TLDR: The Design Process de-risks work by forcing clarity through a series of methodical steps that still allow for wild experimentation. It is neither too rigid nor too vague a process. It frames success criteria as a clear target every step of the way.
A lot of creatives seem to hate rules. But any producer who actually cares about the work adopts guidelines to lead them through uncertainty. Inspiration only carries us so far. When we find a formula that works, we learn to stick with it—even though good outcomes are never entirely in our control.
Every business wants a less risky road to success. At work, we want outcomes to be as much within our control as possible. Anyone in a collaborative setting needs to understand the role they play, and the rules that help de-risk their part of it.
Risk can be a very good thing. It means you’re attempting something that hasn’t been done before—or at least, not done well. Most of what gets attempted in B2B technology is inherently risky, because it’s new: pushing boundaries, exploring possibilities, blending the exciting with the familiar. For companies aiming at real innovation, some amount of risk has to be embraced.
Design plays well in that environment. Designers trained in a tried-and-true design process do well toeing the line between ambiguity and hard deadlines—both of which are rampant in startups and technology companies.
The Design Process works for any kind of design—physical product, digital service or customer experience. It starts with understanding the big picture, then breaking it into manageable pieces that can be evaluated, elaborated on, refined and packaged for production.
What I love about it: it forces clarity through a series of methodical steps that still allow for wild experimentation. It’s neither too rigid nor too vague. It puts boundaries around the work so no amount of ambiguity feels too monumental to break down—and keeps everyone focused on a single prioritized outcome, so success is a clearly framed target at every step, not just a hope.
The basic rules are easy to follow. Anyone can do it—designer or not.
Think Holistically:
- Define the problem to solve.
- Do research to establish context.
Work Modularly:
- Explore several possible solutions, time-boxed.
- Narrow to a few that stand out. Get feedback.
- Choose one solution to refine. Get feedback.
- Refine once more. Get final approval.
- Package and deliver.
- Evaluate and redesign as needed.
These steps can stretch or compress in duration, but none of them should be skipped, no matter the deadline.
If you’re going to linger on any one step, linger on defining the problem. Getting hung up on research leads to endless rabbit trails that rarely produce anything profound. Getting hung up on endless variations is more often a symptom of unclear priorities than a sign of prolific design genius.
The goal isn’t to cling to any one idea too soon—ideas aren’t the precious things we sometimes treat them as. Implementation is where the war is actually won. ⚑