Design Thinking Academy + Policy Lab Masterclass

An offshoot of the Bootcamp with HPI D-School and from the previous collaborations, Design Center and DTI-Export Marketing Bureau (DTI-EMB) partnered for a conduct of a design thinking workshop for the National Exporters Week 2023 (NEW 2023). EMB Director Bianca Pearl Sykimte as one of the Bootcamp participants with HPI D-School acknowledges the value of a design thinking approach in creating new values for the market; hence, she worked with Design Center for a targeted program specifically for MSMEs with export-oriented businesses in products or services. Design Center brought in Hyper Island APAC as design thinking experts for the Masterclass, which was titled “Business Design: At the Intersection of People, Purpose and Context”, and was conducted last 06 December 2023, at ColLab, Sheraton Hotel Manila. The Masterclass was attended by 70 participants mainly MSMEs and Practicing Designers from 9 Regions in the country and 13 observers from the same categories.

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The "Business Design: At the Intersection of Purpose, People, and Context Masterclass”, in partnership with Hyper Island APAC, was conducted with the aim to assist exporters in understanding how Design, through its thinking frameworks, can transform business models and processes to deliver the best value to a company’s target consumers and chart a path for the future. This workshop focuses on the importance of understanding people, as target market and as consumer of goods and/or recipient of services, including their unique context as part of the business’ purpose that intersects with the products purpose. The intention of the program is to integrate the generative thinking processes of Design Thinking to assist MSMEs in better understanding their consumers on a deeper level and intentionally providing the right solutions to address consumers’ needs.  

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The Masterclass activities began with a lecture on human-centered and its role in improving business performance. The activities were also guided by three frameworks that will support the MSMEs in going through each stage of the design process.  

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Sensemaking ‍

Putting observations together and connecting the dots among those observations and information; sensemaking is crucial to developing a bigger picture, understanding the why behind any process, and pushing forward an insight-based making part of the design process.

Customer Journey Map ‍

This enables the MSMEs to think in terms of the client’s perspective, and his or her journey when using the product or service; the customer journey map provides insights on win and pain points that can help improve the development of a product or service

Jobs to be Done

‍This puts into perspective that the product or service is the ends to the people’s needs, emphasizing that the user and his or her needs are at the heart of any product or service; this is further contextualized by the functional, emotional and social layers it add to the ‘jobs to be done’.  

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To guide the participants throughout the learning process, HI APAC Design Thinking coaches designed the Masterclass to be conducted into two parts:  

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The Session: Honest sharing for growth

By reflecting and sharing real experiences and trying out the concepts of Design, participants shared their learnings, successes, failures, and frustrations in a safe and growth-oriented environment to the benefit of all the participants. Transparency was encouraged and participants focused on noting key themes that emerged from the conversations.  

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Outcome: Confidence, Community, Commitment

Gathering to share learnings, the participants built confidence in their abilities as they connected to a community of like-minded individuals who share a mindset and viewpoint on Design. There is a collective appreciation of how design has played a crucial role in the successes of their businesses over the years, highlighting the uniqueness of Filipino design sensibilities and quality of craftsmanship.  

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Learning by Doing Methodology

Participants were engaged and nudged to do the activities and exercises beyond their comfort zone. These include forming small group sessions that created an interactive environment that encouraged a holistic appreciation of the masterclass. HI ensured that they engaged the participants’ head, heart, and hands so learnings are not just heard but felt and experienced holistically, underscoring the heuristic nature even of the Double Diamond design process. The Learning by Doing method is also further emphasized through the following principles:  

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• Self-Awareness  
  • Participants were encouraged to develop a deeper understanding of their own purpose, values, strengths, weaknesses, and leadership style.

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• ‍Systems Thinking  ‍
  • Participants were invited to view their organization as a complex system with interconnected parts, and to understand the impact of their decisions and actions as part of the whole ecosystem.

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• Collaborative Learning  
  • Participants were encouraged to engage in collaborative learning, where they work with other leaders to solve real-world problems, share experiences, and gain new perspectives.

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• Action Learning  
  • Participants were challenged to experiment with new approaches and behaviors, take risks, and learn from their successes and failures.  

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• ‍Human-Centered  
  • Participants were encouraged to empathize with their employees, customers, and stakeholders, and to design solutions that meet their needs and preferences.

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• Reflective Practice
  • Participants were engaged in reflective practice, where they take time to reflect on their experiences, learn from their successes and failures, and use feedback to improve their performance.