- Design thinking is most often used
to tackle hard problems
with undefined outcomes
where there isn't an obvious linear solution.
Exploring these undefined problems
and finding solutions
requires the ability to stand back
from the immediate details
and explore what might be.
And I mean literally stand back from the details,
and to do it as a group.
Stephen Kosslyn, a Psychology Professor at Harvard,
found that just as a mechanical calculator
can extend our mental capabilities,
other people help us extend our intelligence,
both in a cognitive sense
and an emotional sense.
And if you speak with designers
and look at the research,
you'll find that this effect is most true
when you're working face to face.
A recent Harvard Business Review article found
that these direct interactions between knowledge workers,
or in our context,
people trying to address large undefined problems,
dramatically increase productivity and innovation.
In design thinking, much of the knowledge
the team is generating is in their heads.
It's invisible.
And when it stays there,
or it gets put in a spreadsheet,
the team doesn't extend its intelligence.
Having a physical space with changeable surfaces,
whiteboards and other tools to illustrate
the in process thinking,
makes the thinking accessible to the team
and helps focus everybody.
And having that physical space
hold prototypes of the product, service,
or service being created
enables the team to further expand their intelligence
by applying this thinking into a tangible reality.
While this collaboration is
the primary reason for shared space,
and why you see lots of post-it notes, whiteboards,
moveable walls and the like,
in images of how we work,
not all shared spaces are created equal.
A good shared space supports
both collaboration and heads down time.
It captures the long view of the program
so that even during times of detailed and focused work,
team members can look up
and frame their thinking in a broader context.
It's also carefully gardened
to communicate that broader context
and the current state of the team's thinking.
This is good for the team,
but it also enables you to bring potential users,
or your stakeholders into the space
and immerse them in the thinking
and problem-solving with you.
Your space should be a flexible open canvas
for the team to shape as needed
as they're trying to solve the problems they encounter.
Organizationally, finding space can be a challenge.
If you can't get shared space designated for your team,
finding a way to work together
even if it's something you carve out of a common area
can be really helpful.
If you'd like a little bit of ammunition
in making the argument for space,
the course files have a well-researched study
from Herman Miller,
and a link to the HBR article I mentioned earlier.
A great deal of the best design thinking happens
when your team is working face-to-face.
If you try to communicate those emerging ideas
and knowledge just via screens
or in verbal exchanges,
you'll find it hampers decision making
and the ability of the team to work efficiently.
Making ideas tangible and revealing the framework
of knowledge on the walls
enables the team to make these creative
and intuitive leaps that aren't purely linear and reductive,
and extend their intelligence.
It doesn't have to be a lot of space,
but it does need to be shared.