Design Thinking: Building the Plane in Flight

There are times, particularly recent times, when life may feel somewhat unpredictable, maybe even like a giant experiment with endless variables and permutations. Perhaps it feels like we encounter challenge after challenge, and unexpected difficulties or frustrations, time and time again. What if, with some reframing of perspective, we embrace some of these challenges as opportunities for creativity and innovation? This would undoubtedly require some preparation, both theoretical and practical; some planning and resources. In a rapidly changing environment, we must be prepared to respond efficiently and effectively to stimuli, pivoting and flexing when necessary. Consider a challenge or problem that has been identified to be the need, and the environment, including factors such as people, culture, and resources, to be the context.

Selection of a design model should be driven by context and needs. As stated by Wilmoth et al., 2002, 2014, “The wide variety of contexts and needs are likely best served with different models.” (Giacumo & Breman, 2021). I believe that the success of a model is contingent on front-loaded planning to analyze context and needs, and that the “human factor” in both the pre-planning and ongoing feedback loop should be the highest priority. This implies that input and collaboration are integral to the process, which may be perceived by some as messy and time-consuming. The diversity and unpredictability of the all-important “human factor” drives me towards Agile-like design models that can scale up or down, depending on project sizes and resources, plus offer the ability to pivot and iterate in micro-cycles when needed.

Design Thinking is an Agile-like model that I have used in various contexts and find adaptable and broadly applicable. There are many variations, and elements are incorporated into other educational design models such as Project and Problem-Based Learning. Essentially, these are methods of inquiry that rely on heuristic principles and typically begin with a self-determined or -realized problem or question. Common steps include empathy, design, ideate, prototype, and test. It is a non-linear process, and often, users cycle through various configurations of step(s) at stages. It is also inherently iterative and reflective, intended for experiential and collaborative learning. There are many excellent resources available to learn more about Design Thinking, but here is a nice overview to get started. Design Thinking is incorporated into much of the British Columbia K-12 curriculum, but I also like to point out that we live it out in “real life” as we identify problems then seek solutions in an intentional, reflective manner. I sometimes joke that we often find ourselves “building the plane in flight” but I also quickly remind my teams that we are doing so in good company, and we value the meaningful and exciting work set before us!

References

Ben Mahmoud-Jouini, S., Midler, C., & Silberzahn, P. (2016). Contributions of design thinking to project management in an innovation context. Project Management Journal, 47(2), 144–156. https://doi.org/10.1002/pmj.21577

Brown, A. H., & Green, T. D. (2018). Beyond teaching instructional design models: exploring the design process to advance professional development and expertise. Journal of Computing in Higher Education, 30(1), 176-186.

Giacumo, L. A., & Breman, J. (2021). Trends and Implications of Models, Frameworks, and Approaches Used by Instructional Designers in Workplace Learning and Performance Improvement. Performance Improvement Quarterly, 34(2), 131–170. https://doi.org/10.1002/piq.21349

Rubin, M. A. (1990). [Review of Design Thinking, by P. Rowe]. Journal of Architectural Education (1984-), 43(3), 45–47. https://doi.org/10.2307/1425075