THE MACRO-PROCESS: THE 7+1 PHASES OF DESIGN THINKING

OVERVIEW

The macro-process structures the design think- The entire macro-process of divergent and con- Dark horse prototype
ing approach and is worked through once over vergent stages is divided into seven steps: The goal of the dark horse prototype is to encour-
the course of the project. The macro-process age the team to become even more open to new
is spread over seven steps, each of which Design space exploration approaches, ideas and potential solutions. While
contains one or more iterations of the micro- Design space exploration is the starting point for the critical function prototype sees the team tak-
cycle (see p. 24). The macro-process is sepa- a design thinking project. In this step, the project ing the project’s framing conditions into account,
rated into two stages: the diverging stage in plan is not only laid out, but early explorative the dark horse prototype calls for the team to
the first half of the project, and the converging need finding is conducted with customers and ignore or perhaps even knowingly pursue the
stage during the second. other stakeholders. opposite of what the context elicits. Specialised
reframing techniques help the team to widen the
The diverging stage has the goal of systemati- Critical function prototype / boundaries within which they search for ques-
cally expanding the conceivable space in which critical experience prototype tions and answers. Through this process, teams
a question statement can be formulated. The During the critical function and critical experi- are able to consider solutions unable to receive
purpose is encouraging the team to widen the ence prototype phases, potential solutions for attention in the context typical of the client orga-
solution space. During the divergent stage, as the functions considered critical are built into nization. These tensions result in dark horse pro-
many ideas as possible are generated, con- prototypes. Critical function prototypes are totypes typically generating the most controver-
structed as prototypes, and tested with users neither final nor comprehensive, but instead sial discussions during testing — dark horse
(Uebernickel & Brenner, 2015). Even when an propose individual pieces of a wider potential prototypes propose solutions perceived as having
idea or solution is very positively received by us- solution. The goal is to make single elements low probability or feasibility. However, it is exactly
ers, the design thinking team nevertheless tries of a potential solution testable as quickly as this tension within both the team and testers that
to continually expand the solution space. possible. Critical experience prototypes concen- creates the potential for new discoveries. As the
trate on the perceptions of customers and users, project is still in the diverging stage at this point,
The focus of the converging stage is evaluation of rather than a function. As with all prototypes, numerous prototypes continue to be built.
all the results produced during the diverging the team should use both critical function and
stage with the intent of building a (single) final critical experience prototypes as an opportunity Funky prototype (integrated prototype)
prototype. Both positive and negative results to experiment, gain new experiences, and learn. Funky prototypes form the bridge between the di-
from the prototype testing of the preceding stage verging and converging stages of a project. The
are evaluated. The aspects considered relevant solution space for ideas and solutions continues
are combined in a comprehensive final prototype. to be widened, however the primary objective of

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 diverging converging

METHOD OVERVIEW
Paper bike Design space Critical function Dark horse Funky Functional X-is-finished Final
challenge exploration prototype prototype prototype prototype prototype prototype

1
the funky phase is the combination of the diver- Functional prototype X-is-finished prototype
gent phase’s most successful solutions and inter- Functional prototypes should already lay the The x-is-finished prototype is the last step before
esting learning. The focus of the funky phase is basis for future extrapolation into complete final the final prototype. The goal is to completely build
the functionality rather than the aesthetics of a prototypes. The functional prototype forces the one single function or component of the finished
solution. Funky prototypes are higher resolution team to examine the technical and managerial prototype. The component selected should not be
than the prototypes generated in preceding details of a solution and address questions that trivial, and contain complexity. The main purpose
phases — and thus more demanding in terms of may have remained unexplored up until this of this phase is to assess the time, resources, and
their construction. In practice, it has proved useful point. In many cases, this is the point at which all effort required to generate a prototype of the
to call this step the “integrated prototype” as em- the functions of the eventual final prototype function or component so this concrete data can
ployees find it easier to connect with this term. come together for the first time. be used in further project planning.

Final prototype
The final prototype presents the result of the de-
sign thinking project. It contains the critical func-
“Your brain is a synthesis machine — embrace tions of the new solution. The final prototype
new combinations (and divergent thinking)” should be as realistic as possible and illustrate
(Georg Kress, 2014) all functions to customers and users.

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The final prototype serves as the basis for devel- squarely on identifying customer needs and The paper bike…
oping the set of specifications needed to put the quick prototyping. It is essential to review and In academia, every design thinking project starts
solution into production. test as many assumptions as possible. In later with a paper bike challenge at Stanford
steps, however, more time is taken to produce University in Palo Alto, California. The teams
Note: the prototyping phases are all described and test higher-resolution prototypes. At the must build a working vehicle, capable of carrying
above with reference to a single prototype — same time, the time for analyzing customer at least one person, using only paper, cardboard,
however multiple prototypes of the same type needs is reduced. and a maximum 500 grams of miscellaneous ma-
(e.g. funky/integrated prototype) are typically terial such as glue or metal. This paper bike must
built during each phase! At every step of the macro-process, multiple survive various games and competitions.
steps of the micro-cycle are typically under way.
Depending on the experience level of a design Depending on the design thinking team’s The paper bike challenge is a big warm-up for the
thinking team, the length or intensity of a given experience, members are able to assess which students with the primary goal of: Have fun! The
phase can always be adapted according to steps are really necessary in a given situation, focus is on the experience of accomplishing
the project and its requirements. Additionally, and which ones can be skipped. However, we something with one’s own two hands. At a busi-
the macro-process (see p. 36) determines recommend that beginners view the macro- ness school such as the University of St. Gallen,
where work in the micro-cycle (see p. 24) process and micro-cycle as obligatory sets of it can be bizarre to see students roaming the
should be focused. During the first steps rules. halls with hammer drills and saws. However, over
(design space exploration, critical function time even the university directorship has grown
and dark horse prototypes), the focus is This said — one step is still missing! used to this scene.

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 METHOD OVERVIEW
1
Paper bike challenge, Stanford University, Palo Alto, California (2013, 2014)

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THE MACRO-PROCESS: THE 7+1 PHASES OF DESIGN THINKING
DESIGN SPACE EXPLORATION

The time has now come for the team to hit the groupings. These help them to identify and re- Benchmarks
streets. cruit the right people for interviews and testing Benchmarks refer to comparable situations in
in the subsequent need finding and synthesis other industries or sectors. For example, a team
Design thinking projects always start with explo- phases. The same process applies to users. aiming to optimize an operating room might use
ration of the design space. The design space A common method for gaining an overview and Formula 1 as a benchmark. Both fields share a
describes the direct environment of the question transparency is called the stakeholder map. focus on the highest level of precision and speed,
statement provided. To become familiar with this, among other things. Mistakes would almost
the design team must carry out desk research Stakeholders: In addition to the user there are certainly have catastrophic results for a human
on the one hand, while carrying out exploratory often additional parties that are relevant to a being. Through benchmarks, the team can study
conversations with customers and other relevant project — these are called stakeholders. Stake- processes, draw parallels and transfer them into
stakeholders on the other. This serves as the first holders are identified and grouped just as their own question statement.
information from the field, which must not only customers and users are. Information should
be collected, but also structured (need finding be collected in a way that allows for later chang- Patents and further information sources
and synthesis). es and elaborations. Stakeholders can be indi- Patent databanks and further sources of infor-
viduals, or groups and organizations in which the mation, such as technology journals, are also
The following, among others, belong to a good individual people are not known. important sources of knowledge for the design
design space exploration: space exploration phase. The team should con-
What does the team know, and what doesn’t it tinuously monitor these as sources of new
Customers: The design thinking team identifies know yet? trends, knowledge or other interesting findings
the probable or known customers and customer In a design thinking project, there must be trans- to benefit their own project.
groups. In doing so, the team collects the first parency on what the team does and does not know
leads regarding potential classifications and for answering the question statement from the
very beginning. This clarity provides direction on
which knowledge must be acquired as soon as
possible. The team must maintain an inventory list
of knowledge throughout the course of the project.

40
Business models and start-up screening

METHOD OVERVIEW
Keeping a vigilant eye on new business models
and young enterprises (start-ups) is part of
design space exploration. For this reason, portals
such as kickstarter.com or indiegogo.com should
be on every design thinking team’s surveillance
list. Other useful websites include angel.co and

1
crunchbase.com.

Trend scouting
Trends are a useful source for enriching the de-
sign space. Trendwatching.com and psfk.com
are well-known sources. A number of providers
offer studies on trends related to all manner of
circumstances and technologies. Design thinking
teams should regularly search for trends related
to their specific design space.

Design space exploration,

Johannesburg, South Africa (2014)

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THE MACRO-PROCESS: THE 7+1 PHASES OF DESIGN THINKING
CRITICAL FUNCTION PROTOTYPE AND CRITICAL EXPERIENCE PROTOTYPE

It is always difficult to start! This is also often But what is the difference between critical func- a CEP is the simulation of a self-driving vehicle.
true for design thinking teams. The question tion prototypes and critical experience For this, the team could build a cabin in a lab.
statements developed and their surrounding en- prototypes? The cabin might contain real car seats and multi-
vironments are often so complex that it can be ple screens displaying video footage of a real
difficult to figure out where to begin. Critical function prototype (CFP) driving scenario. This type of prototype would be
The CFP is a physical product or service provision useful for very simply testing the experience of
In order to make this complexity manageable, the system that, in the form of a prototype, allows a self-driving vehicle. Of course, in this day and
critical function and critical experience phases customers to test a given function or component. age there are more sophisticated possibilities,
have the goal of developing prototypes for isolat- It is definitely not always easy to specify and build for example the insertion of simulated turns and
ed singular functions or experiences. Ideally, the just one function. If this is not possible, teams curves. However, the resolution described above
selected functions should be chosen to feature should try to at least reduce the number of func- is sufficient when the objective is to acquire ini-
novelty and surprise value from the perspective tions present in their prototype to a minimum. tial learning for the project.
of customers and testers. The goal is not to
merely get positive feedback from the user or Critical experience prototype (CEP) In a typical design thinking project, numerous
customer. In some cases, it is worth being The CEP should demonstrate “just enough” of an prototypes are developed during this phase. It is
provocative in order to concretely define the experience to the tester to enable the design important that they all lead the team to build
boundaries of what is possible and acceptable. thinking team to extract learning. An example of and craft.

Low-resolution critical function and critical ex-

perience prototypes are useful for demonstrating
ideas. Using this approach, the team can quickly
produce numerous prototypes and take them to
customers and users for testing. “Design a component or function that
makes a difference.”

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 METHOD OVERVIEW
1
1 2

1 Prototype of a financial product called

“in the box” (2013)
2 Prototype of an interest calculator based
on personal customer preferences (2014)

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THE MACRO-PROCESS: THE 7+1 PHASES OF DESIGN THINKING
DARK HORSE PROTOTYPE

The name “dark horse” comes from a horse racing In many cases the dark horse prototype phase has too much scope for messing around and a
anecdote. The dark horse is the horse on which is marked by numerous reframing activities (see lack of focused work. Such an opinion should be
no one bets — yet which defies expectations and toolbox). In reframing, numerous question state- reassessed because it misses the point of the
wins. This is apt to dark horse prototypes. Dark ments are considered from multiple perspectives dark horse phase. Exactly this playfulness and
horse prototypes are abnormal, even to the point and rearticulated in order to open expansive new freedom is what the organization needs to over-
of being comical. They depart from the limiting perspectives on an issue. come performance barriers and develop com-
aspects of their given realities. They should in- pletely new solutions. In numerous projects, par-
tentionally topple consensus around emergent Similar to the CFP and CEP phase, the prototypes ticularly during the critical function and critical
solutions and introduce uncertainty. Why? built are almost exclusively low-resolution. They experience phase, team members often focus
Practical experience has shown that consen- are simple, fast and cheap so that testing can be primarily on their client organization’s existing
sus-oriented solutions are often only incremen- quickly initiated. Using this approach, failures business model. Only in the dark horse proto-
tal modifications of existing solutions. In con- are easy to cope with and benefit the team’s type phase are they able to overcome their own
trast, solutions that polarize customers or learning process. minds’limits,and consider new business models —
markets — or even appear absolutely unfeasi- if need be contrary to those of the existing
ble — have the potential to become radical inno- According to our experience, it can be difficult business.
vations. Even if these prototypes cannot (yet) be for dark horse prototypes to gain traction in
realized, single elements can perhaps come to traditional, hierarchical companies. The con-
fruition. It is critical that the design thinking scious departure from reality often leads man-
team does not shy away from ideas due to their agement to merely laugh at projects. On a
initial apparent impossibility. few occasions, they have even led management
to consider abandoning a project. This phase is
often connected to a perception that the project

“Sometimes, when you have a crazy idea,

it’s worth making it happen.”
(Hilary Hahn, 2015)

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 METHOD OVERVIEW
1
1 2

1 Dark horse prototype for lane-dependent

road user fees (2011)
2 Dark horse prototype of a nasal spray bottle
that vacuums mucus (2014)
3 Dark horse prototype for a device that fully
automatically scans, interprets, and files
records and documents (2012)

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THE MACRO-PROCESS: THE 7+1 PHASES OF DESIGN THINKING
FUNKY PROTOTYPE (INTEGRATED PROTOTYPE)

Funky prototypes (also called integrated proto- From the perspective of the design thinking
types) help us pose critical questions related to team, this phase is demanding because deci-
production and delivery. They combine the most sions need to be made on which prototypes
successful and interesting solutions from the to further develop, and which to abandon. At
critical function, critical experience and dark this stage, discussions both in the team and
horse prototype phases into new and integrated with clients are typically energetic, as team
solutions. Through the combination of different members and other stakeholders grapple with
solutions, this phase also becomes a high point the best solutions.
in terms of the number and diversity of ideas and
prototypes. Funky prototypes thereby constitute In our experience, the number of prototypes
the bridge between the diverging and converging reduces slightly in this phase compared with 1
stages of the micro-cycle. An important activity previous phases, the reason being the increasing
in this phase is the determination of which previ- intensity of building complex prototypes,
ously failed prototypes should be excluded from as well as the continuous integration of different
further consideration. single prototypes into a single solution.

Funky prototypes are still far from haptically and

aesthetically finished. However, this category of
prototype should provide a sketch of the essential
functions and elements of a potential solution
to the problem originally defined. In this phase,
the focus of the micro-cycle is above all on build- 2
ing and testing instead of additional need finding.

1 Integrated prototype demonstrating a new

way for cars to enter repair shops (2013)
2 Integrated prototype of a black box for cars
that reads parameters for opening/closing as
well as starting/stopping (2012)

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THE MACRO-PROCESS: THE 7+1 PHASES OF DESIGN THINKING
FUNCTIONAL PROTOTYPE

With the functional prototype, the requirements

METHOD OVERVIEW
for ultimate solutions and their scope are set out.
The functional prototype makes an extrapolation
of the final prototype possible. The comparatively
high degree of elaboration allows the team to
estimate the effort required for implementation,
and discuss it with the client.

1
Furthermore, the high degree of detail makes
new testing methods possible. Individual func-
tions can be evaluated and validated in a com-
prehensive test. Therefore, this phase is often
also the starting gun for integrating additional
individuals and companies into the preparation
of an ultimate solution. For example, if the team
needs to produce software or complex electronic
modules, software developers may be brought
into the project at this point.

Functional prototype of a steam-spray nozzle

(2013)

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THE MACRO-PROCESS: THE 7+1 PHASES OF DESIGN THINKING
X-IS-FINISHED PROTOTYPE

With the x-is-finished prototype, the team can NOTES / SKETCHES

estimate the level of effort required for the
implementation of the final prototype. The goal
is to develop and complete a selected function •
or component of the final prototype. The team
should ensure that the component selected is •
sufficiently complex and challenging. After com-
pleting the x-is-finished prototype, the team •
can again assess which functions and features
should be transferred into the final prototype. •

Clients of design thinking projects tend to over- •

load the list of components and functions to be
implemented. At the same time, they see inter- •
ruptions to scheduled everyday appointments
within their organizations. The x-is-finished pro- •
totype therefore offers a good opportunity to
review whether or not all the functions and com- •
ponents proposed can be implemented in the
remaining time window. If not, the list of func- •
tions and components should be shortened.
•

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THE MACRO-PROCESS: THE 7+1 PHASES OF DESIGN THINKING
FINAL PROTOTYPE

Finished! The final prototype presents the design

METHOD OVERVIEW
thinking team’s solution to the question statement
they developed. The quality of the result should be
so high that customers, users and other stake-
holders can give sound, comprehensive feedback.
The final prototype can be a product, a service, a
strategy or a business model.

1
After a successful final test, the final prototype
also serves as the basis for setting specifications
for further development and implementation in
the organization.
1 2

1 3D printer for electronic components (2014)

2 Final prototype of a family welcome box,
to be given to the family after the birth of a
child (customary in Finland; 2013)

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