Impediments for experimentation in novice design teams

Abstract

Despite the increasing interest in design thinking, there still is a lack of empirical understanding on what happens when design thinking, or elements of it, are adopted in organizations not accustomed to such approaches. Experimentation is one of the fundamentals of design thinking, and this study explores the impediments for experimentation in four novice design teams taking part in short-term experimentation sprints in a Finnish financial organization. This study adopted a case-study and action research approach and data was gathered through video-recoding and semi-structured interviews. Four central themes that may become bottlenecks when aiming to adopt experimentation in novice teams were identified: resistance to iteration, overlooking the experimentation ideas of others' and oneself, losing sight of the initial problem to be solved, and a bias towards planning. The study showed that adopting experimentation, in novice design teams requires the team to adopt an appropriate mindset that is open for modifications in the idea and for iteration in the experimentation cycle.

Design process of live-action video instructions

“…By exploring the specific context of incompany workshops or boot camps, Seidel & Fixson (2016) suggest that a lack of understanding of design thinking dynamics, particularly its mindsets and tools, challenges non-designers. Rekonen & Hassi (2018) expanded these findings in the training context, adding cognitive issues such as overlooking and reduced focus and behavioral issues such as resistance during corporate training.…”

“…contention that time constraints in design thinking training can lead novices to fail to effectively learn design thinking methods.Inns (2013) suggested that the development of training programs should pay attention to pre-workshop and postworkshop components. In addition to the structural and operational aspects of training development, the issues participants encounter in corporate initiatives need special attention Rekonen & Hassi (2018). pointed out resistance to iterating the design process as a bottleneck that hinders novices' adoption of design thinking mindsets during boot camps.…”

Gaps between reflection frameworks and students’ practice: implications for design education

“…While several papers claim the educational benefit of reflection, students cannot incorporate reflection effectively in design projects. Since design teams face various dilemmas (Hölzle & Rhinow, 2019) or bottlenecks (Rekonen & Hassi, 2018), students new to studying design face many difficulties that might hinder them from acquiring design methods, mindsets, and skills. In terms of this point, introducing support for reflection would be helpful to ensure effective learning from project practice.…”

From Invention Disclosures to Innovation - Challenges in Transforming Practice

“…However, empirical research on how design thinking practices are adopted in established organizations remains limited (Carlgren et al, 2016, Carr et al, 2010Drews, 2009;Micheli et al, 2019;Seidel and Fixson, 2013). The few extant studies indicate that those new to design thinking may find it hard to engage in multiple experiments and iteration (Rekonen andHassi 2018, Adams et al, 2003). New approaches need to be legitimized in the organization (Rauth et al, 2015;Mutanen, 2008), and shifting status can generate tensions and resistance (Beckman and Barry, 2007).…”