Design Thinkers Bootcamp

On each day of the course you will receive a masterclass from an expert in Design Thinking. In the past these have included:

• DAVID KESTER: David is co-founder of DK&A and the Design Thinkers Academy London. He is the former CEO of the UK Design Council

• BECKY ROWE: Becky is a research specialist and the owner and Head of Research at the award-winning strategic research agency, Revealing Reality.

• JOE FERRY: Joe is a multi-award winning creative leader and inventor who challenges industry conventions to make a difference.

• ARNOUD KONING: Arnoud has been driving Design Thinking in Proctor & Gamble since 2008, heading up their global Design Thinking program.

• CLIVE GRINYER: Clive has led multiple award- winning design teams around the globe and is the Head of Programme for Service Design at the RCA.

• GOLDIE CHAUDHURI: Goldie is the Learning Designer at Design Thinkers Academy London and was a visiting tutor at the RCA and Dyson School of Engineering.

• SUSANA QUAST OSÓRIO: Susana is our Head of Design, formerly helping clients such as Conrad Hilton Hotels develop new innovative solutions.

 

• Overview

  From Day 1, you’ll learn how to be a Design Thinker, working on a unique challenge. By the end of the course, you’ll have the skills, tools and confidence you need to drive change across your business.

  Learn how to:

  1. Empathise with your customer.
  2. Use observational techniques to gain deeper insights into your end users.
  3. Engage Design Thinking and Design Thinking tools.
  4. Prototype ideas and select the best ones.
  5. Empower others in your organisation to co-create and use Design Thinking.

  Examples of tools you may learn: Research techniques / Persona / Stakeholder Mapping / Ideation Methods / Opportunity Statement / Customer Journey Map / Business Model Canvas / Concept Proposition / Service Blueprint / Problem Framing / Persuasive Selling / Storyboard Scenario

• Day 1: FIND

  You’ll be introduced to each other and the week ahead, then set a real-life challenge by a guest sponsor client. World-leading research specialist Becky Rowe will lead a masterclass in observational techniques, including ethnography. Straight after that, we’ll send you out to conduct your own end-user research. You’ll return with new approaches to use together the following day.

• Day 2: FRAME

  Joe Ferry’s masterclass will introduce Design Thinking tools such as Journey Mapping and Personas to create a pivotal shift in thinking. The exercises and insights from Day 1 will support you and your team to reframe the challenge. By the end of the day, you’ll have distilled the brief afresh – as a starting point for innovation.

• Day 3: MAKE

  We will explore the philosophy of doing business in a new world. We’ll take you back to strategy and forward to new thinking. Today the race is on to build a portfolio of concepts for testing and refining. It’s a high-octane class where there’s no time to worry about being wrong or failing. Be brave. Share your ideas. Test them with end-users so that you learn together from mistakes and move on to better iterations.

• Day 4: NARRATE

  Arnoud Koning will help you to synthesise and develop a business proposition. By the end of the day, you’ll have brought all the elements together into a powerful narrative and you’ll be ready to pitch to your sponsor client. In his masterclass, Arnoud will use a case study to explore how Design Thinking can be implemented in a big organisation, and he’ll share some guidelines on how you can apply it to your own situation. We’ll host an informal networking session to allow you to share experiences with your team members before the final day.

• Day 5: APPLY

  The first four days are about learning by doing, whilst Day 5 is about processing, clarifying issues and conscious personal business growth. Beginning with a masterclass from David Kester, you’ll work with the coaching team and your peers on assessments and plans, reflecting on what you’ve learnt. This is your chance to consider your own organisation and how you can start applying Design Thinking on Monday. The day ends with a small celebration.

Q. Why Design Thinking?

A.

At the Design Thinkers Academy London, we recognise the huge and immediate challenges that businesses currently face.  Now, more than ever, we need to face the world with a new mindset, realising that the traditional formulas that have served companies so steadily for generations, might not be the right answer for the new reality that faces us all. We want to offer an opportunity for you to become proactive and to meet these challenges head on. This is about understanding the new user that the world faces and building the right solutions for them. Design Thinking offers the perfect opportunity to develop your skill set for the future and be in the best placed position to prepare your business to flourish going forward. 

Q. What's the real-life challenge?

A.

On Day 1, the delegates are presented with a real-life social challenge, sponsored by a client (previous sponsors incl. MoJ, HS2, NHS, Women in Sport and more). Throughout the week, learners work together to tackle this real world social issue. They conduct end-user interviews, develop personas, pitch ideas and learn new ways to collaborate with one another on an issue in need of innovation.

This is a truly hands-on course centred around the idea of “learning by doing”. Find out more here.

Q. Will I be able to access the tools after the course?

A.

All our methods and tools are shared openly. Although we have developed our material over many years we actively share our knowledge to expand the universe of Design Thinkers.

The value is in the people and the learning experience, not the tools themselves. On this basis, we do not attempt to protect our IP, so you will be welcome to use and adapt our tools for free.

Q. What safety precautions will be taken in regards to Covid-19?

A.

In light of the Covid-19 pandemic, we have made a number of changes to how our in-person courses will be run. This means smaller groups taking part from our own studio in South London in a controlled environment. Our studio space in an ex-factory with high ceilings and good natural light. It can be accessed via the District Line, which runs above ground in this part of London, and is located in a quiet area where streets and public transport are very rarely crowded.

Click on this link to find out more about our covid health and safety measures.

Q. Are meals provided?

A.

We provide lunch every day, plus a variety of snacks to keep you going. Let us know if you’re vegetarian or on a special diet.

Q. Is it a residential course?

A.

No. If you’re from out of town, you’ll need to book your own accommodation. But we can suggest nearby hotels if you need us to.

Q. Do you offer concession prices for your courses?

A.

We do offer concessions and a sliding scale of discounts on this course. Pay full price for the first space you book, 10% off the second and third, and 15% off every space you book after that. If you’re booking a lot of spaces, you may want to talk to us about tailoring a course especially for your business. Call us on +44 7711 068 553 or email bookings@designthinkersacademy.co.uk to find out how we can help you.