback that stops you wasting resources on unpromising ideas. 

Meeting and exceeding customer expectations to ensure customer delight 

Empathy is at the heart of design. It connects you—the designer—to the people who will benefit from your work, empowering you to create products that ultimately meet real human needs.

Design thinking revolves around a deep interest to understand the people you're building for, creating the conditions for innovation to happen over and over again .

With design thinking, teams have the freedom to generate real solutions. It’s not just about coming up with ideas—it’s about turning them into prototypes, testing them, and making changes based on user feedback.

🔥 How we use the design thinking framework at Hotjar

At Hotjar , we ‘live and breathe’ design thinking and use this framework to deliver work in any part of our company—from Marketing to Product Teams.

Here are the four key product experience insights tools we use to produce granular insights that help our designers empathize with users:

Heatmaps : see where users click, navigate, and scroll to discover which elements attract attention and which get overlooked.

Feedback widgets : gather on-site user feedback to hear from customers in the wild.

Recordings : watch playbacks of users navigating your product to zero-in on issues, pain points, and bugs.

Surveys : gather VoC data both on- and off-site by sending out either short- or long-form surveys.

Minimizing uncertainty and improving confidence in design decisions

Product development can be fraught with obstacles. Your team either collects a lot of backward-looking data, which doesn’t tell you what current or future users really want, or you make risky bets based on instinct instead of evidence. 

Design thinking is a strategy-making tool that shifts the focus to human behavior. By using imaginative, human-centered problem solving, you can identify new strategies and unlock new markets. Design thinking also plays a key role in reducing assumptions for product teams, and ultimately enables you to better understand users and deliver products that delight them . 

Developing this type of deep empathy with your target users means you’ll be able to design products they really want, and will use and come back to.

Put users at the center of your designs, every time

Faqs about design thinking:.

Design thinking is a popular ideology and process that focuses on solving complex problems in a highly user-centric way. 

It’s a creative approach to innovation and problem-solving that takes design perspectives and processes and applies them to a variety of industries to help strengthen their services, products, policies, or design processes. 

The design thinking process outlines a series of steps that bring this ideology to life—starting with building empathy for the user, through to coming up with ideas and turning them into prototypes.

Why is design thinking important for product development?

Design thinking has become closely associated with innovation and the creation of ground-breaking products and services. It can be used to develop solutions for end-users, but can also help organizations boost creativity and innovation to implement new strategies across every business level.

Design thinking allows teams to understand users, challenge assumptions, redefine problems, and create innovative solutions to prototype and test.

The iterative and non-linear nature of the design thinking process allows product teams to work dynamically to develop and launch innovative ideas.

How can I practice design thinking?

The goal of the design thinking process is to come up with solutions, products, or services that are desirable for the user, economically viable from a business perspective, and technologically feasible. 

To do that, start by Empathizing with your users, being more open to the user experience and seeing things from their perspectives. This will help you Define your problem statement, which helps you reframe your point of view and see a problem from a different angle. 

Then, your team can start to Ideate , which may spur new approaches to your problem and bring you closer to an innovative solution that puts your users at the center. Based on this, you can start to build a Prototype to answer critical questions quickly.

When you Test your prototype, it opens you to both the many possible directions of your design and the ways it might address real human needs. Each step along the way affords the opportunity to rethink, relearn, and reboot as needed. The design process is rarely linear.

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From Problem Solving To Solution Design: Turning Ideas Into Actions Hardcover – 24 April 2018

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From Problem Solving To Solution Design Creating solutions to solve problems can often prove very difficult to accomplish, even for seasoned Solution Designers. Complex organizational problems have several stakeholders, endless variable

• Print length 192 pages
• Language English
• Publisher ForbesBooks
• Publication date 24 April 2018
• Dimensions 15.75 x 1.78 x 22.86 cm
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"If you're seeking a solution within a complex organization this book is an invaluable guide. I've read other change management texts that get lost in the forest of jargon and theory missing the bigger picture of how to achieve your goal in the real world. Eduardo and Erica have given me the tools to successfully create lasting change in my organization, and their system is one I'll refer to frequently." ―L. David Prindle, Executive Director, Accelement

"Problem Solving to Solution Design' is a great compass for all the professionals out there. Having personally worked with Eduardo on tackling very complex and transformational opportunities in emerging markets, I have seen Eduardo apply the 'IDEAS' framework to boil down big, bold ambitions into clearly articulated and structured plans. I have learned a lot from us putting into action the stakeholder engagement plan in order to get buy-in from Senior Leadership Team across multiple organizations, both inside and outside of Microsoft which ultimately led us to launch a large and breakthrough entrepreneurial endeavor in Latin America. I commend Eduardo and Erica for their passion and commitment to drive clarity and simplicity - and for making this project come to life. I strongly believe every professional - be him/her an entrepreneur, senior executive or someone just fresh from MBA - to review and apply the great lessons synthesized in this masterpiece." ―Beny Rubinstein, Head of Microsoft Digital Stores in Central & Eastern Europe, Middle East & Africa, and former Chief Executive Officer, Acelera Partners

"From beginning to end, this book is an excellent read for anyone dealing with complex problems in any organization. Eduardo and Erica really simplified the process of thinking through the main variables, understand stakeholder management and focus on addressing what is essential to address the problem and design the best solution possible. The case studies illustrate the reality of every day and make it easier to digest and understand the concepts thought throughout the book." ―Hiram Machado, President and CEO, adaQuest

"If you are involved in internal organizational problem solving, you have with certainty faced the wall of silent - or perhaps not so silent - resistance to change. It is innately difficult to lead change from inside. Problem-Solving to Solution Design gives you rational tools, inspiration to innovate your own approaches, and an approach that will make sense to the stakeholders you work with. I highly recommend this book and wish this book had been on my shelf, when I first faced the challenges change-making from inside." ―Mariianne Crary, CEO, HubSV.com

"Eduardo and Erica hold together the big picture with all its complexity and multi-variable data and at the same time, break down the information, section by section, into manageable, actionable steps. A feat of magic? Rather, an amazing ability to understand what it takes to move a project forward with many stakeholders. Applying design principles like visualizing data, and uncovering priority and hierarchy through charts, graphs and maps, speeds up the process and engages the team toward action. From Problem Solving to Solutions Design teaches you how to engineer and implement a successful project. Highly recommended for anyone who wants to sell their idea through an organization for buy-in, action and impact." ―Pascha Scott, CEO, Vertetude Brand Communications and Retail Design

"Eduardo and Erica have effectively leveraged experiences in their respective corporate careers to bring the reader easy to understand frameworks for managing complex problems. The case studies illustrate some of their methodologies in practice and provide real life adaptations of their theoretical work. I recommend this book to anyone trying to tackle challenging problems and looking for innovative approaches." ―Ed Steidl, Director, Microsoft

Eduardo and Erica have written a very practical guide for dealing with complex problems.Through their" IDEAS (Identify, Design, Engage, Act, Sustain) Framework" they have simplified the complex giving the reader a recipe for success. The concepts are brought to life through the case studies reflecting their own diverse experiences. This is a great field handbook for business leaders and consultants alike. The reader is given tools, processes and frameworks for addressing everyday business challenges. I am already taking some of their concepts and frameworks and integrating these into my practice.'' ―Paul O Beirne, Principal, ORCA HR Solutions

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• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 15.75 x 1.78 x 22.86 cm
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Guide: How to use an innovation framework to turn ideas into action

Reading time: about 11 min

• Expert tips
• Digital transformation

Table of contents

What is an innovation framework.

• How the innovation framework works
• Stages of the innovation framework
• Benefits of the innovation framework

Most organizations are acutely aware of the need to “innovate or die,” a phrase coined by Peter Drucker that serves as a reminder to stay ahead of the ever-growing pace of change. It’s clear that product innovation is critical to organizational success—but when it comes to actually innovating, the path forward isn’t always so clear.

Without an understanding of how to innovate, many teams default to passively waiting for good ideas to strike. Here’s the thing: Truly innovative organizations know that innovation can’t be left up to chance. One of the most effective ways organizations can put some strategy behind the innovation process is through an innovation framework. 

An innovation framework is a foundational set of practices and tools that helps organizations generate ideas, evaluate those ideas, and turn the best ideas into a value-add for the business. It arranges the general steps of the innovation process into clear stages that help leaders decide whether to pivot course, pause, or continue funding the work.

An innovation framework differs from many other business processes in that it doesn’t follow a prescriptive formula with set outcomes. 

For instance, a process such as “invoicing customers” has well-defined steps, roles, and deliverables. An innovation framework, however, is intended to be non-prescriptive and provide just enough structure to create transparency, consistent milestones, and a clear path forward while leaving flexibility for emergent ideas or data that would influence the overall direction. 

There’s an array of frameworks that organizations can choose from to support product innovation, including design thinking, Agile, or Lean. Most of these frameworks, however, target only a part of the innovation process, leaving teams on their own to figure out where to start, when to stop, or what steps to take next.  

After spending the last decade helping organizations build innovation pipelines, Rosenbaugh and Bailey have consolidated what they’ve seen work best into a framework that leaders can easily integrate into their existing business processes to move completely from concept to cash.   

Get started with Lucid's innovation framework. 

How Lucid’s innovation framework works

Lucid’s innovation framework is divided into three main phases: conception, validation, and growth. Each phase contains stages, and each stage contains a series of templates and tools you can try. 

Each phase of the innovation framework has a distinct goal:

1. Conception: The goal of the first phase of the framework is to identify problem-solution fit. This means proving that your customers (or segments of your customers) have a problem worth solving—and your proposed solution could solve their problem. 

You know you’re ready to move on to the next phase when you can craft a concept pitch . Your concept pitch should demonstrate what you’ve learned, justify the need to put a product into customers’ hands for further learning, and detail the level of support you need (be it funding or headcount) to move on to the next phase. 

2. Validation: In the second phase of the framework, you’re identifying product-market fit. Your goal in the validation phase is to prove that your solution not only solves your customer’s problem but also has a growth market opportunity. 

Before moving on to the final phase, you’ll create a validation pitch to share with stakeholders. The validation pitch should show findings from experiments, demonstrate the product-market fit, and detail the support needed to move into the final phase. 

3. Growth: In the growth phase, you focus on determining how you will bring your new product or service to the broader market. This phase includes a wide set of scaling techniques to help you enable all the necessary moving parts. 

Remember: While there are stages and steps to follow, there is also backward motion built into the framework to allow for learning and iteration. Feel free to repeat phases, jump back in the process, and customize the framework as you need.

Since this framework is designed in Lucidspark , you can easily share with your team and stakeholders, record notes directly in the template, and take advantage of collaborative features like chat, comments, voting, emoji reactions, and more. 

By using this template for each new opportunity you chase, you naturally create an innovation repository —a document repository of all your ideas, iterations, and learnings. You can use this repository to provide context to teams and easily visualize your product portfolio.

The 5 stages of the innovation framework

The five stages of the innovation framework follow a logical order from identifying an initial problem to taking a full solution to market. 

Stage 1: Learn

The goal of the first stage is to understand the problem your customer is trying to solve. By the end of the learn stage, you should have a solid understanding of who your customers are, what problem they have, and how they’re currently trying to solve it. As you research, Bailey recommends keeping an important distinction in mind:

"Many teams mistakenly think this stage is about understanding the problem they—as a product team or service team—are trying to solve. But it’s really about understanding the problem their customer is trying to solve." 

During this stage, you should:

• Build out a research plan . Your plan should detail your initial understanding of the problem, the goals for your customer research, and how you’ll conduct your research.
• Collect and aggregate data . Based on your research plan, collect data on your customers and their pain points. You can use the survey builder  as a guide or record notes directly in the user observation template. Take advantage of the " how might we " template to help you ask unbiased questions. 
• Produce visual artifacts. Build artifacts like personas and journey maps to visually synthesize the data you’ve collected and validate your understanding. Keep these handy as you progress to the next stage—you can modify these living documents as you continue to learn. 

Stage 2: Ideate

Now that you better understand the problem, it’s time to open the aperture as broadly as possible to find solutions. The goal here is to encourage creative thinking and generate a broad range of solutions (diverge), then prioritize the ideas to test in the next stage (converge). 

“Rather than thinking of this stage as a selection process, think of it as a prioritization process,” said Bailey. “This is a good check to ensure you stay focused on the problem, not fall in love with a solution.”

• Plan the scope of your ideation . Before you start ideating, take some time to develop an ideation strategy . This means setting parameters and defining outcomes to help guide your ideation sessions.
• Brainstorm potential solutions . To prompt creative thinking, try templates like the constrainer , world explorer , or building further . Although constraints may seem to limit ideas, they actually do the opposite: By providing ideation parameters, team members must broaden their perspectives and search for solutions in ways they wouldn’t have thought otherwise. 
• Prioritize ideas to test . Narrow your list of ideas to a handful you’d like to take to the next stage. Focus on ideas that are both viable (meaning they could be profitable to the business) and desirable (meaning they’re something customers want or need). 

Stage 3: Prototype and test

The final stage of the conception phase—prototype and test—is about collecting input and data on the ideas you brainstormed previously. The goal of this stage is to cheaply test potential solutions to your customer’s problem. 

• Build and test prototypes . Using the prioritized list of solutions you brainstormed in the ideate stage, create low-fidelity prototypes to test your ideas. You may use the GIF storyboarding  or wireframing template here. For more wireframing options, check out Lucidchart’s template library .
• Collect early customer data . To identify the best solution to take to the next stage, be sure to ask customers specific questions that anchor them to previous experiences. For example, instead of asking, “Do you think you’d use this product?” ask, “In the last week, when do you think this product could have helped you in your work?”

Stage 4: Iterate 

In the iterate stage, teams start to build out the product or service and conduct rigorous experiments to validate product-market fit. Start by building the smallest version of your product that your customers can use, often referred to as a minimum viable product (MVP), and add on as you learn. 

 “There’s a natural desire to go in and build the full product right away,” explained Bailey. “But there’s still so much learning to be done, and teams that don’t account for this often end up with a product that’s beautiful, but isn’t what the customer actually needs.”

• Understand your critical assumptions . Using the critical assumptions template, determine what assumptions you have about your solution that must be true for your solution to succeed. These risky assumptions are what you’re going to build your MVP—and experiments—around.
• Experiment, learn, and repeat. You’ll spend most of your time at this stage building experiments, testing your hypotheses, and iterating on your product. Use the experiment map and build and learn cards to design effective experiments.
• Collect real data. Remember, the goal of this stage is to gather real metrics. Data is a much more reliable way to derisk an investment than whether or not a customer “likes how it looks.” Try the innovation accounting template to help create strong metrics. 

Stage 5: Scale

While the first four stages were primarily focused on the solution itself, the scale stage is about orchestrating everything else that needs to happen to sustain your product or service in the marketplace. This stage is highly cross-functional and requires coordinating many different teams. 

“This is where you need to take a step back to get a full picture of the market and put a plan in place for long-term success,” said Rosenbaugh. 

• Clarify your customer segments. Use the customer segmentation template to prioritize your different segments. You can segment your customers by industry, lifestyle, behavior, or other factors. Then rank each segment based on its needs, market size, and other characteristics. 
• Create a go-to-market plan. Your product can only go so far without a plan for how you will reach customers. Use the business model canvas to solidify your value proposition, clarify your cost structures, and identify revenue streams. Then, use the demand creation strategy template to determine what tactics and channels you’ll use to create demand for your new product or service. 
• Determine appropriate levels of long-term support. Using the support transition plan , determine what resources you need to maintain your new product or service over time. This could mean detailing headcount, budget, customer support needs, materials, technology, and skills training. 

Benefits of using Lucid’s framework for innovation

An innovation framework can transform innovation from a once-in-a-while occurrence to an integral part of your business. Lucid’s innovation framework benefits organizations in that it:

• Allows leaders to invest incrementally in innovation . Because the innovation framework naturally bakes iteration into its structure, it enables leaders to invest in small chunks versus a large amount upfront. “This model focuses decision-making on learning and gathering data, so leaders can reduce their investment risk with each iteration,” said Bailey.  
• Places focus on the customer . Teams pressured to innovate without guidance often end up with loads of ideas that are creative, but not necessarily helpful to customers.  Lucid’s innovation framework provides structure to ideation sessions, ensuring teams apply their creativity to solving real customer problems.
• Helps ideas land stakeholder support. With this innovation framework, you can show stakeholders that you have a plan to innovate with key steps and milestones. “The clarity of this visual makes it easier to get buy-in for innovation initiatives and increases their success rates,” said Rosenbaugh. 
• Democratizes innovation across the business. Because the innovation framework is flexible, it can be applied to all aspects of the business—not just technology. From improving an internal sales process to building new onboarding workflows, all teams can adapt and scale the framework as needed to improve how they work. 
• Boosts employee engagement . Most workers want to know their ideas matter and have an impact. Lucid’s innovation framework provides teams a clear avenue to contribute ideas and see those ideas brought to life.   

Scale innovation with the Lucid Visual Collaboration Suite

With intentional effort and a framework to follow, innovation can become a consistent occurrence in your organization. To enable the continuous collaboration and alignment needed to innovate, you’ll need the right tools. 

Visual collaboration software like the Lucid Suite can provide teams the space they need to collaboratively ideate, plan, design, build, and launch—while working from anywhere in the world. By combining Lucidspark’s virtual whiteboard with Lucidchart’s intelligent diagramming capabilities, organizations can capture the entire innovation process in one central place. 

Maximize innovation

With Lucid’s experienced professional services team, receive customized training and coaching on using the Lucid Suite to maximize innovation. 

About Lucid

Lucid Software is a pioneer and leader in visual collaboration dedicated to helping teams build the future. With its products—Lucidchart, Lucidspark, and Lucidscale—teams are supported from ideation to execution and are empowered to align around a shared vision, clarify complexity, and collaborate visually, no matter where they are. Lucid is proud to serve top businesses around the world, including customers such as Google, GE, and NBC Universal, and 99% of the Fortune 500. Lucid partners with industry leaders, including Google, Atlassian, and Microsoft. Since its founding, Lucid has received numerous awards for its products, business, and workplace culture. For more information, visit lucid.co.

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Ideas into Action: 2 student inventors share how you can solve real-world problems at any age

By Alexandra Panzer on November 13, 2018 in Interviews

TED’s youth conference TED-Ed Weekend acts as a reminder that every student has an idea worth spreading and has the power to effect change. Even though it can sometimes feel like the gap between inspiration and action is wide, speakers at the event remind us that all it takes to get started is a first step.

But let’s get specific! We interviewed some of our speakers to ask them about those first steps, and exactly how they went from having an idea to fulfilling their dreams in our series, “Ideas into Action.”

TED-Ed Weekend speakers Ashton Cofer (AC)— who shared his team’s amazing technique for recycling seemingly un-recyclable styrofoam— and Akash Manoj (AM)— who invented a device to detect silent heart attacks— are two TED-Ed Weekend speakers who prove that age doesn’t limit your ability to solve real-world problems.

Here’s what they had to say about using the scientific method to make the world a better place:

What inspired you to work on your particular invention?

AC: I was originally inspired to work on this invention through my involvement with FIRST Lego League, a program that inspires groups of kids from around the world to identify a problem every year and develop a solution. Working with a group of three other students from my school, we chose the problem of Styrofoam waste, a large issue in not only our community but all over the world. Although the challenge seemed a little daunting at first, it eventually evolved into something that we were determined to solve.

AM: I never knew that I would be researching “silent heart attacks” until the day my grandfather was struck by one. I did not start working on this research with the intention of inventing something; instead, I was concerned about the limitations of an existing solution and wanted to innovate it so that it could turn out to be a promising alternative. It was not because I was emotionally affected that I started my research, but it was because I found the problem to be marvelous, and it was because I visualized the ground-breaking implications that the solution to this problem could have. I was, undoubtedly, inspired by my circumstances, especially my inaccessibility to research resources. When I started taking control over them, things started falling in place. I always believe in one thing: there’s always a way out!

Developing an invention takes time, and many cycles of attempt and failure. How much were you motivated by inspiration versus discipline? Which do you have to work the hardest to find? And do you have any tricks for keeping yourself inspired and/or motivated?

AC: Initially, inspiration was the main factor that motivated this project. However, as the development of the project went on, I would definitely say that discipline was a more prevailing factor. Since my team also had a strict timeline to develop our solution, we had to be disciplined to both work quickly and efficiently and not get discouraged by failures.

I’d say that one thing that really helped motivate us during this project was working on it with other like-minded individuals who would always be there when one of us was discouraged. Even if you are working on an individual project, I find that collaborating with others is essential to keeping yourself disciplined and motivated.

AM: For me, I would say discipline has a more significant role than inspiration, because anyone can get greatly inspired by watching a TED talk, but what gets one to ideate and turn ideas into action is discipline. It is crucial for researchers to be disciplined, and it took me almost a year to be able to master it. It is also essential for everyone to get mentored by someone, and perhaps that was something I had to work the hardest to find. The trick to staying on track and getting motivated is simple: just think of the journey as a whole, not the goal, ask as many questions as possible, and learn from failure. This should probably take you where you want to go.

What were the very first steps you took on your path to making your invention?

AC: The very first steps that we took were to complete background research on the problem and to make a running list as a team of all the possible ideas that we had. We also found that reaching out to experts in the field (in our case it was activated carbon researchers) was extremely helpful in our initial research and getting expert opinions on possible ideas.

“To our surprise, all of these experts were eager to help kids interested in their field and the main barrier was having the courage to reach out to someone new.”

AM: I started off by doing A LOT of Google searches. First, I made it a point to understand what was going on: the working of the heart and other related organs and life processes, the nuances of medical terminologies, and of course, how a (silent) heart attack occurs! This took me a lot more time than I actually had imagined. You see, it was too much to take in, for an eighth grader. I went to university libraries (which were VERY far from where I lived), read medical journals, and tried to learn as much as I could. I, then, got access to the entire health record of my grandfather.

“With all of these resources, I developed a hypothesis, and with the not-so-accurate hypothesis in place, I wrote to professors and institutions from across the country.”

Though I received dozens of rejections, I was fortunate to receive lab space, mentorship, and funding from a government-run institution: SRISTI-BIRAC. I started my research and worked on my experiments right from that moment.

Do you ever feel stuck? Are there any specific steps you take to help yourself feel unstuck? When you need help, who do you turn to?

AC: Being “stuck” is probably one of the most common occurrences that my team had to deal with. Throughout our research, we had to deal with countless testing failures and at one point we even considered giving up and switching to an entirely different project.

For example, during our research, we were trying to emulate the high temperature commercial process of creating activated carbon but instead using polystyrene as the input material (rather than wood or coal). Every single test that we did kept on resulting in the product vaporizing and we had no idea what was causing it. However, after simply decreasing the temperature of the test, we were able to get a successful result.

This process of taking a step back, carefully examining what was going wrong, and persevering truly helped us to overcome being stuck and it was much better than if we had quit. In addition, having other students to turn to was also crucial in overcoming these adversities.

AM: I often feel stuck when something, like technical miscalculations or process errors, in my research seems to be a never-ending problem.

“The key, here, is to stay undaunted: take a break, gain a broader perspective, and perceive the problem with new energy.”

That has been my mantra all this while! When I was too stressed, my parents would have no stone unturned to help me feel better, and I think that has kept me going.

Do you have any advice for young would-be inventors? What is the most valuable advice you’ve received on your journey so far?

AC: One of the most common mistakes is to keep your ideas to yourself and not spread them to others. However,

“Sharing your ideas with others is probably the best way to improve your end result, because you never know how someone with a different perspective can think about your invention in a whole different way”

or apply it to a different situation. By combining your own ideas with the perspective and experience of someone else, inventions can truly be taken to the next level and make a difference.

AM: The most valuable advice I’ve received on my journey is not to let my age limit my thinking and to question everything, big or small. My advice to young would-be inventors would be to observe the world around them for inspiration, because seemingly mundane things can be explored in depth. Look around for problems, and you can find one to work on!

More about Ashton: Ashton Cofer is an inventor with several patents pending, including a glove to reduce hand tremors, a device to detect drowsy driving, and a method to convert polystyrene foam waste into activated carbon for purifying water. He and his teammates won the 2016 Google Science Fair’s Scientific American Innovator Award for this latest invention that addresses the global environmental problem of Styrofoam waste accumulation in our landfills and oceans. Ashton has a passion for science and technology, has exhibited at the White House Science Fair, and recently gave an inspirational TED talk about perseverance that has received well over a half million views. In addition to inventing, Ashton competed in First Lego League robotics, leading his team to win the 2016 FLL World Championship, and he continues to teach robotics workshops to local area youth in his hometown of Columbus, Ohio.

More about Akash: Akash Manoj, an Ashoka Youth Venturer, is an Indian cardiology researcher and inventor from the state of Tamil Nadu. He is known for his award-winning research on “silent” heart attacks. He is the inventor of a device which could “non-invasively” detect and alert users about the beginning of the early stages of a potential asymptomatic myocardial infarction (heart attack). In 2017, he received nation’s highest honor for students from the President of India: The National Child Award for Exceptional Achievement.

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What Is Creative Problem-Solving & Why Is It Important?

• 01 Feb 2022

One of the biggest hindrances to innovation is complacency—it can be more comfortable to do what you know than venture into the unknown. Business leaders can overcome this barrier by mobilizing creative team members and providing space to innovate.

There are several tools you can use to encourage creativity in the workplace. Creative problem-solving is one of them, which facilitates the development of innovative solutions to difficult problems.

Here’s an overview of creative problem-solving and why it’s important in business.

Access your free e-book today.

What Is Creative Problem-Solving?

Research is necessary when solving a problem. But there are situations where a problem’s specific cause is difficult to pinpoint. This can occur when there’s not enough time to narrow down the problem’s source or there are differing opinions about its root cause.

In such cases, you can use creative problem-solving , which allows you to explore potential solutions regardless of whether a problem has been defined.

Creative problem-solving is less structured than other innovation processes and encourages exploring open-ended solutions. It also focuses on developing new perspectives and fostering creativity in the workplace . Its benefits include:

• Finding creative solutions to complex problems : User research can insufficiently illustrate a situation’s complexity. While other innovation processes rely on this information, creative problem-solving can yield solutions without it.
• Adapting to change : Business is constantly changing, and business leaders need to adapt. Creative problem-solving helps overcome unforeseen challenges and find solutions to unconventional problems.
• Fueling innovation and growth : In addition to solutions, creative problem-solving can spark innovative ideas that drive company growth. These ideas can lead to new product lines, services, or a modified operations structure that improves efficiency.

Creative problem-solving is traditionally based on the following key principles :

1. Balance Divergent and Convergent Thinking

Creative problem-solving uses two primary tools to find solutions: divergence and convergence. Divergence generates ideas in response to a problem, while convergence narrows them down to a shortlist. It balances these two practices and turns ideas into concrete solutions.

2. Reframe Problems as Questions

By framing problems as questions, you shift from focusing on obstacles to solutions. This provides the freedom to brainstorm potential ideas.

3. Defer Judgment of Ideas

When brainstorming, it can be natural to reject or accept ideas right away. Yet, immediate judgments interfere with the idea generation process. Even ideas that seem implausible can turn into outstanding innovations upon further exploration and development.

4. Focus on "Yes, And" Instead of "No, But"

Using negative words like "no" discourages creative thinking. Instead, use positive language to build and maintain an environment that fosters the development of creative and innovative ideas.

Creative Problem-Solving and Design Thinking

Whereas creative problem-solving facilitates developing innovative ideas through a less structured workflow, design thinking takes a far more organized approach.

Design thinking is a human-centered, solutions-based process that fosters the ideation and development of solutions. In the online course Design Thinking and Innovation , Harvard Business School Dean Srikant Datar leverages a four-phase framework to explain design thinking.

The four stages are:

• Clarify: The clarification stage allows you to empathize with the user and identify problems. Observations and insights are informed by thorough research. Findings are then reframed as problem statements or questions.
• Ideate: Ideation is the process of coming up with innovative ideas. The divergence of ideas involved with creative problem-solving is a major focus.
• Develop: In the development stage, ideas evolve into experiments and tests. Ideas converge and are explored through prototyping and open critique.
• Implement: Implementation involves continuing to test and experiment to refine the solution and encourage its adoption.

Creative problem-solving primarily operates in the ideate phase of design thinking but can be applied to others. This is because design thinking is an iterative process that moves between the stages as ideas are generated and pursued. This is normal and encouraged, as innovation requires exploring multiple ideas.

Creative Problem-Solving Tools

While there are many useful tools in the creative problem-solving process, here are three you should know:

Creating a Problem Story

One way to innovate is by creating a story about a problem to understand how it affects users and what solutions best fit their needs. Here are the steps you need to take to use this tool properly.

1. Identify a UDP

Create a problem story to identify the undesired phenomena (UDP). For example, consider a company that produces printers that overheat. In this case, the UDP is "our printers overheat."

2. Move Forward in Time

To move forward in time, ask: “Why is this a problem?” For example, minor damage could be one result of the machines overheating. In more extreme cases, printers may catch fire. Don't be afraid to create multiple problem stories if you think of more than one UDP.

3. Move Backward in Time

To move backward in time, ask: “What caused this UDP?” If you can't identify the root problem, think about what typically causes the UDP to occur. For the overheating printers, overuse could be a cause.

Following the three-step framework above helps illustrate a clear problem story:

• The printer is overused.
• The printer overheats.
• The printer breaks down.

You can extend the problem story in either direction if you think of additional cause-and-effect relationships.

4. Break the Chains

By this point, you’ll have multiple UDP storylines. Take two that are similar and focus on breaking the chains connecting them. This can be accomplished through inversion or neutralization.

• Inversion: Inversion changes the relationship between two UDPs so the cause is the same but the effect is the opposite. For example, if the UDP is "the more X happens, the more likely Y is to happen," inversion changes the equation to "the more X happens, the less likely Y is to happen." Using the printer example, inversion would consider: "What if the more a printer is used, the less likely it’s going to overheat?" Innovation requires an open mind. Just because a solution initially seems unlikely doesn't mean it can't be pursued further or spark additional ideas.
• Neutralization: Neutralization completely eliminates the cause-and-effect relationship between X and Y. This changes the above equation to "the more or less X happens has no effect on Y." In the case of the printers, neutralization would rephrase the relationship to "the more or less a printer is used has no effect on whether it overheats."

Even if creating a problem story doesn't provide a solution, it can offer useful context to users’ problems and additional ideas to be explored. Given that divergence is one of the fundamental practices of creative problem-solving, it’s a good idea to incorporate it into each tool you use.

Brainstorming

Brainstorming is a tool that can be highly effective when guided by the iterative qualities of the design thinking process. It involves openly discussing and debating ideas and topics in a group setting. This facilitates idea generation and exploration as different team members consider the same concept from multiple perspectives.

Hosting brainstorming sessions can result in problems, such as groupthink or social loafing. To combat this, leverage a three-step brainstorming method involving divergence and convergence :

• Have each group member come up with as many ideas as possible and write them down to ensure the brainstorming session is productive.
• Continue the divergence of ideas by collectively sharing and exploring each idea as a group. The goal is to create a setting where new ideas are inspired by open discussion.
• Begin the convergence of ideas by narrowing them down to a few explorable options. There’s no "right number of ideas." Don't be afraid to consider exploring all of them, as long as you have the resources to do so.

Alternate Worlds

The alternate worlds tool is an empathetic approach to creative problem-solving. It encourages you to consider how someone in another world would approach your situation.

For example, if you’re concerned that the printers you produce overheat and catch fire, consider how a different industry would approach the problem. How would an automotive expert solve it? How would a firefighter?

Be creative as you consider and research alternate worlds. The purpose is not to nail down a solution right away but to continue the ideation process through diverging and exploring ideas.

Continue Developing Your Skills

Whether you’re an entrepreneur, marketer, or business leader, learning the ropes of design thinking can be an effective way to build your skills and foster creativity and innovation in any setting.

If you're ready to develop your design thinking and creative problem-solving skills, explore Design Thinking and Innovation , one of our online entrepreneurship and innovation courses. If you aren't sure which course is the right fit, download our free course flowchart to determine which best aligns with your goals.

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Product Key Features

• Narrative Type Non-Fiction
• Format Hardcover
• Language English
• Topic Design
• Publication Year 2018
• Genre Management, Finance, Action
• Number of Pages 192
• Item Height 1.8 cm
• Width 158.75mm
• Item Weight 0.45 kg

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