Implementing Design Thinking: Understanding Organizational Conditions

Abstract

The advent of design thinking as a tool for innovation has led to its adoption in a range of organizations. While proponents of design thinking continue to focus on the principles and practices of their method, little is known on the organizational conditions required for design thinking to attain a long-term impact. This article explores seven empirical case studies to identify the conditions required in organizations seeking to integrate design. It identifies four conditions—strategic vision, facilities, cultural capital, and directives—and examines their relationships.

Augmented Reality Electronic Glasses Prototype to Improve Vision in Older Adults

“…The methodology to be used will be Design Thinking, since it is a process originally oriented to the creation or improvement of products, which allows us to solve the problems reducing the risks and in such a way that increases the possibilities of success, focusing on the needs of the user, from then on the information about the topic or problem is understood and collected, then it is observed, the point of view of the team is given, a solution is devised, prototypes are made and finally the test in such a way that it is possible to connect the knowledge of different disciplines to arrive at a technically viable and economically profitable solution [10]. Design Thinking is an agile methodology for digital innovation, in such a way that it extracts the benefits of one and other methods that complement the challenges posed.…”

Design thinking implementation for innovation: An organization's journey to ambidexterity

“…Co-optation: From a cognitive perspective, the visible success of design sprints both fed and reinforced the previously established exploitative innovation frame among BU managers, enhancing their confidence and buy-in to use DT as a legitimate approach for innovation (Wrigley, Nusem, and Straker, 2020). Some of those most skeptical at the start began to embrace DTI:…”

“…There are three specific gaps in the literature. First, the discussion of DT has mostly focused on defining how DT tools work (Liedtka and Ogilvie, 2011;Seidel and Fixson, 2013), with an emphasis on the implementation of such tools at the team or project levels (e.g., Ben Mahmoud-Jouini, Midler, and Silberzahn, 2016;Hölzle and Rhinow, 2019), leaving us with little knowledge of the organization-level processes of DTI implementation (Micheli et al, 2019;Wrigley, Nusem, and Straker, 2020). As a result, despite notions of the relevance of DT to organizational practices (Brown and Martin, 2015;Gruber, de Leon, George, and Thompson, 2015), we lack insights on how DT can be leveraged for broader organization-level innovation outcomes (Elsbach and Stigliani, 2018), particularly ambidextrous innovation (Zheng, 2018).…”

Living up to the expectations: The effect of design thinking on project success

“…Employees with longer tenure and extensive experience with the application of specific tools and methods become less motivated (Wright & Bonett, 1997) whereas employees with less experience in a specific organization might perceive the work environment more positively (Gkorezis, Hatzitithomas, & Petridou, 2011), which makes them feel more empowered.…”

“…In her exploratory multiple case study, Liedtka (2018a) examines how 22 organizations apply design thinking in practice and develops hypotheses about how the practices can influence innovation outcomes. Other single case studies present design thinking applications in the public sector, information and communication technology, design, automotive, marketing and many other areas (e.g., Bryant & Wrigley, 2015; Davis, Docherty, & Dowling, 2016; Wrigley, Nusem, & Straker, 2020). However, even though these case studies mention advantages like connecting certain individuals in the development process to the customer and providing the foundation for better decision making (e.g., Bryant & Wrigley, 2015), they do not explicitly focus on the effectiveness of design thinking for achieving project success.…”