Innovation and Design Thinking are two closely human-centered related concepts that can work together to help develop new products or services.

Innovation is the process of creating something new or improved, while Design Thinking is a problem-solving approach that involves empathy, creativity, and experimentation.

Together, Innovation and Design Thinking can help organizations develop new products and services that are more human-centered, effective, and successful.

Innovation and Design Thinking work along

Here is a step-by-step guide on how Innovation and Design Thinking can work along together to develop new products or services:

  1. Identify the problem or opportunity: The first step is to identify a problem, area of improvement, or a new business opportunity that must be targeted. This identification can be done through market research, customer feedback, or other forms of data gathering. It’s necessary to take the time to thoroughly understand the problem or opportunity, as this will inform the rest of the process.
  2. Define the user and their needs: Once the area of improvement, or a new business opportunity has been identified, the next step is to define the user and their needs. This step involves conducting user research to have a better understanding of the target audience for the product or service. By understanding the user’s needs, wants, and pain points, it becomes more comfortable to develop solutions that will meet their needs.
  3. Generate ideas: Once the user and their needs have been defined, the next step is to generate ideas for potential solutions. The generation of ideas should be done through brainstorming sessions, ideation workshops, or other creative techniques. The goal at this stage is to come up with as many ideas as possible, without judging or evaluating them.
  4. Select and refine ideas: After generating a large number of ideas, the next step is to select and refine the most promising ones. This selection and refining of ideas can be done through a process of evaluation and feedback, where the ideas are assessed based on their feasibility, desirability, and viability. The goal at this stage is to select the best ideas and refine them into more detailed concepts.
  5. Prototype and test: Once the ideas have been refined into detailed concepts, the next step is to create prototypes and test them with users. Prototyping allows the team to quickly and inexpensively test their ideas, and gather feedback from users to see how well the concepts meet their needs. The prototyping and testing step can be done through a variety of methods, including paper prototypes, digital prototypes, or even physical prototypes.
  6. Iterate and refine: Based on the feedback from user testing, the team can then iterate and refine the prototypes to improve their effectiveness. This can involve making changes to the design, functionality, or other aspects of the product or service. The goal at this stage is to continue refining the prototypes until they meet the user’s needs and solve the problem or opportunity identified in step 1.
  7. Launch and evaluate: Once the prototypes have been refined and the product or service is ready for launch, the final step is to bring it to market and evaluate its performance. This can involve conducting market research to understand how well the product or service is meeting customer needs, and making adjustments as needed.

By following this process of Innovation and Design Thinking, organizations can develop new products and services that are more user-centered, effective, and successful.

This approach allows teams to work collaboratively and creatively to solve complex problems and create solutions that truly meet the needs of their users.

Innovation squad 

An Innovation Squad is a team of individuals within an organization who are responsible for driving innovation and developing new products or services.

If you want to introduce an Innovation Squad to your organization and use it to develop new products or services using Innovation and Design Thinking, here is one possible approach:

  1. Identify the business goals and needs that the Innovation Squad will focus on. This could include improving customer satisfaction, increasing efficiency, entering new markets, or other goals that align with the overall strategy of the organization.
  2. Assemble a diverse team of individuals with a range of skills and expertise. This should include people with expertise in Design Thinking, Product Design, Service Design, Marketing & Branding, as well as individuals with technical skills, business knowledge, and creative problem-solving abilities.
  3. Provide the team with resources and support to allow them to work effectively. This could include funding, access to relevant tools and technologies, and training them in Innovation and Design Thinking methodologies.
  4. Encourage the team to adopt a customer-centric approach, using Design Thinking techniques such as empathy mapping and rapid prototyping to understand the needs and desires of the target market.
  5. Encourage the team to generate and explore a wide range of ideas for new products or services, using innovative techniques such as idea generation sessions and design sprints.
  6. Prototype and test potential ideas, gathering feedback and iterating on the design until a viable solution is found.
  7. Once a new product or service has been developed, work with relevant stakeholders to implement it and bring it to market.

By following this process, the Innovation Squad can use Innovation and Design Thinking to develop new products or services that meet the needs of the target market in creative and innovative ways.

Most common roles of an Innovation Squad

Disclaimer: Just to keep in mind the specific roles within an Innovation Squad will depend on the needs and goals of the organization, as well as the skills and expertise of the team members.

However, some common roles are often found in Innovation Squads:

  1. Innovation Manager: The Innovation Manager is responsible for overseeing the work of the Innovation Squad and ensuring that it aligns with the overall goals and strategy of the organization. They may also be responsible for identifying opportunities for innovation and setting the direction for the team.
  2. Designer: Visual and web designers use Design Thinking techniques to understand the user needs, wants challenges, etc, and create solutions that meet those needs. They may also be responsible for prototyping and testing new ideas, as well as creating visual designs for new products or services.
  3. Researcher: Researchers conduct market research and gather data to understand the needs and desires of the target market. This information can be used to generate ideas for new products or services and to validate the viability of those ideas.
  4. Technologist: Usually IT profiles with technical expertise in areas such as software development, infrastructure, data analysis, or hardware design. They may be responsible for developing and implementing the technical aspects of new products or services.
  5. Business Strategist: Subject Matter Experts are usually part of the team because they have expertise in areas such as business planning, market analysis, and financial modeling. They may be responsible for developing business plans for new products or services, and for identifying and evaluating potential revenue streams.
  6. Creative Problem-Solver: Usually marketing team members are individuals with strong problem-solving skills and the ability to think outside the box. They may be responsible for generating and exploring new ideas, and for finding creative solutions to problems that arise during the development process.

By including a mix of individuals with these types of skills and expertise, an Innovation Squad can effectively use Innovation and Design Thinking to develop new products or services that meet the needs of the target market.

Measuring the progress through a set of KPIs

Key performance indicators (KPIs) are performance metrics that can be used to measure the progress and success of an organization or a specific project.

If you want to define a set of KPIs for an Innovation Squad that is responsible for developing new products or services using Innovation and Design Thinking, here are some possible options:

  1. The number of new ideas generated: Tracking the number of new ideas that the Innovation Squad generates can help to measure the team’s creativity and innovation.
  2. The number of ideas that are prototyped and tested: Measuring the number of ideas that the team takes through the prototyping and testing phase can help to understand how effectively they are using design thinking techniques.
  3. The number of successful launches: Tracking the number of new products or services that are successfully launched can provide a measure of the team’s overall success in developing and implementing new ideas.
  4. Customer satisfaction: Gathering feedback from customers about new products or services can help to understand how well they meet the needs of the target market. This can be measured using customer satisfaction surveys or other methods.
  5. Revenue generated by new products or services: Tracking the revenue generated by new products or services can provide a measure of their financial success.
  6. Time to market: Measuring the time it takes the team to bring new products or services to market can help to understand the efficiency of the development process.

By tracking these and other relevant KPIs, you can measure the progress and success of the Innovation Squad and identify areas for improvement.

Calculate the RoI of an Innovation Squad

The return on investment (RoI) of an Innovation Squad is a measure of the financial performance of the team.

To calculate the RoI of an Innovation Squad, you will need to gather data on the costs associated with the team and the benefits that it generates.

Here is a detailed process for calculating the RoI of an Innovation Squad:

  1. Identify the costs associated with the Innovation Squad. This should include both direct and indirect costs, such as salaries and benefits for team members, training and development expenses, and any other costs associated with the team’s work.
  2. Identify the benefits generated by the Innovation Squad. This could include revenue generated by new products or services, cost savings resulting from process improvements, or other financial benefits.
  3. Calculate the RoI. To calculate the RoI, divide the benefits generated by the Innovation Squad by the costs associated with the team. The result is the RoI, expressed as a percentage.

For example, if the costs associated with the Innovation Squad are $100,000 and the benefits generated by the team are $200,000, the RoI would be calculated as follows:

RoI = ($200,000 – $100,000) / $100,000 = 100%

This means that for every dollar invested in the Innovation Squad, the organization has realized a return of $1.

It is important to note that the RoI of an Innovation Squad is just one way to measure the performance of the team.

Other factors, such as customer satisfaction, market share, and the impact of new products or services on the organization’s overall strategy, may also be important considerations.

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