The best design is based on research and arrived upon through careful planning and execution. By applying a refined and tested process I can arrive at reliable solutions and tangible results presented with confidence.
SPrint Methodology
In more recent years its has become apparent that rapid prototyping and testing are essential to creating effective and innovative products. The design sprint is a way to accelerate the traditional design process so it can be executed in a few days to provide quicker insights. I have used sprint methodology to solve design problems across several industries and used it as an effective framework for various applications. Traditionally the design sprint is used for UX purposes but I have found it just as useful when storyboarding a video or mapping out an executive presentation.
Understand
The first step in any design sprint is to understand the space in which your design problem exists. Often I find myself working in industries that are outside my professional expertise. Whether it’s robotic surgery, synthetic chemistry or consumer electronics, the understand phase allows me to listen to the experts explain their day to day operations, goals an issues in their own words. Sprint members write out stacks of “How might we?” notes as they listen to the experts. These notes are later voted on and grouped to distill the most important issues facing the team as a whole.
Sketch
The sketch phase allows sprint team members an opportunity to draw out or outline multiple solutions to desires uncovered in the understand phase, in a low fidelity setting. Sketching takes thoughts from ethereal to tangible and helps the team narrow in on the best solutions from a field of dozens. The sketches are then presented to the group for discussion.
Decide
The decide phase is critical to the direction of the project. In this phase sprint team members vote on their favorite sketches that are later grouped into larger design directions. Once the best consolidated idea or ideas are decided upon, roles are assigned for the prototype phase and the group moves on to outline, storyboard, or wireframe the best solution.
Prototype
Building a rapid, but function prototype is crucial to testing the solution that was arrived upon by the sprint team in the decide phase. Each team member should use their strengths to help build the best prototype they can in one day. This isn’t a final design so it is not important to build a full solution, but one that is able to execute interactions to which target users can react.
Test
Once the prototype is complete it is important to create a realistic user test with actual prospective users. If possible it is beneficial to create a real world scenario for the user and ask them to accomplish a task using your prototype. The sprint group can observe and take notes from another room to record what works, what doesn’t and what features are utterly confusing to users. After the user test is complete the sprint team should have a discussion about the findings and what actions to take moving forward.
Iterate
Perhaps the most important phase of the sprint process is to evaluate the findings of the sprint and figure out how those findings inform the next steps of the product development process. If there are outstanding issues it may be important to conduct another sprint. If all parties are satisfied with the design direction the team can move forward towards production.