Seven design thinking principles that will help hybrid work succeed

The following contains excerpts from an in-depth interview with WORKTECH Academy. Click here to read the full article.


Far too often, technology integration when it comes to the hybrid workplace is currently missing the mark. A novel approach by Canada’s ET Group uses design thinking to develop more human-centred solutions.

 

In the final article of our series on “Making Hybrid Happen” with WORKTECH Academy, we’ve summarized the seven key design thinking principles that we abide by in our approach to human-centred technology design. 

Why this approach? By putting the human experience first, and technology second, we can gain a better understanding of your desired experience and unveil the real obstacles, unique use-cases and people challenges that we are solving for.

“Everyone agrees that effective tech integration can unlock new ways of working, but there is far less consensus on the best way to go about the process.”

Here are just a few of the ways that we do it: 

 

1.  Adopt a participatory mindset 

We look to our clients as our co-creators, and use a range of methods to look at things through the lens of [your] users – from one-to-one confidential conversations and immersive role-playing to asking your people to tell stories about their experiences.

2.  Show empathy 

Showing empathy, — or, walking a mile in the user’s shoes — allows us to really understand struggles you’re facing and get you and your people more engaged in the process. When you feel truly seen and heard, you open the door to more honest conversation. 

3.  Prototype early and often 

Allowing you to test solutions as we discover them and get a feel for what the resulting experience could be gives us important intel on what’s working, and what isn’t so we can continue to iterate until we find the right fit. 

4.  Create a shared platform

There needs to be alignment between everyone contributing to the process of what the desired experience is, what methods are being used and what success looks like. When we all agree on a shared objective, we are much more eager to take the journey to get there, together.

Discover the rest of the seven principles here, and read the rest of the “Making Hybrid Happen” series at WORKTECH Academy.

 


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Is empathy the missing link in tech integration for hybrid?

Building the hybrid workplace requires technology integrators to pay more attention than ever to human behaviour. Canada’s ET Group is using the principles of design thinking to make empathy central to the development process.

In a world where technology is always evolving, it’s so easy to get distracted by all the bells and whistles, and forget about what actually matters: the user. 

This is a huge problem, especially when it comes to creating hybrid workplaces, because when human behaviour is not taken into account, there will be more problems created rather than solved. 

However, we are able to avoid this problem by using design thinking. And a crucial element of design thinking is empathy. Empathy allows us to focus on the human experience, and really understand the true needs and desires of the user; even some they weren’t aware they had. Through walking in their shoes, we see the problem from as many perspectives as possible.  We are able to identify all of the gaps and explore many different approaches to finding the long-term hybrid workplace solution.

That’s not to say that it’s always an easy process. The idea of a deep discovery phase can be off-putting for some clients. They assume that it’s going to be too time consuming. But that’s actually not the case. By taking the time to listen to an organization’s story, we get to the best solution much faster than if we had simply installed whatever tech is new or trendy. Plus inviting clients to be so involved allows for deeper and more trusting relationships, because they feel truly seen and understood.

Discover more reasons why empathy matters every step of the way when using design thinking, and how it opens the door for more creative and inclusive solutions by reading our latest interview with WORKTECH Academy here.


ET Group
 is a Corporate Member of WORKTECH Academy. This article is the third in a series on the role of design thinking in technology integration for the hybrid workplace. Read the first two articles here and here.

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Subscribe to ET Group’s YouTube Channel

How can technology and design collaborate on hybrid?

Technology integrators and interior designers need to work closely to create the hybrid workplace, but too often there is a divide. ET Group is using the principles of design thinking to build bridges – is this a blueprint for collaboration?

Where designing hybrid workspaces is concerned, technology is to design as music is to dancing. You can’t have one without the other. Sure, you can separate them, but paired together they’re just so much better. 

Include technology early in the design process

In order to create successful hybrid strategies, companies need to think about space and technology collaboratively, not as separate design phases with different desired outcomes. Too often, organizations are leaving technology decisions to be made at the end of the design process, and they are missing out on opportunities to optimize these choices to suit all of their employees’ needs. By taking a human-centered approach, Design Thinking creates the right foundation for the ultimate partnership between interior designers and technology integrators.

Lead as co-experts

This is why it’s important to think of designers and technology integrators as co-experts, and give them the opportunities to collaborate with each other as early as possible. Design Thinking allows for a process that allows both parties to collaborate and build on each others different areas of expertise where best suited, in order to co-create the ideal hybrid workspace for the client. As our CEO Dirk Propfe explained to WORKTECH Academy, “We need to jump into each other’s swim lanes to learn together”.

5 key principles to a succesful relationship

At ET Group there are 5 big things we often think about when working with designers in order to guarantee a successful outcome: 

1. Define what success looks like.
2. Agree on the process.
3. Focus on experience, not just appearance.
4. Prototype together early and often.
5. Keep it simple.

You can read about these 5 big things in more detail, as well as the rest of our interview with WORKTECH Academy here, and understand why we believe Design Thinking will help achieve better collaboration between design and technology.

ET Group is a Corporate Member of WORKTECH Academy. This article is the second in a series on the role of design thinking in technology integration for the hybrid workplace. Read the first article here.


Stay connected with us:

Follow ET Group on LinkedIn

Follow us on Twitter

Subscribe to ET Group’s YouTube Channel