Design Thinking Action Lab

This week’s assignment is about developing empathy for someone who has a stake in the school-to-work transition, and defining a problem or need (*) he/she has related to the challenge.

 

The work for this week’s assignment is divided in four sequential steps:

 

1. Prepare for the empathy work.

2. Go out and talk to people.

3. Process the data gathered via interviews using an Empathy Map.

4. Craft a problem statement.

 

(*) Note that we often use the terms PROBLEM or NEED interchangeably. With both, we are referring to some aspect of the experience of a person that can be improved (this problem/need may not always be perceived or articulated by that person, that is, it may be implicit).

 

Step 1. Prepare for the empathy work.

 

Start by determinining who you might interview (a student, a graduate, an employer, etc.) and think of questions or areas of conversation for the interview. It is strongly suggested that you interview more than one person (2-3), to then select one interview to move forward.

 

If you need inspiration to think about who to interview and what questions to ask, go to the EMPATHY FORUM, and look for the CHALLENGE MINDMAP thread.

 

Step 2. Go out and talk to people.

 

If this is the first time you will be interviewing someone, don't worry! This is NOT the typical formal interview that often comes to mind. Think of it more as a conversation. Your goal is to find out as much as you can about the other person's experience related to the school-to-work transition. Explore what his/her experiences have been in the past, how he/she felt during key events (for instance, job interview, first day of work, etc.), what aspects were enjoyable and which ones could be improved. Explore the practical aspects of the experience, but don’t stop there, and also inquire about the emotional aspects of it.

 

A suggested time for each interview is 10-30 min.

 

Who should you interview? The easiest is to ask an acquaintance, friend or relative who has (or had) some stake in the challenge. You can also go out in your neighborhood or to a university or school, and find people who are willing to have a conversation with you about this (explain that you are working on a class project, and you will be surprised how many people will be happy to talk to you).

 

For more resources on how to conduct good interviews, visit the Toolkit: Empathize and Define page.

 

Step 3. Process the data gathered in the interview using an Empathy Map.

 

If you did more than one interview, select ONE of those interviews at this point to move forward.

 

In order to process the data you gathered in that interview you will create an Empathy Map for that person. The guidelines in the “Toolkit: Empathize and Define” page will help you create a good empathy map.  

 

Step 4. Craft a problem statement.

 

Your job in this step is to narrow down the initial challenge to a more actionable problem based on the data gathered in the interview.  Your Problem Statement will have the following components: a STAKEHOLDER (PERSON), a PROBLEM/NEED and an INSIGHT.

Again, you will find more instructions to craft a good problem statement in “Toolkit: Empathize and Define” page.

You need to submit both the EMPATHY MAP and PROBLEM STATEMENT in one assignment.

 

The format to submit this assignment can be:

1. Powerpoint (ppt or pptx file),

2. pdf

3. Prezi

For (1) and (2) you’ll need to upload to slideshare or other allowed hosting service (see submission instructions).

In all cases you will use the “media” button and paste the link to the corresponding deck, pdf or prezi.

Templates  

 We created a template of Empathy Map + Problem Statement you may use, adapt, or take as inspiration to create your own. Feel free to be creative, and use images as well (see note below)

This one on slideshare is downloadable, while this reusable prezi template can be copied to your account (*). 

* You would need to have or create a Prezi account (there is a free version). Please note that, depending on the Prezi license you have, your prezis might be viewable by the general public, beyond the participants in the class. 

See more details in the submission instructions.

***IMPORTANT**** Please make sure to adhere to the following norms with respect to names and photos:

• Do NOT use REAL NAMES of people, companies or schools;

• Do NOT use PHOTOS of people you interviewed. You may use other images to represent them (for instance, you may use Google image search or creativecommons.org).

 

If you are part of a learning squad, please discuss your process and progress with them and go to Forums EMPATHY and DEFINE to post your reflections, if you’d like.