Defining

Defining

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daVinci Innovation Workshop

Defining a Problem

What sort of organizational culture do you need for design thinking to be successful? How you come upon problems to solve?

Narrative descriptions thanks to Rochester Institute of Technology https://www.rit.edu/

 

Implementing Design Thinking?

Anyone or any group of people can use design thinking to solve a problem. But does your place of work have an atmosphere conducive to open-mindedness, unstructured investigations, and risk taking? You may need to introduce design thinking to your organization before you can begin forming a team and solving problems.

 

Initial Problem Description

The very first step in the design thinking process is for the design team leader or manager to find out more about the problem. This will help the person forming the design team to understand the experience and skills that should be represented on the team. This early investigation will also help set parameters for the design team such as providing them with a budget and a deadline, telling them who should get updates on their progress, and how often updates should be given.

 

Starting With the Right Problem

Not all design thinking projects start with you being given a clear, defined problem to solve. The problem may be messier than initially thought. The client may not articulate their problem well or even know what the problem really is.

 

 

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Creating

Creating

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daVinci Innovation Workshop

Creating a Team

Design teams are a type of cross-functional team. A cross-functional team brings together people who have different areas of expertise and are often from different job levels to address a problem. While this diversity is a strength, it can also be a source of friction. When you’re an expert you often approach problems in particular ways. All members need to come to the team with the expectation that they will learn from one another, and all members of the group must respect these different ways of working and be committed to working together.

Narrative descriptions thanks to Rochester Institute of Technology https://www.rit.edu/

 

Qualities Needed on a Team

Design thinkers need to be bold enough to ask the questions no one else is asking, but also collaborative enough to know how to ask those questions in a collegial way. You need experts, but just as important, you need people who enjoy working with and learning from others.

 

Team Diversity

Beyond subject matter expertise, there are additional considerations and benefits for building diverse teams.  In a review of the literature, they said, “Published research from academia, corporations, and other organizations supports that diverse and inclusive groups make better quality decisions, often faster, and in a more fact-based manner, with less cognitive bias or groupthink.” Simply put, diverse teams are strong teams.

 

Supporting the Work of the Team

Work with your team to establish some guidelines or rules for how the group will work together. This can include administrative rules, such as team members should be on time to meetings, as well as those that might help the group be its best version of itself. Some of these rules can be set by the team leader, particularly those that set the tone of meetings. Think about how you might turn that table describing the aspects of design thinking into a set of guidelines for the how the team will work together. How can you help activate the team’s empathy and curiosity toward a user-centered investigation of the problem? How can you help ensure that they provide non-judgmental and constructive feedback during a critique?

 

 

Revisiting the Problem Description

Now that you have assembled a team that will work to find a solution to the problem, you should bring that expertise together to re-investigate your problem. Run through the What, Who, When, Where, Why questions of problem investigation again to see if your team has deeper insight into the complexities of the problem. The team members will want to feel confident in their initial understanding of the problem so that they can begin to pursue research in their area of expertise. As you pursue research, your team will come back periodically to exchange information and perhaps adjust the team’s understanding of the problem description.

 

 

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Research

Research

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daVinci Innovation Workshop

Research the Problem

The next logical stage is the research substage of the design thinking process as well as what happens after you conduct the research so that you can move forward in the process.

Narrative descriptions thanks to Rochester Institute of Technology https://www.rit.edu/

 

Research Stage

The research stage of design thinking begins with initial problem description and team formation. Once the team is formed and it has reviewed and dissected the problem description, the team will list areas of information that are pertinent to solving the problem. They will also need to discuss who will gather the information and how. Team members will explore their area of expertise to bring back information or data that is relevant to the problem.

 

Understanding User Needs and Wants

A good solution considers the users’ needs and wants, or in other words, what is necessary and what is desirable. In the previous video, Richard described the impact of the users’ emotions when they were using the camera. The technology was good, but users were embarrassed to be seen with it. A product may solve the problem and contain all of the latest technology, but if potential users don’t find it desirable, the product will not succeed. As members of the team conduct research, it is critical that you all understand what is necessary and what is desirable, as this understanding will be what guides your decision making in upcoming stages.

 

Problem-Solving Methodologies

Other ways of solving problems that are similar to design thinking:

  1. Participatory design 
  2. User-centered design 
  3. User-experience design (UX) 
  4. Human-centered design 
  5. Service design 
  6. Social design 

 

 

Research Methodologies

Once you have identified the users and their context, you will need to select appropriate research methodologies. A research methodology is a process used to collect information and data for the purpose of making decisions about your design thinking problem.

 

 

Research Ethics

You must ensure that your research participants are aware of their rights and that you will promise to:

  1. Respect their privacy and keep their private information confidential
  2. Respect their right to change their mind, to decide that the research does not match their interests, and to withdraw without a penalty

 

 

 

Schedule a Workshop

To schedule a workshop in your institution, business, or school click on the link and leave us your contact information.
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Watercolor Class with Megan Jefferson

Watercolor Class with Megan Jefferson

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Classes Begin June 17, 2020

Water Color Class

Watch and Learn …

Watch and Learn with Megan Jefferson

Join us on Facebook …

If you are interested in taking the class feel free to join us. Watercolor Class Community – with Megan Jefferson

Class Description

Indianapolis artist, Megan Jefferson, is conducting a series of online workshops where she will work with students to explore how to create watercolor painting from nature.

Megan attended Miami University and received a BFA, with a focus in painting and has been a practicing artist for 20 years. She is a colorist with a keen interest in the beauty of nature. Her
paintings are ethereal, they invoke a sense of peace, wonder and stillness.
For Megan, inspiration comes from the light hitting the distant land, amazing flowers and flora all around us and the infinite colors in the sky.

As a painter, Megan is much more interested in how the experience of creating feels and the alignment of it being joyful, at ease and flowing, than about the outcome being a direct
result of a perfect depiction of subject matter. Painting is a graceful dance that keeps her focused in the moment and allows creation to happen from a calm and centered place.

One of the beautiful things about watercolor is that is forces Megan to work in the moment, to consider every stroke and proceed by allowing the material to behave in its natural way. The water and colors pool, drip, merge and bland. The outcome of this essence is unpredictable, bringing the joy of surprise.

In this free series, students will explore a variety of techniques, media and approaches to explore the nature around them. The classes will help students gain the skills needed to add watercolors to nature journals, as paintings, on fabrics, and for personal enjoyment.

This class is provided at no cost through the generosity of the daVinci Pursuit and its supporters. No special skills are expected or required.

More Details About the Series

Contact Megan …

Supply List

1. Watercolor: I use liquid, this is not necessary, a set of Prang is great too: 

https://www.amazon.com/Prang-Washable-Watercolor-Assorted-80525/dp/B001E69W9O/ref=sr_1_3_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=prang+watercolor+set&qid=1590850921&sr=8-3-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEzNk9IQzZNREZLMTZTJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNzk0MzYwT0E3MTdHS04wOU41JmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA5NTIxMDEyTFgzWEFTQThTWFVEJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==. 

 
2. If using Prang watercolors, I just recommend a palette for mixing, it could be a styrofoam plate, an upcycled plastic lid etc.
3. Cup for water.
4. Paper towels.
5. Watercolor paper. I like this, but any watercolor paper is great:

 https://www.amazon.com/Strathmore-440-2-STR-440-2-No-140-Watercolor/dp/B0024KSG8M/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&keywords=watercolor+paper+strathmore&qid=1590851087&sr=8-5

6. salt for experimenting with.
7. crayons for playing with.

Field Journaling With Geoff Davis – Intermediate

Field Journaling With Geoff Davis – Intermediate

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Starts Thursday, June 11 , 2020, 6:30pm

Nature Journaling – Intermediate

Register ...

 

 

 

David Sibley is excited to launch the Sibley BirdWatching Art Contest, in partnership with BirdWatching Magazine on Instagram. Over the coming weeks, he will judge your original drawings of a wild bird. To enter, post an original drawing of a wild bird on Instagram, use the hashtag #SibleyBirdWatchingArtContest, and follow @aaknopf, @sibleyguides, and @birdwatchingmagazine. A first, second, and third place winner will be announced at the end of June. (NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. US Residents, 18+. Ends June 15, 2020. See Official Rules at https://bit.ly/2T4s73k

#sibleybirdwatchingartcontest

Class Description

Building upon a successful beginning workshop series, Noblesville naturalist, Geoff Davis, is conducting an intermediate online workshop where he will work with students to explore how Nature Journaling can increase engagement and enhance outdoor experiences.

This intermediate level course will focus on investigations including data collection and experimentation.

Davis, a bird carver and printmaker, has used journaling to document his natural experiences and to develop his observation skills.

In this free course students will explore a variety of techniques, media and approaches to record experiences, develop and answer questions and to develop new more meaningful adventures. We will be taking what we learned in the beginning course to a deeper level.

If you miswed the beginning courtse you can find links to what was presented here …

This class is provided at no cost through the generosity of the daVinci Pursuit and Nickel Plate Arts. No special skills are expected Students may begin with just pencil and paper.

The classes will be conducted via Zoom

June 11, 2020 06:30 pm (East)

June 18, 2020 06:30 pm (East)

June 25, 2020 06:30 pm (East)

Register in advance for this workshop:

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Join Us On Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/groups/618429178745297/?ref=bookmarks

 

Contact Geoff …

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