Design Thinking - A method to serve innovation

Design Thinking is an incremental, user-centered innovation method that draws its essence from the logic of Designers.

When a problem requiring innovation (managerial, organizational, technological or digital) is well known, companies call on their engineers and managers to solve the problem with the appropriate innovative project management tools and rigorous planning. However, when the problem in question is not clearly identified, a user-centered approach takes on its full meaning.

A question then arises for players wishing to implement a Design Thinking approach: should they include Designers in their multi-disciplinary team or not? Companies then turn to players specializing in Design Thinking. However, victim of its own success, a multitude of players are seizing on the Design Thinking phenomenon, with diametrically opposed logics and approaches. While some emphasize a cognitive approach, the basis of Designers' thinking, others emphasize a methodological approach, the basis of the thinking of specialists known as Design Thinkers. Not to mention the consulting firms, coaches and experts who have appropriated Design Thinking for organizational purposes or in "maker" cultures.

With this in mind, we present an overview of the different approaches to Design Thinking, as well as the associated tools, all of which come from different worlds (design, anthropology, innovation, visual facilitation and even sport).

Since the 2010s, Design Thinking has gained in popularity and spread to all walks of life: from industry and entrepreneurship to public institutions and business and engineering schools.

The aim of this article is to provide an overview of Design Thinking and to show how this approach can be useful in the context of innovation.

After presenting what Design Thinking is, and the diversity of these approaches, we'll focus on the cases for which its application is best suited.