Design Writing 2
Sydney Sokora
ARTC 1302
Professor Kim
November 15, 2019
The Importance of Human Centered Design
Human centered designers think differently. They solve problems uniquely. This process involves many trials, many errors, and lots of room for not knowing the solution to the problem. It requires patience, optimism, and willingness to push the boundaries of comfort. The process of human centered design includes three main phases: Inspiration, Ideation, and Implementation (The Field Guide…).
In the first stage, Inspiration, the designer will observe various aspects of people: how they live, their desires, how they interact with others, and any other characteristics that might help lead them to a solution for their problem. Nailing down exactly what problem they want to solve as well as completing any research needed is necessary in this stage. The designer should begin to interview individuals and groups in the appropriate communities, gathering information about them and how they might be able to help them. Interviewing will give them a better understanding of this group, how they think and things they want. Once you’ve gathered in-field research, the designer should define their audience and then immerse themselves in their communities, learning to think like them. After organizing their research, the designer is ready to move on to the next stage in the process: Ideation.
In the Ideation stage, the designer will start to ask questions like “What can I take from my research?” “How do I begin to implement my ideas into an actual design?” and “How do I know my idea is effective?” Ideation is a challenging phase in the design process, therefore, creating a list of their top five solutions might help narrow the designer’s thinking and maybe even spark new ideas when discussing the list with teammates. Sorting through ideas and categorizing them by themes and patterns can help them to better understand the research. If there are any ideas the designer has a good feeling about, they should follow that feeling and explore that idea further, so that they can either eliminate it or take it to the next stage. The designer should encourage their team to brainstorm a plethora of innovative ideas, no matter how wild or unattainable they seem. Brainstorming this way ensures that you come up with the best possible idea. Next, they should come up with a concept that they can perfect and push onward to the last stage: Implementation.
In the last stage, Implementation, the designer explores what’s next, how they’re going to bring their concept to life, and making sure their solution is working. First, they should consider using a Live Prototype, where they get the chance to test their product in the real world, only for a few weeks (The Field Guide…). They should ensure they have a plan for getting their product to market and how they are going to present it to the public. It is also important to build connections through networking. Creating a funding strategy will also help plan for spending and expenses. Now that they’ve implemented a Live Prototype, they should produce a Pilot product to test for a longer-term (The Field Guide…). The last and final step is to connect with funders and go to market.
Works Cited
The Field Guide to Human-Centered Design. Design Kit, 2015.
