A design process is a non-linear, iterative, and continual method that promotes feedback to discover the true nature of a problem to be solved. Because this process is iterative, you may return to prior steps, continuously using new information to inform the problem. While anyone could develop their own steps for a design process, the most commonly shared method was created at the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford. It involves five steps: empathize, define, ideate, prototype, and test (Dam, 2023). The most important aspect of a design process is collaboration and feedback. You may even consider getting mass, or crowd, feedback which has been shown to improve designs (Xu, 2015). It is also essential to gain feedback not only from leadership, but from those who the solution will be implemented among. This will ensure a smooth implementation with no surprises from participants (Chen, 2023).
A design process should be an experience for everyone involved. A design process should be solution-oriented and aim to solve a problem or meet a need. A design process can be helpful when problems are ill-defined and causality is not immediately clear. Copious feedback will be used to define the problem and causes of the problem. The process should identify the gap between known and unknown variables of a problem. A good design process will break down large problems or projects into workable pieces. Because a good design process is iterative, with each phase informing both the prior and upcoming phases, it will be different for each person, organization, or project (2023 guide to the design process: kick-start your next project, 2023).
It is important to follow a design process for several reasons. A well-developed process would be created with all important factors necessary. When we “wing it” we are more likely to forget important steps or aspects of a process, or forget about information from prior steps due to lack of organization. A good design process involves copious feedback, hopefully in multiple phases. More feedback and cooperation leads to better solutions and better designs. Because feedback is encouraged, the design process should make all parties feel represented and involved, especially the person or organization the design is being built for. Your personal or organizational design process separates you from your competitors. Therefore, you should have a clearly designed process to share with clients. Finally, following a process will ensure you have a timeline and scope for the process so you don’t fall behind or find yourself rushing through an important issue (Chen, 2022).
Because your design process may very well differ from someone elses, the outcomes of your solutions will vary as well. The ultimate step in any design process is the implementation of the solution that’s been developed. The design process should include some measures of success which can be used to determine if the solution you’ve developed is correcting the probem you’ve identified. These measures will vary by designer, as too will their impression of the success of implementation. Measuring the effectiveness of the implementation relies on strong measures of implementation outcomes. If these are ill-defined or too limited in scope, they will not support design (Weiner, 2017). The design process is inherently human-centered. The tendency for humans to interpret outcomes in different ways is an important reason for collaboration to be continuous throughout the design process (Joseph, 2021). In fact, a study published in March of 2020 indicates that the majority of issues that arise during implementation are human issues such as conflicts of interest or lack of employee input (Lu, 2020).
One great example of the design process was the development of the app Preflight. Preflight was designed by Full Sail University students for other Full Sail students to streamline the Full Sail online experience and help students manage their time and studies effectively. I appreciate this example because it was feedback from students about struggling with time management that spurred the app, and feedback from students was gathered throughout the process. They also divided the larger problem, time management, into smaller problems with individual solutions that all support the larger goal of the app (Reaves, 2016).
Another great example of a design process at work is the creation of the restaurant + supportive app called Rendezvous. The developer of Rendezvous saw the need for a “platonic pick up app” for making friends. He imagined a bar meant for meeting new people to form friendships with, all supported by an app that used information about you to direct you to like-minded people. The developer followed the design method by first confirming that there is a need and desire for a service like this. He next looked into competitors in the market. He used this feedback to begin developing the solution, all the while keeping the feedback from interested parties in mind (Califa, 2022).
2023 guide to the design process: Kick-start your next project. monday.com Blog. (2023, January 1). Retrieved February 10, 2023, from https://monday.com/blog/project-management/design-process/
Califa, J. (2022). Rendezvous. Joel Califa. Retrieved February 10, 2023, from https://joelcalifa.com/work/rendezvous/
Chen, F., & Terken, J. (2022). Design process. Springer Tracts in Mechanical Engineering, 165–179. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-3448-3_10
Dam, R. F. (2023, February 10). The 5 stages in the design thinking process. The Interaction Design Foundation. Retrieved February 10, 2023, from https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/article/5-stages-in-the-design-thinking-process
Joseph, D. (2021, August 31). The importance of having a solid design process. Function Creative Co. Retrieved February 10, 2023, from https://www.hellofunction.com/blog-posts/importance-of-design-process
Lu, Y., Sood, T., Chang, R., & Liao, L. (2020). Factors impacting integrated design process of net zero energy buildings: An integrated framework. International Journal of Construction Management, 22(9), 1700–1712. https://doi.org/10.1080/15623599.2020.1742625
Reaves, C. (2016, February 6). Preflight. Medium. Retrieved February 10, 2023, from https://medium.com/@calreaves/preflight-dfbff53a1cdc
Weiner, B. J., Lewis, C. C., Stanick, C., Powell, B. J., Dorsey, C. N., Clary, A. S., Boynton, M. H., & Halko, H. (2017). Psychometric Assessment of three newly developed implementation outcome measures. Implementation Science, 12(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13012-017-0635-3
Xu, A., Rao, H., Dow, S. P., & Bailey, B. P. (2015). A classroom study of using crowd feedback in the iterative design process. Proceedings of the 18th ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work & Social Computing. https://doi.org/10.1145/2675133.2675140
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