Beyond the post-its part two; Building the case for an alternative approach:
This is the second in a series of posts to open the toolkit on taking a more human-centred approach to strategy development. Here are my top tips for building the case for taking an alternative approach to change (in this case the development of a new strategy):
1. Drop the lingo. In my experience, the words ‘Design Thinking’ or any other human-centred iteration of this can be a barrier in getting buy-in to taking a more human approach to strategy, or any challenge for that matter. When we put design in the title, all those who aren’t designers suddenly have the imposter talking to them, saying this is no place for them. When we drop the language and just focus on creative problem-solving with the people who matter, I tend to see people being more receptive to the approach.
2. Be very clear on the WHY. What is the benefit to the team, customers, and organisation by taking this approach? This typically falls into three main categories:
a. Better solutions. When trying to solve challenges, or take advantage of new opportunities, talking to the people who matter ensures there is clarity on the actual issues - and therefore alignment on what problem is to be solved. This often differs from the one we think we are out to solve. Better yet, involving those people in the solution will open the potential for more original and innovative solutions.
b. Employee and/or customer buy-in. It’s human nature to be more invested in things you’ve been involved in creating. Engaging people in the process, and not just the outcome, builds momentum for delivering on the goals.
c. Reduces risk and lowers cost. If all else fails you can always rely on the risk and cost argument to get this over the line. Ensuring we are only solving the real problem, and testing and iterating prototyped solutions before we invest heavily, will always serve to reduce risk and cost over the long term.
3. Start small. Design Thinking is something people need to feel, rather than be told about. Generally, when people have been through the process end to end, they are more receptive to doing it again as they understand the power of immersing and understanding before defining the solution. Pick a small organisational challenge, or even use a fictional scenario (the Stanford D School Gift Giving exercise is good for this), to get people up to speed on the process before you jump in on a bigger project.
Now that we have the organisation on board, the next step is to build the plan. In the next post I’ll cover considering the context, alignment to other projects, developing timelines, defining stakeholders, who to involve in the process, and how to communicate.
Stay tuned….