Design Thinking Phases

Discover

Interpret

Ideate

Experiment

Implement

Discover

I have a challenge. How do I approach it?

During this phase, you should be:

  • Asking “What matters to this person?”
  • Connecting through empathy
  • Interviewing users
  • Writing observations
  • Understanding aspirations and motivations

View Discover Plays

Interpret

I learned something. How do I interpret it?

During this phase, you should be:

  • Define needs, patterns and trends
  • Identify themes, insights and principles
  • Reframe the challenge based on insights

View Interpret Plays

Ideate

I see an opportunity. What do I create?

During this phase, you should be:

  • Generating new ideas (more is better!)
  • Imagining what might be created
  • Redefining ideas
  • Add constraints

View Ideate Plays

Experiment

I have an idea. How do I build it?

During this phase, you should be:

  • Building rapid prototypes
  • Ensuring all ideas can be shown visually
  • Seeking feedback on your work
  • Validate your idea

View Experiment Plays

Implement

I tried something new. How do I evolve it?

During this phase, you should be:

  • Keeping track of what you have learned
  • Asking “How can we improve this?”
  • Returning to “discover” to make a plan for next steps

View Implementation Plays