Design Thinking Programme

Design is a key driver of business success and is “the only way that companies can stand out from the crowd”, according to a report by management consultancy McKinsey and Company.

McKinsey’s report says that “While design was once largely thought of as a way of making products more attractive, it is now a way of thinking: a creative process driven by the desire to better understand and meet consumer needs”.

Design Thinking is a proven growth enabler for organisations. The design thinking mindset, it’s methods and processes help companies to discover, develop and deliver breakthroughs that are distinctive and differentiating. For R,D&I performing companies of all sectors it is an increasingly valuable knowledge set, and has been yielding great benefits to companies who are practicing it.

Industry leading, highly practical introduction to Design Thinking

IRDG has been championing the value of design thinking amongst the business innovation community for many years and we host training programmes, workshops, special interest groups and conferences on the subject. Our introductory programme is designed with business teams in mind, where participants go through the entire design thinking process while working on a case study project to practice the various tools and techniques.

Spring 2022 Dates

The programme will take place virtually over 6 half days – 1st March, 2nd March, 22nd March, 23rd March, 25th March & 12th April. To complete the programme you must complete all 6 days. CPD credits are available to attendees.

Format

6 interactive workshops with a blend of theory and practice exercises. Participants will work in mixed teams on a pre-defined case study challenge. This learning approach will facilitate participants to:

learn and experience the fundamentals of design thinking
put new concepts into practice with a real-world use case, and
transfer learning to own company projects.

Participants

The programme is open to individual participants or company team groups. By participating as a company team, it will ensure a greater shared understanding of the benefits of design thinking and increase the likelihood of immediately applying the learnings to own company projects. CPD certificates will be awarded to participants who complete the programme.

Why Design Thinking in your business?

Design thinking is a practical approach for innovation that anyone in any sector can learn and apply. Innovating through design thinking helps you:

Develop compelling value propositions – by overcoming expertise bias and challenge assumptions related to your problem and the solution.
Enhance workplace culture – by breaking silos, fostering collaboration, cultivating ideas and developing a unified view of the customer.
Become more customer-centred – by pre-empting demands and anticipating needs to provide better solutions and experiences.

Content Summary

Day 1 – Introduction to design thinking, participants undertake exercise that brings them through a full design thinking cycle, from user research to prototyping and testing.
Day 2 – Introduction to the design thinking challenge for the programme, introduction to AUDIT techniques, introduction to RESEARCH methods.
Day 3 – Continuation of RESEARCH methods, data synthesis and introduction to REFRAME methods.
Day 4 – Ideation methods and development of concepts.
Day 5 – Introduction to VALIDATE methods, assumption mapping and learning experiments.
Day 6 – Introduction to EXECUTE methods, lean canvas and pitching your concept.
Post programme – optional follow up engagement if participants have specific in-house project to pursue.

Facilitators

The programme will be led by Frank Devitt (Devitt Design Innovation & NUI Maynooth) and Martin Ryan (Actionable & NCAD).

More Info & Booking

The programme fee is €950 per member delegate. CPD certificate available on completion. For further details about the programme, and to book your place, please contact Bernie McGahon at bernadette.mcgahon@irdg.ie