BUILDING DESIGN STRATEGY FOR YOUR ORGANIZATION

We’ve all heard — and used — the word “strategy” before. We have, in fact, been developing and implementing strategies since the day we were born. Over time, everyone can learn to interpret and respond to the strategic moves of others. Every day, we encounter strategy. Because strategy is not a euphemism, a person can be a successful strategist even if they have no idea what it is or what it entails.

Strategic thinking helps us to focus more on problem solving, promoting energetic behavior, improving clearer strategies and it also helps us to improve our bond with the employees. It creates a strong bond with the employees which in turn makes them feel more involved and empowered.

The intersection of corporate strategy and design thinking is referred to as design strategy. The conventional approach used by companies and other similar organizations to identify, plan, and accomplish their long-term objectives and goals is known as corporate strategy. Design Thinking is a technique that uses end-user engagement to provide a solution based approach to solving problems. From a designer’s outlook, strategic thinking encourages designers to view the design process as a problem-solving mechanism and working with the client and the team to solve that problem. Implementation of a design strategy is very similar to the “connecting the dots” process. A knowledge of the latest market trends and data are essential for a successful strategic design. It allows to know the complicated threats and vulnerabilities in the market. This helps the designers to be informed by facts and insights. It also guarantees that there are sufficient risk analysis and mitigation plans in the place.

IS DESIGN STRATEGY A TOOL?

In today’s world design strategy is being used as a tool to expedite the humane and business connect. It leverages the value systems within organizations that uncover new business models.

Design must overcome the prevailing outlook of making things just look attractive, functional and usable. It is now strategic and can therefore open unexplored doors that may connect to newer dimensions of interesting, undetermined possibilities.

HOW CAN STRATEGIC THINKING BE INCULCATED IN DESIGN?

From web designing to overall business strategy; Strategic thinking can help in solving multiple business problems:

• It helps in identifying critical questions to be addressed by a business
• It helps in translating insights and converting them into triable solutions.
• It designs strategically and prioritizes the launch of products and services.
• Acts as a connector between the efforts of a strategic design group to that of the business vision.
• It promotes brand strategy as foremost in accelerating business growth.

Therefore, a strategic mindset, is all about creating and executing innovative strategies.

Here is a framework to refer while applying strategic thinking:

Assess

Consciousness about the competition of a product is very important. Similarly, it is also important to be aware about the outcome of the product, customer’s needs and how the product will help them. It also includes an analysis of constraints, opportunities, and seeing the bigger picture through the lens of the business.

Understand

This step will help in putting down the WHATS and WHYS. It is important to understand the vision, mission and intervention of the plan. Bind the project’s outcome back to business objectives and show key results that will help and support those objectives.

Learn

This step will help you to understand the HOW of the strategy. You can make a list of all that you want to do as a part of the strategic design and then choose the best among them. Example: “the products are designed for whom?”

Execute

Now you get to undertake out your options and concepts. this is often a rigorous step of trial and error, combined with systemic reasoning and logic. Strategic thinking works best together.

Evaluate

Regular evaluation and monitoring are the cruces of an excellent product. Keeping track of the progress and necessary changes which may come your way will assist you make necessary course corrections and eventually reach the foremost effective solution.

AN EFFECTIVE DESIGN STRATEGY

An effective design strategy helps creative leaders formulate the simplest plan of execution for the business’s growth. Using practical tools, a leader can come up with the foremost efficient and innovative solutions which will take companies to newer heights.

Creating a design strategy on a tactical approach makes us like those consultants working with the clients to find out the problem that needs to be solved. Instead of approaching the planning process thinking only about deliverables, the strategic designer cares business objectives and outcomes (both theirs and therefore the client’s).

Understanding the client’s real problem, and approaching it during a pragmatic, tactical way will, doubtless, deliver an exceptional set of results.

HOW TO CREATE AN EFFECTIVE DESIGN STRATEGY STEP BY STEP?

Although design strategy should be a part of the product strategy, however, it has its own characters and can be created sequentially by following a structured approach:

Step1. Define your product and Brand

Before getting started Before starting to design or build a website or an app, you and your team first need to make a design on macro things, such as what kind of product you are interested in creating, how you would like your brand to be perceived by your audience and what are your vision or goals about the product.

Step2. Set your design and business goals

The second step is to give a definition to your goals. For designing and promoting your product successfully, you need to set your design and business goals clearly so that you can easily follow and achieve them. A detailed timeline or step by step guidance is a great way to plan.

Step3. Research & Analysis

For creating a clear and executive design strategy, all decisions should be based on real research. A lot of aspects should be considered while researching, including all aspects of your audience, your competitors, the market and many more.

You and your team should also participate in the analysis of the research results, understand the problems and opportunities and figure out the advantages and disadvantages and make the correct design together.

Step 4. Make an executable strategy

The fourth step is to make an executable strategy for the team. The strategy should always be based on the research.

Step 5. Improvement

Design strategy should be tested, monitored and improved continuously.

IMPROVING DESIGN STRATEGY

As it is said, “practice makes a man perfect” similarly design strategies also improves with practice. Here are a few ways to improve your design strategies:

Observation

It is important to observe business goals and look for trends around those goals. Practice seeing the larger picture and why it’s important to the client. Pay attention to issues that are raised throughout the planning process and communicate these with every member in the team.

Ask thoughtful questions

The language of strategy are questions. It is important for a strategic designer to ask more questions and listen more often. Be curious and ask meaningful questions of the client, the team and the process.

Here are a few questions that you can keep in mind while planning :

· What are the goals of the business and the needs of the users?

· Where the primary focus should be?

· Why the focus is on the context?

· How to choose lens for eliminating scenarios?

· What can we do realistically?

· What exactly are we creating?

Sound strategic

A helpful tip is to begin structuring verbal written communication in a way that keeps everyone in the team focused on the core objectives and result.

FOCUS ON ISSUES

We are all masters of multitasking. We attend every meeting and that we attempt to be present for each event. A better idea is to plan time accordingly and specialize in issues, not people. Do we got to be at that meeting? Instead, perhaps we could specialize in the goals and tasks at hand and confirm we are executing.

Things change all of the time. Throughout the merchandise lifecycle, the general environment, design conditions, the audience needs, the market, and more factors can change over time. To avoid any troubles, you and your team should also keep testing, adjusting, and improving the planning strategy consistent with new needs and changes.

Design makes a difference by transforming the intangibles into tangible and making them memorable. Once we add the proper strategy thereto, it impeccably assures success by watching it holistically. Design strategy can define Path that might cause a systemic level of success over small achievements. As a product manager, collaboration with development and business owners inside agile environment. Focused on synthesizing user centered design from consumer insight, data analytics, user research, and business requirements.

References

Understanding Design Strategy — www.valuelabs.com

Design Strategy — A Guide to Tactical Thinking in Design
www.toptal.com

Design as Strategy — HBR