OVERVIEW
Innovation starts with empathy, and Design Thinking offers a powerful, human-centered framework to turn insights into impactful solutions. This 2-day crash course introduces participants to the five stages of Design Thinking—Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test—through a fast-paced, hands-on learning experience.
Tailored for corporate professionals with little to no prior experience, the program blends practical exercises, real-world challenges, and rapid team collaboration, enabling participants to walk away with not just knowledge, but direct experience in applying Design Thinking to develop innovative products, services, or processes.
LEARNING OUTCOME
By the end of the session, participants will be able to:
- Describe the five stages of the Design Thinking process and their purpose in innovation
- Conduct user research and apply empathy mapping to uncover key insights
- Formulate clear problem statements using synthesized user data
- Generate creative ideas using structured ideation techniques
- Develop and test low-fidelity prototypes based on user feedback
DURATION
2 days
TARGET PARTICIPANTS
- Corporate employees across departments (e.g., product, marketing, operations, customer experience)
- Professionals involved in problem-solving, process improvement, or product development
- Teams or individuals seeking to apply innovation in their daily roles
- No prior Design Thinking or innovation experience required
Module 1: Introduction to Design Thinking
- Overview of Design Thinking principles and the 5-stage process
- Icebreaker activity: “Design a better morning” to get into a problem-solving mindset
- Output: Mindset shift and team setup
Module 2: Empathize – Understanding the User
- Activity: Stakeholder interviews (live role-play)
- Tool: Empathy Maps
- Output: Key user insights and quotes
Module 3: Define – Framing the Problem
- Activity: Synthesis workshop to identify patterns in insights
- Tool: Point-of-View (POV) statements
- Output: Clear problem definition statements
Module 4: Ideate – Generating Possibilities
- Warm-up: “Crazy 8s” sketching exercise
- Activity: Group ideation using "Yes, and…" and SCAMPER techniques
- Tool: Idea clustering + Dot voting
- Output: Top 2–3 ideas to prototype
Module 5: Prototype – Bringing Ideas to Life
- Activity: Rapid prototyping with basic materials (paper, cardboard, digital mockups)
- Focus: Low fidelity, fast iterations
- Output: Prototype ready to test
Module 6: Test – Gathering Feedback & Iterating
- Activity: Peer testing & feedback rounds using a structured feedback form (I like / I wish / What if…)
- Output: Refined prototype + learning for iteration
Module 7: Reflection & Next Steps
- Activity: Gallery walk and team presentations
- Reflection: “What did you learn?” + Applying DT in your work context
- Output: Personal action plan
LEARNING METHODOLOGIES
Instructor-led training
Our program focuses on practical, hands-on learning, allowing participants to gain real-world experience.
The interactive design encourages learning by doing, through real scenarios and strategy exploration in a supportive environment.
By the end, participants will not only gain new knowledge but also develop the confidence to apply it effectively in their daily roles.
Programme scope, delivery arrangements and suitability are confirmed during enquiry.