Design Thinking Self-Assessment – Innovation Training

I’ve been within the rising house of self-assessments for design considering and innovation. I used to be curious to see if an AI device might create a self-assessment folks might take to evaluate themselves on their design considering behaviors, mindset and practices. This evaluation clearly wouldn’t be as validated, scientific, dependable, or supply as high-quality a report because the Innovation Impact Assessment as an example. But, it might be a design considering self-assessment which may present consciousness, perception, or some worth if you replicate on every query and provides your self a fast ranking. If you discover assessing your self useful, you would then dive deeper into an evaluation based mostly on a big pool of analysis.

These 30 questions had been generated are categorized by design considering framework levels, mindsets, and finest practices. For every query, price your self on a scale of 1-5, with 1 being “strongly disagree” and 5 being “strongly agree.” You can comply with alongside in a spreadsheet, rating your self, and tabulate the typical ranking for every of the 4 classes based mostly on what number of questions there have been in that class. Note which classes had been your strengths and which might use extra development.

Design Thinking Self-Assessment

Empathize and Understand:

1. How effectively do you empathize with the wants and challenges of your customers or clients?
2. How usually do you hunt down various views and opinions when engaged on a mission?
3. How effectively do you outline and reframe issues to create revolutionary options?
4. How effectively do you determine and tackle biases that will affect your design considering method?
5. How effectively do you create and keep a user-centered method to your tasks?
6. How effectively do you create empathy along with your customers with a view to perceive their wants?
7. How effectively do you collect and use information about customers to tell your design selections?
8. How effectively do you utilize suggestions from customers to enhance your design options?
9. How effectively do you steadiness the wants of customers with the targets of the group?

Define and Reframe:

10. How usually do you problem assumptions and suppose exterior the field?
11. How effectively do you prioritize and handle your time when engaged on a mission?
12. How usually do you observe and study from the world round you to encourage new concepts?
13. How effectively do you problem the established order and hunt down new methods of doing issues?
14. How effectively do you incorporate sustainability and moral concerns into your design considering method?
15. How effectively do you outline issues in a manner that permits for revolutionary options?
16. How effectively do you utilize brainstorming and ideation methods to generate concepts?
17. How effectively do you synthesize data and concepts to determine essentially the most promising options?
18. How effectively do you utilize standards to judge and choose the perfect options?

Ideate and Experiment:

19. How usually do you prototype and take a look at your concepts with customers or clients?
20. How effectively do you iterate and refine your concepts based mostly on suggestions from others?
21. How effectively do you steadiness data-driven evaluation with instinct and creativity?
22. How effectively do you stay versatile and adaptable when engaged on a mission?
23. How effectively do you choose the perfect method for prototyping and testing?
24. How effectively do you utilize suggestions from testing to enhance your design options?
25. How effectively do you steadiness the velocity of iteration with the necessity for thorough testing?
26. How effectively do you determine and handle dangers related to prototyping and experimentation?

Collaborate and Communicate:

27. How effectively do you collaborate with others and encourage a staff method?
28. How effectively do you talk your concepts and insights to others?
29. How effectively do you steadiness your individual concepts with the wants and needs of your customers or clients?
30. How effectively do you utilize storytelling and visualization methods to speak your design options?

The questions on this design considering self-assessment are designed to evaluate people’ design considering mindset and habits, in addition to their apply of design considering for innovation of their group. By offering classes for every query, it permits individuals to determine their strengths and areas for enchancment inside the totally different levels of the design considering course of.

If you’d like a extra correct innovation or design considering evaluation that you would be able to take for your self or along with your staff, the Innovation Impact Assessment is considered one of our favorites for a device that’s extra scientifically validated, dependable, and studied than this AI generated design considering self-assessment.

Learning Out Of Your Design Thinking Self-Assessment Results

Now, you possibly can find out about some practices you possibly can take for every class you’d like to emphasise. If you scored low in a class discover some alternatives to develop under. If you scored excessive within the class, study extra to leverage that power! (Thanks to our AI device for these design considering self-assessment class summaries.)

Empathize And Understand Category

If somebody scores low within the Empathize and Understand class of the self-assessment, listed here are some options that will assist:

1. Practice energetic listening: Active listening includes paying shut consideration to what somebody is saying and responding in a manner that exhibits you perceive their perspective. Practice this talent by actively listening to folks in your private {and professional} life and responding in a manner that exhibits you perceive their standpoint.
2. Seek out various views: Actively hunt down various views and opinions, particularly from those that could have totally different backgrounds and experiences than you. This can assist you achieve a greater understanding of the wants and challenges of various teams of individuals.
3. Spend time with customers or clients: Make an effort to spend time with the folks you’re designing for. This can embody conducting consumer analysis, observing their behaviors, or conducting interviews. By spending time with customers or clients, you possibly can achieve a deeper understanding of their wants and challenges.
4. Reframe issues: Practice reframing issues in a manner that encourages you to suppose extra creatively and overtly. This could contain difficult assumptions or contemplating a number of views on an issue.
5. Practice empathy: Empathy is the flexibility to know and share the emotions of others. Practice placing your self in different folks’s footwear and contemplating their wants and needs. This can assist you higher perceive their perspective and design options that meet their wants.

By incorporating these practices into your design considering method, you possibly can enhance your capability to empathize with customers and achieve a deeper understanding of their wants and challenges.

Define And Reframe Category

If somebody scores low within the Define and Reframe class of the self-assessment, listed here are some options that will assist:

1. Practice divergent considering: Divergent considering is the flexibility to generate many concepts or options to an issue. Practice brainstorming and ideation methods to generate a variety of potential options.
2. Reframe issues: Practice reframing issues in a manner that encourages you to suppose extra creatively and overtly. This could contain difficult assumptions or contemplating a number of views on an issue.
3. Incorporate sustainability and moral concerns: Consider how your design options can promote sustainability and moral concerns. This could contain contemplating the environmental affect of your options or the social affect on totally different teams of individuals.
4. Use standards to judge and choose options: Develop standards to judge potential options and choose essentially the most promising ones. This can assist you select options that finest meet the wants of customers and the targets of the group.
5. Learn from the world round you: Observe and study from the world round you to encourage new concepts. This can contain exploring new applied sciences or seeking to different industries for inspiration.

By incorporating these practices into your design considering method, you possibly can enhance your capability to outline issues in a manner that permits for revolutionary options. This can assist you determine new alternatives for design and create options that higher meet the wants of customers and the group.

Ideate And Experiment Category

If somebody scores low within the Ideate and Experiment class of the self-assessment, listed here are some options that will assist:

1. Practice divergent considering: Divergent considering is the flexibility to generate many concepts or options to an issue. Practice brainstorming and ideation methods to generate a variety of potential options.
2. Embrace experimentation: Embrace experimentation by testing and prototyping concepts. This can assist you rapidly and cheaply take a look at potential options, permitting you to determine and refine essentially the most promising ones.
3. Consider a number of views: Encourage collaboration and enter from others to generate a wider vary of concepts and views.
4. Foster a tradition of creativity: Foster a tradition of creativity inside the group by selling an open-minded and experimental method to problem-solving.
5. Learn from failure: Embrace the thought of failing quick and studying out of your failures. Use suggestions from failed experiments to refine your concepts and generate new options.

By incorporating these practices into your design considering method, you possibly can enhance your capability to generate and take a look at revolutionary options. This can assist you determine new alternatives for design and create options that higher meet the wants of customers and the group.

Collaborate And Communicate Category

If somebody scores low within the Collaborate and Communicate class of the self-assessment, listed here are some options that will assist:

1. Foster a tradition of collaboration: Foster a tradition of collaboration by encouraging communication and teamwork inside the group. This could contain creating alternatives for folks to work collectively on tasks, selling cross-functional groups, or encouraging collaboration throughout departments.
2. Practice energetic listening: Active listening includes paying shut consideration to what somebody is saying and responding in a manner that exhibits you perceive their perspective. Practice this talent by actively listening to folks in your private {and professional} life and responding in a manner that exhibits you perceive their standpoint.
3. Use visible instruments: Use visible instruments like diagrams and prototypes to speak your concepts extra successfully. This can assist you convey complicated concepts in a manner that’s straightforward to know.
4. Embrace range and inclusivity: Embrace range and inclusivity by selling an surroundings that welcomes folks from totally different backgrounds and experiences. This can assist you generate a wider vary of views and concepts.
5. Practice efficient suggestions: Practice giving and receiving suggestions in a manner that’s constructive and promotes studying. This can assist you enhance your communication and collaboration abilities, whereas additionally enhancing the standard of your work.

By incorporating these practices into your design considering method, you possibly can enhance your capability to collaborate successfully with others and talk your concepts extra clearly. This can assist you’re employed extra successfully with cross-functional groups, generate a wider vary of concepts, and create options that higher meet the wants of customers and the group.

Short Design Thinking Self-Assessment As A Learning Activity

My major use case for a design considering self-assessment could be as a brief exercise that I might run in a coaching session, program or reside workshop – even on a collaborative whiteboard or as a ballot. For this case I had the AI device slim the 30 query evaluation down to only 12 questions, with 3 questions per class.

For the 12 query self-assessment, the 1-5 scale to comply with alongside and price your self could be:

1 – Never or nearly by no means 2 – Rarely 3 – Sometimes 4 – Often 5 – Always or nearly all the time

Participants can price themselves on every query based mostly on how regularly they have interaction within the behaviors or practices described. A rating of 1 would point out that the person hardly ever or by no means engages within the habits, whereas a rating of 5 would point out that the person nearly all the time engages within the habits.

It’s vital to notice that there isn’t any proper or flawed reply, and individuals ought to reply actually to get an correct evaluation of their design considering mindset and habits.

Here is that self-assessment model. Follow alongside and price your self for every query.

A. Empathize and Understand:

1. Do you commonly search suggestions from customers and stakeholders to raised perceive their wants and experiences?
2. Do you actively attempt to put your self within the footwear of your customers to achieve a deeper understanding of their perspective?
3. Do you take into account the emotional and psychological wants of your customers when designing options?

B. Define and Reframe:

4. Are you in a position to clearly articulate the issue you are attempting to resolve?
5. Do you problem assumptions and take into account a number of views when defining an issue?
6. Do you take into account sustainability and moral concerns when defining an issue?

C. Ideate and Experiment:

7. Do you generate a number of concepts and options when approaching an issue?
8. Are you comfy testing and experimenting with new concepts?
9. Do you actively hunt down and incorporate suggestions when refining your concepts?

D. Collaborate and Communicate:

10. Do you actively hearken to and take into account the views of others when collaborating on a mission?
11. Are you comfy speaking your concepts to others, each verbally and thru visible aids?
12. Do you actively hunt down alternatives to collaborate with others and work in cross-functional groups?

By answering these questions, people can assess their design considering abilities and determine areas for enchancment. By incorporating finest practices and adopting a design considering mindset, people can higher method issues, generate revolutionary options, and work extra successfully with others. The questions can both be scored in an analogous 1-5 ranking format or they can be reflection questions that individuals write responses to and talk about.

Thanks to ChatGPT for assist with producing this self-assessment and totally different variations of it. If you have an interest in making use of assessments for innovation applications, see this text about how I used the Innovation Impact Assessment with a gaggle as part of the Adobe Learning Summit.