Facilitator Guide & Session Prep

<h3>Facilitator Guidance:</h3><ul><li><p><strong>Set the Stage:</strong> Begin with a warm welcome and clearly articulate the workshop's purpose and objectives. Emphasize the collaborative and creative nature of the session.</p></li><li><p><strong>Manage Time Effectively:</strong> Keep a close eye on the clock for each activity. Gently guide discussions to stay on track while allowing for valuable input. Use a timer to keep participants aware of time constraints.</p></li><li><p><strong>Encourage Participation:</strong> Foster an inclusive environment where all team members feel comfortable sharing. Use open-ended questions and actively solicit input.</p></li><li><p><strong>Active Listening &amp; Validation:</strong> Listen attentively to all contributions. Validate participants' ideas and perspectives.</p></li><li><p><strong>Visual Facilitation:</strong> Utilize flip charts, whiteboards, or digital collaboration tools to capture ideas visually.</p></li><li><p><strong>Embrace "Yes, And...":</strong> Encourage building on ideas rather than shutting them down during ideation.</p></li><li><p><strong>Foster Experimentation:</strong> Frame prototyping as learning, not perfection. Low-fidelity is key.</p></li></ul><h3>Pre-Session Preparation:</h3><ol><li><p><strong>Review Module:</strong> Familiarize yourself with all sections, activities, and time allocations.</p></li><li><p><strong>Prepare Materials:</strong> Gather necessary supplies (large paper/whiteboards, markers, sticky notes, pens) or ensure digital collaboration tools are set up and functional. Have a timer readily accessible.</p></li><li><p><strong>Logistics:</strong> Confirm meeting space, time, and participant list. Ensure technology is working.</p></li><li><p><strong>Understand Design Thinking:</strong> Refresh your knowledge on the core phases and their purpose.</p></li></ol>

<h3>Welcome & Workshop Objectives</h3><p>Welcome to our 120-minute Design Thinking Sprint! Today, we embark on a rapid, user-centered journey to tackle a significant challenge. Our goal is to move through the core phases of design thinking: building empathy, defining a clear problem statement, brainstorming innovative solutions, and sketching low-fidelity prototypes.</p><p>This sprint is designed for cross-functional teams looking to surface fresh ideas, especially in the early stages of a project or when addressing complex problems. We’ll work collaboratively and energetically to generate tangible outputs and actionable next steps. Let’s dive in!</p>

<h4>Challenge Framing</h4><p>To kick off, let's define the core challenge we aim to address today. We'll collectively shape a "How Might We..." (HMW) statement. This statement will serve as our north star, guiding our efforts throughout the sprint.</p><p>As a group, let's brainstorm initial thoughts and collaboratively refine them into a single, focused HMW statement. This ensures we are all aligned on the problem we are trying to solve.</p>

What is the core challenge or problem statement we are addressing today? (We will refine this together)

<h4>Setting the Stage</h4><p>Before we dive into our first activity, let’s quickly establish some working norms. Design thinking thrives on collaboration, open-mindedness, and a willingness to experiment. Please consider the following guidelines:</p><ul><li><strong>Embrace Curiosity:</strong> Ask open-ended questions.</li><li><strong>Build on Ideas:</strong> Use "Yes, and..." to foster creativity.</li><li><strong>Defer Judgment:</strong> Create a safe space for all ideas.</li><li><strong>Stay Focused:</strong> Respect our tight timeline.</li><li><strong>Be Visual:</strong> Sketching and mapping are encouraged!</li></ul><p>Your commitment to these norms will help us maximize our time and creativity.</p>

Do you understand and agree to the working guidelines for this sprint?

Welcome & Challenge Framing

Guide teams through a rapid, user-centered problem-solving cycle—building empathy, defining clear challenges, ideating solutions, and sketching quick prototypes.

<h3>Empathy Mapping</h3><p>Now, we shift to understanding our users or stakeholders more deeply. This phase is crucial for grounding our solutions in real needs and experiences. We'll break into pairs for rapid user interviews, followed by synthesizing our findings onto an empathy map.</p><p>The empathy map is a collaborative tool that visualizes what we know about a particular user. It helps us understand their perspective by capturing what they Think, Feel, Say, and Do. This will provide invaluable insights for our next steps.</p>

<h4>Rapid User Interviews</h4><p>Pair up with someone you haven't worked closely with today. Each person will have 5 minutes to interview their partner, exploring their experiences, thoughts, and feelings related to the challenge we framed earlier. Ask open-ended questions and actively listen.</p><p><strong>Interviewee:</strong> Be open and share your genuine thoughts and experiences.          <br><strong>Interviewer:</strong> Focus on active listening, asking clarifying questions, and taking notes on their partner's Think, Feel, Say, and Do.</p>

Interviewer: Capture your partner's key Think, Feel, Say, and Do insights here:

<h4>Empathy Map Synthesis</h4><p>Now that you've conducted your interviews, take 5 minutes to individually fill out an empathy map for your partner based on their insights. Use sticky notes or a digital tool to capture:</p><ul><li><strong>Says:</strong> What did they say out loud?</li><li><strong>Thinks:</strong> What might they be thinking?</li><li><strong>Feels:</strong> What emotions are they experiencing?</li><li><strong>Does:</strong> What actions did they take?</li></ul><p>This step helps consolidate the information and prepares us for the Define phase.</p>

Individually, summarize your partner's empathy map insights (Think, Feel, Say, Do).

<hr/><h4>Reconvening & Sharing</h4><p>We'll now reconvene as a larger group. Each pair will briefly share 1-2 key insights from their empathy mapping exercise. Listen for recurring themes or surprising observations across the different perspectives.</p><p>This collective sharing helps us build a more comprehensive understanding of our user's context and challenges, setting the stage for defining a clear Point of View.</p>

Did your pair successfully share key insights with the larger group?

Empathy Mapping

<h3>Define & Point-of-View (POV) Statement</h3><p>Based on the empathy insights we gathered, we now synthesize our understanding to define a clear, user-centered problem statement, known as a Point-of-View (POV). A strong POV focuses on a specific user, their unmet need, and the underlying insight driving that need.</p><p>The template we'll use is: <strong>[User...] needs [Need...] because [Insight...].</strong></p><p>This statement will be our anchor for the ideation phase, ensuring our creative efforts are focused and relevant.</p>

<h4>Synthesizing Insights</h4><p>As a group, let's review the key themes that emerged from our empathy mapping. Identify the most resonant needs and the underlying insights that surfaced during our interviews and mapping exercise. Look for patterns, surprising statements, or moments of strong emotion.</p><p>We'll cluster these common themes on our shared board to identify the most critical user need to focus on for our POV statement.</p>

What is the most critical user need we identified?

<h4>Crafting the POV Statement</h4><p>Now, using the identified user need, let's craft our POV statement. Remember the structure: <strong>[User...] needs [Need...] because [Insight...].</strong></p><p>As a group, let's fill in each part of this statement. What specific user are we focusing on? What is their core need that we identified? And what is the surprising insight that explains why this need exists?</p>

Craft our team's POV Statement: [User...] needs [Need...] because [Insight...].

<hr/><h4>From POV to "How Might We..."</h4><p>Our POV statement now clearly defines the problem we're solving. The next step is to reframe this POV into actionable "How Might We..." (HMW) questions. These questions open up possibilities for solutions.</p><p>Based on our POV, let's brainstorm several HMW questions. For example, if our POV is "Busy professionals need a way to quickly plan healthy meals because they lack time and energy," an HMW could be "How might we make meal planning effortless for busy professionals?"</p>

Generate 2-3 "How Might We..." questions based on our POV statement.

<h4>Selecting Our Focus HMW</h4><p>From the HMW questions generated, let's choose one to focus on for our ideation phase. We'll vote on the HMW question that feels most actionable, inspiring, and aligned with our sprint's objective.</p><p>This focused question will guide our brainstorming and ensure our creative energy is channeled effectively.</p>

Which "How Might We..." question will we focus on for ideation?

<h4>Transition to Ideation</h4><p>We've successfully framed our challenge and defined a clear focus. Now, we're ready to unleash our creativity and generate a wide range of potential solutions.</p><p>Get ready for the ideation phase where quantity and diversity of ideas are key!</p>

Define & Point-of-View (POV)

<h3>Ideation & Brainstorm</h3><p>This is where creativity takes flight! We'll move into a rapid ideation session focused on our chosen "How Might We..." question. The goal here is volume and variety—encourage wild ideas, build on each other's thoughts, and defer judgment.</p><p>We'll start with silent ideation, where each person individually generates as many ideas as possible, followed by a round-robin sharing and clustering of themes.</p>

<h4>Silent Ideation (10 min)</h4><p>Take the next 10 minutes for silent, individual idea generation. Use sticky notes or a sketchbook. Aim to sketch or write down 5–7 distinct ideas related to our HMW question. Don't filter yourself—let ideas flow freely, even the seemingly impractical ones!</p><p>Focus on quantity and novelty. We’ll share and build upon these in the next step.</p>

Sketch or list your 5-7 individual ideas here:

<h4>Round-Robin Sharing & Clustering</h4><p>Now, we'll go around the room (or virtual space). Each person shares one idea at a time. As ideas are shared, post them visibly (on a wall, whiteboard, or digital board). After sharing, we'll cluster similar ideas together to identify themes and patterns.</p><p>This collaborative process helps uncover connections and sparks new ideas from the collective energy.</p>

<h4>Identifying Top Themes</h4><p>After clustering, we'll identify the top 2-3 themes or clusters that emerged from our collective brainstorming. These represent the most promising directions for our solutions.</p><p>Discuss within your small groups (or as a whole) which themes hold the most potential for further development.</p>

List the top 2-3 idea themes that emerged:

<hr/><h4>Dot Voting for Focus</h4><p>To narrow down our options, we'll use dot voting. Each participant gets 2–3 virtual or physical dots to vote for the ideas or themes they find most promising, innovative, or aligned with the user's needs and our HMW statement.</p><p>Vote for the ideas that excite you the most!</p>

Which idea/theme received the most votes?

<h4>Transition to Prototyping</h4><p>We’ve generated a wealth of ideas and identified promising themes. Now, it's time to bring one of these ideas to life through rapid prototyping.</p><p>Get ready to build!</p>

Ideation & Brainstorm

<h3>Rapid Prototyping</h3><p>In this phase, we move from ideas to tangible artifacts. Rapid prototyping is about quickly creating low-fidelity mockups—sketches, storyboards, or paper prototypes—that represent a potential solution. The goal isn't perfection; it's about making an idea concrete enough to get feedback.</p><p>We'll form small teams and select one of our top-voted ideas to prototype. Focus on illustrating the core user experience and functionality.</p>

<h4>Forming Prototype Teams</h4><p>Divide yourselves into small teams of 3–4 people. If possible, form teams around the top-voted idea clusters. Within your teams, decide which specific idea you will prototype.</p><p>Quickly assign roles if needed (e.g., sketcher, notetaker, presenter) to ensure efficient collaboration.</p>

What is the core idea your team will prototype?

<h4>Building the Prototype (25 min)</h4><p>You have 25 minutes to build a low-fidelity prototype. Use the materials provided (paper, markers, sticky notes) or digital tools. Focus on illustrating the key features and user flow. Think about:</p><ul><li>What is the primary user journey?</li><li>What are the essential interaction points?</li><li>How does it address the user's need and insight?</li></ul><p>Don’t get bogged down in details. Make it quick, make it visual, and make it testable!</p>

<h4>Prototype Showcase Prep</h4><p>As you near the end of your prototyping time, prepare a brief (2-3 minute) explanation of your prototype. Highlight the core idea, the problem it solves, and how it works from the user's perspective.</p><p>Be ready to share your creation and explain its value proposition.</p>

Is your team ready to present its prototype?

Rapid Prototyping

<h3>Feedback & Refine</h3><p>Prototypes are powerful learning tools, especially when paired with constructive feedback. In this phase, we'll engage in a "gallery walk" where teams present their prototypes, and others provide valuable sticky-note feedback.</p><p>The goal is to gather diverse perspectives quickly, identify areas for improvement, and make rapid refinements to enhance our concepts.</p>

<h4>Gallery Walk Setup</h4><p>Each team will display their prototype in a designated area. We’ll then rotate in small groups through the "gallery." When visiting another team’s prototype, observe carefully and leave constructive, specific feedback on sticky notes.</p><p>Focus your feedback on what works well, what’s unclear, and what could be improved or added. Aim for actionable suggestions.</p>

<h4>Feedback Collection</h4><p>As you rotate, take about 3-4 minutes at each station to review the prototype and leave your feedback. Be concise and clear.</p><p>After visiting all prototypes, return to your own team's station to collect the feedback left for you.</p>

<h4>Reviewing Feedback</h4><p>Once you've collected all the feedback, your team should spend 5 minutes reviewing the sticky notes. Identify the most common themes, the most impactful suggestions, and any surprising insights.</p><p>Discuss which pieces of feedback are most critical for refining your prototype.</p>

<h4>Rapid Refinement</h4><p>Based on the feedback analysis, take 10 minutes to make quick, targeted refinements to your prototype. This could involve adding a sticky note to clarify a feature, sketching a new interaction, or rearranging elements.</p><p>The aim is to incorporate the most critical suggestions to improve the prototype's clarity and effectiveness.</p>

Did your team review feedback and make refinements?

<h4>Transition to Action Planning</h4><p>We've now iterated on our prototypes based on valuable peer feedback. The final step is to think about how to move forward and what the immediate next steps should be.</p><p>Let’s prepare for our action planning session.</p>

Feedback & Refine

<h3>Action Planning & Wrap-Up</h3><p>We've journeyed through the design thinking process, from empathy to prototyping and feedback. Now, it's time to translate our learnings and prototypes into concrete next steps. This ensures that the momentum we’ve built carries forward beyond this sprint.</p><p>Each team will define what happens next, and we’ll conclude with a final reflection from everyone.</p>

<h4>Defining Next Steps</h4><p>As a team, discuss your prototype and the feedback received. Identify 1–2 key actions you will take to test or develop your solution further. Consider:</p><ul><li>What is the most critical next step?</li><li>Who will be responsible for it?</li><li>By when should it be completed?</li><li>How will you measure its success or learn from it?</li></ul><p>Document these actions clearly.</p>

Team's Next Steps: What actions will you take? Who is responsible? By when? How will you measure success?

<h4>Sprint Recap</h4><p>We've covered a lot of ground in just 120 minutes! We framed a challenge, built empathy, defined a POV, brainstormed ideas, prototyped solutions, gathered feedback, and planned next steps. This rapid cycle demonstrates the power of design thinking to unlock innovation and drive action.</p><p>Remember that this is an iterative process. The prototypes and plans we’ve created are starting points for further learning and development.</p>

<h4>Closing Round: Key Takeaway</h4><p>To wrap up our sprint, let’s go around one last time. Each participant will share one key insight, learning, or commitment from today’s session. This provides a concise recap of our collective journey and reinforces individual takeaways.</p><p>Be brief and impactful!</p>

What is your single key insight or commitment from this sprint?

<h3>Concluding Remarks</h3><p>Thank you for your energy, creativity, and collaboration throughout this Design Thinking Sprint. The work you’ve done today—from understanding user needs to sketching tangible solutions—is a testament to the power of this methodology. Keep the momentum going by pursuing the next steps you've defined.</p><p>We hope this sprint has equipped you with valuable tools and a renewed approach to problem-solving!</p>

120-Minute Design Thinking Sprint Workshop