Learn How to Solve Problems Like a Designer

Consider this. You work for an organization in East Africa. The organization sells treadle pumps (used for farmland irrigation) to the local farmers. After years of operation you notice that in some regions the treadle pumps sell extremely well, while in other regions they don’t sell at all. You’ve been tasked with generating sales of the pumps in those weak-performing regions.
What do you do?

Design Thinking is a problem solving framework. The concept has been around for decades, but in the past five to ten years, IDEO, a design consultancy, has championed the process as an alternative to a purely analytical approach to problem-solving.

Tim Brown, IDEO’s president and CEO, defines design thinking like this:
“The mission of design thinking is to translate observation into insights and insights into products and services that will improve lives.”

The goal of improving lives is an important endpoint to the process of design thinking. In fact, it’s what design thinking is all about: finding fresh, creative solutions to problems, but in a way that puts people and their needs first.

Design thinking came to the rescue for the organization selling treadle pumps in East Africa. They were able to identify why their product wasn’t selling in some regions and they found a solution. Of course, you’ll have to keep reading to find out what the solution was…

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